The Mast-Head: A Better Option
About a year ago I briefly had an idea that I would like to lease a new Volkswagen TDI, one of the models now at the center of a massive fraud scandal. I decided against it, opting instead for a Chevrolet Volt.
Volt drivers, the dealer told me when I was first looking at the car, are a kind of cult. Nearly 12 months into the three-year lease I signed, I know what he meant and might add that we are a smug cult now that Volkswagen has been found cheating on emissions tests.
According to the Sierra Club, whether an electric car produces less climate change pollution than other cars depends on where you plug in. If your area’s electricity comes from a lot of coal-burning plants, your electric car may be no better than a conventional one when it comes to the amount of CO2 produced.
Where all the power comes from on Long Island varies as PSEG contracts shift, but federal figures for New York and the neighboring states are pretty good, with generally less than 3 percent of net electricity generation from coal. The other top sources are, in order, natural gas, nuclear, and hydroelectric. By the way, solar and other renewables come in at less than 4 percent in New York, according to the Energy Information Administration. Considering the power supply, on balance, my Volt is doing well for the planet.
Chevy Volts and vehicles like it are not purely electric; a small generator kicks in when the battery is depleted, which in my case is after about 45 miles in warm weather. Having taken a few trips in the Volt, I have dipped into the fuel tank a few times, but even when I have this added up to only 120 miles per gallon for the 14,000 or so I’ve put on the car so far.
During the last 12 months, I used just over 100 gallons of gas in the Volt; had I leased the Volkswagen Jetta wagon I had my eye on, I would have been in for almost five times that much by now. Plus there’s the bonus of all that nice smugness. I’m sure I can squeeze a few more miles out of that.