I've made your same point debating the folly of hybrids (expense of replacing batteries and from an eco standpoint well now you get to something I do believe is potentially bad disposing of these things responsibly is probably fairly costly as well).
As for the cost of Electricity, they indicate that it costs $3.20 for 320 miles. That's what makes it attractive.
Of course, if I were putting together a solution, I'd take a page out of Chrysler's history book and couple it with Reverend Dr Robert Sterling's invention to create a Turbine Engine mated to an electrical generator with a sterling engine placed directly in contact or integrated into (to make use of the thermal energy produced by the turbine) with a radiator placed strategically in front or on top to maximize temperature differentials thus driving the sterling engine with greater intensity and hook that up to an electrical generator as well and obviously throw in the regenerative brakes (to produce electricity while slowing/stopping the vehicle). The beauty of this solution is largely based on the fact that the turbine engine will run on anything flammable (biodiesel, gasoline, diesel, fry grease, alcohol). One of the shortcomings of the turbine engine was that it was hard to harness and control the distribution (via transmission) of energy to accelerate, etc. If you have this very flexible (with regards to fuels being used) engine driving something that can run optimally for it and then couple that with an engine that doesn't just let all that by product heat energy just go unused, well now you're getting somewhere.
All's I need is a little venture capital!
