November 2008

I was just in Buenos Aires, Argentina, enjoying long, sunny, Southern-Hemispheric days — and choking on clouds of stinky, old-fashioned diesel. While the U.S. market has diesels you can stand behind while wearing a white linen suit and not get dirty, Baires drivers still use the smelly, sooty, decidedly non-green diesel in cars, trucks, and city buses.

Compounding the massive carbon footprint left by all these old-skool engines is the rotten traffic. City streets can be as wide as twelve lanes — though lanes are mere suggestions for the citizens of Buenos Aires. Cars cram the smaller side streets, with drivers idling at red lights and honking in frustration. Even ambulances have a hard time getting through.

I saw not one hybrid or electric car on the streets in the week I spent in the city, but I did see a sign of green hope, like the single plant Eve retrieves from a ruined Earth in Wall-E (why yes, it was the in-flight movie. Why do you ask?). Argentine petroleum company YPF has billboards along the city’s streets informing the diesel-choked drivers that clean diesel is on its way.

The web site (which is in Spanish) lists the advantages of what the company is calling D-Euro diesel: cleaner combustion, more miles per gallon, and fewer emissions. The fuel will have fewer than 50 ppm of sulfur, closer to the 15 ppm in the ultra-low-sulfur diesel used in the U.S. D-Euro diesel is classified as Bin 4 in Europe.

Photo of Bs. As. buses by blmurch.

David Hazen of Eugene, Oregon, had a dream: to build an electric car in the same manner as you would a hand-crafted wooden boat. And on October 22, 2008, he achieved this dream — mostly. The XP-Humm-E is still missing a few niceties, like doors and carpeting, but it runs and drives, and he’s even got a VIN from the state.

Here’s the 7-minute video of how Hazen constructed the car, which ended up as a Frankenstein of VW, Saab, and Kawasaki parts with glass-backed cedar body panels. It will even have removable gullwing doors; Lamborghini, eat your heart out! The 400 pounds of batteries and 12-hp electric motor propel the XP-Humm-E to a top speed (so far) of 39.5 mph. Normally, according to the video, Hazen can tool around at 35 mph for about 35 miles on a charge.

The video includes an in-car, driver’s-eye-view camera, so you can hear the wind and the road noise, but no engine. For those of you new to the EV experience, that’s a pretty good approximation of what you get. As the car gets more complete, those noises will be lessened, too.

If you live in the western United States, you know Les Schwab Tire Centers. They’re everywhere. And, thanks to the eco-consciousness of the states were Les Schwab does business, the company is phasing out the lead weights used to balance tires and substituting steel.

Two years ago, Les Schwab started working with suppliers to get the toxic lead weights out of the tires used on passenger vehicles and light trucks. The tires with lead weights will be used first, but the company expects to be fully stocked with steel-weight tires by the middle of 2009. Les Schwab has more than 400 locations in seven western states, so a change there can have an impact on the industry and the environment.

In addition to the steel weights, Les Schwab is a major tire retreader and recycler, as well as one of Oregon Business magazines “Best Places to Work.”

While the Americal Le Mans Series has already had a green race-within-a-race for alternative-fuel vehicles, NASCAR is taking baby steps toward eco-friendliness. The final race of the season on Sunday, November 16, had the series’ first-ever hybrid pace car, a 2010 Ford Fusion.

NASCAR isn’t going all tree-hugger on anybody, but it is trying to reduce its carbon footprint, according to a report on NASCAR.com. Organizers also hope the mere presence of a hybrid on the track will help crack the alternative-fuel ice with the sport’s fans, who tend to favor high horsepower and big trucks. But in a year of volatile gas prices and growing green awareness, even die-hard speed freaks can see the advantages in a higher-mpg vehicle.

The hybrid version of the Fusion, and its nearly identical twin the Mercury Sable, will be available to consumers in spring of next year. The official unveiling of the car will happen at the L.A. Auto Show, November 21-30.

Image courtesy of NASCAR.com.

Shorepower Technologies Portland, Oregon, location is the latest in a recent line-up of companies that will convert hybrid cars like the Prius to plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, or PHEVs. The company itself isn’t new, but the conversion side of the business is. They’ve just completed and delivered their first conversion — a Prius, of course.

Shorepower uses the Plug-In Supply kit to add 20 lead-acid batteries to the stock battery pack that comes with the car. The extra batteries fit in the rear cargo compartment under the carpet, with a metal lid between batteries and cargo.

• A converted car can go up to 50 mph on EV-only power, as opposed to about 42 mph for an unconverted Prius.
• Car can go an estimated 8-12 miles in EV-only mode
• Fuel economy can be as high as 80 mpg, according to Shorepower’s tests
• $6,700 includes parts, labor, and shipping the kit to Shorepower’s HQ for the conversion

The company also does EV conversions and uses the Hybrids Plus kit to swap out the factory lead-acid batteries for lithium-ion packs in the Ford Escape. Shorepower is also responsible for the new curbside charging stations popping up in the Portland metro area.

This isn’t an endorsement, and I’ve never used a Shorepower product, but it’s good to know who the reputable businesses are as the U.S. switches from a gas-dependent model to having choices in alternative fuels.

Images of the conversion to come.

Remember when I posted about the brand-new Dodge Durango Hybrid? Of course you remember — it was only a month ago. I went to a local product launch event hosted by Chrysler and learned that the Durango Hybrid  was eligible for a $2,200 tax credit.

If people want to take advantage of this huge hybrid and its substantial tax credit, it turns out they need to act fast. Chrysler announced that it’s closing the plant that builds the Durango Hybrid and its sibling the Chrysler Aspen. A mere 400 of hybrids had been built; according to the New York Times‘ calculations, that means a total of 800 may be built before the plant closes December 31.

When exactly did Chrysler make this annoucment? October 23 — three days after I posted about the Durango Hybrid and its tax break. This could go down in history as the shortest-lived model to ever hit production.

Mercedes-Benz has gotten a lot of press recently about AdBlue, the additive that makes its new BlueTec clean diesel SUVs and wagons so clean. I called up Larkin Hill, a PR rep at Mercedes, and asked her to explain to me what this AdBlue and BlueTec stuff was all about.

“Twenty years ago, 80% of Mercedes sales were diesel,” said Hill. “But they had a reputation for being loud, slow, and sooty. The BlueTec diesels are quiet, fast, and clean. You can stand behind one in a white linen suit and not get dirty.” This, she said, is due to AdBlue, an exhaust treatment fluid used in all the BlueTec diesels to neutralize nitrous oxide emissions.

In order for the Mercedes BlueTec diesels to meet the U.S. Bin 5 emissions standard, the company had to guarantee that the customer would put AdBlue into the exhaust system. “You get many, many, many warnings,” said Hill. “The car gives you twenty chances. It counts down the number of starts you have left.” When you’re out of AdBlue and the countdown reaches zero, you can’t start the car without adding another quart.

The reservoir is easy to find and easy to fill, though, as it’s located in the spare tire well in the back. And you can go 10,000 miles of normal driving without worry. Most people will have their M-B dealer top off the AdBlue tank during regular maintenance. For those who do a lot of towing or want peace of mind, BlueTec owners can buy and carry extra quarts. It’s available at 1500 outlets, like Pep Boys.

Right now, there are three 2009 vehicles with BlueTec clean diesel: the ML320, the GL320, and the R320. Hill said the company plans to release an E320 sedan with BlueTec and AdBlue later this year. And yes, she said, AdBlue is indeed blue.

Though motor vehicles had been around for some 20 years, the White House didn’t make the switch from horse-drawn carriages to horseless carriages until William Taft took office in 1909. According to the L.A. Times, Taft chose an electric vehicle built by the now-defunct Baker company for the first Presidential conveyance.

Fast forward 100 years to president-elect Barack Obama, who made the following promises in his “New Energy for America” speech in August:

Put 1 million Plug-In Hybrid cars — cars that can get up to 150 miles per gallon — on the road by 2015, cars that we will work to make sure are built here in America

Within one year of becoming President, the entire White House fleet will be converted to
plug‐ins as security permits

Half of all cars purchased by the federal government will be plug‐in hybrids or all‐electric
by 2012

Obama also wants to provide a $7,000 tax credit for consumers who purchase advanced-technology vehicles and unspecified tax credits for folks who go the DIY route (or hire a firm to do it for them) and convert their car to a PHEV or EV.

Image by Jim O’Clair, Hemmings.com.

If you’ve been considering an alternative-fuel vehicle for your next car but were wondering where on earth to fill up, look no further than the U.S. Department of Energy. That’s right — the DoE has put together a handy web site where you can search for refueling stations for just about any kind of fuel except regular, ol’ gasoline:

• Biodiesel (B20 and above)
• Compressed Natural Gas
• Electric
• Ethanol (E85)
• Hydrogen
• Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)
• Liquefied Petroleum Gas (Propane)

It should surprise no one that California leads the way in most types of alternative fuel stations. E85 is huge in the Midwest, which is another no-brainer, but biodiesel is big in Georgia and the Carolinas, which I did not know. Texas has hundreds of propane filling stations, as anyone who watches “King of the Hill” would probably guess.

There is a ton of information on the Alternative Fuels and Advanced Vehicles Data Center, and it will be a valuable resource as more alternative-fueled cars come to market in the next four years or so. Bookmark it now, folks, and tell all your friends who love green cars.

Like a lot of people interested in green cars, I recently saw a press release from a company called L.A. Electric Motors. They announced that they had a “total electric SUV.” The 5-seat Testament has, according to the release, lithium-ion batteries, and can go 70 mph with a range of 350 miles per charge. The company claims to have a web showroom with physical locations on the way, but the link to the site didn’t work.

With claims like that, I was a bit suspicious. Now that green cars and alternative fuels are in the public eye, we have to watch out for outrageous claims from companies that seem unlikely to deliver. I mean, the Tesla Roadster gets 244 miles per charge from its Li-ion batteries, more than almost any EV out there right now, and look how long its taken to get those cars on the road–with a placeholder transmission, no less.

My radar really went up when I noticed that the company wanted to save consumers from “ever flocculating gas prices.” Further investigation turned up a web site URL that didn’t go anywhere and an email address that bounced back when I asked for more information.

So keep your skeptic hats on, readers. Many fantastic-sounding breakthroughs are real (remember when veggie diesel was funny? Now it’s a booming business), but if it sounds downright miraculous, do a little research before you repeat it as gospel. And if you see anything that makes you cock an eyebrow and say, “Really?” pass it on to me in the comments. I’d be happy to look into it and share what I find.

Good gas mileage, good cause–yup, it’s a good green car! The Green Car Company, which is based in Seattle, is auctioning off a 2009 Prius they’ve converted to be a plug-in using A123’s Hymotion plug-in kit. Proceeds from the eBay sale, which ends November 9, 2008, benefit Plug In America, a group working to shift consumers from gasoline- to electric-powered cars.

The Hymotion kit used in this particular Prius includes state-of-the-tech lithium-ion batteries and has been installed by certified technicians, so Toyota’s warranty is still in effect, according to Plug In America. The new battery pack has its own three-year warranty.

The dark blue car is on display all this week at the Seattle Auto Show for those who want to see it for themselves. The auction site says the new owner will be able to get 100-150 mpg and run on solely on electricity for up to 40 miles. The Prius is fully loaded, and the Green Car Company is throwing in a bunch of extras on top, including classes, shock upgrades, and heavy-duty extension cords for recharges.