Kookaburra

Car and Driver reviews Ford Hybrid SUV

Ford Escape Hybrid 4WD : December 2004 - between 19% to 47% improvement in mileage compared to V6 petrol model.

Highs: Best fuel economy we've measured in a sport-ute, hybrid status hasn't compromised any of the Escape's usefulness.
Lows: Not the bargain the Toyota Prius is, lethargic, 10 percent heavier than a V-6 Escape.
The Verdict: Proof that hybrid technology works for sport-utility vehicles. Just don't expect 50 mpg.

Think tank wants SUV warning labels

Gas-guzzling sport utility vehicles (SUVs), the increasingly popular all-terrain cars, should be forced to sport labels just like cigarette packs announcing their terrible health and environmental impact, a British think tank said.

Just like smokers in the European Union (EU) buy tobacco marked with "Smoking Kills" and other dire warnings, New Economics Foundation (NEF) offered its own slogans for super-stickers which they said should be slapped onto the hoods and sides of cars.

"Global warming kills", "Climate change can seriously damage your health" or even "Driving seriously harms you and others around you" were among the list of warnings proposed by the London-based think tank. [Read the whole article at ABC News Online ]

An electric car that's faster than a Porsche 911

This radical eight-wheeled, 600kW rocket from Japan is proof that electric cars can be fast and fun.

Called Eliica, short for Electric Lithium-Ion battery Car, it boasts a neck-snapping 0-100kmh time of just four seconds and a 0-160kmh time of seven seconds, which means the Eliica accelerates faster than a Porsche 911 Turbo.

Read more at the Sydney Morning Herald's Car News

The Prius and the Olive Tree

Slate asks: Why are conservatives supporting higher gas taxes?

University of Chicago economists—especially Nobel Prize-winning ones—rarely argue that the government should sharply raise taxes, intervene directly in global free markets, and choose winners among industries.

...But now that the global free market has pushed gas prices higher, and now that we're buying it more from Saudis and less from Texans, many free-marketeers seem to have changed their minds.

Some in the neo-conservative camp view a higher gas tax as a great way to stick it to the Saudis and other Arab governments hostile to the United States—not to mention those pesky Venezuelans.... The high prices would also force American drivers "to once again start demanding and buying lighter and more fuel-efficient cars—exactly as they did in the late '70s and early '80s."[Read the full article at Slate]

Prius wins International Engine of the Year Award

The Sixth-Annual "International Engine of the Year" Award has been bestowed upon the 1.5-litre internal combustion engine/electric motor combo powering the 2004 Toyota Prius Hybrid. Already pronounced Motor Trend's 2004 Car of the Year, its engine has also scooped up three other International Engine prizes for the "Best New Engine of 2004," "Best Fuel Economy Engine," and "Best 1.4-litre to 1.8-litre."

Read more at Motor Trend.

Prius popularity exceeds supply

From The Sydney Morning Herald

Record high fuel prices have helped create a three-month waiting list for the petrol-electric Toyota Prius hybrid car. It is the first time in memory there has been a queue for an environmentally friendly vehicle.

"We've basically stopped advertising because all it does is disappoint people who go to a dealership to find they're all sold," said Vic Johnston, Toyota Australia's manager of alternative fuel vehicles.

He said the next three months' shipments - including seven cars on a freighter due to dock in Sydney this morning - are sold. Toyota Australia was taking up to 120 orders a month but is due to receive only 50 cars a month.

(Thanks to David Michie - aspiring Prius owner - for the link)

Prius Green Report

Here is the 2004 Prius' Green Report which includes a life cycle assessment of how the Prius impacts the environment from production to driving and disposal over an assumed 10 years and 100,000 km distance.

http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/k_forum/tenji/pdf/pgr_e.pdf

Quoting from a post on the Australian Prius Yahoo Group.

Over the lifespan of the Prius, when compared to a comparable mid- sized gasoline vehicle, the Prius comes out ahead in the life cycle assessment (LCA) for airborne emissions for CO2, NOx, SOx, HC, but actually does worse for PM (thanks to the material and vehicle production stages). Lifespan is given as 10 years use/100,000km. The CO2 break-even point for the 2004 Prius compared to this unnamed gasoline vehicle is given at 20,000km. (more CO2 is emitted during Prius production, but the Prius makes up for it over it's driven lifetime.)

Another neat thing is that the Prius is one of the first uses of Toyota's Eco-Plastic (plastic made from plants, as opposed to petroleum products). The battery is recycleable (NiMH), as is much of the car (steel and aluminum body, for example)

My Prius has just passed the 3,000 kilometre mark. Still happy and it appears my fuel consumption continues to improve (averaging around 5.4 litres/100 km at present - this improves on longer trips).

Kurt Vonnegut on going Cold Turkey

"Here’s what I think the truth is: We are all addicts of fossil fuels in a state of denial, about to face cold turkey. And like so many addicts about to face cold turkey, our leaders are now committing violent crimes to get what little is left of what we’re hooked on." [Kurt Vonnegut article from inthesetimes.com]

Deputy PM confirms oil crisis

Deputy Prime Minister of Australia, John Anderson, in speaking to Barrie Cassidy on the ABC's Insiders TV show confirms the looming oil crisis.

I do share the community's quite deep concern about the outlook (for oil prices) because it really is related to very heavy demand for fuel around the place, limitations of global refining capacity and, I have to say it, the very real prospect that at some stage in the next few short years global production may very well peak and it may be hard to increase it further at a time when countries like China, of course, are looking for a lot more fuel and even in places like Australia our dependence on oil, on petrol and transportation continues to increase.

This is one of the reasons why I believe, in common with legislators in most other Western countries, that we need to be determinedly looking at alternative fuels, both extenders and new fuels and that includes biofuels. But I don't want to fudge and say that there is an easy answer to this. The realities of global fuel refining are quite stark.[Sourced from Margot Kingston's Web Diary]

Certainly Australia should have a policy of progressively increasing oil prices to match those of the UK for example. The extra taxes should be exclusively diverted into long-term programs to alleviate the looming crisis of insufficient oil.

Also there should be tax discrimination against the thirstiest cars. Even the US has a 'gas guzzler tax' on particularly thirsty cars. I am not at the point of having particularly thirsty cars barred from the roads but I do think those who choose to drive these cars should pay for the 'privilege' and contribute to offsetting the damage they cause. While we have a Prime Minister who is brave enough to jam an unpopular GST tax system through he seems to have no guts when it comes to addressing the excessive thirst of the Australian fleet of vehicles.

Good and bad news – oil hits $US40

The price of crude oil has hit $US40 a barrel which is the highest price since October 1990 in Gulf War I.

The bad news lies in the fear that is driving the prices up.

"It is really a market driven by fear, fears of potential terrorist incidents in Saudi Arabia and Iraq, and also concerns about potential civil unrest in (major oil producers) Nigeria and Venezuela," Refco energy market analyst Marshall Steeves said. [Source: ABC News]

The way the US Administration is waging Gulf War II is actually increasing the risks of terrorism. Evidence of widespread prisoner abuse is undoubtedly swelling the ranks of those who will violently oppose the US presence in the region. And no it's not a handful of 'bad apples' - it appears US 'Defence' is rotten to the core. Certainly the Secretary of 'Defence' (surely the title is wrong - it should be 'Offence') is looking down the barrel at impeachment.

The good news is that increased oil prices may force some moderation in vehicle choices particularly in the USA which maintains a thirsty SUV fleet.

In a well researched article author Malcolm Gladwell makes the case that contrary to the common view, overweight, overlarge SUVs are less safe than many standard passenger cars.

Looks like Toyota have made the smart move with the Prius and other hybrid technology.