In honor of World Environment Day (today), Hertz has announced that they are relaunching their eco friendly rental program in Europe. Hertz’s Green Collection is comprised of several fuel-efficient vehicles that can be reserved at one of 70 airports and major metropolitan locations across Europe.

“The Green Collection offers eco-friendly models carefully selected according to the company’s enhanced CO2 emissions policy. All models have a CO2 output of less than or equal to 140g/km, with more than half of the models at 120g/km or less - exceeding the average voluntary target of 140g/km CO2 output set by the EU for the European Automobile Manufacturers Association.” Source: PR Newswire

Currently, the Green Collection is available in Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Plans are in place to expand into the Czech Republic and Sweden in the near future.

If you are traveling to Europe and would like to reserve one of Hertz’s designated eco friendly vehicles, visit Hertz’s European Green Collection website.

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Filed Under: Europe

Many green motoring enthusiasts use public transportation to help reduce their contribution to greenhouse gas emissions so I like to report about eco-friendly mass transit items from time-to-time. Mercedes-Benz has just announced that their new Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid city busy will begin service in June.

“An exceptional feature of the Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid is its outstanding environmental friendliness in normal operations. The bus emits absolutely no pollutants while in motion, and is also virtually silent. This makes it particularly ideal for use in highly congested inner cities and metropolitan areas. The Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid is thus the next logical step on the path to zero-emission public transport, which Daimler had already announced it would take, and it will thus play a major role in future mobility systems.” (Source: Daimler)

The busy will make its debut in early June at the UITP World Congress and Mobility & City Transport Exhibition in Vienna, Austria.

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Filed Under: Eco Friendly, Europe

Details on the Renault Kangoo Be Bop have been released and my first thought was “Will this be the next smart fortwo?” The car is tiny, unique and economical. Unlike the smart fortwo though, this vehicle is not available in the United States.

“Thanks to its second generation common rail injection, variable geometry turbo and 1,600-bar injector pressure, this powerplant yields nimble performance for combined cycle fuel consumption of just 5.4 litres/100km, which is equivalent to 142g of CO2/km.” (Source: Renault)

Thanks to my hand dandy metric conversion calculators, 5.4 liters is about 1.4 gallons. 100 kilometers is 62.1 miles. If I am doing the math right, this would be about 44 miles per gallon. Not too bad for a car that seats four.

Although the vehicle is tiny, there is room for four full-sized adults and the back seat folds down for extra storage space when not occupied.

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Filed Under: Europe

Dubbed the UK’s greenest family car, the Ford Fiesta ECOnetic is now available at dealerships in the United Kingdom. The newly designed Ford Fiesta hit the market in October of last year and since the ECOnetic was announced, more than 500 orders have been placed.

“For the Ford Fiesta ECOnetic, modifications include lowered suspension, aerodynamic body styling and a gear change alert. Together these help to lower fuel consumption to 76.3mpg and CO2 emissions to 98g/km.

Automotive environmental specialists, Cleangreencars.co.uk, confirmed that the Ford Fiesta ECOnetic is the UK’s greenest family car. Publisher Jay Nagley said: “Cleangreencars.co.uk welcomes any car that sets a new benchmark for the industry. That the Fiesta ECOnetic does so without any loss of driving pleasure makes the new model doubly welcome. Of the 3,600 production models ranked by CO2 on Cleangreencars.co.uk, the Ford Fiesta ECOnetic comes out top among five-seater cars.” (Source: Newspress)

The Ford Fiesta ECOnetic 1.6 TDCi has fuel efficiency ratings of 61.4 mpg in urban areas, 88.3 mpg in extra-urban areas and a combined fuel efficiency of 76.3 mpg. Nice!

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Filed Under: Europe, diesel

The United States Army began testing GEM cars in April 2008 at its garrison in Grafenworh, Germany to see if the vehicles would be a worthwhile addition to its fleet of on base vehicles. Unfortunately, the small neighborhood electric vehicles did not pass muster and the Army will be discontinuing the trial and will not pursue expanding their electric vehicle fleet.

“During the trial, soldiers used one of the electric cars, which featured a pick-up truck-style flatbed, for on-post inspections of trash sites. Another car was used for mail runs on base, while the last was used for housing area checks.” (Source: Stars and Stripes)

The Army was dissatisfied with both the range of the vehicles and the reliability of the product stating that the vehicles broke down too often. This does not signify an end of the use of electric vehicles for the Army, as they are not swearing off EVs in the future. This is merely an end to the use of Chrysler-owned GEM cars.

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Filed Under: Europe, electric vehicles

The all-new Ford Fiesta, which came back into production this fall, was the top seller in the United Kingdom in November and was named as the Scottish Car of the Year. Ford’s commitment to green vehicles continues with the Fiesta with an ECOnetic model available; the Ford Fiesta ECOnetic was able to achieve a 76.3 mpg combined rating.

“The Fiesta ECOnetic becomes the most fuel efficient new five-seater family car in the UK. With CO2 emissions at under 100g/km, Ford Fiesta ECOnetic is zero rated both for road tax (Vehicle Excise Duty) and for the ’showroom tax’ element of VED introduced for the first year of ownership in this year’s Budget.” (Source: Ford Media)

The vehicle is currently only available in Europe but there will be expansion into China next year and North America in 2010. Plans are in place to begin production of the Ford Fiesta at the Cuautitlan Assembly Plant in Mexico in the early part of 2010.

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Filed Under: Europe, Ford

Hot on the heels of the Green Car Journal’s 2009 Green Car of the Year, the World Car of the Year Awards has announced the finalists in the World Green Car category. There are more than 20 finalists and the winner will be named on April 9, 2009 at the New York International Auto Show.

Drum roll please…

And the finalists are:
Audi Q7 3.0 TDI
BMW 335d BluePerformance
Chevrolet Tahoe / GMC Yukon Hybrid
Citroën C1
Fiat Palio Weekend Electric
Fiat Siena Tetrafuel model
Honda FCX Clarity
Mazda Hydrogen Rotary RX8
Mercedes-Benz ML/R/GL 320 BlueTEC
MINI Cooper D
MINI E
Mitsubishi iMiEV
Nissan X-Trail 20 GT
smart ed
Subaru Legacy/Outback PZEV
Tesla Electric Roadster
Toyota iQ
Volvo C30 1.6D DRIVe
Volvo S40 1.6D DRIVe
Volvo S80 2.5 FT (Flexifuel)
Volvo V50 1.6D DRIVe
Volvo V70 2.5 FT (Flexifuel)

I can tell you with full enthusiasm that I am much more excited to see the finalists on this list than I was when I saw the top five for the Green Car Journal award. The Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid is an odd choice in my opinion but it was the 2008 Green Car of the Year (per the Green Car Journal) so I suppose it is not too surprising.

I expected to see the Honda FCX Clarity on the Green Car Journal list but it did not make the top five, I am glad to see it here. It is nice to see the MINI E, smart ed and the Tesla being acknowledged. Boy, it is a long wait until April.

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Filed Under: Auto Shows, Europe

Volvo’s name has been discussed in automotive circles quite a bit lately. Ford Motor, the owner of Volvo, is considering selling the Volvo unit amidst its financial woes. The likely buyers are China-based Changan Automobile Group. Ford is not saying anything definitive on the prospect so it is just business as usual at Volvo.

Today’s business as usual comes in the form of an announcement by Volvo Trucks that they will provide four hybrid waste trucks for use by Veolia Proprete in the fall of 2009. The trucks will be put to use in London and Paris.

“The hybrid trucks have both a diesel engine and an electric motor and each power source can be used separately or in combination with the other. Since the electric motor is used when the vehicle is idling and for acceleration, fuel consumption can be cut by 15-20 per cent. With the addition of an extra battery featuring a plug-in recharging facility to power the ancillaries, the hybrid refuse trucks can cut a further 10-15 per cent off their fuel consumption figures, giving a total fuel reduction of up to 30 per cent. “(Source: Newspress)

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Filed Under: Europe, Volvo

Saab, Volvo and representatives from other automobile and supply companies will be meeting in Sweden to discuss how to strengthen the country’s relationship with the auto industry.

“Sweden spearheads research in hybrid technology for plug-in hybrid vehicles. Over a five-year period, some $40 million will be invested in a joint venture between Volvo, SAAB, energy company Vattenfall, the Swedish State and the Swedish Energy Agency to develop next-generation plug-in hybrid vehicles that will reduce fuel consumption and emissions.” (Source: PR Newswire)

The country wants to be the driving force behind the creation of more green and efficient vehicles. In addition to looking at the efficiency of vehicles, the country would like to continue with its stringent safety regulations and look at new technology that improves data on road conditions.

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Filed Under: Europe, Saab, Volvo

Drivers in Norway may just find themselves next to one of 30 Mazda RX-8 Hydrogen RE (rotary engine) vehicles next time they take a trek on the roadways. This project marks the first time that hydrogen rotary engine vehicles are being used on public roadways outside of Japan.

“Up to now, real world use of Mazda’s hydrogen rotary vehicles has been limited to Japan. Participation in the HyNor project marks our advancement to the next stage,” says Akihiro Kashiwagi, Mazda Program Manager in charge of hydrogen RE development. “After we validate the first vehicle on Norwegian roads, we intend to deliver 30 more units under commercial lease contracts. We are pleased to be a part of the establishment of a society based on hydrogen energy in Norway. Mazda plans to use the wealth of data and experience that will result from this project for the further development of hydrogen vehicles.” (Source: Newspress)

The RX-8 Hydrogen REs are part of the HyNor project that will provide hydrogen energy stations along a 580km route between Oslo and Stavanger. I think this is a fantastic step towards increasing the recognition of hydrogen vehicles as a valid alternative to today’s gasoline engines. Although there are already hydrogen vehicles on the road in the United States, including the Honda FCX Clarity, there currently isn’t much of a hydrogen energy infrastructure available to support future hydrogen expansion.

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Filed Under: Europe, Mazda, hydrogen