Alternative Fuels
| Type of Vehicle | Environmental Impact | Cost to Drive | Price and Availability |
| BATTERY-POWERED ELECTRIC | Depends on whether the electricity comes from wind, nuclear, or coal. No tailpipe emissions. |
3 cents per mile based on today’s electricity prices. | The Tesla Roadster costs $109,000. Other small companies make low-speed cars starting under $10,000. |
| NATURAL GAS | Emits 95% less smog-causing pollutants and 30% less greenhouse gases than gasoline. |
A gallon ranges from 60 cents to more than $2. Honda’s Civic GX gets 24 mpg in the city, 36 on the highway. | The Honda Civic GX costs $25,200. Conversion kits for vehicles like the Chevy Tahoe and Lincoln Town Car start at $1900. |
| ETHANOL/BIODIESEL | Lower emissions than gasoline, but critics say more energy is used to produce ethanol than is contained in the fuel itself. |
Ethanol costs about $2 per gallon, biodiesel $4. Mileage is 10%-20% less in cars using E85, an 85% ethanol blend. |
Special models of vehicles like the Chrysler Sebring, Ford F-150, and GMC Yukon all can run on E85 and cost about the same as regular models of those cars. |
| HYBRID | Better gas mileage means lower emissions. |
The Toyota Prius, the most-efficient and most-popular hybrid, gets 45 mpg. |
The Prius costs $22,000; Chevy’s plug-in hybrid Volt should be available in 2010 for $40,000. |
| HYDROGEN COMBUSTION | Virtually no tailpipe emissions. Some pollution is created converting natural gas into hydrogen. |
When the market is established, a gallon should cost about $1.10. |
BMW and Ford are making test vehicles, but no car is commercially available. |
Source: Parade Magazine, January 2009
