Elephantstrunk

For a while the Prius made driving a fuel efficient car cool, or at least the kind of thing a Hollywood actor of a certain kind might do. It’s an ugly car but it’s hybrid technology wasn’t available with 4 doors anywhere else. Like iPods you didn’t get a flash one or a cheap one, you just got one. Now hybrids come in all shapes including SUV. In fact the hybrid part makes marginal improvements to urban fuel efficiency but nothing spectacular. The amazing thing it managed to do was make it socially acceptable to drive a modestly powered car at modest speeds. That was then,this is now:
Greg Barker’s dirty little secret | Liberal Review
This is the way the Mirror describes his guilty secret

He drives a silver Lexus RX400-h car which has been designed to emit fewer damaging emissions and was carefully chosen to fit his green political image.

David Cameron has one too.

Electric cars will likely go the same way. The G-Wiz is great but a stripped down 20hp car with a modern internal combustion engine would be too, they just don’t make many and they are harder to give special parking permits.