Eco Gaia News

Eco technology also called as sustainable technology uses different form of energy like wind, solar power and converts it into usable form like electricity. It only brings to use the renewable energy instead of the fossil fuels that are not only renewable but are also increasing the carbon content on the planet that leads to global warming. People have now realized that how important it is to save these fossil fuels that are depleting at a rapid rate or else the future ahead does not seem to be bright. Using eco technology as an alternative is one of the best ways to do so. While putting it to use for various purposes, the consumers started demanding the car manufacturers as well to develop eco cars. Thus car manufacturers started developing cars based on green technology and the world saw the advent of electric and hybrid cars.

The cars based on hybrid engines was available since the year 1997 which was launched by Toyota but back then they were not so popular. There were basically two main reasons for that; one the fuels were available at very low prices and these hybrid cars were expensive. Now Ford has also entered the market of hybrid cars with its new model the Ford C-Max. The world will see the launch of this vehicle in late 2012 or early 2013 and is assumed to give a tough time to its competitors. The car will be assembled in US that will also boost up the country's economy creating many job opportunities. Ford is taking its endeavor quite seriously as the factory in which the cars will be manufactured also use machines that bring into use renewable energies only. The C-MAX will use lithium-ion batteries which are lighter in weight and are smaller too. The engine will be based on the V4 Atkinson-cycle. The car could be run in the electric mode up to a certain speed and after that the tradition engine takes over especially on faster speeds. The car will be available in two variants – a hybrid version and a plug-in hybrid version. Both the cars are assumed to four-seaters. The plug-in version will have an option for quick recharge by plugging it into a 120 volt outlet. The car is also expected to give a fuel efficiency of up to forty seven miles per gallon or even higher. The car has already created some buzz in the automobile industry and people are eagerly waiting for it.

The most important thing about family cars used to be the number of seats, the boot space and the miles per gallon. Nowadays, however, it’s become just as important to consider what kind of impact the car that you own has on the environment.

With the ever increasing price of petrol, anything that lowers running costs on a car will be welcomed. There are many vehicles available with low carbon dioxide emissions and they can also cut down how much road tax (Vehicle Excise Duty) you pay.

Hybrid cars increase your fuel economy, which in itself can represent a significant saving on running costs. So how does a hybrid reduce your fuel bill? Hybrids have an internal combustion engine that runs on petrol or diesel, and an electric motor powered by a rechargeable battery. Through a process called regenerative braking, energy from braking or coasting is stored for later use in the electric motor’s battery. The electric motor helps to save the amount of fuel used by kicking in to assist the engine during acceleration or climbing hills.

Although hybrids started off small, there are now many on the market suitable for family life. Take, for example, the Honda Jazz i-VTEC HX IMA Hybrid, a five-door hybrid hatchback, which does 62.8 mpg in its Euro combined cyle and has CO2 emissions of 104g/km. With such low emissions, the car falls into Band B for road tax – the first year is free, and the second year is only £10.

Looking to find the best family car that suits you and the planet can be tricky. But with hybrids becoming more commonplace, there’s a second-hand hybrid market opening up, so you can save money in the first place as you won’t necessarily have to buy new to buy green.

In short – that’s a “definitely maybe”!

It’s certainly in the world of electric motoring that most of the major car manufacturers are investing their big bucks in R & D. Each major motor show that comes around seems to feature a manufacturer’s latest electrically-powered offering and each new model or prototype has a greater range than the one before.

For the time being, though, electric cars remain impractical for most of us. A typical range in the region of 100 miles simply isn’t enough for many of us in practical terms, whilst the high initial purchase price also remains a problem.

Then again, all other electrical items from pocket calculators to computers seem to come down inexorably in price over the years, so maybe the same will happen with electric cars – whilst simultaneous improvements will make them must-have items in time, particularly if oil prices remain high?

Well, maybe. The fact is that so-called “range anxiety” (the worry over how far your electric vehicle will travel before leaving you stranded) looks likely to remain a major stumbling block for the foreseeable future. But this isn’t the case with hybrid cars – which look more likely to gain market dominance if only for their lack of reliability on electrical charge only and their ability to recharge their own batteries whilst driving merrily along on a relatively small amount of fuel.

And of course, hybrids are also improving technology by the day, and falling in price.

Electric cars may be the future – but it looks to be a very long-term future. For the foreseeable for most of us, the hybrid looks like the re sensible option. But keep an eye on electric car developments; they are the coming thing, but not quite yet for the majority.