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SANTA MONICA, Calif. — Based on transaction data, current customer and dealer incentives as well as federal tax credits, TrueCar revealed what it believes are the best deals for 2009 and 2010 hybrid vehicles.

Taking top spot for the current model year was the 2010 Ford Escape, which surpassed seven other domestic vehicles that TrueCar listed in its Top 10.

Among 2009 hybrid vehicles, TrueCar went with Nissan Altima over choices that primarily consisted again of domestic brands.

"Over the last year, gas prices have quietly risen 46 percent," noted Jesse Toprak, vice president of industry trends and insights for TrueCar.

"When gas prices were at $1.50 per gallon then rose suddenly to $3 per gallon, many consumers felt the need to get a hybrid," Toprak continued.

"Now that we have been at that level for so long, we've become immune to the expense and a hybrid isn't as much of a priority as we think they should be," he interjected.

"That's why we did this analysis — to tell consumers about the best new-car deals to help them go green," Toprak added.

The company compiled its latest analysis by poring over 43 percent of all individual U.S. car deals per month from dozens of proprietary and third-party sources offering TrueCar Price Reports. Furthermore the analysis includes more than 84 percent of all new vehicles at the local level as well as information on dealer and consumer incentive trends.

TrueCar Top 10 2010 Hybrid Models by Discount from MSRP 
 Model  Trim   MSRP  Net Price
 After Tax
 Credits, All
 Incentives 		  Percentage
 Discount
 from MSRP
 Ford Escape   FWD 4dr Hybrid  $30,585    $26,306  14.0
 Nissan Altima       4dr Sedan I4  eCVT Hybrid    $27,500      $23,795         13.5
 Mercury Mariner            FWD 4dr Hybrid       $30,830      $26,861         12.9
 Chevrolet Silverado 1500  2WD Crew Cab 143.5IN 1HY  $39,335      $34,428         12.5
 Cadillac Escalade   4WD 4dr Platinum     $88,675      $78,453         11.5
 Mercury Mariner     4WD 4dr Hybrid       $32,580      $29,046         10.8
 Chevrolet Malibu    4dr Sedan Hybrid     $26,645      $24,154          9.3
 Lexus LS600h L      4dr Sedan Hybrid     $109,675    $100,284      8.6
 GMC Yukon           4WD 4dr Denali       $62,295      $57,072          8.4
 Ford Fusion         4dr Sedan            $28,675      $26,744          6.7

TrueCar Top 10 2009 Hybrid Models by Discount from MSRP 
 Model  Trim  MSRP  Net Price
 After Tax
 Credits, All
 Incentives		 Percentage
 Discount
 from MSRP 
 Nissan Altima       4dr Sedan I4 eCVT    $27,370      $19,600         28.4
 Mazda Tribute       FWD I4 Touring       $28,925      $21,061         27.2
 Chevrolet Malibu    4dr Sedan            $26,275      $21,054         19.9
 Lexus LS 600h L     4dr Sedan           $106,910      $88,265         17.4
 Dodge Durango       4WD 4dr Limited      $45,890      $37,917         17.4
 Mercury Mariner     FWD 4dr I4           $30,815      $25,689         16.6
 Chrysler Aspen      AWD 4dr Limited      $46,120      $38,890         15.7
 Ford Escape         FWD 4dr I4 CVT       $30,370      $25,867         14.8
 Saturn Aura         4dr Sedan            $27,045      $24,172         10.6
 GMC Yukon           2WD 4dr              $51,870      $46,674         10.0