With gasoline prices going through the roof lately, the main question on every motorists' mind has been how to save some money at the pumps. The obvious answers are to either drive less, or buy a car that uses less gas, preferably a gas-electric hybrid. Hybrids, unfortunately, are pretty expensive, but Honda (NYSE: HMC) has announced plans for releasing an affordable gas-electric hybrid next year.

Honda plans on this new hybrid to be a brand new car model for the company, and the model will only come in the hybrid version. In addition, it will also be coming out with new hybrid versions of its already popular Civic and CR-Z.

The company's President, Takeo Fukui, stated that there has been a lot of attention placed on hybrids recently, and that now was the time to "go to the next step." He did not make any predictions on just how much the new hybrid-only model would cost, other than it would be affordable. There was also no mention of the name for the new model, but some descriptions were given, including that it would be a 5-door sedan with new weight reduction technology to help improve the vehicle's efficiency.

While discussing costs, though, Fukui did get on the topic of the difference in prices between traditional gas-powered models and their hybrid counterparts. Currently, when consumers go to make the choice between a gas-only car and its hybrid cousin, the price difference can be quite a deterrent, with the hybrid models costing close to $5,000 more. That extra 5K could be just enough to keep car shoppers from going with the more "green" alternative. Granted, with the way gasoline prices have been moving lately, that extra $5,000 could wind up paying for itself much quicker than anyone expected.

Regardless, Fukui mentioned that the current gap between the gas-only and hybrid car models was simply unacceptable. He hinted that the new versions of his company's hybrids would not carry such a large additional cost as compared to their gas-only versions. Fukui stated that he felt the gap could, and should, be brought down to under $2,000. He called this "a must."

So as gasoline prices continue to surge, and with no apparent relief on the horizon, it is good to know that at least a few more affordable options should be coming to a showroom near you at some point in the foreseeable future.

I am curious to hear from our readers on this subject. Do you own a gas only car, or a hybrid? Have you considered a hybrid car in the past, only to be put off by the price? If you do own a hybrid, what has your experience been with the car?

Looking forward to hearing from you on this one!

Michael Fowlkes has worked as a stock trader for seven years and spent the last four years working as an analyst for the online investment advisory service Investor's Observer.