Green

Back in 1783…

By Andrew Dederer
June 28, 2008 - 3 views

Back in 1783, Paris was all abuzz with the exploits of the Montgolfier brothers’ balloons. Using a simple bag and a lot of hot air, men (and sheep) were able to fly (or at least float). One of the observers was none other than Ben Franklin, who was fascinated by the display. An onlooker was less impressed “What use is it?” America’s founding dirty-old-man smiled and replied, “Of what use is a newborn baby?"

Back in 1783… editorial continued »

Posted in Editorials | Green | 30 comments

TTAC’s Incredibly Useful Guide to Saving Gas

By Robert Farago
June 18, 2008 - 159 views

High gas prices are a bit like the weather: everyone’s complaining but no one’s doing anything about it. Actually, that’s not true. At the sharp end, consumers are buying more fuel efficient vehicles. They’re driving less. We’ve even heard talk of gas-conscious automobilists driving more slowly. Now THAT’S serious, and, to mind, reprehensible. So, while the mainstream media is full of helpful advice on how to use less gas (e.g. take those gold bars out of your trunk), I hereby present TTAC’s unconventional guide to saving fuel this summer.

TTAC’s Incredibly Useful Guide to Saving Gas editorial continued »

Posted in Editorials | Green | Industry | 62 comments

The Great Hybrid Showdown: Chevrolet Volt vs. Toyota Prius

By Paul Niedermeyer
April 10, 2008 - 42,584 views

The great hybrid showdown is coming. GM Car Czar Bob Lutz has thrown down the gauntlet: “We are headed for the OK Corral.” In fact, GM has staked its reputation on the Volt, intending to “leapfrog the Prius” and evoking America’s Apollo moon-shot program. Meanwhile, Toyota continues its domination of the alt power mindspace, finalizing their third generation Prius. While we prepare for the clash of the hybrids, let’s take a closer look at the contenders...

The Great Hybrid Showdown: Chevrolet Volt vs. Toyota Prius editorial continued »

Posted in Editorials | Green | 93 comments

Green Concept Cars - Where’s the Fun in That?

By Alex Kambas
March 13, 2008 - 22,994 views

Do you remember when you couldn’t leave the table-- or have desert-- without finishing your vegetables? Personally speaking, the parental requirement didn’t make me any more likely to eat or enjoy vegetables. The same holds true when it comes to green cars. I’m as sensitive about saving the planet as the next guy, if not more. But ever since “planet friendly” jumped to the top of the list of PR-friendly attributes-- above performance and styling-- I’ve been turning back into a child that hates his greens.

Green Concept Cars - Where’s the Fun in That? editorial continued »

Posted in Design | Editorials | Green | 32 comments

General Motors Death Watch 164: Two-Mode Hybrid RIP?

By Edward Niedermeyer
February 22, 2008 - 35,576 views

In the world of hybrid-drive technology, far-sighted development can pay huge dividends. Just ask Toyota, whose sales of Hybrid Synergy Drive-powered vehicles passed the global million-unit mark last year. While Nissan is licensing Toyota's Synergy Drive for its Altima Hybrid, GM has passed on proven success in its pursuit of two-mode hybrid technology with BMW, Mercedes and Chrysler at their joint Hybrid Development Center in Troy, Michigan. Smooth move or just another example of GM throwing good money after bad? Yup, you guessed it.

General Motors Death Watch 164: Two-Mode Hybrid RIP? editorial continued »

Posted in Editorials | GM Death Watch | Green | 62 comments

Ethanol Causes Global Warming

By Stein X Leikanger
February 13, 2008 - 32,724 views

Politicians around the world were up against the wall. The World Trade Organization (WTO) was slowly picking away at all their fancy ways of sidetracking public funds into hopelessly anachronistic and inefficient agricultural subsidies. And the agribusiness beats the mil/industrial complex when it comes to lobbying skills. Even French politicians, famous for ignoring the plight of their people, tremble at the thought of another tractor phalanx of mad farmers pulling up in front of the National Assembly and launching putrid brie at their doorstep. Enter Peak Oil.

Ethanol Causes Global Warming editorial continued »

Posted in Editorials | Green | 66 comments

Do Buses Save Gas?

By Paul Milenkovic
February 12, 2008 - 31,883 views

I recently passed a highway billboard offering "A cure for your addiction to oil." It was another example of my tax dollars hard at work: an oversized ad for Madison Metro, the Wisconsin's city bus company. Yes, where once fuel conservation was the moral equivalent of war, it now seems to require a 12-Step program. With the price of sweet, light crude flirting with a $100 a barrel price tag, we're all supposed to get "on the wagon." I mean bus. So, off we got to Auto Owners Anonymous.

Do Buses Save Gas? editorial continued »

Posted in Editorials | Green | 54 comments

Together in Electric Dreams

By Justin Berkowitz
February 9, 2008 - 25,259 views

Chevrolet hopes their plug-in electric - gas powered Volt will become America’s sweetheart. Yet GM’s boldly going where the fully electric vehicle (EV) has gone before. Forget the EV-1. I’m referring to the Baker Electric of 1899. Thomas Edison’s first car (as an owner) was a commercial success, with an effective range of around 100 miles. Today's prototypes, upon which manufacturers are presently lavishing hundreds of millions of dollars, can double that. So what’s the big deal?

Together in Electric Dreams editorial continued »

Posted in Editorials | Green | 38 comments

California Reanimates the Gas Guzzler Tax. How Great is That?

By Robert Farago
January 28, 2008 - 36,319 views

In '78, OPEC put America's balls in a vise. Responding to the Oil Crisis, Washington enacted a “gas guzzler tax.” The law levied a federal surcharge on the price of any new automobile that burned fuel at the rate of 21.5 mpg (combined), but less than 22.5 mpg (combined). The worse the car’s EPA mpgs, the higher the tax its buyer had to pay. The effectiveness of the federal gas guzzler tax is beyond debate. Literally. No one claims the purchase tax did anything whatsoever to reduce America’s oil consumption. And yet it’s still with us. What’s more, it’s about to make a comeback.

California Reanimates the Gas Guzzler Tax. How Great is That? editorial continued »

Posted in Editorials | Green | Industry | 54 comments

Automakers Cross The Thin Green Line

By Samir Syed
November 17, 2007 - 17,052 views

A marketing guru once told me that many companies sell themselves based on their weakest attributes. By playing up what the market perceives as their limitations, the company seeks to reverse “misconceptions” which prevent greater popularity. The strategy is what Hitler called “The Big Lie:” a falsehood of such size and splendor that no one can believe that someone had “the impudence to distort the truth so infamously.” This explains why Ford Canada used the slogan “Quality is Job 1” while building the Tempo and Escort. It also illuminates automakers’ greenwashing.

Automakers Cross The Thin Green Line editorial continued »

Posted in Editorials | Green | 26 comments