Hybrid cars have been receiving endorsements from the worlds most glamorous people. But, some say these cars are merely a fashion statement not a sensible environmental alternative.

The global automotive industy is coming under attack as consumers become more concerned about the environment. Demand for alternatives to petrol fuelled vehicles is growing. In a free report from ReportBuyer.com, Environmentally Friendly Driving: Are Hybrid Cars Just a Fashion Statement? the author asks whether the alternatives are all they’re cracked up to be.

Over the last decade, both demand and supply of Alternative Fuelled Vehicles (AFVs), - in particular, Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs) - has risen. HEVs are vehicles that are powered by two or more energy sources, most commonly gas and electricity.

In the US, Hybrid Electrical Passenger Vehicle (HEPV) sales reached 212,000 in 2005 compared with about 9,500 HEPVs sold in 2000. HEV sales accounted for 1.2% of US auto sales for 2005, doubling its market share over 2004.

According to a recent study, worldwide demand for light HEVs is expected to reach 4.5 million units in 2013 (representing over 6% of world light vehicle demand). The primary markets should still be in the following areas: NAFTA, Western Europe and Japan. In developing Asia, demand is forecast to be most significant in China and South Korea.

Although environment friendly cars are fuel efficient and cheaper to run over time, they still remain prohibitively expensive to the average customer, as most critics have emphasised. In fact, a hybrid car costs more than the same version of a standard fuel model.

Environmentally Friendly Driving considers the likely future development of the HEV market and whether environmentally friendly vehicles will become more and more integrated into the mainstream.