What's driving future auto development?

Hybrid cars now produced by Toyota, Honda and other mainstream automakers are veritable fuel hogs, says Felix Kramer, founder of California Cars Initiative. Not that he doesn't appreciate the technology that has led to mileage ratings in the range of 14 - 17 kilometres per litre (40 - 50 miles per gallon) of fuel.

Still, that amounts to child's play, compared to Kramer's dream of plug-in hybrids that squeeze out 100 mpg or better. While petrol has powered the automotive age since the turn of the 20th century, its days as a car's chief fuel are numbered, he maintains.

So far, there are test vehicles that run on hydrogen fuel cells, natural gas and alternative fuels. Honda has been testing its hydrogen-powered FCX Clarity. Chevrolet's Volt, a plug-in that General Motors purports can drive 14 kilometres (40 miles) on pure battery power, is due out next year.

They're merely scratching at the periphery of the real solution, though, says Kramer, which is closer than many people might think.

Electricity, he says, is the future of automobiles.

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