Green Car of the Year!

david

website team CRAGger Sevenoaks

I would be surprised if anyone has tried it apart from a few journalists. The car has only just gone on sale, so no one knows how reliable it will be in real life.

Good point!

How can a car be green anyway?

I don’t think there’s anything fundamental stopping a car being as green (or low carbon) as, say, train travel. If we can improve the technology (lower energy consumption, renewably sourced) and socially use them in a different (renting, and car share), then we could keep car travel for times we need flexible travel. Obviously we would need services more locally available, and better public transport – but I don’t think we should write off cars altogether. Apart from anything, they are fun to drive – every now and again.

Here, though, they don’t include embodied energy, or consider how long each car will last. Both must contribute significantly to their overall footprint. Is this information available anywhere, anyone?

There have been several studies. I think the average view is that around 15% to 20% of resources are needed for production as against usage. Disposal figures are changing fast as governments impose strict recycling targets and the manufacturers respond. Specific reports on some new models are available which go into a lot of detail, for instance Ford have produced Product Sustainability Indices on the S-Max and Galaxy which attempt to measure emissions throughout the whole life. However there is no comprehensive method of comparing one make/model against another.