Top 12 Greenest and Meanest Cars in the USA
by Michael Graham Richard, Gatineau, Canada on 02.26.08
The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) compiled two lists of the 12 "greenest" and 12 "meanest" cars in the U.S. by looking at everything from emissions and fuel economy to the pollution generated during the manufacturing process. Of course, using different criteria would have lead to different lists, and we can already hear people disagreeing with the ACEEE in the comments (fans of diesel). That's okay, please share your thoughts.
So the greenest car in the U.S. is...? Many are probably thinking "Prius" right now, but according to the ACEEE it is the Honda Civic GX which runs on compressed natural gas (CNG). Unfortunately, Honda sells very few of these (about a thousand a year), only in New York and California, and mostly to corporate or government fleets.
Read on for the top 12 greenest and meanest cars in the U.S.
- Honda Civic GX
- Toyota Prius
- Honda Civic Hybrid
- Smart ForTwo
- Toyota Yaris
- Nissan Altima Hybrid
- Toyota Corolla
- Mini Cooper / Clubman
- Ford Focus
- Toyota Camry Hybrid
- Honda Civic
- Honda Fit
Between the Civic GX and the Fit, there's only 13 points of difference on the ACEEE's list, and there's only two points of difference between all the vehicles from the Yaris to the Fit.
- Volkswagen Touareg
- Bugatti Veyron
- Mercedes Benz GL320 CDI
- Jeep Grand Cherokee
- Mercedes Benz R320 CDI
- Lamborghini Murcielago
- Mercedes Benz ML320 CDI
- Mercedes Benz G55 AMG
- Hummer H2
- GMC Yukon 2500
- Bentley Azure
- Bentley Arnage
Lots of diesel vehicles here. The Touareg (5-liter V-10 diesel) tops the list despite a better fuel economy than the Bugatti Veyron. The ACEEE explains:
Although these engines offer a substantial efficiency improvement over comparable gasoline models, the poor tailpipe emissions performance of the diesel models is sufficiently damaging to the environment that it earns them a place on the year's Meanest Vehicles list.Manufacturers of the diesel models on our “Meanest” list have already unveiled plans to bring cleaner diesel models to the country in 2008, containing more sophisticated emissions control systems that purportedly will meet the Tier 2 Bin 5 emission standard.
Still, it's sad to see that the "greenest" list doesn't include anything really new. The Civic GX is clean mostly because of the fuel choice and it's not a high-volume car, and the Prius isn't so cutting-edge anymore. We need really clean vehicles asap.
::ACEEE Website, ::And the Greenest Car in America is ...
See also: ::Souped Down 1959 Opel T-1 Gets 376.59 mpg, ::Volkswagen to Introduce 70 mpg Diesel-Electric Hybrid Golf, ::Sporty Loremo Diesel will Have Electric Version Too
With all of the discussion related to fuel efficiency, how about a discussion over the high performance tires that appear on just about all of the newer vehicles that have to be replaced about once a year?
Well Kansas also sells the Civic GX, though to municipalities. A friend had to work his ass off to make that happen as well, check out the Honda dealership in Wichita.
What the hell? Of course T2B5 will clean these diesel vehicles up. That's why there are almost no 07 light duty diesels. Very deceptive. Worse is that they are SUV's/minivans. So casting dispersions on diesel vehicles by including now defunct models, all of a class not car, is dirty pool.
We replaced our 2001 Honda Civic GX with a Cool Green 2008 Honda Civic GX. They work so well we did it TWICE!
1 of 1000 and you can not get one from Honda until June? WTF? Honda get more of these on the road!
Darin, the Civic cannot be upgraded to full EV mode like a Prius can. Both cars have similar pricing, the Honda being about 2k$ cheaper.
I hate the cargo space of the Civic, the rear seats don't fold for extra space.
Willy, pray the WV TDI T2B5 (diesel hybrid) comes to America before 2011, or else it won't sell well.
With the GM Volt, Mitshibushi iMiev and Toyota Prius Gen3 PHEV due by 2011 (all getting +- 100Mpg), VW's 70 Mpg hybrid will be behind instead of ahead.
Plus the Volt, iMiev and Prius will be full EV cars with gas backup.
However a Rabbit sized diesel hybrid will have appeal - styling wise - and still be 20x a better car than the SUV's will ever be.
I've always thought it was kind of weird that people got behind diesel or hybrids like they get behind sports team.
What matters is the result, not how you get there. Lets not bring partisanship into green car tech, please.
For those interested in the Civic GX or other cars that run CNG, a great web site for information is CNG Chat. You can find pretty much every CNG fill station in the US (and some in Canada) at CNGPrices.com (disclaimer: I run CNGPrices.com, but not CNGChat.com)
I would have thought that the ford escape hybrid would be on there....its extremely fuel efficient and it has electric power for under 40km/h and sometimes the electric and gas combine for even more fuel efficiency, nevermind the torque it gets
Wheres the aptera or FCX
Thanks Todd for the info, I would love a Honda GX
"Wheres the aptera or FCX:"
Not in mass production (yet)
I just wish that Civic GX came in a two door, coupe version.
No Insight comments... please :)
I wonder where my car would fall on the 'Greenest' list.. I own a 1996 Ford Crown Victoria CNG vehicle. It was a fleet car from my work, and when they wanted to get rid of it, I purchased it for a steal.
I love filling up for $1.96 GGE (Gas Gallon Equivalent). I also like being allowed in carpool lanes because my car is considered an Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle in CA. (The Prius is only a Low Emissions Vehicle.)
There are a lot of older CNG vehicles out there, and due to the vastly reduced carbon deposits that occur to the engine, mileage on the car is almost a non-issue. California has refill stations in most major cities, as well.
My wife and I owned a 1999 Civic GX for several years. Yeah, it was super green, and at the time I thought it was a positive sign of things to come. Unfortunately, the number of CNG refueling stations in Colorado took a steady decline over the following 4 or 5 years. In the end, I sold the car because it was such a pain in the ass to fuel. There wasn't a single public refueling station in the county where I live or the county where I work.
What about used cars? I mean, recycling is good, no? I have a friend who had a Mazda that got 40mpg. I don't plan on ever buying a new car- what are the greenest used car choices?
Well, I guess I won't get a Bugatti Veyron after all then...