Not to take the shine off GM chairman Bob Lutz’ favorite apple, but it seems that cash-strapped consumers just aren’t going for the hybrids coming off American assembly lines these days.

 Yes, despite winning the tag of green vehicle of the year at the ’07 Los Angeles auto show, the Chevy Tahoe hybrid has not been a hit with consumers. There are several theories as to why; foremost among them the hefty price tag (starting at $50,000) and still-poor (20 mpg) gas mileage.

It could be very bad news for American auto manufacturers, as they seem to have been banking heavily on the green appeal of these super-sized hybrids. With the Chevy Volt project is still two years away, Detroit’s most notable green car still appears to be the Geo Metro.  

 As if GM needed any more indication of which direction consumer demand was heading, there was at least one Yugo sighting in a major American city this week. You’ve got be hard up for fuel economy to voluntarily drive the Worst Car of the Millenium.