Thursday 22nd May saw the UK’s largest dedicated green vehicle motor show arrive in Liverpool. The event promoted by the Green Car Guide saw motor manufacturers and environmentally focused automotive operations present their latest innovations and services.

Exhibiting were motor manufacturers including BMW with their EfficientDynamic range, Volkswagen with their Polo and Golf Bluemotion models and Citroen with their low CO₂/stop and start C1, C2, C3 and C4.

The show welcomed many large organisations including Tesco and British Telecom who are focused on reducing their company’s carbon footprint.

Green Motion – Europe’s first fully environmentally friendly vehicle rental company – took the opportunity to promote its latest eco initiative – you rent a car, we plant a tree. Not satisfied with offering its customers a choice of vehicles that boast the latest in low CO₂ and fuel saving technologies and adhering to its own all embracing environmental policy, Green Motion has taken a further step in its environmental evolution.

To promote its new tree planting initiative, each visitor to the Green Car Guide Live 2008 show was presented with a live evergreen oak sapling which offset the emissions associated to each journey made to the show.

Green Motion also featured its flagship eco vehicle, the Polo Bluemotion, which boasts the lowest CO₂ of any standard vehicle of 99g/km.

FHI Showcases Its Subaru Plug-in STELLA Concept, a New Prototype Electric Vehicle, at the G8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit

Tokyo, June 27, 2008 – Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. (FHI), the maker of Subaru automobiles, today announced the successful development of its Subaru Plug-in STELLA Concept model, a prototype electric vehicle (EV). FHI will provide five units of the Plug-in STELLA Concept for use at the Hokkaido Toyako Summit to be held July 7 through 9, 2008. Four of the five will be used to transport government officials and other participants at the summit, while one vehicle will be displayed at the Environmental Showcase, an exhibition and demonstration area in the International Media Center, and it will also be available for a test drive.

In addition, FHI will provide one STELLA Concept model to the Japan Post group for use in mail collection and delivery in the vicinity of Toyako during the summit.

The Subaru Plug-in STELLA Concept combines the EV system employed in the R1e with the mini car, Subaru STELLA. The resulting vehicle represents an optimized model that features the compact packaging and superb utility that the STELLA offers to meet a wider array of market needs. FHI plans to use the Plug-in STELLA Concept in the development and test-marketing of the next generation of EV in Japan in the near future.

FHI has jointly developed the Subaru R1e with Tokyo Electric Power Co., Inc. (TEPCO), a leading utility in Japan, and the vehicle’s performance has been tested since June 2006. Forty units of the R1e model, equipped with lithium ion (Li-ion) batteries, have been used by TEPCO as part of its corporate fleet and by the Kanagawa Prefectural Government, providing performance results that further advance FHI’s EV development work. Such data collected under real-world conditions have helped FHI to refine the concept of the next-generation EV and make further improvements in convenience and comfort under everyday driving situations.

FHI has placed emphasis on its mission to pursue the perfect integration of a pleasant and reliable driving with environmental considerations. While seamlessly improving the power units design and introducing such cleaner engines as the Horizontally-Opposed diesel engine in Europe (available since March of this year), the company has positioned EVs as another viable solution for environmental preservation, and it plans to accelerate its EV development work.

London’s electric car company NICE has welcomed the prime minister’s boost for renewable energy. In a speech yesterday, Gordon Brown said that renewables would supply 15 per cent of the UK’s energy mix by 2020. He also emphasised the important role that electric and plug-in hybrid cars will play in the strategy.

As electricity generation become less reliant on fossil fuels, electric cars will become even greener. They already produce less than half the greenhouse gasses of traditional cars, even with the current energy mix. An increase in renewables will move electric vehicles ever-closer to true, zero-emissions motoring.

“In the drive towards truly sustainable transport, the government has taken a significant step forward,” said Evert Geurtsen co-founder NICE Car Company. “There is now a clear understanding that the environmental benefits of electric vehicles will develop hand-in-hand with an increase in renewable energy supply.”

In April this year, the WWF published a report called Plugged In: The End of the Oil Age. This said that, even with the UK’s current energy mix, all-electric vehicles are still far cleaner than those that are conventionally-fuelled. However, it also made the point that electric vehicles would reap the benefits of more renewable energy supply:

“Electric vehicles need not wait for the coming renewable energy revolution, though they will automatically reap the rewards when that does indeed happen.

 How green are electric cars? Environmentalists have been quick to point out that while electric cars certainly have their merits over petrol guzzling alternatives, they aren’t truly ‘green’ until the energy they use comes from renewable sources.

Well now there is more weight to the argument that supports electric cars with Prime Minister Gordon Brown announcing in a speech that renewable energy will supply 15 per cent of the UK’s energy mix by 2020. Mr Brown also highlighted the importance of the role that both electric and hybrid cars will play in this strategy.

With less reliance on fossil fuels, electric cars become even greener. Even with the current energy mix, they produce less than half of the greenhouse gases of traditional cars, and Evert Guertson, co-founder of the London-based NICE electric car company, believes this is a positive move by the Government.

“In the drive towards truly sustainable transport, the Government has taken a significant step forward,” he said. “There is now a clear understanding that the environmental benefits of electric vehicles will develop hand-in-hand with an increase in renewable energy supply.”

According to a report published by the World Wildlife Fund in April this year, all electric vehicles are far cleaner than those that are conventionally fuelled even with the UK’s current energy mix. The increased reliance on renewable sources will move electric cars even closer to that threshold of being true zero-emission vehicles.

 Green cars are to take centre stage at this year’s British International Motor Show as we revealed two weeks ago in our news item ‘green cars take the spotlight‘. Now, new details have been released about the show.

Co-operative Insurance and the Department for Transport’s ACT ON CO2 campaign have joined forces to present the Greener Driving Pavilion, which will feature interactive displays, vehicle cutaways and simulators. It will also showcase a range of environmental automotive technologies including electric cars, hybrid cars and fuel cells.

Visitors to the Pavilion will also be offered tips as to how they can make a difference both to their bank balance and to the environment. Michelin, another supporter of the event, will also demonstrate the benefits of low-rolling resistant tyres.

There’s also an opportunity for visitors to walk away with a green car of their own. A Mazda2, one of the most fuel-efficient cars on the market, will be given away to one lucky visitor.

If you want to find out more about how you can make your motoring more environmentally friendly, tickets for the show start at just £10 for an adult weekday pass and £6 for a child’s ticket. The event takes place at the ExCeL London from July 23-August 03.

For more information visit the British Motor Show website or call 0871 230 5588 for tickets.

 Earlier this week Senator Barack Obama branded rival presidential candidate John McCain’s pledge of $300million to manufacturers to develop green cars as a ‘gimmick’. Now Obama has met with industry leaders face-to-face to discuss the matter first hand.

According to reports, Obama met with Ford CEO Alan Mulally and head of GM Rick Wagoner in two separate meetings to share ideas and voice concerns. The first meeting was described as ‘very productive’ in a statement issued by the Ford CEO.

From there Obama spoke at an economic roundtable with Wagoner and others at Carnegie University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Obama, who is notorious for being tough on car manufacturers for their reliance on SUVs in the past, began the speech by posing the question as to how the next president can help manufacturers cope with rising gas prices and global warming.

Wagoner responded by asking for government support to help develop new technologies. He raised the issue of the expense of his company’s Volt plug-in hybrid and said that tax credits could be used to help offset the cost of the new technology.

Obama agreed that assistance will be required to help American manufacturers compete with the likes of Toyota and Volkswagen. He proposed creating a $150 million clean energy initiative which would include money to help manufacturers retool their factories.

It’s clear that the future of the auto industry and the development of green cars will be a central theme in this year’s presidential campaign.

 Some would say that online BLOGs are just an opportunity for the highly opinionated to blow hot air. However, one recent BLOG proposal may be intriguing to green car developers.

In the Classic Quarters BLOG spot, one author named CQ has proposed an idea for wind powered cars as an alternative to building petrol alternative forecourts. Wind-powered cars are not a new idea as such, but bringing them to reality has proven a difficult undertaking. So what do you make of this author’s suggestions?

The author proposes that three five-inch diameter wind turbine fans are placed along the front portion of the passenger cabin roof, slightly behind the windscreen. The first lines up with the driver side shoulder, another sits on the passenger’s side and the third is positioned horizontally in the middle. Each would be no larger than a headlight and they would be protectively caged.

The turbines then feed a secondary generator which recharges an electric based engine using the vehicle’s own renewable wind displacement. As the author states, there is always significant wind flow even in steady traffic, but the car would need some sort of charge up before it starts its journey.

By using three fans as opposed to just one, you always have a back-up in case one fails and there is a balance to the air flow disturbance. The author does admit that there may be drawbacks in bad weather – such as snow and heavy rainfall, but perhaps a scientist can iron out those issues.

So what do you think about CQ’s proposals? Do they sound feasible? And do you have any ideas of your own? Leave a comment below with your thoughts.

You can check out the BLOG in full, here.

 From Toyota to Honda, Japanese manufacturers have consistently taken the spotlight when it comes to the development of green cars. However, now you can add another name to the list – Hitachi.

Hitachi Metals Ltd has made a potentially significant breakthrough for the manufacturing of hybrid cars by developing a neodymium magnet that can withstand temperatures 20 per cent higher than normal without losing magnetic strength.

The magnetic is said to be well-suited to high-performance traction motors which are found in hybrid cars. Potentially they could deliver enough magnetic force at higher temperatures to allow the design of the magnet to be 20 per cent lighter and therefore reducing the overall weight of the car.

Car manufacturers have outlined that future electric drive motors should be able to operate well at temperatures up to 200°C. Though neodymium magnets can lose magnetic energy at modest temperatures, the high temperature magnetic performance is more critical than room temperature performance.

More research is required into improving heat resistance and maintaining the magnetic force. However, Hitachi Metals, which holds a 50 per cent share of the market for industrial-use neodymium magnets, has already begun shipping samples and will begin mass production if there is sufficient interest.

 In recent weeks we’ve had numerous reports about some of the leading car hire companies in the world turning to green cars for their fleets from Europcar to Green Motion. Well, now you can add another name to the list as Hertz expands its list of vehicles with a green theme.

As the busy summer travel season begins, Hertz has purchased 3,400 Toyota Prius models in an effort to keep on top of consumer demand and to drive down its costs. It should come as no surprise that the company is anticipating greater demand for hybrid cars with fuel prices reaching $4 a gallon in the USA and around £1.20 a litre in the UK.

Indeed Hertz is not alone in announcing further hybrids to its fleet. Enterprise Rent-A-Car has also expanded its offering – there are approximately 4,000 hybrid vehicles in its fleet of 1.1million. Vehicles from Japanese manufacturers such as Toyota and Honda are proving particularly popular with recent fuel-efficient models from the likes of KIA, Mazda and Hyundai also winning customer support.

Hertz is hoping that hybrid cars can help the company turn the corner financially. In the first three months of 2008 it suffered a net loss of $57.8million – although that was less than during the first three months of 2007 when it lost $62.6million. The summer months are traditionally much more profitable for car hire companies and Hertz hopes that the hybrid vehicles in its fleet can help reduce outgoings while maximising its rewards.

Volkswagen and the German government have launched a programme to push the development of environmentally friendly hybrid vehicles. 15 million euros have been pledged by the German Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel to fund a four-year project that will develop prototypes that will operate using batteries that are charged using renewable sources of energy such as solar and wind power.

In addition to VW, which unveiled its Golf “Twin Drive” hybrid model, the energy group EON is also in the programme. The energy group EON are also included in the programme that hopes to see the release of models like the Golf “Twin Drive” hybrid by 2010.