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Car-ful? (A balanced look at plug-in hybrids)
Alan Durning, Sightline
The weekend before Halloween, my car-less family got a loaner plug-in hybrid electric car to try. You see, the City of Seattle and some other local public agencies are testing the conversion of some existing hybrids to plug-ins to accelerate the spread of these near-zero-emissions vehicles. As a favor and, perhaps, for some publicity (this post), the city’s program manager offered me four days’ use of the prototype—previously driven by actor Rob Lowe.
Enthusiasm about plug-in hybrids–like their now-almost-mainstream siblings the gas-electric hybrids–has been running high of late. For example, the California Air Resources Board is among the toughest air quality regulators in the world. When the members of board’s expert panel reviewed the evidence on plug-in hybrids, they issued a boosterish report predicting widespread adoption and fast market penetration. The Western Governors’ Association is similarly smitten (MSWord doc). The tone of some popular press reports makes it seem that the vehicular second coming may be at hand.
(14 November 2007)
Could the Solar Bug bring the sun to the car market?
Daniel B. Wood, The Christian Science Monitor
Steve Titus is among those entrepreneurs trying to create and market an affordable, renewable-energy vehicle – a step beyond gas-electric hybrids.
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…On display at a recent alternative-car expo here, this is Titus’s second and latest rendering of a solar-powered car concept. It gets up to a fourth of its 60-mile capacity from 200 watts of roof-mounted solar panels.
Titus is among those entrepreneurs trying to create and market an affordable, renewable-energy vehicle – a step beyond gas-electric hybrids.
The ranks of potential buyers for such cars are growing by leaps and bounds, say many car-industry analysts. But don’t look for them on normal streets just yet, they add quickly. Limitations of batteries and solar panels – though lessening – are still issues, among others.
Yet “fringe markets” – such as commuters within small towns, seniors in retirement villages, and users of industry fleets – are in a position to drive the first sales boomlet for such cars, analysts say.
Until then, Titus and other inventor-tinkerer types are offering a peek into the future of transportation in America – well before the major car companies.
(15 November 2007)
Truck, SUV Mileage Standards Thrown Out by US Appeals Court
Matthew Yi, San Francisco Chronicle
The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered a federal transportation agency on Thursday to rewrite its fuel economy standards for many SUVs, minivans and light trucks, arguing that the new rules are inadequate in part because they fail to properly assess the risk of global warming.1116 06
The decision is a huge win for several environmental groups and 11 states, including California, that argued that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s new fuel economy standards ignored the effects of carbon dioxide emissions.
The panel also concluded that the agency failed to address why light trucks are allowed to pollute more than passenger cars. And it said the new rules should have included heavier trucks that are used as commuter vehicles.
The decision was the most recent example of growing pressure on the Bush administration to require automobile makers to sell more fuel-efficient vehicles.
(16 November 2007)
Also at Common Dreams.
Can hybrids make a difference in the near future?
Chris Vernon, The Oil Drum: Europe
The future may be bright for hybrids, but it would have to be a very distant future, judging by the evolution of the car to date, and by the deeply ingrained tendencies of British drivers.
Over the past decade there has been little improvement in the efficiency of the UK car fleet. In 1995, our average car could manage 32 miles per UK gallon (mpg) and by 2005 it could manage just 33mpg [1]. This tiny increase was due entirely to the increased proportion of diesel cars in the fleet. Meanwhile, the growth in size of the fleet (and the corresponding growth in total mileage) actually led to a slight increase in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions over the same period.
There have, of course, been improvements in car technology. The engines themselves are more efficient, developing more power from less fuel, and the bodywork is more aerodynamic. However, these improvements have been largely compensated for – some might say squandered – by the increased weight of today’s cars.
So, can hybrid technology really deliver increased fleet efficiency where the natural evolution of traditional cars has failed to deliver?
(16 November 2007)
The Prince and His Palace: A 6,400-Square-Foot Getaway That Flies
Nicola Clark, New York Times
He may be only the world’s 13th-richest man, but Prince Walid bin Talal of Saudi Arabia will soon be able to claim the bragging rights to the world’s largest private jet.
Putting an end to months of speculation, Airbus announced Monday that the Saudi billionaire had become the first V.I.P. customer for the A380 superjumbo jet, the winged colossus that the European plane maker prices at just over $300 million.
Prince Walid, who currently makes do with a customized Boeing 747-400, signed the contract for a new flying palace at a ceremony with senior Airbus executives at the Dubai air show.
He expects to take delivery in 2010.
With its 240-foot double-deck fuselage and 262-foot wingspan, the 560-ton A380 dwarfs the rides of the world’s most powerful leaders. In comparison, Air Force One, the presidential jet, is a relatively modest conveyance, a Boeing 747-200 weighing just 333 tons.
…Saudi Arabia may be the biggest oil-producing nation, but oil is not the main source of Prince Walid’s fortune, which Forbes magazine estimates to be $20.3 billion. The prince, 52, controls Kingdom Holding, an enterprise with stakes in scores of blue-chip companies, like Citigroup, the News Corporation and the Walt Disney Company. The company, based in Riyadh, also owns stakes in some of the world’s most prestigious hotels, including the George V in Paris and the Savoy in London.
(12 November 2007)
