Can you buy a new car and help the environment?

Following recent government reports that the UK is falling behind on its targets to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20% by 2010, the new car reverse auction website AutoeBid.com has launched a solution to equip motorists to make a more informed choice when looking for their next car.

Buyers can now view and sort cars by their environmental friendliness rating, which uses a simple labelling system similar to that found on household white goods to identify their energy efficiency. Whilst labelling has been implemented in the car industry for some time in order to categorise a vehicle’s CO2 band, it has not been exploited to its full potential in providing a clear and informative comparison guide which would allow buyers to judge their vehicle shortlist by environmental impact.

AutoeBid’s new facility even enables users to create an initial shortlist purely on the basis of CO2 emissions – and having selected each car, they can then proceed to configure it to their exact specification before receiving a total price for the brand new UK supplied vehicle with discounts of up to several thousand pounds.

In addition, for every car purchased via their system where the buyer has specified the campaign code "ICEBERG", AutoeBid will pay Climate Care to offset 3 tonnes of CO2 – equating to the emissions of an average car covering 10,000 miles per year. Each offset neutralises the impact of the carbon dioxide emitted through Climate Care’s carbon offset projects, promoting sustainable energy around the world.

AutoeBid managing director, Amin Saleem, explained: "The government is struggling to influence car buyers’ habits and road transport CO2 emissions are expected to grow by 8% between 2000 and 2010 – despite substantial increases in fuel efficiency over the last decade.

AutoeBid’s ‘Greener Motoring’ website gives buyers the opportunity to search for new cars on the basis of their environmental impact whilst offering huge savings through UK main dealers – and we’ll pay to neutralise their emissions at the same time."

The site also identifies the current hybrid and biofuel cars that are available on the market in an attempt to inform buyers about their existence, benefits and affordability once AutoeBid’s substantial discounts have been applied. On top of this, the partnership with Climate Care gives motorists the opportunity to calculate their carbon footprint (the CO2 emissions for which they are responsible) and to complete their own offset to neutralise their emissions. We may be some way off an entirely pollution-free car, but AutoeBid’s service represents a significant milestone in educating buyers about the greener alternatives available and in tackling the carbon dioxide imbalance caused by vehicle pollution.