Being interested in all things geeky, I have followed the Chevy Volt since it was first seen at the Detroit Auto show in 2007. During this time many new details have been shown and revisions made. This is the first time I have actually become truly excited about a car.

To me a car has always been a transportation device that got me from point A to point B and all the money you spent on gas just flew out the window. Sure, a fast car is fun but, the fun only lasts for a little while and until recently I viewed a car as a big chunk of metal on four wheels. I mean really, very little has changed in the past 50 years… until now. Ever since the Volt was revealed I have had hundreds of ideas about all of the cool new things that will now be possible.  And I am not just talking about the advantages for you and me but also for the car manufacturers.

With the Volt, GM is using technology to their advantage, it does not take long for electronics to shrink, become cheaper and more powerful. Just for comparisons sake take an iPod Touch and do anything on it. Now try to do that same thing on a computer from 1988. You may notice that you really don’t even want to try. Not only is that task a world of difference but the size and price delta is unbelievable. Now do the same thing with two cars that are 20 years apart. You should be able to fill up on gas, go to the grocery store, use your power windows, and adjust your seat no matter which car you are in. Technology will be a great advantage to the Volt and cars like it. Soon these cars will drop in price, electronics will shrink, and cars will become much more affordable and possibly come in form factors we can not yet imagine.

Technology really excites me but, the problem is as time has gone by and new details have been released there has been price creep. During development new issues that crop up and contribute to the additional cost of the Volt. Originally the Volt was to be priced around $30k but it will probably launch at $40k or more. Whenever GM is asked what the major contributing factor for the price the answer is always the battery which has been estimated to be about half the cost of the car. This technology affects the ability to drive gas free. When the Volt was first shown, MPG estimates were as high as 55 MPG after the initial 40 miles on pure electric. Current estimates suggest that the Volt will go 50 MPG. This statistic alone would make the Volt the most fuel efficient car on the road today and that is without any battery at all. This is where my suggestion begins.

My suggestions to GM:

The Volt is the basis for many new cars coming from GM so make sure Volt battery is easily replaced with one plug and the bolts to hold it in place. Make sure that there are not a bunch of pipes and hoses that need to be attached. The Volt battery should be a self sustaining part. With this architecture there is no end to the possibilities for the Volt.

Release longer range batteries when size and price go down. This will allow you to upgrade the car lineup to support 60 or 100 miles on a charge.

Release the Volt in 3 different flavors with the option to upgrade with the above suggestion.

1. The first option will be just enough battery to allow the car to run in a hybrid mode. This will allow the car to run on its 50-55 MPG without charging. As time goes by the owner can choose to purchase the “Battery Option” and just have it installed for the price of the battery and a minimal installation fee. This version should be price competitive with the Prius. This will help drive the Volt name and also help make people want a bigger better Volt when they can afford it. This will drive an iPod like appeal.
2. The second option will be the first “Plug-in Capable.” This version will allow you to drive 20 miles on a charge and then the extra 50-55 MPG after. This should be the mid-priced Volt.
3. The third option will be the real full blown Volt with 40 miles on a charge followed by 50-55 MPG. This will be the full priced Volt.

Good luck GM and Chevy. There high expectations but they should be attainable.

Here is a follow-up to my last article about solar investments. Five more solar stocks to choose from along with my ratings for each. 

RSOL – Real Goods Solar, Inc. – $6.14
Real Goods Solar, Inc. (Real Goods) is a residential solar energy integrator. The Company offers turnkey services to its customers, including the design, procurement, installation, grid connection, monitoring, maintenance and referrals for third-party financing of solar energy systems.
My Rating: Strong Buy
Reasoning: Solid revenue growth over past four years. Not a lot of debt. Company should be profitable soon. 

JASO - JA Solar Holdings Co., Ltd. – $19.89
JA Solar Holdings Co., Ltd. (JA Solar) is a manufacturer of solar cells based in China. The Company designs, manufactures and markets high-performance solar cells, which are made from specially processed silicon wafers.
My Rating: Strong Buy
Reasoning: Huge year over year growth. Low debt compared to assets. Good presence in growing Chinese market. 

CSIQ – Canadian Solar Inc. – $47.21
Canadian Solar Inc. (CSI) designs, develops, manufactures and sells solar cell and module products that convert sunlight into electricity for a variety of uses. The Company conducts all of its manufacturing operations in China.
My Rating: Buy
Reasoning: Great revenue growth year over year. Debt and P/E ratio somewhat high. 

TSL - Trina Solar Ltd. – $37.25
Trina Solar Limited (Trina), is an integrated solar power products manufacturer based in China. The Company produces standard solar modules ranging from 160 watts to 185 watts in power output.
My Rating: Hold
Reasoning: High debt could prevent stock from keeping up with many of companies in this sector. 

SPWR – SunPower Corporation – $82.65
SunPower Corporation (SunPower) is a vertically integrated solar products and services company that designs, manufactures and markets high-performance solar electric power technologies. Its solar power products are sold through its components business segment, or its components segment.
My Rating: Buy
Reasoning: Good presence in the market and impressive growth, however much of the positives could already be priced into the stock resulting in an extremely high P/E ratio. 

* Disclosure Statement – At the time of writing this article, I do not own shares of or do any business with any of the above companies. 

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Real Goods Solar, Inc 
Solar Holdings Co., Ltd. 
Canadian Solar Inc. 
Trina Solar Ltd. 
SunPower Corporation

You may remember that I wrote an article last June (Want to make some Green?) about some “Green” investments I suggested looking into. Well, I thought it was about time to do some research to see how things have gone since I wrote the article. The dire conditions of the economy over this time period are well documented, but I found there were some bright spots. I found that, despite little movement or losses in many of the categories, the solar energy industry did exceptional over this time. With many of the stocks doubling or even tripling over the past eight months (or even more if you sold at the right time), this was by far the best area to invest in that I covered in the article. I have to admit that I am surprised by the poor showing of the Ethanol and Fuel Cell categories of stocks. Although, their poor performances may have more to do with the overall state of the nation’s economy as well as that of the American car companies than it does with those specific industries. I believe that, even though some of these companies have not performed that well over the past few months, as time continues the potential to make money off these stocks will rise. I suspect that many more small alternative energy companies will spring up and most will be weeded out due to so much competition, but some will grow and grow to become large energy companies of the future. The demand for the products is here, now we just need one of these companies to come up with the right technology to produce something everyone is waiting for. 

-LINKS-

Want to make some Green? Part 1

Recently, while watching t.v., an ad for Esurance came on. Now, normally I would flip the channel at a moments notice given that I like mundane televised advertisements as much as I am propponent for cancer (which I am not)… BUT, I was distracted for an instant and now glad that I was. Why? Because I learned something interesting about Esurance… and it is not their amazing quotes, though they may be good. 

Esurance is a company which is doing its part to inform people about ways to help the environment as well as doing something about it themselves. Being that this is thegreenerthinking.com way, I had to learn more and after checking out the green links on their website, I did. 

Because they make their policy documents available to their policyholders online, store all of their documents electronically, as well as communicate with their policyholders via email they save paper (trees). So far their estimate is a savings of 649 trees in 2006 alone… not to mention the 21,525 trees they helped to plant. 

Esurance also delved into the realm of air quality. They have purchased hybrid vehicles for their claims fleet wherever they’re available. Hybrid vehicles can reduce the emission of pollutants in the atmosphere by up to about 90% and cut carbon dioxide emissions in half as well. 

There is a lot more this company is doing to reduce its carbon footprint and make itself a greener part of the business world. If other corporations took a tip from these fine example-setters, the world would have a much brighter outlook. Please take a look at their site and learn all you can by following their links! Thank you Esurance. 

-LINKS-

greenerthinking.com 
green links 
mundane 
carbon footprint

Welcome back, 

In the previous article I covered how the Wii is a great system for people who like to have fun gaming and also, as a cool side effect, use little electricity. But there is more to the Wii than just a small pretty white case. The Wii is flying off shelves, being bought by everyone from parents for their kids to kids buying them for their parents and grandparents. The Wii is hitting markets that game systems have never even tried to touch. You may still be saying, “Right… your point?” For you I say, there is green to be made! 

Nintendo, the company behind the Wii, is not only selling Wii’s like fire to a caveman, but it also has a portable game system called the “Nintendo DS” which is selling even better than the Wii!!! 

In the video game business it is not the norm to make money off of the console. The idea is usually to sell as much hardware as you can so that game developers see that you have lots of people to sell games to, so that they want to make games, so that gamers buy more consoles, so that developers want to make games… you get the point. There is one difference for Nintendo though, they like to make money on everything that they sell. Stock holders love companies that make money, especially if they make money on things that are normally loss leaders. Another fun fact is that developers of consoles “License” games to play on their consoles. For every game that anyone sells on a Nintendo console, Nintendo made or not, Nintendo will get a cut of the profit. With the speed the Wii is flying off shelves, game developers who once were devoted only to the PS3 and XBOX 360 are now starting to cancel projects on those consoles to put their effort into creating games for the Wii. 

With the expanded market that includes the masses, Nintendo is reaching numbers never thought possible on the back of profits never thought possible this soon after a console launch. Heck Sony is still reported to be losing about $150 – $200 for each PS3 it sells. That is definitely not a good way to make money. 

Nintendo’s stock symbol is NTDOY. I have owned this stock since it was $21 per share and now it has climbed over $55 per share without even glancing back. When I purchased the stock Nintendo were being laughed at because their Wii console was not very powerful and was not expected to sell well and the DS had stagnant sales. People said Nintendo was going for niche market and not much else. By the time the stock hit $35 the DS was starting to pickup steam and the Wii launched to a better than anticipated launch, but everyone thought that both the Wii and DS were a fad destined to die soon. Now that Nintendo is raising their profit forecasts by 40% for the quarter many investors are starting to think that Nintendo has some staying power and a solid base for income. NTDOY has gained tremendously as has the Wii consoles demand in everything from nursing homes to fitness centers to your livingroom. Nintendo is becoming a very steady stock and seems to match the growth of Google or Apple. Get in while the getting is good. This is another one of the many ways we think greener. 

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Yahoo Finance NTDOY
GamePro Sales Info
Fox News Nursing Homes
TG Daily Wii Fit
You Tube Family Wii Game

      When comparing hotel prices, the difference between a $50.00 room and a $500.00 room could be quite staggering… unless you’re a trucker. Considering the amenities many truck drivers have in their trucks these days, many save money by spending the night in their trucks… but were you aware of EXCESS IDLING laws? Receiving a citation in this department could cost $500.00 and only goes up from there. To run their “hotels on wheels”, drivers need to keep an idle engine so they can keep their batteries charged, but with such imposing regulations, it seems a near-impossible task. Because of this, idle reduction devices have seen a dramatic growth in sales in recent years.

Currently, with the price of diesel being around $2.50, auxiliary power units (APU’s) can pay for themselves in about two years. However, weight and initial installation costs drive many truckers away… rigs included. Though there are some other alternative systems which are available that are much more weight and pocket friendly.

FUEL FIRED HEATERS - Run pumps & Blowers 

They consume very little electricity and use as little as 0.03 gallons/hour at a low setting and less than 0.1 gallons on a high setting, producing about 11,000 BTU’s/hour. 

TRUCK STOP ELECTRIFICATION

A parking space with clean, filtered hot or cold air, cable t.v., internet, and access to shore power for $1.85/hour or less. 

ON BOARD ELECTRIFICATION - (Basically, an internal for of truck stop electrification)

Uses deep cycle batteries and an inverter and can power lighting and various accessories. 

COLD STORAGE - Maintains temperatures in already cooled cabs. 

Chills or freezes a special liquid mixture to remove heat from air blown over them when the engine is turned off. 

HYBRID SYSTEMS - Combines many of the above technologies to achieve the most efficiency per task. 

Creates an optimal solution for an individual driver’s needs. 

As you can see, there are many options out there, with new ones being marketed all the time. So keep informed at Greenerthinking.com, and research what’s available to help you meet your needs before investing in any idle-reduction system. The only thing you’ll be missing out on, is a couple of bars of soap, and perhaps a complimentary mint.

One of our main purposes for this website is not only to do something good for the planet, but to also help consumers save money by cutting energy costs. Well, I’ve decided to take that a step further by helping to point out some investments that present ways of hopefully making money for investing in companies that are doing something good for the environment. 

Stock Symbol – Company Name 

• Solar Stocks
o ESLR – Evergreen Solar
o FSLR – First Solar
o SPWR – SunPower
o LDK – LDK Solar Inc.
o YGE – Yingli Green Energy Holding Company

• Wind Stocks
o GE – General Electric (Yes, the General Electric. They’re subsidiary GE Wind is a leader in wind power)
o FPL – FPL Group Inc.

• Ethanol
o GPRE – Green Plains Renewable Energy, Inc.
o PEIX – Pacific Ethanol, Inc.
o USBE – US BioEnergy Corporation
o VSE – VeraSun Energy Corp.

• BioMass
o MEOH – Methanex Corporation
o GEYC – Green Energy Corp.

• Hydrogen Fuel Cell
o HYGS – Hydrogenics Corporation
o QTWW – Quantum Fuel Systems Technologies Worldwide, Inc.
o FCEL – Fuel Cell Energy
o PLUG – Plug Power Inc.

• Geothermal
o ORA – Ormat Technologies Inc.

• Wave Power
o OPTT – Ocean Power Tech Ocean Power Technologies, Inc.

• Recycling
o AERT – Advanced Environmental Recycling Technologies, Inc.
o CSAR – Caraustar Industries, Inc.

• Renewable Energy Automotive
o CLNE – Clean Energy Fuels Corp.
o ENA – Enova Systems Inc.
o SATC – SatCon Technology Corporation

• Green Mutual Funds
o Winslow Green Growth Fund: WGGFX
o PowerShares WilderHill Clean Energy: PBW
o Guinness Atkinson Alternative Energy Fund: GAAEX