2013 Smart Fortwo Passion on 2040-cars

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ACEEE's greenest car for 2014 is Smart Fortwo electric, Tesla Model S just average

Every year, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) looks into the soul of the American automobile market and figures out which vehicles are evil. This is how it comes up with a "meanest" vehicle rating. Wait, no, that's not right. In reality, ACEEE rates vehicles using Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board fuel economy data and "other specifications reported by automakers" to find both the meanest and greenest vehicles of the year. In other words, the least and the most efficient. For 2014, the greenest vehicle is the Smart ForTwo Electric Drive while the meanest is the Class 2B Ram 2500. The results are published over on Greener Cars. The highest possible score in ACEEE's formula would result in 100, but the Smart ED won with a 59, showing just how much further the industry has to go to really green up its act, according to ACEEE. Aside from fuel use, ACEEE looks at pollution - particulates, greenhouse gases, etc. - from vehicle and fuel production and its effect on health. The average vehicle, ACEEE says, scores a 37 while those mean ones only manage a 17 or so. It's interesting to note that 59 is the highest score ACEEE has ever handed out, but the calculations were also changed for 2014 (detailed PDF here). Oh, and in case you were curious about the ever-popular Tesla Model S? The ACEEE said the 85-kWh model was totally average with 37 points, mostly because it's so heavy. Other highly ranked green vehicles this year included the Prius family (shocker) as well as the Honda Civic Hybrid, the Mitsubishi Mirage and the Lexus CT 200H. Last year, the Toyota Prius C was named the greenest vehicle and Ford drove away with the meanest title, thanks to three vehicles, the F-350 FFV and F-250 FFV trucks and the E-350 Wagon van. You can see winners of earlier years here and this year's rankings below.

Smart Fortwo spied with production-ready body

Fans of super-minis, take note - here's your first look at the all-new Smart Fortwo. The teensy, tiny city car skipped out in full camouflage, but lacking any shape-hiding body cladding. Immediately noticeable is just how tiny it is. It looks even smaller than the Smart Fortwo that's on the road now, but that's merely an optical illusion - it's not as long, but has a larger footprint overall.
The rear overhang is virtually non-existent, while the new Smart looks to be sporting a snub-nose look, with both designs going a long way towards highlighting the reduction in length. Riding on a miniaturized version of the architecture that will underpin the Smart Forfour and Renault Twingo, our spies are reporting that this car will have its engine mounted in the back and that it will drive the rear wheels.
Gas, diesel and a next-generation of the Fortwo ElectricDrive should all be expected when the third-gen Smart hits the Geneva Motor Show stage in March.

Recharge Wrap-up: Smart Ready for Rent, MOIA comes to US in 2018

Daimler is launching its "Smart Ready to Rent" service in Europe. Beginning this month in German and French cities, the rental scheme bridges the gap between short-term Car2go rentals and longer leases. Customers book the Smart model of their choice – including the emissions-free Electric Drive and the hotter Brabus versions – for a period of one day up to three months. As such, Smart Ready to Rent is useful to those who live outside of an urban center. Users can book a car online or through a dealer, and vehicles are collected and returned at the dealership. Read more at Green Car Congress. Volkswagen will launch its MOIA mobility arm in the US in 2018. The recently announced brand will take on public transportation as a competitor with services such as ride hailing and car sharing. VW is looking into forging partnerships with the likes of technology and ride sharing companies. The automaker also expects to show an electric shuttle-type concept in 2017 for pooling services, but will use the three-row VW Atlas crossover in the meantime until that concept reaches production. Look to see MOIA emerging in major cities along the US coasts. Read more at Automotive News. A new report from Lux Research suggests that most EV batteries are better off being recycled than reused. Once lithium-ion batteries have outlived their usefulness for automotive duty, some automakers (BMW, Nissan, and Toyota included) are looking at ways to use their remaining capacity, such as for stationary energy storage. The new report, though, says that reusing batteries offers "questionable returns on account of reduced performance." Better to be like Tesla, and just recycle them. Read more at Hybrid Cars. Related Gallery Smart ForTwo ED: Paris 2016 View 12 Photos Related Gallery 2018 Volkswagen Atlas Unveiling View 43 Photos News Source: Green Car Congress, Automotive News, Hybrid CarsImage Credit: Copyright 2016 Drew Phillips / AOL Green smart Volkswagen Green Automakers Transportation Alternatives Electric recharge wrapup