Green Car Awards 2010

The Environmental Transport Association (ETA), a UK-based ethical motoring organisation and sustainable travel lobby group, has announced its 2010 Green Car Awards winners.

BMW took the honours in three of the nine categories. Toyota meanwhile won in two, plus its iQ was given the accolade of overall Green Car of the Year 2010. In deciding how the titles would be awarded, over 5,000 cars were assessed on their power, emissions, fuel efficiency and amount of noise produced.


The worst cars in each category were also named, with the Lamborghini Murcielago being declared the least-green car overall. Perhaps the LP 640’s 495 g/km of carbon dioxide emissions and combined cycle fuel consumption of 13.3 mpg (21.3 l/100 km) had something to do with it?

Some of the results seem a bit odd, though. For example, the winning Toyota iQ (presumably the entry level 1.0 VVT-i Manual) seems to be bettered in a number of key criteria by the car that (possibly) inspired it - the Smart fortwo.

According to the ETA’s own data, this is how the iQ compares to the diesel-engined fortwo:

Measure iQ 1.0 VVT-i fortwo cdi turbodiesel coupé
Combined cycle consumption 4.3 l/100km / 65.7 mpg 3.3 l/100km / 85.6 mpg
Fuel cost over 12,000 miles £930 £720
CO2 g/km 99 88*
Carbon monoxide g/km 0.15 0.174
Hydrocarbons g/km 0.03 0.246**
Oxides of nitrogen g/km 0.02 0.224
Particulates g/km N/A 0.021

* Smart actually quotes 86 g/km.
** Figure is combined hydrocarbons and oxides of nitrogen.

On the basis of those figures, the Smart would appear to be the much ‘greener’ car, unless the extra hydrocarbons and particulates its diesel engine produces are considered really harmful? However, there were plenty of other diesel cars that won their categories, so it would seem that argument doesn’t really stand up.


Apart from that, there are some models mentioned that are no longer produced (for instance the V6-powered Volkswagen Golf and the AMG version of Mercedes-Benz’s R-Class). And it seems that the greenest off-roader prize has gone to the whole of the BMW X1 range, rather than an individual model. Notwithstanding the issue that anyone contemplating taking an X1 off-road would need to be very adventurous (and have a proper off-roader on standby to rescue them shortly afterwards), there’s quite a difference in fuel consumption and emissions between the rear-wheel drive and all-wheel drive versions.

So, perhaps the results need to be viewed with a degree of circumspection but, for what it’s worth, here is the list of the ETA Green Car Awards 2010 winners and losers:

Category Best Worst
Green Car of the Year 2010 Toyota iQ Lamborghini Murcielago
Greenest small family car Honda Insight 1.3 Volkswagen Golf 3.2 V6
Greenest large family car BMW 320d Touring Vauxhall Insignia VXR V6 Turbo
Greenest supermini Toyota Yaris 1.4 D-4D Renault Clio Sport 200
Greenest city car Toyota iQ Fiat Panda 1.4 100HP
Greenest sports car Vauxhall Tigra Lamborghini Murcielago
Greenest MPV Peugeot Bipper Tepee Mercedes-Benz R63 AMG
Greenest small MPV Renault Modus 1.5dci Vauxhall Zafira VXR 2.0i Turbo
Greenest off-road car BMW X1 E84 Mercedes-Benz ML63 AMG
Greenest luxury car BMW 740d Bentley Brooklands

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