With long waiting lists in place for the newest hybrid arrivals, it is likely the hybrid will be the vehicle of the future!
LATEST HYBRID NEWS
BMW, PEUGEOT/CITROEN MOVING FORWARD.
PSA Peugeot Citroen says by 2010 the cost of diesel-hybrid technology, although already proven for reliability, will be available once the cost of components has reached affordable levels. After that we will see the introduction of fuel-cell powered passenger and commercial vehicles and the most common form of power looks likely to be hydrogen. This fuel is ideally suited for use in emission free zones as only water vapour is emitted from the vehicles exhaust system.
Most major car manufacturers are up and running with the use of hydrogen as a fuel which can be used in modified petrol engines but one of the leaders BMW estimate it will take between 10 and 15 years for this technology to become available to the general public. The reason, there is no legislation in place to set the standards required for manufacturing hydrogen using vehicles or the criteria set for hydrogen fuel to be supplied for general use. However in other countries outside the EU hydrogen fuelled vehicles are much closer to reality.
For the 2008 Beijing Olympics up to 3,000 passenger cars and 100 buses are to run on hydrogen and for the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai the plan is to deploy 1,000 taxis or buses, all hydrogen powered.
In California they will have a Hydrogen Highway in place by 2010 with a network for 150 to 200 hydrogen fuel stations spaced every 20 miles on major highways throughout the state.
BMW takes the future use of hydrogen as a fuel seriously. They are partnering with fuel companies in setting up liquid hydrogen fuelling stations in the USA and Europe. Drivers of liquid hydrogen-powered vehicles in Germany can now fill up at five stations, two in Berlin, two in Munich and one in Frankfurt. An additional hydrogen fuelling station is under construction in Brussels, the home of the European union and in the UK there is a source of this fuel at Wembley, London. Two more outlets are expected in London next year.
As part of the public education programme as to the benefits of hydrogen as an alternative fuel for petrol type combustion engines, BMW is doing more than most. Their .Clean Energy. initiative came to the UK this week at the annual SMMT Test Day held a the Millbrook Proving Ground. The event is held so that motoring journalists can test and drive the latest in passenger car automotive technology and this year hydrogen power was on the agenda and BMW debuted their Hydrogen 7 cars. BMW in the UK has taken delivery off eight Hydrogen 7 cars, part of a total fleet of 100 such cars built by BMW in Germany to showcase their hydrogen power technology around the world. The virtually emissions-free luxury saloons have been produced on the .standard. 7 Series production line and will be used in normal day-to-day driving conditions in the UK. Jim O.Donnell, BMW UK.s managing director, summed up this important step in BMW.s history: .The arrival of our Hydrogen 7 cars could not have come at a better time. "Politicians, business leaders, the media and consumers are engaged in healthy debate on the future of energy supply and use. "Meanwhile, the automotive industry is committed to cleaner motoring, with a host of possible solutions available today and being developed for the mid- and long-term. " BMW is at the core of the future of motoring with tremendous developments in petrol and diesel engines, hybrid powertrains and hydrogen technologies.. The fleet of liquid hydrogen powered cars is set to continue its programme of driving activities on UK roads. They will be in active service as support vehicles at a number of high profile events over the summer as well as transporting key participants at industrial, business and political conferences. A select group of high-profile VIP users will also take delivery of a car for short periods of time in order to experience the .normality. of emissions-free motoring.
LEASE2U AND HYBRID VEHICLES
At lease2u we believe that protecting the environment is paramount, yes we have children too! The importance of switching to alternative fuels for cars and vans is paramount. Whilst our business is leasing vehicles we belive that by advising customers on the best kind of car/van for the miles they do is very important. Not just because of fuel costs but to protect this dear green place that we live, breathe it's air and walk upon.
TIME TO APPLY THE PRESSURE?
If you feel strongly about the issues of pollution that are affecting us all then feel free to contact your local MP and make your feelings known to them.
CONGESTION CHARGE BUSTERS?
We give you some cool ways to avoid the congestion charge and still drive in London. Eight pounds doesn't sound like a lot of money, does it? However, the recently increased price of the congestion charge for the inner-London area makes a trip into the capital in your car an expensive day that will also include extortionate parking prices. That's bad enough for a one-off journey; what if you have to do it every day? Here's some ways to avoid the congestion charge.
Drivers of hybrid cars are exempt from paying the dreaded congestion charge in London. The choice of hybrid cars is still fairly limited, though expanding slowly. Toyota and Honda are at the forefront of the technology and in fact Honda was the first car maker to put a petrol/electric hybrid car on sale in Britain with the little Insight coupe. Unfortunately, the Insight is no longer on sale in Honda showrooms (there is a new Honda Civic Hybrid), but there are examples available on the second-hand market and such was the expenditure on the engineering of the Insight that you shouldn't have to worry about the reliability of the car, even five years after it was launched. Today, the Insight cuts quite a dash on any city street, with compact coupe looks and a nippy gait. It is also small enough to park in sensibly-sized spaces, though don't forget that you won't fit the family in!
An alternative to the hybrid car is well, an alternative-fuel car. Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) is not a new fuel, but a moderately modified petrol car can quite happily run on it and the best of the breed have the capability to run on either petrol or CNG.
The London authorities will allow such a car to enter the congestion charging zone for free so long as the conversion to CNG has been carried out and homologated according to strict regulations. Lucky for you Volvo sells a car fresh from the showroom with all this business taken car of for you.
A powerful 2.4-litre bi-fuel engine is available in either the S60 saloon or the eminently practical V70 estate. The only external clue to these cars' bi-fuel capability is the existence of an extra filling cap for CNG. Not only does the driver of this car avoid the congestion charge, CNG is significantly cheaper than petrol.
UK BUDGET NEWS
The duty differentials given to biofuels will be abolished in 2010/11. The intention is that the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation will support biofuels.
LEASE2U Comment: The RTFO is targeted at ensuring that biofuels remain cost effective whilst ensuring the fuels are ethically produced and in an environmentally sensitive way, although there is no detail as to how this will happen or what the effect will be at the pumps
Duty rates discounts for Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) will remain, whilst for Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) the discount is to be eroded by 1%, both taking effect from 1st October 2008.
LEASE2U Comment: This rate reduction will have very little effect as LPG vehicles are a very small niche market and in decline
SAVING POUNDS AND EMISSIONS
Drivers of gas-guzzling, carbon-emitting 4x4s may consider buying hybrid vehicles instead once their road tax doubles next year. In Gordon Brown's last Budget earlier this year, he announced that drivers of the most polluting vehicles would have to pay £400 a year to tax them, while vehicle excise duty on low carbon-emitting cars would be reduced by 30 per cent. Some cars, such as electric ones, which emit less than 100g of carbon dioxide per kilometre, would be tax-exempt.
When they appeared about seven years ago, hybrid cars cost almost £4,000 more than petrol models. But, says Honda, they are now cheaper to buy and run. 'Hybrids are becoming more mainstream,' says John Kingston, Honda environment manager.
The latest Honda Civic Hybrid (which costs about £16,600) is just over £200 cheaper than its 1.8-litre petrol-only counterpart (at £16,840) - and when the lower running costs of a hybrid are taken into account, the savings are considerable.
Road tax on the Honda hybrid will be just £15 a year, compared with £140 on the petrol version; hybrid drivers are exempt from the £8 a day central London congestion charge; and some boroughs, such as Westminster, charge hybrid drivers less for parking permits.
Kingston says few people understand how a [Honda] hybrid works - and often think they are less powerful. 'The engine is smaller in a hybrid car - a 1.1 litre - but it's supported with a motor which helps the petrol last longer and gives it extra strength, making it exactly the same powerwise as a 1.8-litre petrol engine. It drives like any normal vehicle, with the added benefit that the engine turns itself off when you stop at traffic lights - and while you're braking, energy is being channelled to recharge the motor battery.' He adds that servicing costs for a petrol Civic and hybrid Civic are identical. '
Other main hybrid vehicles are the Toyota Prius (from £17,777 to £20,677) and the Lexus hybrid (from £30,000). But there are cheaper alternatives.
According to Which? Car magazine, new diesel-powered 'superminis' might not be totally carbon neutral, but they can be a greener choice than petrol-engined cars. However, they are about £1,500 more expensive. 'Diesel is still a conventional fuel, but diesel cars have lower CO2 emissions because they don't use so much of it,' says Richard Headland, motoring editor at Which? Car. Toyota's diesel-engined Yaris, which costs about £8,800, emits 2.49 tonnes of CO2 annually, compared with 2.84 tonnes from a Fiat Punto. The road tax on the diesel Yaris is £35 a year.
Meanwhile, the new Bluemotion diesel version of the Volkswagen Polo (from £11,995) is exempt from road tax because it emits less than 100g of CO2 per kilometre (less than the Prius, which emits 104g/km).

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