I have always owned high performance cars. I love the way they look, I love the way they feel and I love the way they drive. This obsession was always the basis for a moral dilemma for me between driving a boring eco conscious car or adding to air pollution and dependence on fossil fuels in a beautiful machine. Finally, we can have both! There are a whole new range of eco luxury cars coming out this fall. Choices range from all electric vehicles, which run on electricity only and have zero emissions, to updated hybrids that run on both regular internal combustion engines and electric batteries which cut down on fuel usage and carbon exhaust from your tailpipe. Now unlike the frumpy green cars of the past, the new conscious cars are turning corners…and heads.
BMW I3, 2017 edition
I already drive the 2014 model of this all-electric car and the 2017 model gives you 50% more range and a sunroof. Win, win. Honestly, I have been super happy with my I3 for the past two and a half years. Its hatchback shape fits a lot of gear along with the dog and room for four tall adults. It’s a fun, fast car that is BMW through and through. The 2017 Model just hit dealerships.
Tesla 3
You can’t talk about sexy electric cars without drooling all over a Tesla. I am a huge fan of what Elon Musk has done to disrupt the automotive industry as a whole and the fact that these cars can go from zero to 60mph in 2.5 secs in mind-blowing! The Tesla S and X are beautiful, responsive and responsible cars…but pack a big price tag. The Model 3 will start at around $35k and pack a 215 mile all electric range. Reservations are open now and deliveries start next year.
Chevy Bolt
The cooler, even more eco sister to the Chevy Volt hybrid, the Bolt will be 100% electric and have a range of 238 miles per charge (considering the average driver only drives 37 miles a day, that is huge). The car also comes standard with a 10.2” digital display screen, navigation by Google Maps and the option to make your car a 4G Wi-Fi hotspot. So you can Snapchat to work and all the way home. Available late 2016.
Panamera S E-Hybrid
One of my favorite cars ever was a little navy blue manual shift Boxster. I loved that car and it left a soft place in my heart, or should I say in my clutch foot, for Porsches. This plug-in hybrid packs two engines, one is a V6 internal combustion and the other is an all-electric. This gives the car three driving modes, regular engine mode, all electric mode and the two engines working together at the same time, giving this car a combined horsepower of 416. This car is long, lean and plug-in-able. Available now.
Range Rover Diesel Hybrid
For those of you who need a large, rugged vehicle with towing capacity sadly there are no all-electric options yet but there is the Range Rover Hybrid. It runs using a diesel engine combined with battery power. While your gas mileage is not great it is still almost double the original Range Rover. And with 900mm ground clearance even with the added battery pack, you can take this baby off-roading anywhere which is a must when you own this bad boy!
