Monday, June 15, 2009

Dodgy Holden Ad

Greenwashing 101 is to make a nice-sounding claim - doesn't need to be truthful, if it is vague enough. So when holden describe their Cruze as "fuel efficient" i had to check that out. Technically, anything can be fuel efficient (if you compare it to a semi-trailer for instance). So i did some research at the green vehicle guide. Figures are in L/100km

Toyota Prius - 4.4
Smart Fortwo - 4.4
Honda Civic Hybrid - 4.6
Suzuki Alto - 4.8
Toyota Yaris - 6.0
Hyundai Getz - 6.1
Ford Fiesta - 6.1
VW Golf - 6.2
Honda Jazz - 6.4
Kia Soul - 6.5
Holden Cruze - 7.0
Honda Civic - 7.2
Holden Astra - 7.2

Apart from consuming far more fuel than other models invented years ago, the Cruze still uses 97% as much fuel as the Astra. This hardly a leap forward in technology. The only way this could be argued to be fuel efficient is if it is compared to holden's (poor) track record.

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