Slide Show | August 2007
EARTH-FRIENDLY AUTOS SCORECARD
Where possible, scores are based on numbers from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, which reflect fuel economy as well as pollutants from vehicle tailpipes. (Some of these vehicles are eligible for tax incentives. Learn more.) From SUVs to compact cars, find out which are the most kind to the environment -- and your wallet.
By Mark Solheim
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HONDA CIVIC GX
Powered by: Natural gas
Sticker price/dealer cost: $25,185/NA
Miles per gallon (city/highway equivalent): 28/39
Tax credit: Up to $5,000
The Civic GX is the cleanest internal-combustion vehicle on the road. And the cost to fuel up the natural gas Civic is less than half that of the gasoline Civic. A few caveats: It's available only in California and New York and costs about $7,000 more than the Civic LX. Plus, you'll probably have to buy a natural-gas dispenser for your garage, which costs $3,200 to $4,000. Or you may be able to lease a dispenser for between $40 and $70 a month. HONDA CIVIC GX
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TESLA ROADSTER
Powered by: Electricity
Sticker price: $99,000
Miles per gallon (combined equivalent): 135
Tesla Motors' highway-worthy, wicked-quick roadster is built by Lotus in Great Britain. The company says the car can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 4 seconds, can go more than 200 miles before it needs recharging and that it costs about 2 cents per mile to operate. If you are content with a trunk that fits only one golf bag, you can order your own roadster at the Tesla Web site. You will need to pony up a $30,000 reservation payment. TESLA ROADSTER
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TOYOTA PRIUS
Powered by: Gas/electric engine
Sticker price/dealer cost: $22,795/$21,039
Miles per gallon (city/highway): 48/45
Tax credit: $788 ($0 after September 30, 2007)
With the EPA's new fuel economy testing in place, say goodbye to the Prius's 60 mpg rating. Even so, Prius is the most fuel-efficient hybrid on the road. Sales surged in 2007 as Toyota boosted production and offered a $2,000 cash incentive to offset the dwindling federal tax credit. You pay a $5,000 or so premium over a Corolla, but when you consider the Prius's low five-year ownership costs, the premium diminishes substantially. TOYOTA PRIUS
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HONDA CIVIC HYBRID
Powered by: Gas/electric engine
Sticker price/dealer cost: $23,195/$21,271
Miles per gallon (city/highway): 40/45
Tax credit: $2,100 ($1,050 after December 31, 2007)
Honda has discovered that hybrids are a tougher sell when they look like their nonhybrid siblings. Nevertheless, Civic is an affordable hybrid with very good fuel economy and high green credibility. If you buy in 2007, you also get the full $2,100 tax credit. When you crank that credit into the equation, five-year ownership costs are about the same as for a comparably equipped Civic LX. HONDA CIVIC HYBRID
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TOYOTA CAMRY HYBRID
Powered by: Gas/electric engine
Sticker price/dealer cost: $26,820/$24,200
Miles per gallon (city/highway): 33/34
Tax credit: $650 ($0 after September 30, 2007)
The Camry hybrid gets very good fuel economy with zippy acceleration. Its base price is $1,200 higher than its closest competitor, the Nissan Altima, but the Camry offers more standard equipment -- including a six-disc CD changer, heated outside mirrors and Bluetooth hands-free-phone connection. TOYOTA CAMRY HYBRID
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NISSAN ALTIMA HYBRID
Powered by: Gas/electric engine
Sticker price/dealer cost: $25,615/$24,047
Miles per gallon (city/highway): 35/33
Tax credit: $2,350
The Altima hybrid gets slightly better fuel economy than Camry's hybrid. Plus, you get a fatter tax credit -- meaning the Altima could become a serious rival to the Camry. There's just one glitch: So far, Nissan is selling the Altima only in California, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont. And Nissan offers options in large packages, leaving you less choice on individual upgrades than with the Camry. NISSAN ALTIMA HYBRID
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SATURN AURA GREEN LINE
Powered by: Gas/electric engine
Sticker price/dealer cost: $22,695/$21,262
Miles per gallon (city/highway): 24/32
Tax credit: $1,300
The 2007 Aura won Kiplinger's nod for Best New Car in the $20,000 to $25,000 category. The Green Line model is a mild hybrid -- the gas engine shuts off when you idle, but the vehicle can't operate on the electric motor alone when in motion. Translation: With regular gas at $3 a gallon, if you drive 15,000 miles a year, Aura owners pay about $340 a year more at the gas pump than for the Camry or Altima hybrid. But the Aura is about $4,000 less expensive than the Camry and $3,000 less than the Altima. SATURN AURA GREEN LINE
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FORD ESCAPE HYBRID, 2WD (2008)
Powered by: Gas/electric engine
Sticker price/dealer cost: $25,740/$24,229
Miles per gallon (city/highway): 34/30
Tax credit: $3,000
Escape is a credible environmentalist if you need an SUV. It's also available in four-wheel drive. The redesigned Escape has a larger, more user-friendly navigation screen (a $2,695 option that includes the "energy flow" monitor and an audio system upgrade) and a center console large enough for a laptop or purse. But compare it with the four-cylinder Escape, which would cost about $470 a year more to fuel but which you can buy for $6,000 less. FORD ESCAPE HYBRID, 2WD (2008)
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DAIMLER SMART FORTWO
Powered by: Gas
Sticker price/dealer cost: $12,000/NA
Miles per gallon (combined): 40
A slew of small four-cylinder-engine cars earn better green scores from the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy than all but four hybrids on the market. One tiny gas sipper coming to market in early 2008 is the Smart ForTwo, from Daimler AG. About half the size of a Ford Crown Victoria, its three-cylinder engine gives it one of the best fuel economy stats on the road. Of course, it's only a 71-hp vehicle that tops out at 90 mph, so it's best relegated to slower urban venues rather than the interstates. DAIMLER SMART FORTWO
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SATURN VUE GREEN LINE
Powered by: Gas/electric engine
Sticker price/dealer cost: $23,495/$22,008
Miles per gallon (city/highway): 23/29
Tax credit: $650
The Vue, like the Aura, is a mild hybrid that gets about 20% better fuel economy than the regular Vue. But you may want to wait to buy. Saturn is introducing a way-cooler, redesigned Vue and Vue Green Line within a year. The new "two-mode" hybrid model can accelerate and run at slower speeds on electric power alone. That should bring a 45% boost in fuel economy versus the internal-combustion-engine Vue. A plug-in Vue hybrid is promised for sometime down the road. SATURN VUE GREEN LINE
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TOYOTA HIGHLANDER (2008)
Powered by: Gas/electric engine
Sticker price/dealer cost: $34,345/NA
Miles per gallon (city/highway): 27/25
Tax credit: To be determined ($0 after September 30, 2007)
If you want an affordable hybrid SUV large enough to offer a third-row seat, this is your vehicle. Fuel economy won't blow you away, but it burns a lot cleaner than its gasoline-engine counterpart. The 2008 Highlander is slightly larger than the previous generation model, and the third row is made more accessible thanks to sliding second-row seats and a removable second-row middle seat/console. TOYOTA HIGHLANDER (2008)
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LEXUS LS 600H L (2008)
Powered by: Gas/electric engine
Sticker price/dealer cost: $104,765/$91,245
Miles per gallon (city/highway): 20/22
Tax credit: To be determined ($0 after September 30, 2007)
The LS 600h L (L stands for long-wheelbase) is meant to compete with 12-cylinder-engine lux-mobiles but earn eco honors with its Super Ultra Low Emission Vehicle (SULEV) rating -- meaning its smog-forming emissions are nearly 70% lower than conventional gas-engine vehicles. But any car that packs a 5-liter V8 gas engine and can go from zero to 60 mph in 5.5 seconds will not win points from the ultra-green crowd. LEXUS LS 600H L (2008)
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MERCEDES-BENZ E320 BLUETEC
Powered by: Diesel fuel
Sticker price/dealer cost: $52,325/$48,717
Miles per gallon (city/highway): 23/32
The E320 Bluetec has a 3.0-liter V6 turbodiesel engine that gets 40% better fuel economy than the gas-engine E350. With the changeover to ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel now available throughout the U.S., the Bluetec system can use filters to reduce particulates (soot) and treatments to reduce smog-forming nitrogen oxides from emissions. Even so, the new technology still doesn't allow the E320 Bluetec to meet emission standards in California and the four northeastern states where diesels cannot currently be sold. MERCEDES-BENZ E320 BLUETEC
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CHEVY TAHOE
Powered by: E85 (ethanol blend)
Sticker price/dealer cost: $34,755/$31,877
Miles per gallon (city/highway): 11/15
Detroit builds a number of flex-fuel autos that can fill up with the 85% ethanol/15% gasoline blend known as E85. Unfortunately, E85 doesn't provide as much energy as gasoline, so you need more of it to go the same distance. For example, with the flex-fuel Tahoe, the cost to drive using E85 is about $670 a year more than when you use gasoline -- even when E85 is 16 cents a gallon cheaper than gasoline. On the plus side, E85 has a higher octane than gasoline and produces less carbon dioxide.
