SWGreen
Sport Wagon Green is devoted to the most practical and efficient cars on the road: environmentally friendly wagons. SWGreen aims to provide daily news, educate consumers, provide answers, and lobby manufactures. Most of the vehicles covered by SWGreen have not yet been authorized for sale in the U.S. market, but we hope to change that. By rallying enthusiast support, SWGreen intends to show automakers that there is a demand for efficient and environmentally friendly wagons, whether they be diesels, hybrids, or employ other emerging technologies.
SWGreen Daily
Lexus CT 200h- Hybrid Luxury Hatchback
Hybrid- Luxury- Hatchback. What’s not to like? First shown as the LF-Ch concept at Frankfurt’s Auto Show last September, Lexus’ new green hatchback promises to add some stiff competition for ze Germans. Gunning for the BMW 1-series, Audi A3, and Mercedes B-Class, Lexus is offering the first hybrid in the premium compact segment. The Japanese automaker claims the production version will offer “new levels of refinement and attention to detail, without compromising style or driving pleasure.”
The production version will be called the “CT 200h” and will feature Lexus’ second-generation hybrid technology. So equipped, the CT 200h can be driven exclusively on electric power and will certainly be an efficient hatchback. The architecture of the CT is likely to be based on the recently revealed HS 250h hybrid, so this 5-door will be front-wheel drive. Expect efficiency to rival if not exceed the HS 250h, which means at least 35 highway and 34 city on the U.S. cycle.
Full Profile and Photos
March 30th (Source: Lexus)
Here at the Sport Wagon Enthusiast we are all about utility, efficiency, and performance. VW’s new Mk. VI Golf GTD offers all this and more for a reasonable price. Marketed as a high performance diesel hatchback, and Golf GTD is essentially the GTI of diesels. Sporting VW’s proven 2.0L turbo-diesel 4-cylinder, the GTD produces 168bhp and an impressive 258lb-ft of torque. Offered with either a 6-speed manual or a 6-speed DSG transmission, the front-wheel drive Golf GTD sprints to 62 in 8.1 seconds and will continue to 138mph. These performance figures aren’t anything special until you consider that the GTD will return a combined (city and highway) 44.4 mpg (5.3L/100 km) on the European cycle. With a 14.5 gallon fuel tank, this means the GTD can travel over 620 miles on a single tank. No word yet on whether or not the GTD will be available in North America, but with fuel prices rising once more, it would certainly seem like a prudent decision for VW.
Full Profile
June 7th (Source: VAG)
Volvo V70 Plug-In Diesel-Electric Hybrid
Has Volvo been listening to our prayers at night? Or maybe it’s been all the letters we’ve been sending? Either way, Volvo has created a prototype diesel hybrid wagon that aims to revolutionize sport wagons (and a lot of segments for that matter). Starting with their fairly new V70 Estate, Volvo engineers modified the diesel engine to run on renewable synthetic fuels that emit very low quantities of C02. While the diesel mill drives the front wheels, a 11.3 kWh Lithium-Ion battery pack powers the rear axle. The battery is charged in about 5 hours and improves the V70s performance and fuel economy. While this V70 is exactly what we’ve been dreaming of for quite some time, the technology will undoubtedly be further refined, and hopefully will be engineered to produce slightly more performance. Imagine if a BMW 335d Touring made sweet love with a Tesla Roadster. Welcome to our world. But for the time being, we’ll just say “Thanks Volvo,” its about damn time we entered the 21st Century.
Hit the jump for pictures and a video of the V70 Diesel Electric Hybrid Prototype
June 4th (Source: Autoblog)
Mercedes unveils the C300 Diesel Hybrid Sport Wagon
While our main obsession is with the “Sport” aspect of wagons, at times we are left wanting a more efficient and practical daily driver: enter the Mercedes C300 Diesel Hybrid Sport Wagon. Utilizing nearly all the same components as the fantastic new C-Class Wagon, the C300 “Bluetec-Hybrid” shows the future of Sport Wagons. Mercedes has remained quiet about the specifics of the Diesel Hybrid, but we expect great things from a manufacture who spends a million dollars a day on research and development. Expect a combined MPG figure to be somewhere around fifty. With that efficiency and a taught, responsive, and sporty chassis, and you have the ultimate daily driver. Stay tuned, more details to come soon.
April 17th (Source: Autoblog)
Jetta TDI Sportwagon at Detroit
VW unveiled the Sportwagon version of its bread and butter Jetta Sedan at the annual Detriot Auto Show. There is a choice of engines, but this question essentially involves fuel types. The majority of Sportwagon’s will be fitted with VAG’s familiar 2.0L turbocharged Inline-Four. While this should be bearable, our option is the 2.0L Turbo-Diesel. The Sportwagon TDI features a 140hp oil-burner, packing a respectable 236lb-ft of torque. Power is sent to the front wheels on both models by a 6 speed automatic.
April 6th, 2008