xcel
04-03-2007, 07:55 PM
Sales of gas-sipping cars continue to accelerate. (http://www.presstelegram.com/opinions/ci_5572004)
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/Next_Gen_Prius_III.jpgPress-Telegram - April 1, 2007
Toyota Prius sales are still accelerating.
Toyota, which once had months-long waiting lists for its market-leading Prius hybrid car, is now offering low-interest financing to move the now readily available model off dealers' lots.
Does that mean the bloom is off the hybrid rose? Or that car buyers began losing interest in fuel economy when gasoline prices retreated - briefly, at least - from the $3 a gallon level?
Far from it. Overall, the hybrid category now reflects more than 1.5 percent of all new U.S. vehicle registrations and is growing briskly, according to R.L. Polk & Co., an automotive information and marketing company.
Nationwide, registrations for new hybrid vehicles rose to 254,545 in 2006 - a 28 percent increase from 2005. For the third year in a row, Toyota's Prius was the hybrid sales leader with 43 percent of new registrations. Toyota sold 107,000 of the roomy but fuel-efficient cars in the United States last year.
California continues to lead the nation in hybrid vehicle registrations.
Gas-electric hybrid cars are only part of a larger and rapidly changing picture that shows both manufacturers and buyers are more interested than ever in "green" cars.
General Motors grabbed the spotlight at the January North American International Auto Show in Detroit with its Chevrolet Volt concept car - a "plug-in" hybrid able to travel up to 40 miles on a single charge from house current.
And diesel engines, long popular in Europe but mostly limited to heavy trucks and equipment in the U.S., are expected to see significant U.S. sales growth now that new "clean diesel" fuels are widely available. DaimlerChrysler is aggressively developing its Bluetec technology designed to reduce diesel vehicle emissions, especially nitrogen oxides - the only exhaust-gas emissions that are still higher in modern diesel engines than they are in their gasoline counterparts.
Some of the fuel-saving technologies are complementary. GM unveiled the Opel Astra Diesel Hybrid, a sedan concept vehicle the company claims would increase fuel economy by 25 percent over a comparable diesel car. DaimlerChrysler is aiming at a full-size Dodge Ram diesel-hybrid pickup capable of 30 miles per gallon. Ford is working on a diesel-hybrid wagon.
It's unclear which of these technologies will win the hearts of car buyers, but it's certain that more and more drivers will turn to fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly vehicles in the future.
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/Next_Gen_Prius_III.jpgPress-Telegram - April 1, 2007
Toyota Prius sales are still accelerating.
Toyota, which once had months-long waiting lists for its market-leading Prius hybrid car, is now offering low-interest financing to move the now readily available model off dealers' lots.
Does that mean the bloom is off the hybrid rose? Or that car buyers began losing interest in fuel economy when gasoline prices retreated - briefly, at least - from the $3 a gallon level?
Far from it. Overall, the hybrid category now reflects more than 1.5 percent of all new U.S. vehicle registrations and is growing briskly, according to R.L. Polk & Co., an automotive information and marketing company.
Nationwide, registrations for new hybrid vehicles rose to 254,545 in 2006 - a 28 percent increase from 2005. For the third year in a row, Toyota's Prius was the hybrid sales leader with 43 percent of new registrations. Toyota sold 107,000 of the roomy but fuel-efficient cars in the United States last year.
California continues to lead the nation in hybrid vehicle registrations.
Gas-electric hybrid cars are only part of a larger and rapidly changing picture that shows both manufacturers and buyers are more interested than ever in "green" cars.
General Motors grabbed the spotlight at the January North American International Auto Show in Detroit with its Chevrolet Volt concept car - a "plug-in" hybrid able to travel up to 40 miles on a single charge from house current.
And diesel engines, long popular in Europe but mostly limited to heavy trucks and equipment in the U.S., are expected to see significant U.S. sales growth now that new "clean diesel" fuels are widely available. DaimlerChrysler is aggressively developing its Bluetec technology designed to reduce diesel vehicle emissions, especially nitrogen oxides - the only exhaust-gas emissions that are still higher in modern diesel engines than they are in their gasoline counterparts.
Some of the fuel-saving technologies are complementary. GM unveiled the Opel Astra Diesel Hybrid, a sedan concept vehicle the company claims would increase fuel economy by 25 percent over a comparable diesel car. DaimlerChrysler is aiming at a full-size Dodge Ram diesel-hybrid pickup capable of 30 miles per gallon. Ford is working on a diesel-hybrid wagon.
It's unclear which of these technologies will win the hearts of car buyers, but it's certain that more and more drivers will turn to fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly vehicles in the future.