Clark Howard's Tips

December 14, 2007

Clark has been big on the electric car deal since the 1970s. While he doesn't know much about the science behind it, he does know that energy alternatives will help rescue us from the dangers of buying imported oil.

Clark gets all excited when he hears about new breakthroughs, but then he gets crestfallen when they don't prove commercially viable. Yet his hope always triumphs over his experiences.

Toshiba has now announced they have a lithium-ion battery with a 10-year lifespan that can be recharged in 5 minutes. It will ship in 90 days for use in electric bikes, forklifts and construction machinery.

If it's successful, speaking of cars, Clark is still hot on his natural-gas vehicle. The only problem is that he has to fuel up in a rough neighborhood. Why does Clark put himself through all these crazy hoops? Because we need to know that we're not stuck over the OPEC barrel.

We can break our dependence on foreign oil. If we do this individually, then national policy will follow.

Clark's natural-gas vehicle is just one idea in a mosaic of possibilities. His car emits zero pollution and the natural gas is domestically produced in the U.S. and Canada.

Honda can make over 400,000 of these cars annually right now. They already have a factory in Ohio. But last year only 1,500 were ordered -- probably because they're so difficult to fuel up!

Consumer advice courtesy of

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