News About Cars, Oil and Our Environment

Jump in the car, start your engine, and you’re off. But do you give any thought to what’s coming out of the tailpipe as you go about your drive? Sorry to be downer, but here’s what your beloved car is producing:

Carbon dioxide is the dominant greenhouse gas that causes global warming.
Carbon monoxide, when inhaled, impairs the flow of oxygen to your brain.
Sulphur oxides contribute to respiratory illness, and aggravate existing heart and lung diseases.
Oxides of nitrogen (NOx) react with compounds in the air to cause acid rain and ozone (the main reason for smog).
Particulate matter are an established cause of lung problems, including cancer.
Hydrocarbons, in their many forms, irritate the lung and other tissues, contribute to birth defects and cause other illnesses including cancer.
Lead damages organs, affects the brains, nerves, heart, and blood.

If you are not totally depressed (or outraged) at this stage, read more of our coverage of news related to cars, oil, and the environment.

Top news inEnvironment

Lamborghini to Cut Emissions by a Third: It’s a sign of the times when ultra-exotic carmakers veer in a greener direction. In the last twelve months, Ferrari, Bentley, and even Rolls Royce have put forth plans to become more eco-friendly. Now, it’s Lamborghini’s turn.
Confronting Slow Rate of Auto Technology Change: Industry analysts are beginning to acknowledge the most significant constraint on deploying advanced technology fuel-efficient: the slow rate of turning over the fleet of existing cars.
Global Warming & Your Vehicle Choice: A gallon of gasoline weighs just over 6 pounds. When burned, the carbon in it combines with oxygen from the air to produce nearly 20 pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2). By switching from a gas guzzler to a hybrid, you can literally save the earth a couple of tons of greenhouse gases.
Driving Trends: First, the good news. As a result of regulations in the 1970s and the introduction of emission control technology (particularly the catalytic converter), emissions of carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, and nitrogen oxides from U.S. cars have decreased to just 60-90% of 1970 levels. Now, the bad news. Despite this technological progress, air quality has improved only slightly. How could that be?
GM Marketing Czar Turns Toward Efficiency: One day after the US government rejected GM’s turnaround plan, Mark LaNeve, the company’s vice president of sales, service, and marketing for North America, spoke with Eddie Alterman, editor-in-chief of Car and Driver magazine. For most of the discussion, LaNeve and Alterman talked about restoring consumer confidence and the future of GM brands. But finally LaNeve said that GM needs to turn away from high-performance and toward fuel-efficiency to send "a better message" to key stakeholders."
General Clark's Ethanol March: The future of ethanol in the United States is bleak. Gas prices are low, ethanol plants are idling, and a host of new projects have been put on hold or canceled entirely. Nevertheless, a number of well-funded industry groups in Washington are committed to expanding the use of corn ethanol.
Toyota’s “Revolution” Manager Mixes Cars, Nature and Fantasy: Toyota’s Tetsuya Kaida has a dream job—literally. As the creator and manager of the company’s “Business Revolution Corporate Value Project” at company headquarters in Japan, he dreams up vehicle concepts such as seaweed cars, meditation chambers on wheels, and plug-in hybrid trucks inspired by gorillas.
Chevy and Clean Diesels Hit Greenest Car List: The Honda Civic GX, a vehicle that runs on compressed natural gas, was named last week as the greenest car of the year by the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy. But the most dramatic trend this year was the emergence of two Chevy cars on the top ten list—and the introduction of clean diesel vehicles.
Automakers and Regulators Scramble for Fuel Efficiency Compromise: Automakers, regulators, and environmentalists were sent scrambling to the negotiating table after President Barack Obama issued an executive order on Monday instructing the Environmental Protection Agency to reconsider California’s rules to regulate greenhouse-gas emissions from cars and trucks. The meetings will be a battle over numbers, and a whole lot more.
Save the Economy: Crush Your Car!: Germany offers a government discount of $3,280 on a new car bought by owners who scrap their old polluting cars. To jumpstart new car sales, the US Congress is considering a discount of $4,500 if drivers crush old gas-guzzlers and buy fuel-efficient new models.