Greenest and least green car of the year

The greenest and least green cars of the have been announced by the Environmental Transport Association (ETA).

Topping the list as Green Car of the Year 2009 was the Honda Insight, a new family-sized hybrid.

The least green car of the year was the Dodge SRT-10 8-litre sports car, which in a year's driving emits the same amount of CO2 as is absorbed by 322 mature trees, or an acre of oak forest.

Ironically, the research discovered many of the worst polluters were taking part in the government's scrappage scheme. In a statement, the ETA said: "Many of the most-polluting cars on British roads, and most of the worst-performing vehicles in this guide, are signed up for the government's scrappage scheme, an initiative described as 'green' because it aims to replace older vehicles with new, fuel-efficient models.

"In theory it means someone who scraps a 1999 Volkswagen Lupo TDi 3L, (81g CO2/km) and buys a 2009 Bentley Arnage (465g CO2/km) would receive a £1,000 taxpayer-funded payment. The Bentley produces over five times as much CO2."

Research was carried out by the ETA to determine Britain's most and least green cars, comparing the power, emissions, fuel efficiency and noise created by 1,300 models.

Andrew Davis, director of the ETA, said: "The discrepancy between the greenest and the least green cars in Britain today is striking, but the market is changing and a combination of consumer pressure alongside government leadership will result in an increasing choice of environmentally-sound cars.

"The big problem is not the Dodge SRT-10s and Lamborghinis because there are not many of them on the road.

"The concern is that people are continuing to buy cars that are much too big for their real needs."

The results, which coincide with Green Transport Week (June 13th-21st), placed the BMW three Series 320d with particulate filter as the best green car in the 'Large Family' category. Worst was the BMW M3.

In the 'Luxury' category, it was the Jaguar XJ 2.7 litre Diesel Saloon which topped the green list, with the Bentley Brooklands Coupe coming in last place.

Diesels did particularly well in the survey. In response to this finding the ETA said: "There is a popular belief that because of their lower average CO2 emissions, diesels are better for the planet. Unfortunately it appears that it is people, particularly those in built-up areas that might be paying the price.

"However, the advent of diesel particulate filters (DPF) such as fitted to some of the category winners heralds a dramatic improvement in the environmental rating of diesels. DPFs remove all trace of soot form the exhaust gases."