awards

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Green Power for International Engine of the Year

May 18, 2009 in Hybrids, MPG, diesel by kristen | 3 comments

More than 60 new engines have entered the race for 2009 International Engine of the Year, a title which has gone to BMW for the past four years running. Hybrid engines from the Toyota Prius and Honda Insight have won in the past, and with new incarnations on the market this year, one of them may win again. Diesel engines from Mercedes-Benz and Renault are on the slate, along with non-green engines like BMW’s V8 in the 750i and Jaguar’s 5-liter V8.

The overall winner will be chosen by an international panel of 65 auto journalists (alas, I was not invited). There are also categories divided up by engine size, along with Best New Engine, Green Engine, and Performance Engine. Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive engine has taken the Green Car (formerly Fuel Economy) prize every year since 2004, when it wrested the title away from Honda.

This year’s winners will be announced in Stuttgart, Germany, at the Engine Expo, held June 16-18.

Photo by Kristen Hall-Geisler.

Honda FCX Clarity Names World Green Car

April 17, 2009 in Hydrogen by kristen | No comments

Last month, the finalists for World Green Car were announced, and now we have a winner: the Honda FCX Clarity. It beat out the Mitsubishi i MiEV and Toyota iQ for the title at the 2009 New York Auto Show.

Currently, the hydrogen fuel-cell-powered Clarity is only available for lease in California. The i MiEV and iQ are available in Japan, though Mitsubishi’s little EV is hell-bent on global domination.

Past winners of the World Green Car have been:

Photo by Kristen Hall-Geisler.

Finalists for World Green Car of the Year Announced

March 13, 2009 in EVs, Hydrogen, MPG, small cars by kristen | No comments

Honday Clarity

The three finalists for World Green Car of the Year have been announced, and while none of them are widely available, none of them are big surprises, either:

  • Mitsubishi i MiEV (electric)
  • Toyota iQ (gasoline)
  • Honda Clarity (hydrogen)

Only the Clarity is available in the U.S., and it’s only leased to a select few customer in certain markets. The i MiEV is sold in Japan, and the iQ is sold in both Japan and Europe. The iQ, in case you’re not familiar with this foreign-only car, is the size of a Smart ForTwo and a 1-liter gasoline engine that gets 55 mpg.

The New York Times “Wheels” blog notes that with such disparate fuels and production levels, it’s not exactly a level playing field. Nonetheless, a winner will be announced at the New York Auto Show, which is being held April 10-19.

Image of the Honda Clarity by Kristen Hall-Geisler.

Jetta’s Clean Diesel at Teen Choice Awards

August 4, 2008 in diesel by kristen | No comments

Jerry O\'Connell at the Teen Choice AwardsTonight, stars I am too old to have heard of will be escorted to the red carpet at the Teen Choice 2008 awards in a fleet of Volkswagen’s brand-new 2009 Jetta TDIs, which run on clean diesel. Like everone else in Hollywood, the Teen Choice awards are going green, so Fox, which is airing the show, partnered with VW to showcase its new entrant into the eco-car market.

The ceremonies began their green initiative last year, and will continue to use recyclable materials in the sets and press credentials printed on recycled paper. The Jetta TDI, for its part, uses high-performance, low-sulfur diesel fuel and meets the strictest fuel emissions in the country — including California’s.

At least 15 stars will be arriving at the awards show in the Vee-Dubs, including James Marsden (Cyclops in the X-Men films), American Idol runner-up Katherine McPhee, and Jerry O’Connell, who was in Stand by Me and is now married to Rebecca Romijn. I would have to Google the rest of the list to find their pop-culture accomplishments, but they include Chase Crawford, Leighton Meester, Ed Westwick, Drake Bell, Brittany Snow, JoJo, Rachel Bilson and Sophia Bush.