Bio cars... cars that run on alternative fuel that are friendly to the earth!
By ahgong
@ahgong (10064)
Singapore
November 20, 2007 10:44am CST
I was watching an episode of Future Cars on Discovery channel today, and the topic is about alternative fuel for cars.
With all this talk about going green and the recent spade of fundings that were approved by the government for green sources of energy, I wonder if they will every bring in cars that are featured in the show.
They have cars that run on ethanol, recycled vegetable oils, de-polymerized plastics hydrogen, solar and even air. Yes! You heard me right! Compressed air!
I was really impressed with the technology that when into this particular car. I was dreaming about such a car when I was in high school but never got about to do anything about it. I wonder if this prototype will catch on and if it will ever be allowed on the road locally.
How bout you? Are there any efforts where you are living to go for greener sources of fuel for your car?
If such technology and cars are available to you, will you switch to a lower powered car but friendlier to the environment car or would you still stick to the conventional petrol guzzler?
1 person likes this
4 responses
@applefreak (3130)
• Singapore
3 Jul 08
just realised that there's this thread. well my partner and i are planning to convert our car. we are going to install a CNG tank in our current car. with the oil prices soaring sky high, i think it's totally worth it. not to mention the good it'll do for the environment. now i'm just hoping the CNG station near my home will open soon. ;p
1 person likes this
@ahgong (10064)
• Singapore
3 Jul 08
ha ha ha ha ha... at least you got a station that is near your home.
A lot of people gotta travel across the island just to fill up.
Did you read The New Paper recently? One fella actually got his CNG fill ups across the causeway. Cos it is a CNG car, there is no 3/4 tank rule. So he is proudly proclaiming his new found treasure -- Filling CNG in JB.
Saves him about $200 a month in fuel cost!
So, maybe you can consider doing that.
Hmm... CNG station near your home? That means they are opening a CNG station in Seng Kang?
Wow... 
When is that? Where is the station? At RiverVale as well?
When is that? Where is the station? At RiverVale as well?@ahgong (10064)
• Singapore
3 Jul 08
Really? In Serangoon North Ave 5?
Hmm... I didn't know that!
Good Good! This makes the decision to get a normal petrol car or a CNG car much easier.
Now it is a matter of whether the factory fitted CNG car has the seating capacity I want when I am ready to get one.
Heh heh... looks like I got a lot of ground to cover when it comes to driving.
Which part of Serangoon North Ave 5? Is it near to Sheng Siong?
@applefreak (3130)
• Singapore
3 Jul 08
yes I read that article as well. However I'm not too sure about his savings. Did he take in the other costs into consideration? Example the extra distance he has to cover? How about the opportunity cost of the time spent clearing customs or the wear and tear of the engine?
Well the new station is not in sengkang. It's in serangoon north ave 5 which we'll pass by when we come home via the CTE. It is one of the main push factor as it removes the need for a big detour.
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@nokia6233 (937)
• India
20 Nov 07
yeah i too would like to switch over to environment friendly fuels very sooner but i can do that only if the manufacturers provide them and work hard on their implementation and also filling up the fuel should be easy and near to my house...
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@ahgong (10064)
• Singapore
4 Nov 08
I would assume you are referring to the cars that runs on Natural Gas.
Yes, we too have the same problem here. There is far too few re-fueling stations for Natural Gas as compared to Petrol Pumps.
As such, the take up rate for Compress Natural Gas (CNG) cars are still not very high.
But the take up rates for such cars are increasing. Due mainly to the higher oil prices from previous months. I wonder, if the price of oil continues to fall, will the takeup rate for CNG cars taper off or not.
@shakeroo (3986)
• Malaysia
20 Nov 07
I saw the hybrid cars on tv the other day. These cars are powered by both electrical and gasoline and it would produce less noise and pollutions as well as saves the cost of fuel. The only problems with the car is that it is still very expensive and most people can't really afford it here.
@ahgong (10064)
• Singapore
4 Nov 08
We too have these cars being brought into the market here as well.
The Toyota Prius and the Honda Hybrid.
Both are very nice looking cars.
But they are expensive. Not only that, not many workshops here are able to support repairing this two models should a break down occur.
As such, the government is giving a rebate for people who buy that two models. But after calculations, unless you are a heavy driver who uses the car a lot, it is not worth it.
@squaretile (3778)
• Singapore
27 Dec 07
i think the prime taxis don't use oil/diesel fuel right? I can't quite get what they use though. some sort of electricity charged fuel cells.
the problem with these hybrid cars is that they are usually more expensive. a friend i had once rented a hybrid car. And i guess it might also be harder to recharge since there are more petrol stations than electricity stations?
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