Buying A Car

When Jennifer Paul started shopping for a new car, she wanted a vehicle that reflected her beliefs: energy efficient, kind to the environment and yet still cool to ride in.

"I didn't want to buy into the gas-guzzling mentality," says Paul, Climate Change Central's (C3) manager of communications and outreach. "I just need a car for weekends and running errands that will get me from point A to B in a fuel-efficient way, and still have room for passengers and gear."

Paul is like a growing number of conscientious vehicle shoppers - trying to find a balance between fuel efficiency, minimal pollution and the practicalities of their lives. "A key thing is to buy the smallest vehicle that suits your needs," advises John Rilett, C3's director of energy efficiency. "There's not much sense in buying a 12-passenger van for one week of family vacation in July when you're driving it alone the rest of the year."

Once you've decided what vehicle size meets your needs, the next step is to find a model that beats the fuel consumption average in that class; just don't get too hung up on minor differences in fuel efficiency. An added incentive for buying a fuel efficient small car or a hybrid is a federal rebate of up to $2,000.

One fuel-efficient option to consider is a diesel vehicle, some of which rival hybrids in highway fuel economy; new, low-sulphur regulations also make diesel fuel less polluting. A growing number of North American auto makers are adding diesel vehicles to their lineups.

Buying a used vehicle can make economic, and environmental sense, as long as it's only about five years old. Vehicles much older than that can emit considerably more air pollutants than newer models. "For the vast majority of vehicles," Rilett says, "the pollution produced from driving them far outweighs the environmental impact of making them."

After much searching and test driving, Paul purchased a 2005 Toyota Matrix. "There's a reason you see so many of them on the roads. They're a really smart buy," says Paul. Although the Matrix is not the most fuel-efficient vehicle on the market, it provided the best in class' fuel rating she was after. "I wanted the look and function of an SUV, without the SUV part and I think I found it!"