As US petrol prices soar to record levels, motorists are fuelling environmentalists' dreams by scrambling to trade in their gas-guzzling four-wheel drives for hybrid or hydrogen-powered vehicles.
The growing drain on American pockets is not only showing signs of ending the craze for sports utility vehicles (SUVs), it may also spark long-delayed investment in cars that use alternative fuel.
"With gasoline prices reaching beyond US$2 per gallon [3.78 liters] and the general concern over the US dependence on foreign oil, hybrid vehicles are catching more consumers' attention and, consequently, investor interest," said Michael Bruynesteyn of Prudential Equity Group.
PHOTO: REUTERS
He said that while environmentally friendly hybrid vehicles -- which combine electric power and combustion engines -- were first introduced to US drivers by Honda in 1999, they have been confined to a tiny niche market.
But the gas-price increase in a country long used to low fuel costs could well see that market explode this year far beyond its faithful clutch of Hollywood stars like Harrison Ford.
"People are buying hybrids because of mileage benefits and environmental concerns," agreed Lonnie Miller of Polk's Analytical Solutions. "With the rising cost of gas in the US, hybrid registrations will likely increase in 2004."
And the rush for the relatively expensive vehicles has already begun.
Just 43,435 hybrid vehicles were sold in the US last year, with Honda's Civic accounting for half. But the hybrid Civic sold almost 3,000 cars last month alone, suggesting a huge jump in overall hybrid sales.
Hybrids, whose fuel engines kick in only when the electric battery runs out, are "showing early signs of moving into the mainstream," according to Bruynesteyn.
Also in vogue are hydrogen-powered cars, which are very environmentally friendly, emitting only water vapor instead of carbon monoxide like petrol-powered cars. They are also quiet, decrease greenhouse gas emissions and boast boosted energy efficiency.
Hydrogen vehicles have found an unusual ally in US President George W. Bush, criticized by his foes for his environmental record, who last year announced a US$1.2 billion plan to develop hydrogen-powered cars in a bid to decrease US dependency on foreign oil.
In April, several private firms received a share of US$350 million supplied by the US government to further research the development of hydrogen cars.
But hydrogen cars also have some detractors, who say the system is expensive, difficult and potentially dangerous to store, as it takes up a lot of space -- requiring much bigger fuel tanks -- and is highly flammable.
Meanwhile, the once-booming sales of SUVs are falling across the US as petrol prices rise.
A study by Autodata showed that sales of three of the most popular US-made SUVs fell by 21 percent, 25 percent and 34 percent in April compared with the same period last year.
"Over the last few months, we have seen a decrease of SUV sales," said Mark McCready, director of Carsdirect.com, a Los Angeles-based firm which specializes in online car sales.
"Usually at this time of the year, we see a huge number of people who want to buy SUVs. This has not been the case this year. In the past months, we have seen a decline of consumers interested in buying SUVs," he said.
National Taiwan University (NTU) yesterday said it disqualified a person from an entrance examination for using AI smart glasses to cheat, along with two others for making untruthful statements in their curriculum vitae. The three applicants were given null scores, Taiwan’s highest-ranked university said, calling on prospective students to be honest in the admissions process. NTU registrar Lee Hung-sen (李宏森) said that the cheating applicant wore a hat and thick-rimmed glasses to the second written exam for medical school, claiming that they felt cold. Suspicions were aroused when the applicant stared oddly at the test for long stretches while steadily bringing the paper
A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck off the southern coast of Mindanao in the Philippines at 7:38am today, prompting the US Tsunami Warning System to issue an alert for neighboring countries, including Taiwan. The system issued a purple alert indicating a "tsunami threat." The potential threat zone includes Taiwan, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Yap and Palau. Philippine authorities were assessing the damage from the quake, with the office of civil defense seeking to verifying initial reports that 15 people had been killed and 129 injured in the region, mostly from falling debris. Arlene Hollero, disaster chief of Maasim town in the Philippines' Sarangani Province,
‘GRAY ZONE’ PRESSURE: Beijing’s activities are intended to create the deceitful impression that China has jurisdiction over the area around Taiwan, the CGA said Taiwan’s rights over its territorial waters and exclusive economic zone must not be violated by any country, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday, adding that it will not accept any unprovoked actions. The council issued the remarks in response to the China Coast Guard conducting maritime enforcement drills near eastern Taiwan and claiming to fully exercise China’s maritime administrative law enforcement authority. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) has been closely monitoring the situation and is taking concrete steps to defend the nation’s sovereignty and secure its waters, the council said. China has no sovereign rights over the waters off eastern
Heavy rain is expected to affect parts of Taiwan this week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday as a meteorologist said the active part of the annual plum rain season has started. A stationary plum rain front and southwesterly winds would bring unstable weather and abundant moisture to Taiwan from today for about a week, with the heaviest rainfall forecast for tomorrow and Wednesday, the CWA said. The agency said western and northeastern Taiwan, and mountainous areas in the east and southeast, could expect showers or thunderstorms on those two days, with localized heavy rain possible. Other parts of
RSS