Prius, iQ top German Green Car List

As the price of gas remains high many are turning to more environmentally friendly options. The German Automobile Club has come out with a list of the most environmentally friendly cars. Asian carmakers Toyota and Honda once again come out on top.
Is this the greenest car on the roads?

This Toyota Prius Hybrid topped Germany's VCD Automobile Club's annual list of the most environmentally-friendly vehicles.

It was followed by another Toyota model, the iQ, and in third place the Honda Insight Hybrid.

The VCD's been rating 300 car models each year for the past 20 years.

They measure the fuel used and emissions released for each kilometre driven.

Plus how noisy the car is.

The VCD's spokesman says the top three cars are all hybrids.

[Gerd Lottsiepen, Spokesman German VCD Automobile Club]:
"These are vehicles with a petrol engine and an electric motor, so they can be cheap to run. They are very quiet, and that is important to secure a place on the VCD's environmentally-friendly list."

As Japanese carmakers take the top three positions - many will wonder where the European manufacturers are.

Two German carmakers - Daimler and VW - are in the top ten.

The Europeans insist they've been investing in other types of new technology.

Honda's spokesman says the European makers missed the boat for getting involved in hybrid technology.

[Alexander Heintzel, Honda Spokesman]:
"Demand for hybrid vehicles has grown strongly worldwide in the past ten years, of course. But nevertheless in Europe it is still a technology that hasn't received so much attention, which is still on the way up, especially because European manufactures aren't doing much in this area, and at the moment there are just two Japanese importers."

The VCD says more drivers are looking to buy "greener" cars.

And any Germans wanting to swap their vehicles which are over 9 years old for a new model - and take advantage of the scrapping bonus subsidy before itruns out - will be looking at this kind of list of cars for tips on what to buy.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• NTD
• Germany
• Car
• Environmentally friendly
• German Automobile Club
• Carmakers
• Toyota
• Honda
• Daimler
• Volkswagen

[malbert34]

Gay narrator voices but good and interesting video.