As it seems, cars are the number one cause for GHGs emission in modern cities. London and Paris are now monitoring the amount of vehicles entering the city on a daily basis. This is one way to deal with the problem. Another is to switch to cars that release less GHG and use less oil- in other words- hybrid vehicles.
A hybrid vehicle is essentially a vehicle that uses two or more distinct power sources. Hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) are the most common hybrid vehicles, which combine an internal combustion engine and one or more electric motors. With the price of oil set to continue on its upward trend, saving money on fuel is becoming critical to more people and corporations.
800 million – the enormous number of vehicles in the world today. Each year, 70 million more cars are built. Considering that countries such as India and China acquire as many vehicles per capita as Europe, the number of vehicles in twenty years will be around 3 billion cars. With this many cars on the planet, will the earth have enough oil reserves?
Another factor to consider is if eventually all cars produced will become hybrid cars, or even electric cars. According to some predictions, most of us are likely to drive an electric car in the future. After all, one of the major reasons to drive a hybrid car or an electric car is the overall efficiency. But when thinking of buying a hybrid car, there are some other considerations – for example, ease of monitoring and maintenance (to ensure low emissions and best efficiency), ease of use, range and, of course, the cost.
A thrilling driving experience, no environmental guilt
A new bill signed by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (Assembly Bill 1500) will allow owners of 100% electric vehicles and cars running on compressed natural gas to drive solo in California carpool lanes until Jan. 1, 2015. This perk is relevant mostly to owners of all-electric Tesla Roadster or Toyota Rav4 EV, and motorists planning to buy the all-electric Nissan LEAF. Hybrid cars owners, like the Toyota Prius, Honda Insight or Honda Civic Hybrid, will not benefit from this bill (although they do currently enjoy solo access to the diamond lanes).
Interestingly enough, even though the state stopped issuing the yellow access stickers that opened up carpool lanes to hybrids in early 2007, sales of hybrid cars continued to grow throughout 2007 and early 2008—largely spurred by rising gas prices. Recent federal tax incentives for fuel-efficient cars have shifted to electric vehicles—forcing conventional gas-electric hybrids to compete on an even playing ground with the rest of the automotive market. Some green car advocates question if it makes sense to remove tax credits and HOV perks from conventional fuel-efficient hybrids, which still represent less than 3 percent of the new car market.
Spend an afternoon with Tesla Roadster
Join us at the Green Chamber educational networking event on august 17th at the Solamar Hotel, and get an incredible auction opportunity to enjoy an “Afternoon with a Tesla Roadster”.
The ultra high-performance Roadster Sport has a range of 245 miles on a single charge and a supercar level 3.7 second 0-60 mph acceleration time, all while being 100% electric, zero emissions and 2x more efficient than a hybrid.
Value: Priceless! Minimum 4 hours with a Tesla Roadster and based on mutually agreeable date and time.
