Automotive Green Alternatives

Automotive Green Alternatives Are Still In Their Infancies

“Green” is one of the biggest buzzword around, no matter what the topic these days. When it comes to automobiles, the green topics include alternative fuels and hybrids—cleaner and more efficient methods of creating energy.
   
All of the “green” energy technologies are still relatively new and it will be years before they become as efficient, readily available and affordable as is promised and hoped. Because of competition, politics and imperfect marketing and distribution plans, it is difficult to say which of the four leading technologies will come out as the leader in the next ten years or if yet another technology will emerge to take their place.
   
Let’s look at today’s leading “green” car technologies.
   
Hybrids

   
The big manufacturers are introducing new hybrid car models all the time and in the next year and a half, it is estimated that there will be at least 40 different choices from which the consumer can choose. This technology is based on a car that uses battery power as the source of energy when driven in in-town conditions (slower speeds and lots of stop and go traffic), then switches to a gasoline motor for high-speed, highway conditions.
   
The emissions given off by a hybrid car are the lowest of the present “green” car technologies, due to the lack of emissions  given off by the battery while it is in use.  However, not all hybrid car drivers drive only in city conditions and the mileage figures for highway driving are not always better than other technologies.
   
Until recently, the purchase cost of owning a hybrid has been so high that hybrids were deemed to be a “statement” vehicle. People who chose to own an early hybrid (they were introduced in 1999) did so with belief that they were willing to spend more to support the new technology and help increase the manufacturing economies of scale so that the prices of later models would go down, which is what appears to be happening.
   
Manufacturers are beginning to go after the hybrid mass market and are offering incentives to buyers. According to Edmunds.com, on average, hybrids that sold last December for $809 above the manufacturer suggested retail price went for $2,015 below MSRP in February. Toyota believes that sales of it’s popular Prius hybrid model should grow to 150,000 units this year as the public begins to accept the technology. And the U.S. government is offering hybrid buyers large tax incentives to further intice sales.
   
But at the same time, some manufacturers are tuning this hybrid technology towards powering the larger, faster cars that Americans like so much, not at the smaller, more mileage efficient models for which European car makers are noted.
   
One concern that many have about hybrid cars centers around the recyclability of the batteries that hybrid cars now use. These batteries contain large amounts of lead and hydrochloric acid that people are afraid will end up in landfills when the worn out batteries are replaced. While at least one manufacturer has stated that it will put high-capacity lithium-ion batteries in their next generation model, many experts believe that it will be another five years before battery advancements will be truly effective. One of those advancements, now being studied, is the use of hydrogen to power batteries-again,  just now being developed.
   
Ethanol

The next “green” auto technology that many are purporting as the solution is ethanol-blended gasoline. Flex-fuel is a combination of regular gasoline and ethanol, a fuel additive made from corn and other plants material. It comes from a renewable source, has less polluting exhaust emissions and is heavily subsidized by federal tax incentives. In the last few years many distilleries that can produce ethanol have been built. However there have been problems.
   
While there was a rush to build distilleries, no such attention was paid to increasing the transportation and distribution infrastructure for ethanol. Because of its corrosive properaties, it cannot be moved through the nation’s oil pipelines. In some places there is a glut of ethanol waiting to be delivered to gasoline refineries and distributors with no way to get it to them, nor pumps at gas stations ready to deliver it to the consumer.
   
While many government regulations were written and passed to help promote Ethanol in flex-fuel usage, those laws are based on a 50/50 blend.  The reality is that just 1% of the nation’s 3.5 million flexible-fuel vehicles actually use what’s known as E85—85% ethanol and 15% gasoline. The remaining 99% are using regular gasoline.
   
Another problem with the use of ethanol that has many experts worried is the impact ethanol production has on farming and the corn industry in particular.
   
Since ethanol became one of the “green” buzzwords, the price of corn has doubled in the last two years. As with any new technology, changes occur and other plant materials, many considered waste products, are now being considered for the production of ethanol. Manufacturers of ethanol are now looking at building distilleries along the coasts, which would ease many of the distribution problems.
   
Most new technologies eventually learn to overcome challenges. How successful the Ethanol incentive will be in efforts to make cars environmentally cleaner is yet to be seen.
   
DIESEL

 
Fuel efficient diesel automobiles began to appear in showrooms throughout the U.S. around 1980, just after the period of gasoline shortages that created long lines of drivers trying to fill their car’s gas tanks on days that corresponded to their car’s odd-even license plate numbers.
   
Since that time, diesel engines have grown to nearly half of all European cars sold, while Americans, having forgotten the gas pains of the late 1970s, diesel cars represesnt less than 1.5% of American cars sold today.
   
Part of the reason for that is that the diesel sold years ago produced dirty, smelly emissions that Americans did not like, no matter how efficient a diesel engine was. Today diesel fuel has undergone reformulation and new refining processes are producing a much cleaner fuel than before.
   
While not as clean as hybrid vehicles with their part-time electric power, diesel vehicles are ideal for drivers who often drive for long periods at high speeds on interstates or who need the power to pull trailers and carry heavier loads. Many car manufacturers, especially those in Europe, have chosen diesel as the “green” fuel of choice under those circumstances.
   
BIODIESEL

 
Then there is biodiesel, a new diesel additive/alternative fuel that also comes from plants—soybeans usually. Today it is used mostly by larger vehicles (tractor-trailers, buses and farm combines), in particular through the midwest, Texas and along a few major interstate highways throughout the country.
   
The owners of those big rigs using biodiesel are very pleased, not only with the increased mileage and lower harmful emissions they are getting, but also with the performance increases it provides.
   
Biodiesel has good lubricating properties and has the ability to clean out old deposits left by the use of regular petrodiesel fuel.
   
This has created a problem with clogging fuel systems when first changing over to its use but operators are finding that, with frequent filter changes during the beginning of the switch, eventually their engines are running better and lasting longer. It also holds great promise as a more efficient replacement for heating oil in the future.
   
While its availability is still limited, it is becoming more widely available throughout the country. According to the BioWilly Web site (www.biowillieusa.com), all diesel vehicles built since 1999 are capable of using biodiesel blends immediately. Those built before that year will need to have the rubber seals replaced.
   
There is much to be said for the benefits of these technologies. However they are all in their infancies with regard to perfecting the possibilities of increased mileage and less pollution, cost efficiency and supply availabilities.
   
But as we wait for the new technologies to find their footings and grow into their own potentials, we must also mention the supply and demand forces that have lead us to the cars we have today. Americans have always had a love affair with big, powerful cars. While other nations throughout the world are known for their small, fuel-efficient cars, once those manufacturers began building cars for the American market, their new designs,  too, began to give up fuel efficiency for size and horsepower.
   
Following the late 1970s gas crunch, not only did diesel automobiles begin to appear but the mileage rates of gasoline-fueled American cars increased as well.
   
In 1985, Chevrolet produced the gasoline-fueled Sprint that got 55 mpg. That same year, the Honda Civic got 60 mpg. Both cars were capable of easily reaching speeds of 80 mph, all of the speed that today’s drivers need, but with mileage twice that of the average car today.
   
Fifteen or so years after the gasoline crisis of the late 1970s, consumers had forgotten fuel efficiencies while dreaming of size, power and luxury. 
   
By focusing for years on how to make faster engines,  stronger transmissions, bigger but lighter SUVs and faster luxury sedans, car manufacturers are just now focusing on fuel efficiencies and emissions reductions. By using hybrid systems to “burn rubber-as opposed to burning less gasoline,” some car manufacturers are still responding to those old wants.
   
While Americans have seemed to ignore Europe’s lead on diesel versus hybrid, some car manufacturers, like Honda, seem to believe that hybrid technology is the solution for cars the size of Civics or smaller and that the new, clean diesel engines are the way to go for larger vehicles. Experts believe that eventually green technology will be directed towards hybrid technology that uses diesel or even flex-fuels as it’s secondary fuel source.
 
For American consumers, only time will tell.