The Top 12 Greenest Vehicles of 2007

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Washington DC April 19, 2007; The AIADA newsletter reported that on MSNBC's list of the year's 12 most environmentally friendly 2007-model cars two gas/electric hybrids — Toyota's Prius and Honda's Civic Hybrid — are tied for first place. But half of the cars are just old-fashioned, gas-powered vehicles that happen to be small and efficient, with low emissions.

To assemble the list, MSNBC took the vehicles with air pollution scores of 9.5, then ranked them based on their greenhouse gas scores. Twelve cars got nods for superior environmental friendliness, including the 2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid.

The EPA bases a car's air pollution score on the vehicle's output of substances that produce smog and cause health problems. The major pollutants in vehicle exhaust include nitrogen oxides and non-methane organic gases, which combine in the presence of sunlight to create smog. Other pollutants include particulate matter, a lung irritant, and carbon monoxide, a poisonous gas.

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