Dear Marketplace,

So, as I'm cruising along on my way to work this morning, I hear your report about hybrid SUVs that says that my Prius gets great gas mileage in the city, but drops off sharply on the highway. So, I double check with my Prius' mileage display to see if I am, in fact, getting worse mileage than the 51mpg highway that I was told I would be getting. Sure enough, I'm not! I'm actually getting over 55 miles per gallon. I guess I won’t complain.

So what's this about the hybrid Tahoe being able to use its electric motor on the highway? Not exactly a novel concept, as I switch screens to see my electric motor helping my gas engine get up a hill, and then start recharging as I head down the other side.

Your story made it sound like a hybrid Tahoe would be, mileage-wise, superior to (or at least on par with) the Prius. I get 55mpg highway, average, and my daily driving is almost 90% highway (66 miles round trip, 59 of that at a constant 55MPH). Even with a 40% increase in mileage for the Tahoe, that's still less than 30mpg highway, over 20mpg less than the Prius is advertised at. Even for Prius owners who do 80mph and wonder why they're not getting the advertised mileage, their average of 40-45mpg is still far superior to GM's proposed Tahoe.

And please let's not forget that the size of these giant SUVs makes them near impossible to see around, accounting for them taking up an estimated 1.4 car lengths in traffic. That increase in city mileage might be great for the Tahoe, but it's not doing anyone else's mileage any favors... except that is, Prius drivers.

-pb