Buying Guide – Green Car Shopping Tips
When buying a new car, going green is a great idea. Vehicles produce a large percentage of the earth’s pollution, particularly in urban areas, and the less you use them, the more the planet will benefit. While not everyone can go without a car entirely, you can do your bit by choosing a car which is better for the environment. Here are some tips to ensure that you get the best green car to suit you.
Work out the price
You will save a lot of money on fuel when you purchase a hybrid or electric car, but these models can also be more expensive to buy in the first place. This is why you need to do a bit of maths to work it all out. Will you actually be saving money if you choose this particular green car, or will it take you so long to see the savings that you will have moved on to a different vehicle by then? Make a smart choice based on your budget.
Think distance
You will also want to consider how far you need to drive every day. For electric cars in particular, this might be a source of worry. The current models only have so much mileage in them before they need to be recharged, which can take some time. You should choose a car which can easily get you to work, or wherever you regularly need to drive, and home again without a charge in-between. If this isn’t possible for you, consider going for a hybrid car instead.
Think logically about green power
While an electric car seems like a totally green choice, in reality it might not be. Think logically about where your power will come from before you make a choice. If you are charging your car with power which comes from coal or oil, you will still be making more carbon emissions than if you were driving a hybrid car in some cases. If you want to be as green as possible, then a solar-charged car is the best choice – but you may not be able to make this decision if the power in your area is fossil-fuel-only. Hybrid cars will have lower emissions and thus may be the greener choice, even though it may not seem that way at first glance.
Check consumer reports
As with any car, you should take a look at consumer reports and feedback to get a good idea of whether your green car is a good choice or not. Are there safety concerns about the new model? Have any of the cars ever been recalled? Are there known faults even with the brand-new vehicles? Do owners often report problems starting when the car is a couple of years old? These are all important things for you to know before you make a purchase. Because hybrid and electric cars are taking advantage of a new and growing technology, there may be a few kinks to iron out with some of the models. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get one, but just be sure to go in with your eyes open.
After following these tips, you should be able to come up with a very narrow shortlist of the cars that suit your budget, ease your eco-conscience, can go the distance you need, and shouldn’t give you any problems. This will guide you as to which green car you ought to buy! It’s certainly a growing trend, and before long, we are likely to find that very few cars are sold that are not considered to be green-friendly.
Sophia Mest is a Content Manager at BizDb, where she aspires to put her writing passion into practice and spread her words across the world. She spends her free time travelling and exploring the wonders of nature.
