Especially with this economy, car buyers want more bang for their buck. If not for environmental reasons, consumers are looking to automakers for fuel efficient cars to squeeze every last penny out of a gallon of gas. According to the article "2009 Chicago Auto Show: Sign of the Times," car manufacturers have refocused their efforts. As such, "hybrid vehicles and other alternative fuel concepts dominate the grounds, and the manufacturers who don't offer such vehicles are drawing attention to the efficiency of their products." But for all of this emphasis on going green, are these efforts enough?
According to Greenited, these five cars get the vote for Top 5 Green Cars of the show:
5. 2009 Chevrolet Cobalt sedan/coupe- not a hybrid, but this car gets an impressive 37 highway mpg
4. 2010 Honda Insight-not as good a mpg as the Prius, but much friendlier price
3. 2010 Toyota Prius- 50 mpg
2. 2010 Chevrolet Volt- "will be the first affordable, extended range electric vehicle on the market to have real practicality"
1. 2009 Ford Fusion Hybrid - combined mpg of 38 with aspects of a performance vehicle
While some of these cars are a genuine step in the right direction, there are cars being given the "green" label that are more of a sham than anything else. These are the Top Five Green Wannabe's according to Greenited:
5. Dodge Circuit concept- a "stolen" design with production issues
4. 2009 Lexus GS 450h- a pretty inefficient car, not worthy of the hybrid label with a high price tag
3. 2009 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Hybrid- only eeks out a few more mpg than its non hybrid counterpart, a useless hybrid
2. 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid- see useless hybrid above
1. 2009 Cadillac Escalade Hybrid- see useless hybrid above and raise to extra useless.
These green cars aren't perfect. Although they cut back emissions, they are merely a triage until a feasible, maintainable, and environmentally sound energy solution is found. So do we buy these stopgap measures until the real deal solutions come out? I think it's a step in the right direction. Something that has to be changed first, though, is our perception about driving. Many consumers have trouble with hybrids and other green cars because they "lack performance" found in standard cars. Basically, there isn't as much "zoom," so these cars aren't as fun to drive. Therein lies our faulty viewpoint. Driving isn't meant necessarily to be fun, it's meant as a way to transport goods, people, etc. If it gets you from point A to B, it's a success. Stop worrying so much about which cars can go 0-60 in fractions of a second, worry more about how much carbon and other pollutants are being emitted from the tailpipe.
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