Smart car, smart alternative

A tiny little car has owners buying less gas and putting fewer pollutants into the environment.

KDAF

February 29, 2008

Experts say…cars and other forms of transportation…put more green house gases into the environment…than anything else. Now, some north Texans are lining up for what they believe is a "smart" alternative.

"It's a very green car..."

Meet smart car. The tiny little car that took Europe by storm now has Americans lining up to get one. Arlene Walters put her name on the waiting list almost a year ago.

"Even if I'm just driving a little bit every bit makes a difference when you're talking about gas at the price that it is today."

Walters says she lives and works downtown so she just needs a basic car to get around. When she heard about how fuel-efficient the new smart car is, she decided she had to have one.

"I've made a lot of decisions based on that. I moved a lot closer to downtown for that reason and in this way I can even help my environmental footprint reduce itself even more."

Makers of the two-seater car say it gets about twice the average gas mileage as most of the vehicles on U.S. roads today. That'll have owners buying less gas and putting fewer pollutants into the environment.

"The average is 40 miles to the gallon and that's driven any which way. Fast, slow, on the highway. Lead foot, conservative."

Makers say don't let the smart car's small size fool you. It may be only eight feet long but the turbocharged 3-cylinder engine makes 70-horsepower and delivers a top speed of 90-miles (fact check) an hour. And the small size can sometimes be a plus...

"They're about half the size of a car. Space saver - you can park them anywhere. They're environmentally safe. This is just a very functional car."

From the start, designers say they were mindful to preserve natural resources and keep from hurting the environment. That's why even before it's built... they're thinking about what'll happen to the car way down the road.

"It's 95 percent recyclable. The panels are made out of plastic. The only thing you can't recycle is the battery and the tires."

Makers say the smart car isn't all business it's also fun. And with an average price tag of about 15-thousand dollars...the smart car is likely to be popular…not only because it's green…but also because it saves green.

"This car could not have come out in the U.S. with gas going over 3 dollars a gallon."