The electric car is almost here. Hybrids abound. Diesel has cleaned up its act. Even conventional internal combustion engines can be tweaked to do a bit less harm to the environment.
A brighter, cleaner future is a mantra at the auto shows this year. Scratch beneath the surface, however, and a different sort of impression emerges: Change may be coming to the automobile industry, but progress is slow — even grudging — and the message can be murky.
[caption id="attachment_9709" align="alignright" width="201" caption="Chevy Volt. Photo: Green Right Now"][/caption]
Chevy has been hyping the much-discussed Volt, for example. The manufacturer’s new electric car – due later this year – can go up to 40 miles on a single charge before a gasoline engine kicks in to keep passengers from becoming stranded.
One reason people keep driving old-fashioned, CO2-spewing automobiles is that it’s awfully easy to find a gas station.
[caption id="attachment_7889" align="alignleft" width="226" caption="The LEAF on display in Phoenix (Photo: Clint Williams)"][/caption]
Widespread adoption of emission-free plug-in electric cars – the kind that run solely on battery power – has been hampered by a classic chicken-or-the-egg conundrum: no wants to drive an electric car until charging stations are widespread and no one wants to build a network of convenient charging stations until there are enough electric cars on the road to make it pay off.
The iconic gasoline-electric hybrid favored by movie stars is all-new for this model year and the third-generation Prius offers more room, more power and more miles per gallon than its predecessors. It’s a pretty neat trick.
With the 2010 models hitting the showrooms, we wanted to take a look at the most anticipated and intriguing hybrids available. With the first plug-in hybrids and all-electric vehicles just around the corner, this will be the last year that conventional hybrids will have the “alternative” market to them selves. So let’s look at the 2010 hybrids that really stand out:
A survey of eco-friendly vehicles released today from IntelliChoice.com shows that most 2009 hybrid and clean diesel cars, trucks and SUVs deliver a lower cost of ownership compared to standard versions of the same vehicles.
The 2009 IntelliChoice.com Hybrid and Diesel Car survey examined the value of all 2009 model year hybrids and vehicles with clean diesel engines. The company evaluated the major factors that determine a vehicle’s cost of ownership over a five year period or 70,000 miles, including fuel, maintenance and repair, retained value, insurance costs and taxes and fees.
Whatever you drive (or don’t) at home, traveling to a city with poor public transport can put you at the mercy of either taxis whose efficiency may not have been state-of-the-art since the ’80s or rental cars chosen for popularity and price instead of their MPG rating.
The rental firm Enterprise, mindful of current trends, has just announced it is adding about 5,000 hybrid autos to its rental fleet — cars customers can have set aside for them in advance either online or over the phone.
Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., today unveiled the 2010 edition of the Prius at the 2009 North American International Auto show in Detroit. The car, which has become synonymous with hybrid technology, will get larger even as it retains it high-mileage capability.
Imagine a day of running errands – grocery shopping, dropping off the dry cleaning, hauling the kids to T-ball practice – that doesn’t include a stop for gas. Now imagine a week. A month. Three months. Six months. A year. Five years.
That’s the promise of the Chevrolet Volt, a plug-in electric car expected in dealer showrooms November 2010. Powered by a T-shaped lithium-ion battery pack, the four-passenger Volt will be able to travel 40 miles on a charge.
That’s enough range for the bulk of daily driving, GM officials say, citing a U.S. Department of Transportation surveythat found 76 percent of drivers commute 40 miles or less daily.
Drive a Volt and the only reasons for stopping at a QT are Slurpees and microwave breakfast burritos.
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