Green Car of the Year 2008, allegedly

So let's take a few bets on which vehicle was just named Green Car of the Year 2008 at the Los Angeles Auto Show. The fabulous new Honda FCX Clarity fuel-cell vehicle, whose only emission is water? The 35-mpg, super-clean Mercedes-Benz E340 Bluetec, the first California-compliant diesel in years? The sensible, space-conscious Smart Fortwo? Maybe just the good old Toyota Prius? Or something that guzzles gas at the rate of 21 mpg?

Prepare to slap palm against forehead while experiencing a brand-new hybrid of tearful sadness and nauseous incredulity. Ladeeez and genullmen, the Chevrolet Tahoe hybrid.

Oh, sure, it has a 6.0-liter V-8 engine and can seat as many as eight. It can carry as much as 1,400 pounds of cargo and tow 6,200 pounds. It's 50% more frugal than a standard 5.3-liter V-8-powered Tahoe. But is 50% better than profligate really worth such an accolade?

Who could make this mistake -- sorry, award? Try Green Car Journal, Jay Leno, Carroll Shelby and the executive director of the Sierra Club, among others. To render the sight even more surreal, Arnold Schwarzenegger arrived to check out all the more eco-friendly cars on display. For those who might've looked closely, they could probably see a palm print on the Gov.'s forehead too.

-- Colin Ryan

Comments

[Tim Boelke]

These models should be illegal - all of them. Why is Uncle Sucker allowing SUVs to be built? Oh wait - GWB's relationship with the Saudis, that's why.

[Roger]

Thanks, Colin, for calling a spade a spade and pointing out the "emperor's new clothes" syndrome in this ridiculous farce. To call a still gas-guzzling, slightly less smog-belching, rubber chewing SUV "the greenest car of the year" is downright oxymoronic (and moronic too). The Sierra Club should hang its collective head in shame.

[#4]

I am no environmentalist nor do I have an opinion on Bush's policies, but this isn't a green car. Sadly, marketing buffoon is going to take this and run with it, convincing the ignorant that it is indeed "green."

[Tuan]

With the huge carbon footprint needed to produce a behemoth that guzzle gas at 21 mpg, how could it be good for the earth? Oh but it seat 8 persons you would say. Look around on the freeway and see the average occupancy rate of those SUV for a reality check.

But it sure will be good for the status quo. Giving peep the excuse they need to keep on driving these monsters.

[Randall Unruh]

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

[James]

Wonderful bashing of the Tahoe hybrid...great stuff. Except that the Tahoe hybrid will save more gas each year than three Prius. And did you really bring up the Fuel Cell? Honda's had that FCX for three years. You'll be waiting 10 more minimum to buy one.

But right, right...why doesn't everyone drive smaller cars to begin with. Better yet, Angelenos, how about you (gasp) live closer to where you work or (double gasp) consider building a train system that folks might use. Or just keep resenting SUV drivers, because that has really helped clean up the smog around here.

Oh...and me? I drive a Civic GX aka, the cleanest car in America. It's cleaner than your car by a long shot in every ridiculous measurement you'd like to look up. Holla back. Someone else might find a Tahoe hybrid useful and save a ton of gas. I say, it's a step. A kinda big step, really. And...the average person can actually buy one in the near future...unlike a Mercedes Bluetec or a freakin' fuel cell.

[Sledgehammer]

US life is so invested with lies brought to you by the big media....one more lie is not going to make a difference.
BTW the car shown is clearly red.

[Tom]

While a hybrid large SUV is not going to save the world, there is still a market for them. Most people in the market for a large SUV are not even going to consider a Prius or other smaller car. They are going to consider fuel mileage in their decision and if they choose a 21 mpg Tahoe over an 11 mpg Excursion that is a start. Face the truth, Large SUV's and trucks are not going away in this country any time soon and any attempt to reduce their fuel consumption is welcome.

[frank]

american car makers just dont get it. you can see why the imports are kicking our butts. where would you need an 8 passenger vehicle, and how often would you drive it ,or afford to drive it ? most families are 3 to 4 people, and would be better off with a smaller more economical suv. seems to me that the big three need to make a survey to see what the masses really are looking for in a car,truck,or suv. i have not bought an american car since 1990, why ? reason: 1 ) too many problem recalls, indicating lack of workmanship,quality of products used in assembly, 2) not dependable, 3) i dont think the car makers back their warranties as they should. 4)perception : american cars are not made to last past 100,000 miles. a green car needs to be made to : provide great mpg, 2) enviromentally friendly, 3) decently price, 4) dependalble, 5) last more than 100,000. 6) since most of us work on a daily basis, and normally carry 1 or 2 people to work, this is where you would need a green car. my .02c frank

[George Bishopric]

Calling this "green" is just a travesty. If they had a "somewhat less awful" award, that might be better.

It isn't government, it isn't "Detroit." Until the American people realize that they can't drive these behemoths without fueling the nasty people who sell us oil or causing environmental mayhem, there's no hope.

[Kevin]

Guys, I hate to say it, but your approach is why you'll never see real change . . . Illegal? Why? Are you absolutely positive that you know what is best for everyone? With insane arguments like yours, no one will ever take you seriously. I assume that all towing should be outlawed, the RV business should be gone, private boating dead, all passenger vehicles that seat more than four people will require internal cameras that live stream to "big brother" to prove 100% usage of all seating. Oh, that's right, "big brother" can totally be trusted when it fits your agenda. I'll never understand why the end game is forgotten when seemingly rational people discuss these topics. Mind boggling.

I am heading out to use my daily ration of carbon, I sure hope it gets the kids to school and me to work . . . If it doesn't I guess I'll have to go down to the state agency to apply for a state grant to buy a new state approved "green" vehicle appropriately sized for my 2.2 kids and one bag of state approved low fat groceries . . . If you don't see it, you are truly blinded by your passion.

[Marc]

The panel on Thursday praised the Tahoe as the industry's first application of hybrid technology in a full-size SUV. Of course, the competition was a bit diluted since previous winners like Toyota's Camry and Prius weren't eligible to repeat.

Still, Ron Cogan, editor of Green Car Journal, hailed the newfangled SUV as a game changer in a game that desperately needed changing.

"The importance of GM's accomplishment can't be overstated," he said. "With larger vehicles generally comes poorer fuel economy because of greater size and curb weight. An equalizer has been needed, and the two-mode hybrid system in the Tahoe is clearly that equalizer."

The Environmental Protection Agency says that the Tahoe hybrid achieves a 50% improvement in fuel economy vs. its 5.3 liter V-8 counterpart. The hybrid version gets 21 miles per gallon in the city, which is comparable to the Toyota Camry sedan.

Other nominees included GM's Chevy Malibu Hybrid and Saturn Aura Hybrid, as well as the Mazda Tribute Hybrid and Nissan Altima Hybrid.

[Phil]

Trucks and truck-based SUVs are going to continue to be bought by the public and there are millions of people still eager to buy them. So it makes sense to add hybrid powertrain options to trucks. If GM's new two-mode hybrid powertrain is successful, it will proliferate and eventually cost little more than a conventional drivetrain. That should cheer greenies. Moving the city fuel economy for an 8 passenger SUV from 12 to 21 mpg is a large reduction in fuel consumption for an SUV driver in a congested place like Los Angeles. If you applied this to annual truck sales which run in the millions, the green impact would easily exceed that of selling a couple hundred thousand Prius.

And by the way, the carbon released by a typical truck's production is not substantially different from producing a Prius, Honda or Ford hybrid. It's in fact in some cases less. Honda's hydrogen car is a nice project, but it can't be considered the greenest car because it can't be bought, nor can it be offered in large quantities. GMs two-mode hybrid will find its way into cars, but also works with heavier-duty vehicles. It's production can be expanded, and vehicles with it are used with the conventional fuel infrastructure. It's not a pipe dream. I don't know whether another car should have won the award, but greens who criticize GM for building two-mode into trucks are only undermining their own credibility. For reducing the consequence of existing consumer preference, two-mode in trucks is a home run.

[Todd]

Puh-lease. You anti-American, anti-capitalist, global-warming stooges suffer from a case of group think so outrageous that you make the Nazis look independent and forward thinking.

Should the FCX Clarity have won? Clearly. But the new Tahoe hybrid represents a revolutionary step for Detroit, where the car industry ain't exactly long on ideas.

You ever heard the addage that you draw more flies with honey? Clearly not, as all you enviro-wackos can do is shovel hatred and anger and disdain. I don't know what laxative loosens your wit, but believe me, if you encouraged American consumers and the idiots in Detroit to go green the way you bleeding hearts want to encourage delinquent schoolkids and felonious thugs to become socialized, perhaps you'd be more successful.

Comments like those in this blog and most of those attached to it seem almost designed to annoy thinking people into buying a Hummer just to tell you people off.

[Adam]

This is so ridiculous. GREEN CAR? Are you kidding me? Do you take me for a complete idiot? How about some serious questioning, LA times. This truck still gets horrible mileage and is an affront to consumers' intelligence.

This is definitely a case of 'the emperor's new clothes.' I will call the Sierra Club or whoever gave this a 'green' rating out on it. Incredible. Simply incredible that just because they stick a hybrid engine in it and slightly increase its mileage makes is 'Green'. In fact the term 'green' is so grossly misleading. This thing is BROWN, as in it contributes heavily to our BROWN CLOUD that is collectively killing us. How about drawing attention to some real innovations, and the shift to smaller vehicles. Anyone who drives around the city in one of these will one day have to explain to his/her children and grandchildren why the ocean's rose and our planet fried... "Why didn't you make a better choice, daddy?"

[ScottN]

First off, gotta correct the math here. The Yukon hybrid will NOT get an overall 50% boost in fuel economy. The regular Yukon gets 16, so 21 is around a 30% boost (which, I have to give GM credit, is above the 25% they were predicting, though certainly not a breakthrough increase--the 50% is the city driving stat, not combined).

I personally don't think the problem with the Yukon is in the fact that they're trying to make larger vehicles more fuel efficient through hybrid technology--everyone has different needs. What makes the Yukon a wasted opportunity is the fact that it is a muscle hybrid. Note there that you said that the standard Yukon has a 5.3 liter engine. Then you noted that the hybrid version has a LARGER 6.0 liter.

The great thing about hybrid techonology is the fact you can DOWNSIZE then gas engine, and have the electric motor compensate. So where's the V8 replaced with a turbocharged V6 engine (something Ford is doing more of) then attached to the dual mode system? Where's the smaller 4.8 liter engine, or something even more downsized? Nowhere. Where's just going with the 5.3 liter? Nowhere. Instead, you strap some great technology to an even thirstier engine, which robs large SUV consumers of something they could have gotten--a large SUV with standard sedan-level fuel economy.

That would have been an American Revolution--what we got was business as usual.

I think things would have been very different, and will be in the future, when the California clean car standards and the 35 miles per gallon CAFE standards on the Energy Bill are officially in place. Automakers like GM will actually put their technologies toward delivering real fuel efficiency in every class and size.

[John]

I for one do not call any SUV "GREEN".

The only one who is green, is me! Green with envy because I cannot fit in a parking space because some SUV takes a space-and-a-half to park that monster.

Ive yet to see a SUV packed with mom-dad and 6 kids! Most are driven by single people with no kids. Driven by the desire to fit in because everyone ELSE is driving them.

[Big E]

I just bought a Toyota tundra with a 5.7 liter V8 and I'm going to guzzle, belch and snort 0 to 60 in 6 seconds all day long!

[Kris]

This is an ideal vehicle for SOME people.

I own a Prius, and a Land Rover. The Land Rover takes FIVE of us places that the Prius never will, but the Prius gets most of the driving (2003, with 87,000 miles on it!) The Land Rover averages 19mpg, the Prius averages 41.

I'd need TWO Priuses to haul the "gang of five" (two of whom are over 6'3" tall!)....so the fuel cost would be about the same as driving ONE Land Rover.

Carpoolers, large families, those of us who live ON a mountainside (not in California) where winters are severe -- a hybrid SUV would meet many needs.

Folks, lets do the best WE can - and spend our "critizing time" on issues WE can solve within our households. The filthy air outside my home isn't helped by coal-fired electricity generation. There's an issue we should all be working on.

[matt]

Idea how about we start getting less dependant on foreign oil and drill in our own country... and do what brazil has done and end our dependance. Give us another 5-10 years for all these technologies and infrastructure to get there.

[Bill]

Todd's labeling our apparent agreement on the SUV/green oxymoron "groupthink" as "anti-American, anti-capitalist" is akin to calling anybody questioning American policies as "anti-patriotic."

Look, Todd, caring about the environment and thinking for more than 1 milisecond about the choices we make in our daily lives to make the planet a little cleaner is NOT a political issue -- it's just that it seems that only the left-leaning politicians seem to give it any attention (except in maybe California). As far as you thinking we who care about the environment anti-capitalist, I could care less if every one of the Big 3 carmakers gets insanely profitable by using reason and sense and producing environmentally sane cars that, obviously, Americans want.

To Todd, being American means being as stupid, wasteful and selfish as we can. I'd hope for a little more from the supposed "beacon on the hill."

[walksalone]

I own a new Nisson Frontier 4 wheel drive and go 4 wheeling knocking over trees and making creeks mudholes and love doing it..yipeee drive them hard...

[enzro]

i'm a proud gas guzzler and envirnomentlist. We all need to stop this knee jerk reaction and examine the numbers. Please compare how much gas will be saved by the tahoe compare to the prius or any other hybrid. This whole hydrid thing is another marketing campaign. Who and where are we going to dispose of the toxic batteries in 5 to 10 yrs. Are they going tom be dummped in a land filled and comtaminated my drinking water? Just a few questions

[Altima -Hybrid owner]

Folks lets try to bring this debate back to reality. The whole point of hybrid cars is to clean up the environment and start transitioning people into a green lifestyle. Like it or not people drive SUV's. Just like at one point they drove massive sedans or station wagons. SO many people are going to buy this car that it will make it possible to get hybrids accepted whether you live in a red state or a blue state.

This SUV is going to make the regular SUV obsolete in a few years. I drive a Nissan Altima Hybrid because it is pretty green but also because it performs much like a sports car and accelerates on a dime. Once everyday people are conditioned to hybrids they will be more accepting of fuel cells, natural gas cars, hydrogen, etc.

Don't hate - congratulate!

[Altima -Hybrid owner]

Folks lets try to bring this debate back to reality. The whole point of hybrid cars is to clean up the environment and start transitioning people into a green lifestyle. Like it or not people drive SUV's. Just like at one point they drove massive sedans or station wagons. SO many people are going to buy this car that it will make it possible to get hybrids accepted whether you live in a red state or a blue state.

This SUV is going to make the regular SUV obsolete in a few years. I drive a Nissan Altima Hybrid because it is pretty green but also because it performs much like a sports car and accelerates on a dime. Once everyday people are conditioned to hybrids they will be more accepting of fuel cells, natural gas cars, hydrogen, etc.

Don't hate - congratulate!