Re: theWatt Podcast 73

Listened to the discussion about buying a prius in the US instead of Canada because ya said someting to the effect that you could save 10,000 dollars.

Anyway ever considered that the prius might not be the best way to lower one's environmental footprint or the best economic value, if you look at the "Embodied Energy" and "Life Cycle Analysis."

When I was in college I bought a used diesel benz and it was pretty much my only car for 15 years after I graduated. I would still be using that old benz for running occasional errands, but the car chassis was pretty much rusted out cause for the first few years of that cars life were spent in northern europe.

Instead of blindly going out and buying a prius, which is the fashion fad statement of "environmentalists" here in California as well as many other parts of the world.

In deciding what kind of replacement car I wanted to buy, I first thought about the mission I needed a vehicle to do. Basically I work out of the house and don't have a daily commute, and try and walk most places because it is a form of exercise and in effect has a zero carbon foot print. In the last couple of years I've made a conscious effort to curtail my driving, so now I'm driving less than 4,000 miles around town.

In the end after doing an "Embodied Energy and Life Cycle Analysis" along with consider the local economic factors, ya might find it surprising what came up with as the biggest bang for the buck in terms of the environment and the local economy...... drum roll, a 540 BMW!

Because I don't drive very much, a used 540 BMW turns out to be fit my mission quite nicely. The vehicle was already made so there were no environmental costs in terms of using raw natural resources or energy needed for production or shipping to a dealership. Last year it was driven about 4000 miles, and on long highway trips I can get 25 MPG when I drive a nice steady 55 mph. I keep a fuel log and last year in 2007 I averaged 20.426 MPG which isn't all that bad considering the vehicle itself.

On the economic side, I benefit the local economy by having it serviced at a local shop. Service on a BMW can be expensive, like $200 bucks for an oil change, but I only do that once a year and sice most of that cost is labor, money stays in the local economy.

By buying a used car I also saved myself depreciation costs. For example a brand new prius over time will loose a greater percentage of its value than my used BMW.

The money I saved from buying a new prius, I've invested in the stock market (green investing I might add). Ya talk about green energy on your pod cast, so ya might be interested in an alternative energy ETF that over time I'm pretty sure will increase in value

http://seekingalpha.com/symbol/gex

I looked at this particular "atternative energy" stock ETF because it included a balance of international companies such as wind turbine companies such as

http://www.vestas.com/

as well as investments in various companies that produce "solar" panels....

anyway back to my main point, the prius might seem like a "green" car, but if ya step back and do some analysis, buying one might not be the best way to save the environment!