Huh? Chevy Volt Fails To Place In Top 10 Of Greenest Car In America

Not really surprised.

The reason is simple, this ranking does not consider cost to own. It also does not consider that many of those that buy hybrids, trade them relatively quickly for the next best hybrid, thus cutting the life cycle of the product and making the whole hybrid movement less green (a comparable diesel will have a life cycle much longer than a hybrid, thus it will consume less to make and operate).

My second point is that hybrids are costly to buy and maintain at the entry level. Europeans are mostly luxury models and more performance oriented. Hybrid technology does not make much sense in a performance sedan, at least not yet.

So I would not categorize the europeans as being "behind" or "failing so badly"... this is a shortsighted comment.

You would have to be a lemming to take this test seriously, the Smart for twor placed above the Prius yet it gets worse epa ratings. The Volts score according to the article was actually "40%" based on its weight, if how a green a car is based that much on its weight than the Elise should be in the running as well........reading solely for lemmings....

Local dealer has a Volt listed at 61 999$

It makes no sense that a Prius sells for 19 999 ( Toyota currently gives 3000$ off additionally off the 23K price, I'm not counting the govm't rebate either ) and that the Volt can justify being 40 000$ more

Maybe it should be on a green list, and by green I mean $$$$$$$$$$$$$

It makes perfect sense to me. Just like GM killed the EV1 almost a decade ago they are trying to kill the Volt by keeping it hidden and inaccessible. Those rat-bastards should have been left to die two years ago instead of pumping them with billions of tax-payer money.

Amazes me how every Volt article brings out the politicians and mathematical analysts in us all...

There is absolutely no reason why GM should not pull this dealer's license. Capitalism is one thing, stupidity is quite another. With theincredibly anemic sales to consumers, GM should step-in, offer some great deals and get this vehicle, as questionable as its "green" image maybe, in people's driveways & garages.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKTOyiKLARk very amusing for fans of the Prius,lol

I think the concept of the Volt is a good one, now chev has to make it economical, I would rather take the Cruze any day, I don't know why they would factor in weight, the bottom line should be economy.

I disagree, "green" is related to consumption, not cost. Weight is absolutely relevant given its relationship to energy consumption and material usage.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyaA5I9IvPo&feature=related
For any anti hybrid people, its silly but makes some very legitimate points about the negative effects nickel has on our environment, this is something this article failed to mention, potentially because there is a lot of money invested in Nickel, maybe this is why better batteries haven't been made? $$$

The HV battery nickkel is 100% recycle. The metal compnent of traditional transmissions (auto or manual) cannot reuse. Do not forget, Prius has not transmission.

Most of the top ten worst polluting places on earth are precious metal smelters. Granted Nickel constitutes a very small weight percentage of the car, or even the battery, but its environmental impact is humongous relatively speaking.

Again, one aspect most people fail to consider is the life cycle of a hybrid. People that buy hybrids are mostly techies who look for the latest green tech trend. They will cycle to the next best hybrid as soon as they can. The market for second hand hybrids is not great. So the lifecycle is relatively short for a hybrid. Consequently, people consume more. Over the lifecycle, hybrids are not nearly as "green" as some would like us all to believe. This is exactly why diesel is still a far better option.

However, I do agree that the future will be (should be) electric, but it should only happen with the help of green energy alternatives and NOT COAL or FOSSIL fuels (or corn based ethanol for that matter - it is worse than gasoline).

This is the dumbest article I have seen in a long time.Why does weight matter.Can a Smart for two carry 4 people let alone luggage.Its mileage sucks for being so tiny and without weight compared to the Volt.What about when the Volt is running on electricity.The Smart is Dumb and so are the people who did this review.

yea, cuz the civic gx has been changing the world

How? It has a small range and filling stations are limited to your house,It is like an all electric car, great for the commute, but you would need a second car for any road trips. I must respectfully disagree, what would be your defense as to why it is changing the world? Enlighten me.

He was being sarcastic truckman...

This is not the "Best World Changing Car Award", it's the Greenest Car in America.

So they listed a vehicle that is not even on the road yet, let alone on dealer lots (Leaf). And a car that is only available in a small handful of states (CA)? That makes no sense, so I call fraud.

article isn't even good enough to wipe my azz with.

— MeanVulcan,I must respectfully disagree,Yes weight plays a huge roll in efficiency, but the bottom line is economy, that is the whole point isn't it.The Cruze is more efficient.

It's been dropped to number 13 now.

http://money.cnn.com/2011/02/15/autos/aceee_volt_green/index.htm?section=money_autos#Correction