Filed under: Etc., GM

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GM unveiled the all-new, Suzuki Swift-based Opel/Vauxhall Agila city car today, and we like what we see. The 5-door hatch is a very stylish little city car that’ll arrive next spring with a choice of three powertrain options. A 65-horsepower 1.0-liter 3-cylinder and a 1.2L four-banger with 82 horses are the gasoline-powered choices. The 1.0 gets a 5-speed manual, while the 1.2 will offer an available automatic transmission. The third engine is a 1.3L diesel with particulate filter that’s good for 75 horsepower and 140 pounds of torque. CO² emissions will range from 120g/km to 140g/km depending on powertrain selection.

The attractive exterior lines are complemented by a colorful, clean interior that will allow the driver to haul up to 4 friends or up to 40 cubic feet of cargo (the latter if the rear seat is flipped down). The official unveiling will come in Frankfurt this September, and sales will commence next spring. The Agila will have some company, too. According to the British website 4Car, it will be sold as the Chevy Beat (replacing the current Chevy/Daewoo Matiz). That’s not it, either. Suzuki will also offer it (no surprise) as the Splash, which will be built in Hungary. We’ll have more on the Splash later today. The news that it’s apparently going to be sold as the Chevy Beat in Europe has us crossing our fingers in the hopes that it will make the trip across the Atlantic, too. After all, one of the minicar concepts GM is testing the waters here with is also called the Beat.

Press releases from Opel and Vauxhall are pasted after the jump.

[Source: GM]

PRESS RELEASE (OPEL):
Flex in the City: The New Opel Agila Generation

Urban mini-monocab balances versatility with stylish design

Rüsselsheim. When it comes to the lifestyle of active women today, the watchword is balance. Job, fitness, shopping, meeting friends and getting around – a car makes everything easier to manage, and preferably one that is as versatile as its owner. This is precisely what designers and engineers had in mind when developing the latest generation Opel Agila. The result is a stylish urban car which is compact and maneuverable for tight parking spaces, yet boasts an interior that is spacious enough even for bulky sport and hobby gear. It also has enough seats to ensure comfort for family and friends.

Even with its compact length of 3.74 meters, the new Agila offers room for five occupants and provides them with easy entry through the four doors. The quality of the materials, a fresh interior and exterior color collection, versatile storage compartments and ample headroom project a feel-good ambience right from the word go. The enjoyable driving experience is enhanced by details such as the separate rev counter on the instrument panel, high placed gear stick and remote controls on the steering wheel for the radio. The high seating position makes getting into and out of the Agila easier and ensures good visibility even in heavy urban traffic. The rear seat backs can be folded down at a flick of the wrist to create a completely flat load floor, with a compartment beneath providing additional storage space. In total, the Agila has a luggage capacity of more than 1100 liters accessible through its large trunk lid – the top figure in this segment. The new Agila also comes with a safety package comprising four airbags, as well as optional Electronic Stability Program (ESP) and head curtain airbags.

New engines with up to 86 hp (two lively gasoline engines and a top-of-the-line common-rail diesel for high pulling power) combine performance with low emissions. As an alternative to the standard manual transmission, an automatic gearbox is also available – a distinctive feature in this class. The second-generation Opel Agila makes its world premiere at the IAA in Frankfurt (September 13 – 23, 2007) and will be available at dealerships as of next spring.

Opinions on new Agila

Hans Demant, Opel Managing Director: “The new Agila cuts a fine figure in all situations. Its agile chassis and lively engines make it fun to drive – with low consumption and CO2 levels.”

Belinda Müller, Designer: “The boring days are over. Who says a nimble urban car can’t also look cool? A wide selection of fresh colors and bold styles create an ambience that’s enhanced even more by the spacious headroom.”

Sara Nicholson, Opel European Marketing Manager: “The Agila, the new Baby-Opel, is a clever package of fun and versatility for the girl about town.”

Characteristics of new Agila:

* Design: Modern five-door urban mini-monocab with flowing lines, dynamic roofline, typical friendly Opel face and design, balanced proportions (length/width/height: 3.74/1.68/1.59 m) despite compact dimensions

* Interior: Versatile five-seater, high seating position provides good visibility, high placed gear stick in center console, large distinctive round instrument, rev counter in separate housing, fresh colors including orange and blue for fabrics, center console and instrument panel edging, height-adjustable steering wheel with remote controls, height-adjustable front seats, numerous compartments, 60:40 split fold-down rear bench seat, flat load floor with additional storage compartment beneath

* Chassis: Newly developed chassis for agile handling, front axle mounted to subframe, semi-independent rear suspension, large wheels up to 15-inch

* Engines: Two new lively gasoline units (1.0 l/65 hp with five-speed manual transmission, 1.2 l/86 hp also available with automatic gearbox), one economical and powerful common-rail direct-injection diesel unit (1.3 l/75 hp, 190 Nm), available with diesel particulate filter

* Safety: Front and side airbags, driver safety belt warning signal and front passenger airbag can be deactivated as standard, also available: head curtain airbags and ESP

###

PRESS RELEASE (VAUXHALL)
FLEX IN THE CITY: THE NEW AGILA

* All-new Agila with stylish looks inside and out
* Five door and five seats as standard
* Diesel and auto versions offered for first time

Small is beautiful; especially for drivers who live, work or play in the city. But while the ideal urban runaround needs to be compact in order to slot into the urban landscape, a tiny interior might put the squeeze on your social life.

Which is why the new Agila is set to be hot in the city. Set for a launch in spring 2008, Vauxhall’s new baby is small enough to be manoeuvrable in tight parking spaces yet will offer the flexibility of five doors and five seats as standard. There’s enough luggage space to embarrass cars in the class above too, providing plenty of room for the busiest of lifestyles.

It’s not only the space which will rival bigger, more expensive models. Buyers no longer expect small cars to be budget cars, and the new Agila’s styling and interior quality mean it could be considered a fashion accessory in the same way as a pair of trainers, a handbag or an iPod.

The clever design allows for plenty of storage spaces inside and the tall roofline provides an airy, spacious feel. It also allows a high seating position, making it easy to get in and out of the Agila and ensure good visibility even in heavy urban traffic.

For those occasions when owners need to carry furniture rather than friends, the rear seat backs can be folded down to create a completely flat load floor. In total the new Agila has a luggage capacity of 1150 litres – the best in this sector.

To complement the dynamic looks and all-new chassis, the Agila will offer three new engines and an automatic gearbox will be available for the first time. The two petrol units are expected to be the top sellers; a 1.0-litre three-cylinder with 65PS and a
1.2-litre four-cylinder with 86PS. The larger unit is available with an automatic gearbox, an option which is expected to be popular with urban dwellers.

For anyone with an eye on economy and the environment though, the new diesel is expected to be the top choice. The 1.3-litre CDTi, as seen in the Corsa, offers 75PS and exceptional performance while sipping fuel.

To prove that small can also be safe, the new Agila comes with a safety package comprising four airbags, as well as an optional Electronic Stability Program (ESP).

New Agila will make its debut at the Frankfurt motor show in September and will arrive in the UK early next year. Prices and full specifications will be revealed nearer the launch.

 

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD Step behind the curtain at Ford Motor. Experience the documentary first-hand.

Editor's note: In the newest edition of Red, Green and Blue, writers Jimmy Hogan and Shirley Siluk Gregory take a look at the "big issue" of environmentalism vs. humanitarianism.

Jimmy: I was thinking the other day, and it struck me that I don’t have a very well-formed stand on the distinction between environmental and humanistic issues. Is there a point where being green comes at the expense of human welfare?

The statement seems a contradiction, but in the future, as in the past, we will discuss and debate issues relating to this fundamental choice. Is it morally wrong to use food-stuff like corn and soy in biofuels while other people around the world are starving? Do our lofty environmental goals sometimes have negative unintended consequences?

Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring sparked a major environmental movement, but at the same time has contributed to increasing malaria deaths in the developing world because many countries cannot afford the more expensive alternatives to DDT. I really don’t know the answer to this question. Sometimes population concerns meet human concerns, and it’s likely many (including myself) will be surprised where I stand on the matter.

Have you considered this balance before? In the spirit of open discussion and debate my challenge today is to ask our readers to contribute their thoughts on the matter in the comments thread below and to see where there is common ground and where society needs work.

Filed under: MPG, Ford

Smaller cars can save users money at the pump, but for Ford, the upcoming global B-car program is also a cost saver for the company. According to Automotive New Europe (subs req’d) Ford Motor expects to maybe 30 percent over the cost of developing stand-alone vehicles for regional markets. One of the main reasons is that somewhere between 70 percent and 85 percent of the parts and design (as measured by value), will be the same across all the vehicles, according to Ford officials AN’s Amy Wilson spoke to. As we’ve mentioned before, this global program is developing the 2008 Ford Fiesta for Europe and North American and Asian versions following soon thereafter. It’s expected the program will produce over one million vehicles by 2011.

Related:

• Small cars to be big part of Ford comeback
• Ford merges B-Car teams into one global team out of Europe

[Source: Amy Wilson, Automotive News Europe]

 

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD Step behind the curtain at Ford Motor. Experience the documentary first-hand.

Simplifying Recycling: The Missing Piece?Editor's note: Welcome to the first edition of Q&A, where Green Options writers answer your questions about greening the good life.

Got a question for our writers? Submit them here.

Question: One of the most disturbing realities of recycling is how hard it is to bring schools and commercial enterprises on board. When our daughters were in school they tried to get their middle school to recycle with very limited results and I know that they were not alone. As I proceed through everyday life I like you, see the lack of recycling opportunities all around–city parks, airports, schools, restaurants, shopping centers, and hospitals, to name just a few. At the small business where I work, I was excited to see in the shopping center we have a dumpster for "cardboard only" but in the daily trash all the bottles, paper, and styrofoam (remember, this is Tucson, where Rathje did his study) must make up for that effort. How can we ask people to recycle when it is made so difficult–people are just not likely to take their trash home to recycle from the outside… I know this is a problem everywhere. Is someone working on this very public aspect of recycling on a national level? So much has changed since the early seventies and recycling has moved from being a "counter culture" thing to being taught in schools to becoming economical so I know progress is being made. After reading your article yesterday in a daily report from www.schwartzreport.net, I was moved to go to your site and pose the question to you guys who are more in the know than the average person. Thanks for all you do. — Katya Peterson, Tuscon, AZ

Answer: For those of us who have made recycling part of our daily lives, we often forget that recycling beyond the home (or even at home) is difficult for the general population. As you mentioned, not everyone will haul his or her recyclables home from work everyday. Reverse vending machines in offices offer one incentive based solution, but the problem of simplifying recycling goes beyond office machinery. We do need to make recycling easier for people who are not moved by "green guilt" to make it a priority in their lives.

In my opinion, solutions have to occur locally, as the options vary greatly from community to community. For example, my mother does not recycle (except at my house), because she has not had "time" to go get the bins used by her curbside company. The truth is, it is not a priority for her, so she has not found the time. Solution: bring the bins to the people! The recycling truck that visits her neighborhood should deliver bins on their weekly trips. In addition, recycling pick up should be extended to offices, schools, gas stations, etc. to simplify the process. Many residents and businesses pay to have their trash picked up and hauled away. Recycling should go hand in hand with this process. Wouldn't it be great if every community had an ecobusiness running biodiesel trucks that picked up recycling?

Each community needs to come up with their own solutions for simplifying recycling, as the opportunities and infrastructure in place differ; however, communities can learn from one another. For example, RecycleBank of Philadelphia has developed a simple model in which consumers are rewarded for their recycling. It works like this: "Just place all recyclables in your RecycleBank container. Your RecycleBank recycling container has a barcode that is recorded by the recycling truck. The amount your home recycles is translated into RecycleBank Dollars that you can spend at participating stores." Some communites, such as Seattle, have enacted mandatory recycling ordinances, in which violaters can be fined or their trash may not be picked up if residents do not recycle.

Another simple model, suggested on sustainablog, is to charge people per pound of garbage they create while giving credit for recycling. This is essentially what occurs in the rural portions of Lane County, Oregon. Disposal charges are based on volume ($7 for three trash cans), with discounts given for recycling and covering your load with a tarp (to prevent roadside litter). The recyling discount is only $1, but the message is clear. You will pay for waste disposal based on the amount of garbage you create; recycling reduceNo Trash Cans Heres this amount. In fact, as Kelli wrote about in Green Myth Busting: Recycling, "we should be able to recycle as much as 80% of our what currently goes into our landfills. Half of landfill contents is good old paper–easily recyclable."

Furthermore, recyclable items are not trash, and we must change the mindset of those who think of it as such. It is hard to throw something into the garbage that you do not view as trash (imagine throwing a diamond ring away!). In fact, if the situation was reversed and waste disposal was more difficult than recycling, we would be discussing how to make waste disposal simpler. What if communities only offered curbside recycling, yet people had to haul their trash to the dump? I realize this is not a practical idea, but it demonstrates the point. For recycling to become fully mainstreamed into our culture, it must be as simple as throwing something into the millions of trash receptacles that surround us.

Recycling is the third and final step in reduce, reuse, recycle. To fully address the problem, we need to consider the overconsumerism of American culture. Americans like convenience, and disposable, cheap items offer such ease. By utilizing services such as Free Cycle, we can share the items we no longer need. If we can do a better job reducing and reusing, there will be less need for recycling and waste disposal.

Filed under: Emerging Technologies, Etc.

You know about the Rancho La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles right? I am sure that you have heard of them, if not seen them before in movies. Basically, what they are is a big much of petroleum and asphalt mixed with dirt and the like. Here is the wiki explanation: “The La Brea Tar Pits (or Rancho La Brea Tar Pits) are a famous cluster of tar pits located in Hancock Park in the urban heart of Los Angeles, California, USA. Asphalt (colloquially termed tar) has seeped up from the ground in this area for tens of thousands of years, forming hundreds of sticky pools that trapped animals and plants which happened to enter. Over time, the asphalt fossilized the remains. The result is an incredibly rich collection of fossils dating from the last ice age.”

Alrighty then, why do we care? Easy: Scientists at UC Riverside have found living bacteria there which is capable of breaking down the petroleum deposits. Even in that harsh environment, live organisms have been found… which is pretty amazing by itself. Here is a quote from Jong-Shik Kim (on the left), a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Environmental Sciences, “We were surprised to find these bacteria because asphalt is an extreme and hostile environment for life to survive. It’s clear, however, that these living organisms can survive in heavy oil mixtures containing many highly toxic chemicals. Moreover, these bacteria survive with no water and little or no oxygen.”

According to the source article, “The bacteria and their enzymes have potential application for bioremediation (cleaning oil spills), medical treatments (new medicines), alternative energy (biofuels), enhanced oil recovery, and industrial applications (biochemicals and biotechnology).”

[Source: UC Riverside]

 

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD Step behind the curtain at Ford Motor. Experience the documentary first-hand.

I saw it for myself: President Bush directed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), along with the departments of energy, transportation, and agriculture to come up with a plan to cut global warming emissions by the year 2008. As for the details…well, they get pretty vague.

Bush spoke a lot about fuel consumption, again alluding to our nation’s addiction to oil, but never called for a specific increase in vehicle efficiency standards. He repeated his State of the Union proposal to replace 20 percent of the nation’s gasoline with alternative fuels in the next 10 years. He summed up his plan:

"When it comes to the environment and energy, the American people expect common sense, and they expect action.”

But apparently not too much action: The Washington Post reports that U.S. negotiators are attempting to weaken a climate change declaration set to be unveiled at next month’s G-8 summit of the world’s top industrial nations. Specifically, U.S. officials want to strike a sentence about energy efficiency,

“Therefore we will increase the energy efficiency of our economies so that energy consumption by 2020 will be at least 30 percent lower compared to a business-as-usual scenario”

and language to cut carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to 50 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. Furthermore, the U.S. proposed striking an opening line that declares

“…tackling climate change is an imperative, not a choice. We firmly agree that resolute and concerted international action is urgently needed in order to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions and sustain our common basis of living."

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, outgoing British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and newly elected French President Nicolas Sarkozy are all pushing for a strong statement on global warming solutions.

The heads of the U.S. departments called on by President Bush to come up with a plan said a draft should be available by this fall. But will it be real action? While the President is calling for change, his representatives at the UN are doing everything they can to stall it. We know political rhetoric when we see it, Mr. Bush. Fool us once…

CNNMoney.com
Washington Post

Filed under: Etc., Hybrid

This morning in Times Square, Yahoo!, Matt Dillon and Global Green USA challenged American citizens to be green for their cities, with a prize of a fleet of hybrid taxis going to the “Greenest City In America.” The challenge takes place online, part of the new Yahoo! Green site and the “Be a Better Planet” program. New York City gets a bit of a bonus, maybe for hosting the kick-off: their own free hybrid taxi fleet from Yahoo! Pertinent details like how many vehicles and what types were not made clear, but from the photo I’d guess we’re talking about a couple of Ford Escape hybrids here.

In order to be a better planet, Yahoo! wants people across America to use various Yahoo! services (see the list after the jump) to talk up green living. This isn’t a long program; Yahoo! will declare a winner on June 8. Call it the Internet Age’s version of a long-term commitment. If the winning city doesn’t want the taxis, they can alternatively take an equivalent cash donation and dedicate it toward city greening projects.

[Source: Yahoo! Inc.]
(from the press release)

To participate in the “Be a Better Planet” promotion, users can do one or more of the following:

• Yahoo! Answers: Help save the planet by answering an environmental question and contributing to the growing body of knowledge and advice on Yahoo! Answers;
• Yahoo! oneSearch: Learn more about living a greener life by conducting a “green” mobile search on Yahoo! oneSearch, a new search service with results optimized for the mobile phone. Consumers can enter keywords such as “organic food,” “public transport,” “recycle center,” “bike,” and “ride share” to find relevant resources;
• Take the Green Pledge: Visit Yahoo! Green and commit to lowering their carbon diet by pledging such actions as changing light bulbs, taking public transportation, using reusable shopping bags, properly inflating tires, and recycling more.

Participants earn points with each green action, contributing to their hometown’s overall ranking, which will be visible nearly in real-time on an interactive national map. They will also receive a free energy-efficient compact fluorescent light bulb (CFL), while supplies last.

 

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD Step behind the curtain at Ford Motor. Experience the documentary first-hand.

Anna Hackman is the author and publisher of the blog Green Talk, which is based on her own experience of building and maintaining a house using many green materials, and wishing to connect with others to help turn the planet green, one conversation at a time. This post was originally published on May 9, 2007.

LightFair NYC this year was home to amazing light technology from energy efficiency featuring LED technology to the reduction of mercury content in the fluorescent bulbs. As an environmentalist, I was impressed by the advancement of technology in lighting energy efficiency but was scared at the same time that we as consumers may be short sighted in our quest for energy efficiency by ignoring the proper disposal of these bulbs.

The LED technology impressed me with its long life and lack of mercury content. In addition, Phillips and SLI lighting both featured low mercury content in their fluorescent bulbs. SLI lighting featured the most impressive environmental concern with all of their fluorescent bulbs containing low level of mercury and their bulb glass was free of lead.

During my discussion with Flemming Jensen, Vice President of Industrial/Commercial Sales at SLI Lighting about why the company was producing low mercury fluorescent bulbs and lead-free glass, he made me aware of our current disposal practices of fluorescent lighting. The world is pushing for more efficient lighting, but has not looked at the disposal of the compact fluorescent. Giants like Wal-Mart and Home Depot are offering lower-priced fluorescent bulbs to encourage consumers to save energy. It seems that no one has asked the question what about the disposal of these products after they no longer work.

In my area in New Jersey, I have to make an appointment and then drive about thirty minutes to dispose of my fluorescent bulbs at the County Municipal building, or wait twice a year to go to a designated location in my county to dispose of hazardous waste. Most consumers are not going to take the time to dispose of their bulbs correctly. It is too much of an inconvenience. They just throw them away. Fluorescent bulbs have mercury and lead in them, which is leaching into our soils and waterways from the landfills.

Although the world is taking notice that we need to stop global warming, there should be a simultaneous effort being made to require easily accessible places to dispose of the fluorescent lighting. The giants like Wal-Mart could easily exchange burnt-out fluorescent bulbs for new ones with a discount offered to encourage people to recycle.

Cities and counties could have more accessible place for people to drop off their bulbs like they drop off their newspapers and plastics. The only way for more easily accessible recycling to be achieved is for the consumers to demand it. In addition, we can demand that bulbs are made of low levels of mercury and lead free glass. We have the power in this world because we speak in the language of money. We have asked for more energy efficient technology; let’s now demand for our landfills to remain lead and mercury free.

Editor's note: In my own browsing this weekend, I came across LampRecycle.com, which publishes a list of companies that will take back CFLs and other "spent mercury containing lamps." LampRecycle.org is published by the National Electrical Manufacturer's Association.