Real Name: Tom Webster Member Since: December 09, 2006 Last Signed In: June 29, 2008 Profile Views: 1790 Blog Views: 5962 We Can Solve It Carbon Rally Another Local Maker - My Imaginary Boyfriend World's Largest Green Building 7,000 Miles Per Gallon?!?!?!?!?! Microcars! Why Move To Another Country? Photo Blogger New Users Click Here and Open Thread New Users Click Here - Browsers December 06 January 07 February 07 March 07 April 07 May 07 June 07 July 07 August 07 September 07 October 07 November 07 December 07 January 08 February 08 March 08 April 08 May 08 June 08 July 08 August 08 September 08 
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How Green Is That Green Car?
I've talked before about Smart, a car company owned by Chrysler that cranks out really sweet little cars for the European market and are planning full roll out in America next year. It's time to add another feather to their cap. The Financial Times just came out with a story about the top green cars and the top two cars were both made by Smart. What's interesting is that the Financial Times went beyond the normal measure of simple miles per gallon and evaluated the the whole lifecycle of the car from the raw materials to disposal of batteries.
The buzz was created because the Prius ranked number 12 on the list of green cars. The Prius has essentially become a moving billboard that says, "Hey, look at me! I care about the environment." (Though one poster on another board said he drives one just for the mileage and would still drive it even if it ran on baby seals.) So why did the Prius do badly? The first and foremost reason is that every single car that beat it weighs about half as much. When you factor in raw materials alone, you're at a huge disadvantage. The other reason is the batteries in the Prius. Batteries are simply nasty things. One of the reasons so many ecogeeks are leaning away from hybrid cars is because the batteries are toxic and driving a car with two engines rather than a single more efficient one makes little sense. Last, and to give another leg up to our local Prius drivers: Only one of the other top 12 cars is even available in the US. The other car is the Yaris. So how do you know how green your car really is? Gas mileage really counts for the most. Some companies are working on greener factories with more daylight and less toxins in their dyes, paints, and other materials. But in the end, if each car is driven 100,000 miles or 200,000 miles, it's good to get a car that gets good mileage and lasts a long time. For those keeping score at home, here's the list: 1. Smart Roadster 2. Smart Fortwo cabriolet 3. Citroen C1 1.0i 4. Peugeot 107 1.0 5. Citroen C1 1.4 HDi 6. Fiat Panda 1.2 7. Ford Ka 1.3 8. Toyota Yaris 1.0 9. Fiat Panda 100hp 10. Peugeot 206 1.4 11. Mini Cooper D 12. Toyota Prius 1.5 And here's the link which also has some other rankings for off-road, family, etc.: http://www.clifford-thames.... 35 comments from 9 users
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posted by
MakesThingsGo
on Oct 10, 2007 at 09:07 AM
Doing a bit more poking around, it looks like the Smart Roadster is no longer available. It's just as hard to find a green car as it is to find a good guide to finding them.
posted by
NancyII
on Oct 10, 2007 at 09:14 AM
I'm woefully underinfomed on solar cells but how heavy are they, how big would they have to be, and would they ever work on say, a commuter car?
posted by
mattloch
on Oct 10, 2007 at 09:50 AM
Is #11 (Mini Cooper D) not the model that's available in the US?I will say this: that cars on the US roads need to be built to higher safety standards than European cars, simply because of all the SUVs and trucks that share the roadways. While trucks and SUVs are no safer for their occupants, they're horribly unsafe for whomever they're hitting. I'd be willing to bet that many (if not most) of the cars on that list would crumple like beer cans if hit by the average-sized US vehicle (as opposed to European or Asian average). What about the Tesla? Or is this list just for currently-available cars? posted by
ChicoEsquela
on Oct 10, 2007 at 09:55 AM
The more of those little roller skates on the road the better just hope I don't run over any with my dodge dually oh well posted by
TomW
on Oct 10, 2007 at 09:58 AM
Nancy, solar cells as they are now could never power a regular car while it's moving. On the other hand, commuter cars are a great use because if you drive 30 minutes and then let the car charge for 8 hours and then drive 30 minutes home, you could probably get close to not having to plug the car in.That said, the solar tech that is in development now could change all of that. There certainly is enough energy hitting a car to power it. It just depends on how much you can put to work and how much you lose doing that work. posted by
TomW
on Oct 10, 2007 at 10:02 AM
Mattloch, the Mini D isn't in the US. http://www.autoblog.com/200...They are awfully cool. As for the Tesla, I'm not sure how that would rank on this test. It's heavy and geared for power. It also uses batteries and plugs into the wall, so then you need to figure out what primary fuel it's running on, be that solar or wind or coal. posted by
TomW
on Oct 10, 2007 at 10:04 AM
Well, Chico, you know what they say about the size of a guy's car.... ;)
posted by
ChicoEsquela
on Oct 10, 2007 at 10:08 AM
thats what guys like you say tom guys with mini's or vdubs <haha> (I always drove a vdub in army and college btw) some of us have to haul $h*t nowdays posted by
thetruthhurts
on Oct 10, 2007 at 10:38 AM
Didn't Daimler keep the Smart brand? I thought I read a piece on this last week when Daimler voted to change their name. To my knowledge Smart is run under the Mercedes Benz Group. There is a car not on this list that is going into production this year called the Carver. It is a 3 wheeled 2 person car that leans into turns up to 45 degrees. This car is powered by a motorcycle engine and gets over 45 miles per gallon. I don't know about all of you but a light, fast, and efficient car sounds real fun to me. posted by
TomW
on Oct 10, 2007 at 10:47 AM
I drive a PreRunner with a rack, Chico. I just don't pretend it makes me cool. Some of us actually work in construction, so we need trucks. :)
posted by
TomW
on Oct 10, 2007 at 10:49 AM
TruthHurts, you're right. All my source stuff on Smart is a few years old, hence my missing that the roadster wasn't even in production anymore.
posted by
thetruthhurts
on Oct 10, 2007 at 10:53 AM
Tom, Have you seen or heard about the Carver car? If not check it out...closest thing to riding a motorcycle with the safety of a car
posted by
OldBlue56
on Oct 10, 2007 at 10:54 AM
I thought construction workers worked during the day? You must have a wireless laptop in your work truck and get a lot of breaks to be able to blog all day. LOL.
posted by
NancyII
on Oct 10, 2007 at 11:06 AM
For commutes and runs to the store I'd love something like the Carver you described. For trips to Long Beach like I make last week, and driving all those Gawd awful freeways an original Army Hummer would be nice. I settled for a Sonata which has a good crash test rating..and side airbags.
posted by
TomW
on Oct 10, 2007 at 12:26 PM
OldBlue, I'm a handyman and am building a place. Days of me being a grunt are long gone. It's nice being your own boss. :)
posted by
ChicoEsquela
on Oct 10, 2007 at 12:29 PM
I've got laptop in Dodge. use PDA too PDA sucks when ya wanna really "get down" posted by
TomW
on Oct 10, 2007 at 12:31 PM
Here's an interesting review of the Carver: http://www.pistonheads.com/...I checked the Carver website. I hope the vehicle works better than that. posted by
NancyII
on Oct 10, 2007 at 12:35 PM
Uhhhhhhh..maybe it needs that fourth wheel for me after all. Like an enclosed quad maybe but a little more stylish.
posted by
thetruthhurts
on Oct 10, 2007 at 01:04 PM
Tom, I havn't been on the Carver site for a while. Are you talking about the site not working properly? or the car? posted by
TomW
on Oct 10, 2007 at 01:09 PM
Truthhurts, talking about the site: http://www.carver-worldwide...Apparently I had the java blocker on and it was taking me to a bunch of dead pages. Once I allowed the site it was fine. posted by
TomW
on Oct 10, 2007 at 01:20 PM
Nancy, hope you're feeling better today. I'd always imagined you in a car like this: http://www.autoblog.com/pho...
posted by
Baylee
on Oct 10, 2007 at 01:21 PM
awwww......I want one!!!!!
posted by
NancyII
on Oct 10, 2007 at 01:35 PM
ROFLMAO....perfect Tom...absolutely perfect ! edited) I got so tickled I forgot to thank you for the good wishes. I'm better, just still sneezy and sniffly. Not enough for me to milk another day off work tho. Dang it. posted by
sagefever
on Oct 10, 2007 at 01:45 PM
That's a cool car TomW,saw that on Cnet yesterday. I think I caught Nancy's cold/ allergies...see we libs and conservatives can share somethings..lol
posted by
NancyII
on Oct 10, 2007 at 01:51 PM
Awww Sage..I'm sorry to hear that. Mine went from allergies to a cold so it was misery to miserable. Have they defoliated the cotton yet? Maybe after that our noses can get some relief. The almond shaking and harvest just about did me under
posted by
mattloch
on Oct 10, 2007 at 01:56 PM
Do you happen to have a crash test with that "car", Tom? I can imagine what a Suburban or Hummer would do to it...... 
posted by
NancyII
on Oct 10, 2007 at 02:20 PM
Aw Matt...you took the fun out of it. On the other hand..maybe it could run under the Hummer?
posted by
sagefever
on Oct 10, 2007 at 02:26 PM
http://reviews.cnet.com/830... maybe but you could get into that parking spot but quick!
posted by
TomW
on Oct 10, 2007 at 02:51 PM
I just like that it comes with its own "R2D2" thing. It does kinda look like an iMac and a VW bug had a kid.
posted by
mattloch
on Oct 10, 2007 at 02:58 PM
Why play around? If you want R-2, then there are easier* ways. * "Easier" may not mean cheaper, or quicker. But you'll be hard pressed to find cooler. posted by
thetruthhurts
on Oct 10, 2007 at 03:29 PM
Matt- The only thing you forget is that the Hummer or Surburban has to be running and not in the shop to run over anything. GM- When you're tired of driving a reliable vehicle Chevy- Like a rock....It just sits there posted by
TomW
on Oct 10, 2007 at 03:52 PM
Nice, Mattloch.
posted by
NancyII
on Oct 10, 2007 at 04:47 PM
posted by
mattloch
on Oct 10, 2007 at 04:50 PM
Oh, yea Nancy. No electronics or moving parts to go wrong there.Good god, I've had so many of the "bells and whistles" go bad in my car, I can't imagine what would happen if the whole damn car was a "bell and whistle"..... posted by
NancyII
on Oct 10, 2007 at 08:50 PM
Awwwww...but it's so cute. Grandson just sent me this..."The Pivo 2. Now available for 1999999.99" Heh !
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