Tags: alternative fuel / fuel efficiency / green cars

What to Look for in a Green Car

- Rabu, 23 September 2015 No Comments

Lexus CT200h. Photo courtesy of Lexus.

Many car shoppers are looking for a greener car than the one they currently drive. For some it's about feeling like they are making a difference when it comes to the environment, while for others the desire for a green car is about saving money on fuel and other costs related to car ownership. Some car shoppers are concerned about dependence on foreign oil and its socio-political ramifications. There is also the benefit of various government purchasing incentives for certain types of vehicles that draw in buyers. Whatever your personal reason for purchasing a green vehicle, there are certain things you need to look for when evaluating your options.

One of the key areas to pay attention to is overall value. Some people fall into the trap of only looking at the price of a new car, while others are mesmerized by the estimated fuel economy and overall efficiencies. Value incorporates both factors and more, helping you ensure that your next vehicle is a purchase you won't regret. You must consider what you will be using the car for, such as only commuting, transporting your family, or even going on weekend excursions. Take close look at the different features and evaluate how those will affect your lifestyle. Research each model's reputation for reliability, as well as the included manufacturer's warranty, emissions information, an interior construction. You must also remember to purchase a vehicle that is the appropriate size for whomever will be riding in it regularly.

When it comes to fuel economy, you shouldn't necessarily always go with the more efficient vehicle. For example, if one model offers a five percent gain in fuel efficiency versus another, and the one car costs twenty percent more, you are not gaining much value for the extra money you spend, at least when it comes to fuel economy.

Range is another consideration, especially when you are considering purchasing an all-electric car. Most people overestimate how far they drive in a single day. You should research the estimated range of any models you are interested in buying, then watch the mileage of your car each day for a week or two. Compare how far you typically drive against the range of each model to evaluate if they would work with your lifestyle. Most electric car owners charge their vehicle at night, but if our employer has a vehicle charger on-site, that can also affect your decision about which car to purchase. You should research where different public chargers are located if you plan on using the vehicle for more than commuting to and from work and running a few errands here and there.

If you are looking for a green car as a way to minimize your impact on the environment, you also need to research how toxic the different interior components are. That new car smell some people love is actually the presence of toxins from the plastic as they evaporate into the air. Some automakers supply such information, but there are online organizations that compile lists of the least and most toxic vehicle interiors in an effort to encourage responsible purchasing decisions.

Tags: advice / alternative fuel / car shopping / diesel cars

Why You Should Buy a Diesel Car

- Jumat, 18 September 2015 No Comments

2015 Chevrolet Cruze Clean Turbo Diesel. Image courtesy of GM.

Diesel cars have gained a bad rap in the United States. When most Americans hear the term “diesel powered” they think of large trucks, machinery or heavy duty pickup trucks with plumes of smoke billowing out of their exhaust pipes. They also automatically assume diesels are slow and hard to find fuel for. Recent trends predict a sudden resurgence of diesel-powered passenger vehicles in the US. In fact, you can easily find a fair amount of pre-owned cars that are diesels.

Diesel has long been a favored fuel source both in Europe and many other parts of the world. What many Americans don’t realize is that owning a diesel powered car offers several advantages they simply can’t enjoy with a gasoline powered car.

Diesel cars achieve significantly higher fuel mileage. Everyone is looking to get more miles out of their tank of gas, which is fueling the growing number of hybrids on the road. With diesel cars, you can achieve fuel mileage similar to a hybrid’s, but without the worries that come with battery packs. For example, the 2012 VW Jetta with a diesel engine achieves an EPA estimated 42 MPG on the highway.

With newer government regulations, diesel cars no longer pollute like they used to. Diesel cars do not spew huge plumes of black smoke out of their tailpipes, due to a series of special filters required on a diesel powered car’s exhaust system. Modern technology has also developed noise dampeners that make diesel engines not nearly as loud as they used to be. Most diesel cars at cruising speed make about as much noise as a gasoline powered car.

2015 Volkswagen Golf TDI. Image courtesy of VW.

While diesel cars get better fuel mileage, they do so without sacrifices to performance. Everyone knows most hybrids are not wonderfully powerful cars. In fact, some call them downright boring to drive. Diesel engines, on the other hand, offer an incredible amount of low-end torque, giving drivers a good burst of power to get them going after coming to a stop. Many modern diesel engines are paired with one or more turbochargers, making them even more powerful and fun to drive.

Diesel cars don’t all come in funky designs. Let’s face it, not everyone drools over the body shape of a Prius. Many hybrid vehicles look strange. Diesel cars look like their gasoline counterparts, meaning you get a high fuel mileage but not the funky looks.

What about concerns that diesel fuel is hard to find? Gas station chains know that diesel is picking up popularity, and they’ve been preparing for the shift. Most gas stations now have at least one fuel pump with a diesel nozzle. In general, the closer a gas station is to a freeway or highway, the more likely it will have multiple diesel pumps.

Tags: alternative fuel / electric cars / fuel cell / future cars

Why All the Hate for Fuel Cell Vehicles?

- Senin, 17 November 2014 No Comments

Honda FCV Concept. Photo courtesy of Honda.

There has been considerable push-back against fuel cell vehicles recently, leading some automakers that are pushing the technology to step up their efforts to educate the public about its benefits. One of the funniest things about the efforts being made against fuel cell vehicles is that they are coming from electric vehicle proponents.

You might think that people who are into electric cars are all for any kind of alternative fuel that gets us off the fossil fuel addiction, but that's most certainly not the case. There have been many arguments made for why fuel cell technology is ridiculous and unnecessary, introducing an additional step that isn't necessary with electric cars.

This isn't a one-sided fight, as these things tend to go. Like I wrote about a few months ago, Toyota declared that fuel cell technology will win out over electrification. Even more recently, backers like Hyundai have released documents that essentially state that fuel cell vehicles are like electric cars, only without the problematic batteries. That's hit a sore spot for fans of vehicles like the Nissan Leaf and Tesla Model S, because deep down inside they know that battery technology is the single biggest thing holding sales back.

Most electric cars provide a range of under 100 miles and take at least half an hour to charge up (that's using one of the quicker methods, so it's even longer if you're charging at home). While I've been lectured that the slow charging times are "irrelevant" because quickly refueling a vehicle isn't really necessary, that is a big problem with electric cars. Maybe battery tech will advance to the point that charging up a car only takes five minutes and range is more like 400 miles. Oh, and about the whole range thing, cold weather affects the driving range of an electric car quite a bit.

In other words, those of us who live where it gets cold in the winter or who drive a car for more than 100 miles in a single trip view electric cars as impractical. Fuel cell vehicles promise to eliminate those problems.

My personal opinion is that the two technologies should be allowed to duke it out on the open market so that consumers can decide what works best. In fact, both could exist side-by-side since they don't technically conflict with each other. Of course, that would only work in an ideal world. The reality is that there will be a fight to the death, because both methods require the backing of governments and other organizations to really work. That's what the fighting is really about, when you boil it all down.

In my own personal opinion, it's too early to tell which technology will be the future. In the end, I'm just excited to see the negative effects of internal combustion engines become a part of history, because we are more than ready to revolutionize how we get around.

Tags: alternative fuel / electric cars / gas prices

Gas is Getting Cheap, and That's Bad

- Senin, 10 November 2014 No Comments

Photo by Markus Spiske

Everyone's getting excited that gas prices are dropping, because everyone knows that's just a good thing, right? Well, sometimes the truth is counter-intuitive and it sounds like that's the case with gas prices right now.

Both Forbes and The Wall Street Journal ran pieces recently that explored the bad economic consequences of gas that's too cheap. You can read those two articles to get the full rationale, because I won't do justice to them in a short space here.

Aside form the macroeconomic ramifications of cheap gasoline, there are some other concerns that are more focused on the areas of the automotive industry. One of the big concerns right now is that with cheap gas, consumers will stop wanting to buy electric cars and other alternative-fuel vehicles. This will cause stagnation in the technological advancements with these platforms, which will be a big deal when gas prices rocket back up, because they will. That's when people will be clamoring for something that doesn't burn gas, and the stagnant technology will still have quite a few kinks in it.

There's also the concern that with cheap gas prices, people are going to rush out and purchase a big, box-on-frame SUV to carry their purchases from Nordstrom's to home. Not thinking that the vehicle will last longer than the low prices, people do stupid things like that, and then panic once gas is $5.50 a gallon in no time flat.

Abandoning the alternative fuel options also certainly won't help as much with pollution. Sure, internal combustion engines are getting cleaner and more efficient, but they still produce pollution that everyone must deal with. An electric car that is charged using renewable energy from solar panels or wind turbines (or other methods) is truly contributing nothing to pollution just by being driven.

So think about these points as you go about buying a car in the coming months and years. The low gas prices will not continue, because if history has taught us one thing, gas prices are extremely volatile.

Tags: alternative fuel / Chevrolet / electric cars / future cars / General Motors / Volt

Surprise! The 2016 Chevy Volt Will Come with a Bigger Engine

- Selasa, 28 Oktober 2014 No Comments

Teaser image of the 2016 Volt. Image courtesy of GM.

One of the unique features of the Chevy Volt is that it uses a hybrid powertrain setup, although it's not like what you might be thinking. Instead of being able to drive using just the electric motor, the gasoline engine, or a combination of the two, the Volt is only propelled forward by the electric motor. The gasoline engine is really just a generator that replenishes the battery when it is depleted.

The setup is technically an extended-range electric powertrain, but the term "hybrid" confuses many people who think that the Volt is like the Prius. The unique configuration allows people to drive further than they could with a purely electric car, which arguably makes the Volt quite practical to own (especially if you venture outside of major metropolitan areas often.

GM has been keeping a tight lid on the development of the 2016 Volt, "leaking" an image along with a press release a few weeks ago that brags about the lengths it's gone to make sure the new generation's improvements stay secret. One little detail was released by GM today, revealing that the car's gasoline engine will in fact not be downsized as most industry experts were thinking, but instead will be made larger!

Instead of the 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine that is used right now, the next generation of the car will use a 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine to keep things going. Some were expecting the company to use the Opel 1.0-liter three-cylinder engine, but for reasons yet to be explained GM engineers decided to upgrade the gasoline powerplant. There must be a benefit of some sort to justify the extra weight of te larger engine, but for now we all just get to sit around and speculate.