Elite Green Car – and other unusual word combinations

by Leif Pettersen on

Here’s a Super-Duper Secret Leif Pettersen Tip to Hilarious Writing (SDSLPTHW): when you’re hurting for a joke, just throw in unexpected word combinations.

Examples: “muscular fart”, “righteous taco”, “likeable president”

Accordingly, when I tried to write the first paragraph of this post and had to arrange the words ‘luxury’, ‘eco-friendly’, ‘chauffer’, ‘Lexus’, ‘hybrid’ and ‘Atlanta’ in an interesting way, it was unexpectedly funny. Not ha-ha funny, but you know…

Elite Green Car is the cause of today’s wordsmith oddity. Launched this month, the company offers eco-friendly chauffeured transportation in the Atlanta area via their fleet of luxury full-size Lexus RX 400 hybrid cars. (See what I mean? Tee hee!)

All kidding aside, there’s a certain inexplicable thrill to tooling around in a swanky, Super Ultra-Low Emission Lexus that boasts “maximum fuel efficiency along with capturing lost energy from braking and deceleration as electric power to recharge the battery”, currently rated as the most energy efficient car on the market.

Elite Green Car is the brainchild of entrepreneur Mike Kersten, a certified pilot, avid outdoorsman and father of two. Concerned about Atlanta’s notorious environmental stresses, Kersten resolved to “fuel” his passion for the planet by launching the Elite Green Car service in his adopted home town.

So, you’re traveling in style with a minimal carbon footprint, what else do you get for your money? Elite’s vehicles are equipped with XM NavTraffic, GPS Tracking (“ensuring that the fuel-efficient ride travels the most efficient routes, minimizing toxic emissions”), WiFi services, Sirius Satellite Radio, DVD, CD, surround sound capabilities and DriveCam’s behavior-based risk mitigation solution. Is technology great or what?

Elite’s primary services include airport transportation, corporate travel, VIP/Executive transportation and special events and occasions. Though, I don’t think they’d be opposed to (unexpected word combination warning) “environmentally responsible gnarly joy ride, dude” (SDSLPTHW: that’s called a “throw back joke”).

Kersten is planning on expanding to Nashville, Charleston, Birmingham and, the eco-friendly center of the universe, San Francisco in 2008.

NYC’s Taxis go Hybrid: Yellow Can be Green

by Iva Skoch on

NYC’s Mayor Bloomberg announced a plan to have the entire NYC fleet of taxicabs change to hybrids within five years. With 13,000 cabs, this is a tall order.

There are about 400 hybrid taxis currently in use now, and they’ve had good reviews from riders and drivers. Taxi models include the Toyota Prius, the Toyota Highlander Hybrid, the Lexus RX 400h, and the Ford Escape. Expect the number to double next year, and increase until the whole fleet is hybrid in 2012.

The fuel savings will be enormous. The current standard taxicab, a Ford Crown Victoria (at right), averages 14 miles to the gallon (mpg), while a hybrid Ford Escape can average 36 mpg. This can translate into savings of $10,000 in gasoline! And that’s not to mention the reduced carbon emissions footprint.

This is all part of Bloomberg’s greening efforts, which might include congestion charges as well. And this is coming from the city that already is one of the greenest in America.