Honda Insight

Base price: $23,900

Vaughan: I hate quoting Cato because it just encourages him. But he did persuade me that a Honda Fit is more functional, less costly and delivers only slightly, slightly less fuel economy than the hybrid Insight. Hybrids must make Mr. Honda a bit crazy.

He got his hybrid to the market ahead of Mr. Toyoda's Prius. But Prius has buried all the various Honda hybrids over the years. However, if you want your first hybrid at a lower price than a Prius, this could be your car.

Ford Fusion Hybrid

Base price: $31,999

Cato: Ford has spent gobs of energy and resources telling anyone who will listen about the Fusion Hybrid's fuel economy – that it's better than anything else in its class. Good on Ford. Of course, some of us remember Ford promising a Fusion Hybrid many years ago, but we won't hold that against the company. Late as it is, at least Ford got its hybrid sedan right with this one. Toyota, have you noticed?

Toyota Prius

Base price: $27,500

Vaughan: With a decade of experience and a million-plus Prius cars sold, Toyota knows something about making a hybrid reliable and economical – at least in city driving. Now they want to up-sell you into something a little fancier. The new Prius has innovations galore and creature comforts aplenty. A leather-wrapped steering wheel in a Prius? There is now. You can actually run the price up to more than 35 thou. Spend! Wallow in Luxury! You can still feel superior for choosing a hybrid.

BMW 335d Sedan

Base price: $49,900

Cato: Spend a little time driving around Europe and you'll see hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of Bimmers and Benzes and Audis and the like racing down the autobahn with their diesel engines turning over at a couple of thousand rpms. You see, diesels can indeed be fast and powerful. This 3-Series is a diesel gem, an ideal example of a high-performance diesel. Now that BMW is out of Formula One, perhaps it's time to go racing diesels.

Lexus HS250h

Base price: $39,900

Vaughan: Remember that Prius with all the luxurious options and knock-out technologies? Well, turn it up several notches and you have the latest Lexus hybrid. Toyota decided to target conscientious rich people (surely an oxymoron) and plans to offer nearly everything Lexus builds in a hybrid version. In this case, the Lexus delivers seamless electric-to-gas driving, indisputable quality and the opportunity to one-up your other rich friends.

Mercedes-Benz S400 Hybrid

Base price: $105,900

Cato: A luxury gasoline-electric hybrid from Mercedes-Benz? Yes indeed. And it's the start of something even bigger. Mercedes has wisely put its toe into the hybrid pool, choosing to swim with the likes of Honda and Toyota after spending years arguing the case for clean diesels over hybrids. Now we have this S400. More like it are coming.

Volkswagen Touareg TDI Clean Diesel

Base price: $49,300

Vaughan: This one will make you King of the Truck Stop. I know – because I've driven a TDI extensively in the United States – that if you need diesel down there, get ready to line up with the 18-wheelers. But this one should give you cred with the truckers. If those guys in the lumberjack shirts read the Robb Report they'll know that the Touareg underneath is just like the Porsche Cayenne. Diesel's better – trust me.

Lexus RX450h

Base price: $58,900

Cato: Lexus pioneered the marketplace for luxury SUVs with a gasoline-electric hybrid drive system. Here, for 2010, Lexus has refined the concept, adding comfort and quiet and power, without sacrificing any of the hybrid advantages – excellent fuel economy and low tailpipe emissions. If you go high-horsepower on the weekend, the RX hybrid will assuage your conscience on the Monday-to-Friday commute when you pull out the Lambo.