Green Options

In one of Top Gear’s more infamous (and yet informative) vehicle tests, Jeremy Clarkson pitted a Toyota Prius against a BMW M3 to see which car could get better gas mileage. The catch was, the Prius had to drive as fast as it could, while all the M3 had to do was keep up with the hybrid. The end result was the Prius got 17.2 mpg, while the M3 got 19.4 mpg. The point, according to Clarkson, is that it isn’t what you drive, but how you drive.

Now we can debate the merits of the video (posted below) all we want. But the point is, you can get decent mileage if you drive, well, gingerly. It isn’t easy, but Garmin, maker of GPS devices, has come up with a device called the ecoRoute hd. This device plugs into your car and calculates just how green you are driving, no matter what you are driving. It’s pretty cool, in a green, Big Brother sort of way.

Some people will go to great lengths to get the best gas mileage possible. There are simple ways of doing this of course, like using a light touch on the gas pedal and coasting whenever possible. If you’re mechanically inclined you can retard the timing or even perform an engine swap in pursuit of high MPGs.

Or you can add a hideous duck tail to your geo metro. Hey, whatever works, right?

As I’ve said before, SEMA is not usually a place you expect to see lots of alternative fuel vehicles. But in recent years there has been a paradigm shift, and increasing floor space has been devoted to debuting technologies and cars that conserve gas, rather than waste it.

Factory Five, out of Wareham Massachusetts, is a well-known maker of kit cars based on classic Shelby designs including the Cobra and Daytona. Amp=D has taken one of their kit cars based on the iconic ‘33 Ford and built a powerful electric drivetrain around this handsome hot rod.

A group of University of Kansas students have rigged up a 1974 Volkswagen Super Beetle to run on a mix of biodiesel and battery power.

The team, calling themselves the Ecohawks, claim the quirky hybrid is capable of getting 50 MPG from a series of 10 lead-acid batteries and a biodiesel generator.

Performance-wise, although quite cool looking in a retro kind of way, the car isn’t exactly what you’d call a speedster, topping out as it does at a leisurely 30 mph.

That doesn’t seem to bother team-leader Prof. Chris Depcik though, who told reporters, “We have driven it around and reached approximately 30 mph, but this was more of a proof-of-concept drive without pushing the boundaries. We are currently getting the vehicle into road-ready shape to be driven safely in order to determine these values.” (More pics after the jump).

This one really made me giggle.

Tuning powerhouse Tommy Kaira has given the third generation Toyota Prius an aggressive makeover that is purely cosmetic.

I’ve spent a lot of time around the car hobby, and I’ve seen some pretty stupid people do some pretty stupid things. My favorite story involves a V6 Mustang and a leafblower strapped to the air intake, approximating a cobbled together stand-alone supercharger of sorts. Alas, no one ever explained to this man-child that if you add more air, you also need to add more fuel. His engine did not last too long.

But a UK company may be on the right track with an electric supercharger that actually works. Not only does it provide a 40-50% bump in power and torque, but also a 20% decrease in CO2 emissions.

If you live in Colorado and own a Prius, here’s a New Year’s Day gift for you: $6,000 off a plug-in hybrid conversion.

Earlier this year, Colorado passed House Bill 1331, “Incentives for Efficient Motor Vehicles,” which creates new tax credits of up to $6,000 for the purchase of, or conversion to, a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle.

Background: plug-in hybrid and electric car retrofits.

The new credit will be a substantial discount off the average price of a plug-in conversion, which generally run around $10-14,000. On top of the Federal Tax Credit of 10% (up to $4,000), plug-in retrofits could start to make a lot of sense for some car owners.

In its time, the MGB was one of the most modern sports cars available. Featuring some of the first crumple zones to ever be included in a production car, as well as a fast-for-its-day 0-60 mph acceleration of 11 seconds. It was also a beauty.

So it’s clear why, in 1984, an engineering professor with a brand-spanking new PhD, who had just begun his professional career at the University of South Carolina, would think it might be cool to drive a 1972 MGB around with the top down in that climatically-pleasant area of the US. And so began Professor Roger Dougal’s obsession with his MGB.

This is actually old news that recently resurfaced, and as a lifelong Cougar aficionado I can’t pass it up. In actuality, the Mercury Cougar was a refined, “gentleman’s muscle car” based on the 1st generation Mustang. It came standard with a number of gas-guzzling V8 motors including the epic “Boss” 302.

But the pristine-looking 1967 Cougar pictured here has done away with those gas hogs in favor of a Mercedes turbodiesel motor that runs on, you guessed it, biodiesel.

RVs are not known for their fuel efficiency. Some can need a gallon to get just 8 miles out of town. But here’s one that goes to the other extreme.

Originally envisioned as weighing just 50 pounds, and with a pullout drawer to extend its length for sleeping; inventor Paul Elkins‘ camper was designed for maximum efficiency. It had to endure winds of 60 mph, heat of 100+ degrees. And it’s not merely fuel efficient. It uses no fuel at all.

What you see above (center) is one of the most well-engineered “Franken-cars” of all time: a factory-modified 1980’s era Mercedes-Benz 190 diesel, stuffed with the company’s latest BlueEFFICIENCY CDI engine, which makes more than double the horsepower and nearly three times the torque of the original 1988 D.

How far we’ve come in 20 years!

More photos, and MBUSA’s own comprehensive press release, after the jump.