Cars cars cars. I used to think you had to be a guy to be into cars. Right up until that moment when I started really caring about my carbon footprint, and then all I could think about was freaking cars. I got obsessed to be true. I looked into veggie cars. That’s cool, but my friends who were doing it were spending hours gathering oil and then creating the fuel in their garages and that didn’t work for me. I checked out biodiesel, and considered getting an old diesel car and converting it. But when I looked at the kind of car I could afford, and added up the amount of repairs that car would also need, that was ironically expensive. Then I looked into converting my car into an electric. One long drive down to LA later I soon realized that that epic procedure was out of the question for me as well.
And then I started looking into newer cars, which led me on a massive hunt to find and understand what went into making a car green, which took me on a epic hunt to learn about new technologies and what actually went into defining a car as green. This entire process has only been two years in the making and has taken hours of scouring listservs and barely managed sites, and frankly, turned out to be a source of torture for this non-caraphile. At the end of the day, the process made me want to ride my bike more. But it doesn’t change the issue: I still need a car, and I still want it to be a good one that is using the latest technologies and within my price range.
While embarking on my latest search for a green car I learned something I didn’t expect to hear: If you want to reduce your carbon footprint no more making out in the back seat of your car. Wait. I mean, you can make out, just don’t go all of the way. No wait. IF there the back seat of your car is big enough, you can go all of the way, but you have to use a condom. So if you really want to reduce your carbon footprint. Look in your..uhh..wallet, and not at you gas tank. That’s what I recently learned while checking out an article reporting on the Frankfurt Auto Show: I should start using condoms to lower my carbon footprint. The facts are coming out, if you want a car that has a small carbon footprint (we’ll skip over the argument that you wouldn’t have a car) than you should have a small car. A very small car. The kind of car that would make you get out of it if you wanted to…discuss… the birds and the bees. The kind of car that doesn’t need to carry a large family.
That is what The London School of Economics suggests, that condoms and other forms of birth control would be a good first step. A new report, Fewer Emitters, Lower Emissions, Less Cost, suggests that family planning should be seen as a primary method for curbing greenhouse-gas emissions.
John Voelkecker, editor in chief of GreenCarReports.com asks the very simple question: “Suppose all the money we’re investing in better gas mileage and auto emission controls could be used to cut greenhouse gases more productively? What would we spend it on?
Turns out that family planning services are remarkably cost-effective at cutting carbon emissions. Contraception and family planning can cut 1 ton of carbon for $6.70, the report says, against more conventional low-carbon technologies (including more fuel-efficient cars) at up to $31.70 per ton.”
Does this change the fact that reproducing is part of our genetic design, and that I happen to really like small children? Nope. This is beginning to be the heated debate of our time, and the conversation will only get more heated as the temperatures rise (or rather, sporadically changes). Meanwhile, to distract myself, I’ll keep fantasizing about getting a better and greener car.Cars cars cars. I used to think you had to be a guy to be into cars. Right up until... more
Love learning more about this: I actually took my little ford focus to Reverend Gadget (remember who killed the electric car?) to see how much it would cost to convert my car to an electric. The answer: 5K.
"Kudos to our colleagues at Popular Mechanics, who found four great green conversions for keeping clunkers out of the scrapyard, two to electric power and two to diesel engines.
Technically, two of their four cars wouldn't qualify as clunkers; they were built before the 1984 cutoff.
Greener diesel drag cars
They weren't all built as green cars, either. In fact, both diesel conversions are very competitive drag racers (all that torque, you know).
Mike Cook's fitted his 1994 Mustang with a hot-rodded GM Duramax diesel engine that gave him 33 miles per gallon on a recent road trip. David Murad's Buick Regal (made of parts from an '81 Regal, an '82 Regal, and an '81 Oldsmobile Cutlass--read the story) gets 25 to 35 mpg."Love learning more about this: I actually took my little ford focus to Reverend Gadget... more
Algaeus claims 150 mpg on renewable algae-based fuel
Toyota and Sapphire are working together on a new project involving a Prius powered by gasoline created from algae. To promote the Prius, dubbed Algaeus, the vehicle along with other green automobiles will go on a cross-country road trip lasting ten days.
The Algaeus is a plug-in hybrid that runs a fuel that is algae-based and renewable. The cross-country trip is in part to celebrate the launch of a film called FUEL that shows green energy solutions. The special hybrid automobile claims to be able to get 150 miles to a gallon of fuel. The tour kicked off yesterday in San Francisco and is set to end in New York on September 18 with stops in other major cities along the way.From source:
Algaeus claims 150 mpg on renewable algae-based fuel
Toyota and... more
"The hemp plant was one of humankind's first cultivated plants and there is quite a lot to educate oneself about this greatly historical plant. With the help of the hemp plant we could eliminate smog from current fuels, create a cleaner energy source that can replace nuclear power, clean up nuclear waste, and eliminate smog from our skies in more industrialized areas. We could eliminate non-biodegradable plastics and cars by reintroducing Henry Ford's 100 year old dream of building cars made from hemp with a plastic hemp car body that can withstand a blow 10 times as great as steel without denting, weighs 1 thousand pounds less than steel, hence improving gas mileage, can run on a vegetable oil based all natural hemp fuel, and is completely biodegradable. We could eliminate deforestation by converting current paper to hemp paper which can be recycled up to 8 times where as our current wood pulp is only recyclable up to 3, and we could thrive from eating it and feeding it to our animals and livestock."
Much more at the link.
Why do most people not know about this TREE OF LIFE?
It's shocking!
Nissan's gotten into a bit of a bragging contest on Twitter -- possibly fueled by Chevrolet's recent, shaky claim that the Volt will get 230 miles per gallon. The company is now saying that its new electric car, the Leaf, will get an astonishing 367 miles per gallon... even though it's a 100 percent electric car, and runs on absolutely no fuel.
So, isn't that zero miles per gallon? Well, yes and no: all these massive numbers are based on both the Department of Energy and the EPA's calculations for estimating equivalencies in electric cars. Why? Well, it seems that car companies are still giving us -- the prospective buying public -- MPG figures because they think that's what we understand best. Tony Posawatz, vehicle line director for Chevy's Volt recently admitted to the New York Times that the miles per gallon matrix is "probably not the best measure of goodness" for a car that uses no gallons at all, but that it's "what people are accustomed to."
We agree -- he's got a point -- but people were also accustomed to the hi-fi, the corded landline, and the steam engine. We assure you: people understand that a car that runs on zero gas (and therefore gets an astonishingly low amount of miles per gallon) is really, really awesome. So the MPG matrix is useless when talking about electric cars -- we'll adjust!Nissan's gotten into a bit of a bragging contest on Twitter -- possibly fueled by... more
Researchers at the Scotland’s University of St. Andrews are working on a project on the air-powered battery. If successful they will replace the lithium cobalt oxide electrode in the fuel cell. The “STAIR” (St. Andres Air) battery will be compatible on all renewable energy resources such as solar, wind, and oxygen. Professor Peter Bruce who is leading his team for this project, is of the opinion, “Our target is to get a five to ten fold increase in storage capacity, which is beyond the horizon of current lithium batteries. The key is to use oxygen in the air as a re-agent, rather than carry the necessary chemicals around inside the battery.”Researchers at the Scotland’s University of St. Andrews are working on a project on... more
How green can cars eventually be made? Well, in addition to solar power and hemp-based interiors, automobiles might one day sport tyres made from trees.
Wood science researchers at Oregon State University (OSU) say there’s potential to use microcrystalline cellulose — something that can be made from almost any type of plant fibre — to replace some of the silica used as a reinforcing filler in rubber tyres.How green can cars eventually be made? Well, in addition to solar power and hemp-based... more
DATE/LINE June 25,2009 / 22:36 HRS / San Mateo & East Palo Alto (EPA), California~
Reported to 911 as an "Armed Robbery in Progress". A small group of want to be Banditos rode their "Fluorescent Lime Green Stallion into the neighboring McDonalds in San Mateo to order up a super size helping of trouble. After making their bold order, and recieving their bag of ill gotten goodies and a side of fries... They all headed on back to their crib in their glow-in-the-dark Hoopty to share in their ill gotten McDonalds booty... ( But, unaware to the Banditos...) The police were called as their french fries were still cooking! Within minutes their license number was traced to their hideout in East Palo Alto where the police task force had now set their trap and were now all patiently waiting in the shadows.
( Also waiting... was one lone news photographer with a police scanner and broadcast camera to capture it all for the history books~! )
The San Mateo County Drug Task force used their Ace "Super Secret Hybrid Stealth Weapon" (SSHSW) to corral the "Wayward/Way-Weird" Bandito Crew. Who never in a million years would of ever thought they would be nabbed by a tricked-out Prius Hybrid Police Cruiser~!
So goes the tale of the Fluorescent Lime Green Getaway Vehicle not to be ridden off into the sunset like Butch Casidy and the Sundance Kid... But, now only to be written about in the history books and folklore for generations yet to come as the "Way-Weird Fluorescent Bandito Crew from EPA.
Cultivating the next generation of fuel-efficient vehicles, the Obama administration said Tuesday it would lend $5.9 billion to Ford Motor Co. and about $2.1 billion to Nissan Motor Co. and Tesla Motors Inc. in a government-industry partnership to build green cars.
Energy Secretary Steven Chu said the three automakers would be the first beneficiaries of a $25 billion fund to develop fuel-efficient vehicles. The loans to Ford will help the company upgrade factories in Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri and Ohio to produce 13 fuel-efficient vehicles.
Nissan will receive loans of $1.6 billion to retool its plant in Smyrna, Tenn., to build electric vehicles and construct a battery manufacturing plant. Tesla will get $465 million in loans to build electric vehicles and electric-drive powertrains in California.
The loans were designed to help auto manufacturers meet new fuel-efficiency standards of at least 35 mpg by 2020, a 40 percent increase over current standards.
“These loans will help the auto industry meet and even exceed the president’s tough fuel standards,” Chu said at Ford’s Research and Innovation Center. “This means the most fuel-efficient cars in the world must be made right here in America.”
Dozens of auto companies, suppliers and battery makers have requested $38 billion from the loan program, which was created last year to give car companies and suppliers low-interest loans to retool their facilities for green vehicles and components such as advanced batteries.
Ford had been seeking about $5 billion in loans by 2011 and a total of $11 billion from the program to invest $14 billion in advanced technologies over the next seven years.
The loans will help Ford convert two truck plants to produce cars and help the company raise the fuel efficiency of nearly 2 million new vehicles a year. The government said it will help Ford transform nearly 35,000 jobs into “green” engineering and manufacturing jobs.
Ford has said it intends to bring several battery-electric vehicles to market starting next year, with a plug-in hybrid vehicle coming by 2012.
“We want to be in every market segment in the U.S.,” said Ford CEO Alan Mulally. “Every year forever we want to continue to improve fuel efficiency.”
Ford expects to begin repaying the loans in 2012, with an interest rate based on the current U.S. Treasury rate hovering between 3 and 4 percent, said Ford spokesman Mike Moran. The company would have faced much higher interest rates from private lenders.
Ford can draw from the loan for work done to retool its plants going back to late last year, Moran said. Priority was given to plants at least 20 years old and the facilities must build cars that improve fuel efficiency by 25 percent.
Nissan said it would use its $1.6 billion loan to modify its Smyrna, Tenn., plant to produce zero-emissions vehicles and build a new facility to produce lithium-ion battery packs. The Japanese company has previously outlined plans to develop an all-electric car with 100 miles of pure battery range for release in late 2010.
The electric car will initially be built in Japan. Dominique Thormann, Nissan North America’s senior vice president for administration and finance, said the loans could create up to 1,300 jobs at the two facilities and lead to U.S. production of the electric car beginning in 2012.
Nissan Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn said in Japan that the U.S. would be “a very important market” for the company’s electric strategy. “I can tell you I’m not at all worried about how to sell these cars because there is an appetite for zero-emission cars.”
Tesla, based in San Carlos, Calif., will use $365 million for production engineering and the assembly of the Model S sedan, an all-electric vehicle that is expected to travel up to 300 miles per charge and go on sale in 2011. It will use $100 million for a powertrain manufacturing plant expected to employ 650 workers...Cultivating the next generation of fuel-efficient vehicles, the Obama administration... more
This is a bland 4 door sedan, but intentionally so. It's aimed right at heart of the masses. It's the anti-Tesla.
It will cost $45,000 pre-tax breaks, and will get 100 miles per charge. It will take 6 hours to charge, which means in 2 hours it will be good for 40 miles. Says Miles CEO, Kevin Czinger, 100 miles will cover 90% of the drivers needs.This is a bland 4 door sedan, but intentionally so. It's aimed right at heart of the... more
The vehicle even runs on green materials: it boasts a biodiesel engine that has been designed to take fuel that's made using waste chocolate and vegetable oil.The vehicle even runs on green materials: it boasts a biodiesel engine that has been... more
Sure, we can always take public transit -and be limited to bus schedules- or why not ride our bike to work - and arrive all sweaty to our board meeting. These are not so much attractive ideas after all. This is where this new website comes handy.Sure, we can always take public transit -and be limited to bus schedules- or why not... more
Have you heard of Peapod Mobility, the new Chrysler division?
Learn more about this new zero emission-electric-charming-vehicle!Have you heard of Peapod Mobility, the new Chrysler division?
Learn more about this... more
When it comes to driving, Green machismo is based not on how fast you can get your car to go, but how high you can get your mileage. Novelty rockers Green Beings, with guest star Michael Hollinger, one-up Sammy Hagar in this wacky track.When it comes to driving, Green machismo is based not on how fast you can get your car... more
Green Car Journal's Top 5 for 2009, are (listed alphabetically) the BMW 335d, Ford Fusion Hybrid, Saturn Vue 2 Mode Hybrid, smart fortwo, and Volkswagen Jetta TDI.
Volkswagen Jetta TDI. is the winer
and GM killed the electric car again with the death of the Saturn Vue 2 Mode HybridGreen Car Journal's Top 5 for 2009, are (listed alphabetically) the BMW 335d, Ford... more
- Urban Farms
- Fog Collectors
- Infinite High Rises
- Hydrogen fuel from algae ponds
- A new Underground infrastructure?
Is now the time to make them into reality?
The image above is the 2008 San Francisco Regional Winning Design by IWAMOTOSCOTT ARCHITECTURE in The History Channel Presents: City of the Future Competition.
Architect Richard Meier in describing the project:
"The number of urban dwellers is expected to rise sharply in the future.
Addressing this fact, this vision for the future of San Francisco proposes a new network of infrastructure below the surface of the city that will help the region maximize and distribute its resources. Called 'Hydronet,' the system will not only provide tunnels for a new generation of hover-cars, but also collection and distribution systems for water and power. The proposal identifies places where drinkable water might be harvested from both the sky and the earth, where heat might be extracted or dissipated deep in the strata below the city, and where new hydrogen based energy might be generated from algae fields. The city's signature waterfront is repopulated with a series of eco-towers that animate the skyline and are linked to the network of infrastructure."
It sounds logical to me in having these things built in a few years. Several green buildings or more hybrid cars on the road is not enough. Our cities infrastructure needs to change to make an impact. All of this technology already exists. Combined with projects like this, we can make our cities and environment more sustainable.
You think ideas from this design along with other regional winning designs in the link provided would or should be built during the Obama administration?- Urban Farms
- Fog Collectors
- Infinite High Rises
- Hydrogen fuel from algae... more
What’s it going to take to get you into a new car? If you shop strictly by price, the Chevrolet Aveo Sedan and redesigned Aveo5 hatchback will likely be at the top of your list. With a base sticker starting at just $12,625, Chevy’s entry-level subcompact offers a lot of value. Built for Chevrolet by GM Daewoo in Korea, the Aveo is engineered to be cheap to buy and inexpensive to operate.
That’s not to say the Aveo is a super efficient economy car. For a subcompact, fuel economy is reasonable, but not something to really brag about. According to the EPA, the manual transmission model will deliver 27 mpg in the city and 34 mpg on the highway. With the automatic, city economy drops to 25 mpg while offering 34 mpg on the open road. With the smallish 11.9 gallon fuel tank, fill-ups will come every 300 miles or so. Green Car recently spent a week behind the wheel of a 2009 Aveo5 and we were able to squeeze mid-thirties mpg out of the manual transmission with a conservative driving style.What’s it going to take to get you into a new car? If you shop strictly by price,... more
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Call it an economic and environmental murder mystery in the making: Will a cash-strapped Detroit kill the electric car -- again?
Stung by an association with gas-guzzling SUVs and pushed to the brink of failure by plunging sales, U.S. automakers have been touting efforts to roll out more fuel-efficient small cars, gas-saving technology and gas-free electric vehicles.
The star of that marketing show has been the Chevy Volt, a rechargeable car that General Motors Corp is designing to run 40 miles on battery power, meaning some commuters would never need to fill up with gas.
But with its cash dwindling and U.S. auto sales crashing to 25-year lows, GM has joined Ford Motor Co and Chrysler LLC in seeking $25 billion in federal handouts, which are under consideration this week by the U.S. Congress.
That has critics concerned that a meltdown for Detroit could delay the rollout of green cars like the Volt. Others see a chance to prod GM and rivals to move faster as a condition of providing funding the industry says it needs to survive.
more at the link.......LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Call it an economic and environmental murder mystery in the... more
