That article seems to be a poor defence for the inadequacy of hybrids. And the end of the day it's economics that will decide an individual's decision to buy a hybrid over a regular petrol or diesel car. Yes, a few people will do it out of environmental responsibility, but very few.Since hybrids aren't mass produced to the extent of their petrol counterparts, they are more expensive. So therefore, the only way that it becomes beneficial to the average Joe on the street is if the kmpl is very good.And from that sense, yes it would be very attractive to get a Civic that gives 20kmpl as opposed to the 9 or 10 you get out of the petrol version. But this would be only if other things remain constant. If servicing / maintenance costs are substantially higher, or pickup is less, then many people wouldn't go for the hybrid version.