"Practically" Zero Emissions Vehicles

While Subaru is generally more famous for rally shenanigans than fuel efficiency, by no means are they known for that alone. Subaru is also very friendly to the environment.

In fact, long before SUVs bore the stigma they bear today, Subaru was making what we now know as "crossovers". I'd go as far as saying they invented the genre with the original Outback.

There is very little that an SUV can do that an Outback can't. And anyone with even the slightest environmental conscience can see that. 90% of the "work" an average, soccer-mom driven, SUV does can be accomplished by a moderately sized wagon. Even those who makes an excuse to own an SUV by claiming they need the added traction of 4 wheel drive have no excuse since Subaru has that covered as well. Perhaps that's why Subaru is one of the only brands not posting losses month after moth ever since the gas price spike of last summer. They give you cake, and let you eat it too.

What's this about "zero emissions" though? Subaru's run on gas like any other internal combustion engine powered vehicles on the roads today. They aren't hybrids, and they certainly aren't EVs. In fact, due to the added weight and resistance of the all-wheel drivetrain, a Subaru vehicle will almost always be slightly less fuel efficient than a similarly sized 2 wheel drive counterpart. It's a small price to pay for drivers who live in a climate where the roads are snow and/or ice covered for 4+ months of the year.

That being said, Subarus can be "green". The Legacy model range (including the Outback) is manufactured at Subaru's production facility in Indiana, which is a zero landfill plant. Yes, a factory that produces 200,000 cars a year has 0% waste. 99.8% is recycled, and the last 0.2% is incinerated according to EPA requirements (otherwise I'm sure they'd find a way to recycle that too).

Even more interesting than that is the fact that Subaru produces three models in the Legacy range that are classified as PZEVs, or "Partial Zero Emissions Vehicles". (Yes, that's a bit of an oxymoron... it either is, or it isn't zero emissions. I prefer my own definition of "practically" zero emissions.)

What does PZEV mean though?

It means that the cars built to that standard are fanatically clean. Vehicles sold in North America are among the cleanest ever due to the uber-strict emissions laws in the state of California. PZEV vehicles are a further 90% cleaner than even that!

The only cars on the roads cleaner than a PZEV are those that run on no fuel at all, solely on batteries!

The U.S. EPA rates vehicles on a scale of 10 for cleanliness. An electric scores 10. The average new car today scores about 6. A hybrids scores about 8.

A Subaru PZEV scores 9.5!

Emissions from the tailpipe of a PZEV can even be cleaner than the ambient air in urban areas.

And all this environmental friendliness doesn't come with a premium price tag either. The PZEV equipment is standard on the base model of the Legacy sedan and wagon, as well as the lower intermediate model of the Outback.

For a full road test review of the Subaru PZEV you check out this article on Sympatico/MSN.

And then be sure to check out Subaru's official PZEV mini-site at subarupzev.ca to decide which affordable, eco-friendly vehicle alternative is best for you.

Tesla Could Set EV Mileage Record

A lot of media people who have tested a Tesla Roadster have criticized the perceived mileage it gets on a single charge. Of course, when you give an automotive journalist a car he's going to thrash the hell out of it. (A few years ago I saw a bunch of Chrysler 300s after a media day at a local track. It wasn't a pretty site.) It's to be expected that a person given the task of writing about a vehicle will do anything and everything he can to the car in question in an effort to get every last ounce of performance out of it.

It makes for interesting reading, and more importantly... great photos to go along with the article.

However, unless you spend more time at a track than in traffic, very little that's been written about the Tesla in mainstream automotive journalism is relevant to the real world.

What is relevant is this article I found on endgadget.com earlier this week.

A Tesla driven in a normal day to day manner could potentially get about 280 miles on a charge. That's just over 450 kilometers. Now we're talking.

And how much does it cost to charge? That depends where you live and how much your electricity costs, but I've seen estimates ranging from $0.06/mile to as low as $0.02/mile.

Worst case scenario.... a "fill up" costs just over $16.

Best case... less than $6.

And electricity prices don't fluctuate on a whim either.

Tesla EV Coming to Canada!

Forgive me if I get more than a little excited about this, but the Tesla Roadster will soon be available here in Canada. Not that I'll be able to even remotely afford one, but still it's very cool news, and I look forward to hopefully seeing one in the flesh... er... alloy one day.

In the mean time we have these images Courtesy of Norway's Ferdinand Motor to ogle, as well as some video of the Tesla testing on snow and ice thanks to autobloggreen.com


(more video at the link)

The full press release from Tesla can be read HERE.

The part I find most promising is this:

Canada is uniquely positioned to become a premier showcase for Tesla, which has delivered more than 200 cars to U.S. customers. Canada and Norway are the only two countries worldwide where the majority of electricity comes from renewable resources, including run-of-river small hydro, wind, biomass, geothermal and solar energy.

An EV recharged from the current Canadian grid, on average, would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 85 percent compared to an equivalent gasoline-powered vehicle. In hydro-dominant British Columbia, Quebec and Manitoba, the reduction would be an impressive 98 percent.

Quebec has the capacity to produce so much hydro-electricity that we have leftover power that we sell users outside of the province. And it's all from renewable, and virtually non-polluting resources. Compared to electricity produced by burning coal, this puts us at a huge advantage in terms of how eco-friendly an EV in this province truly can be. While the Tesla is a dream car, I sincerely look forward to the day when battery power is the preferred means of vehicular motivation.

In the mean time, hopefully I'll get to see one at the 2009 edition of the Rallye R.E.A.L. this fall.

Why We Get the Shaft at the Pump

I did some research this afternoon in an attempt to figure out why gas prices jumped by nearly $0.20/liter (~$0.75/gallon) between the time I went to bed and the time I woke up. It turns out that oil prices actually dropped 10% on Monday due to... well, honestly I couldn't really care why. Suffice to say, the price of crude dropped 10% while the price of gasoline went up 25%!

Why?

Because they can!

That's basically the gist of this very interesting article I found.

Essentially the companies that make the oil into gasoline are working less and charging more. Good for them... their profit margin is soaring.

Bad for every person who owns a vehicle that burns fossil fuels.

This is why I can't wait for some valid alternative fuels to come to market, no matter what the source... biofuels, algal based oil, hydrogen, or something else. Better yet, some electric vehicles that are honestly affordable, not artificially so.

In the mean time, BOHICA!

EVs & Diesels in Detroit

I've been closely following autobloggreen.com for the past couple of days as they cover the eco side of the Detroit International Auto Show. It's pretty cool to see the concepts, but even cooler to see the cars that are actually going to be found in dealer showroom this year.

You can check it out yourself HERE, or click the links below to specific articles.

MB Unveils Concept BlueZero

The Lotus... er, I mean Dodge Circuit
57 Miles Per Gallon Roadster: The BlueSport from VW

More Pics of VW's Diesel Performance Roadster

Audi A3 TDI Coming to US Dealers in '09

ED smart (a poor choice of acronyms)

Fisker Karma & Karma-S (will these ever been seen on a road near you?)

Why Waste Time With Hybrids...

When pure electrics can be this good?



Those are some of the early test laps of the first (as far as I know) EV race car, the KleenSpeed WX10-T.

I can't wait to see that on a track racing in earnest!

KleenSpeed.com.

Tango EV Snow Plow

I can't honestly say I'm sold on this particular electric vehicle, mostly because it's bloody weird looking.... but I have to admit that it'd be useful around here for nearly a third of the year.

The Moment I've Long Been Waiting For!

Top Gear drives the Tesla!



Hybrids are crap... even the "good" ones. They're over-priced, over-weight, under-performing, and are basically a futile exercise as far as I'm concerned. They don't get particularly great fuel mileage when you consider the cost, and as I've mentioned before, they don't do anything to wean us off our dependency on fossil fuels. It always irks me when people refer to them as "alternative vehicles", since there's no true "alternative" because they, like all other cars or trucks, still need to go to the gas station to fill up with the very same fuel that any other IC car/truck needs.

Bio-fuels and electric vehicles are truly viable alternatives... as the technology of each continues to progress they'll be the ones offering an honest alternative to filling up with with fossil fuels.

Tesla Gets Pulled Over

This might be a first, but I can't say for sure...

First Week With a Tesla

EV on Ice!

This little green beast of a car is known as an "Andros Car". It's a purpose-built electric vehicle intended to compete in the Andros Trophy race series in France. It is, as far as I know, the first EV built specifically to race in what is otherwise a conventional racing series populated by gasoline powered cars (and bikes).

The Andros Trophy is a winter race series held on ice/snow covered tracks, and is basically a mix of rally super-special stages, conventional circuit racing, and drifting. The shells of small cars like the Toyota Auris, Kia Rio, BMW 1 Series, Renault Clio, Citroen C4 and others are mounted over radical race chassis with 300+ horsepower engines and all wheel drive, and are then subsequently thrashed around on winter race tracks all over France.

It's a whole lotta' fun!

Not only will this EV be competing against conventionally powered cars, it stands a decent chance of winning. Last year the 2nd version of the Andros car won the final event of the year. The 3rd iteration (pictured above) should be even better.

And starting in 2009, there will be a 100% electric class featuring 10 of these cars competing.

Finally, there is also an electric bike, the Quantya, competing in the 2 wheeled class of the Andros Trophy.

Two video's of the Andros Car 03, as well as the Quantya bike can be seen HERE as well as HERE.

As a passionate motorsports fan I have to admit that I have a hard time dealing with the lack of noise... part of racing is the awesome sound of a high performance engine but even so, I'm eager to see EVs shed their laughable sterotype - that of being slow, ugly, micro-cars that look like they belong on golf courses and retirement community driveways instead of the real road - and really start to show that they can perform.

ePorsche

For the automakers that feel hybrids are here to stay, and not just a transitional technology, I can't help but wonder how their hybrids will be powered when gas is too expensive for anyone to buy, or when it's completely gone all together...

According to Johnson Controls, electric cars will eventually win out!

Those that are more forward-thinking are already hard at work making cool electric powered cars. Tesla is the first to put performance EVs in the hands of consumers, but RUF is hot on their heels with their electric powered Porsche.

-200 horsepower
-418 lb-ft of torque
-0 to 60 is less than 7 seconds
-160 mph top speed
-zero emissions

I want one!

Source.

Chrysler's EV Recipe

(Also known as "how to copy Tesla in 3 easy steps".)

1) Buy a Lotus... everyone's go-to when they need something cool, quick, and light weight! In Chrysler's case, it was the new Europa, vs. Tesla's choice of an Elise.

2) Remove all the gasoline burning parts.

3) Replace said parts with high powered electric motor, to the tune of 268hp.


They figure it'll go from 0 to 60 in less than 5 seconds, top out at about 120 miles per hour, and will be able to cover 150-200 miles on a single charge (which they claim will take 8 hours on 110v, and 4 hours on a 220v circuit).

This is how to make, and sell EVs. GM take note. Having an arse-ugly, four-door, Civic/Prius crossbreed that can only do 40 miles on a charge is not the way to make people take note.

As for this little EV... remove the Viper copycat stripes and I'd buy one!

More HERE.

Friday Eye-Candy!

When it comes to true sports cars (and by "true sports cars" I mean stripped down, bare minimum, performance first, everything else second rides... not sporty cars, or sport sedans, or other such fun vehicles) that are propelled by something other than gasoline, there are currently only two options... an electrically powered Tesla from California, or an LPG motivated Beira from Breckland Motors in the UK. A few other companies have very nice renderings and concept cars... but as yet, nothing to truly show if they can kick it around a track or not.

Also, diesel power will likely be found beneath the hood of some sports cars in the very near future too, courtesy Audi and likely Porsche... but for now, it's one or the other of the two I just mentioned.

Batteries Included!
The Tesla is a very small roadster based on a Lotus Elise powered by a brushless electric motor that provides peak torque from zero to 13,000 RPM! Not only is it beautiful to look at (unlike some electrics)... but it also gets the equivalent of 256 miles per gallon (that's less than 1L/100km), goes from 0-60mph in 3.9 seconds, and does it all silently, without a clutch, a gearbox, or any other moving mechanical parts.

Another significant fact about this EV... it gets well over 200 miles of range per charge! General Motors could afford to take note of this detail... their upcoming EV, the Volt, is expected to have an electric range of just 40 miles, with a supplementary range of 300-something on it's gas engine. Excuse me?!? An EV that needs a gas engine to travel any significant distance?!? Brilliant EV planning there boys.

You can read more about the Tesla, as well as see a bunch of great photos on the official site of Tesla Motors.

Future TVR?
The other non-gasoline sports car out there now is the Brecklands Beira. Again, it's a small roadster, this time based on GM's Miata-chasing Kappa platform (which you likely see every day on the road in the form of the very sexy Pontiac Solstice or Saturn Sky).

However, in the case of the Beira, instead of an anemic 4 cylinder (turboed or not... that car is a little overweight) Breckland instead opted to use GM's 6.0L V8, which puts out a nice round 400 horsepower while running on LPG.

Unfortunately, I can't find an "official site" for Breckland Motors. In the mean time, you can see a few more pics of the Beira at the evo website HERE.

Lastly, you can see both in action at Goodwood this past summer, courtesy Fifth Gear:


Have a great weekend!