Green Car Of The Year

It is the Ford Fiesta ECOnetic, which re-set the economy benchmark this year at just 3.7L/100km - that is 76.3 miles-per-gallon in pre-decimal currency - and also produces just  98 grams of carbon for each kilometre it travels. Its economy undercuts two other Green COTY finalists, the Toyota Prius hybrid and Mini Cooper D, by 0.2L/100km.

The Fiesta is a narrow winner of the green prize after scooping first-place votes from four of the nine judges even though, like the latest BMW 118d, it only officially hits the road next week. But it has already starred in the Global Green Challenge from Darwin to Adelaide.

The regular petrol-powered Fiesta is a finalist in this year's overall Carsguide Car of the Year contest, and the ECOnetic model ticks the same boxes with good looks, plenty of equipment and enjoyable driving. It is also priced at a relatively affordable $24,990 driveaway.  The ECOnetic is almost identical to the rest of the front-wheel drive Fiesta range, but its diesel engine - a 1.6-litre capacity with 66 kiloWatts and 200 Newton-metres - and five-speed manual gearbox ratios have been tuned specifically to make it super-efficient.

They are joined in the fuel fight by a raft of economy improvements, including an indicator advising when to change gears, low rolling-resistance tyres and the replacement of the spare wheel with a tyre repair kit to help trim weight. It also gets aerodynamic tweaking, with the ride height lowered 10mm and air deflectors to reduce drag.

The cabin styling and fit-out mirrors that of the standard CL Fiesta – comfortable and cleanly designed – and buyers with their eye on safety as well as economy will give a tick to the seven airbags, stability control and anti-lock brakes that help it to a five-star rating in ANCAP crash tests.

If there’s any hurdle for the Econetic, it will be the lack – for the moment – of an automatic transmission in a class that is moving swiftly away from manual shifters. A self-shifter is planned for the car in the near future, but there’s no news yet on exactly what it will be.

The ECOnetic Fiesta is not cheap, but it is still nearly $10,000 cheaper than the Mini D and that gave it a crucial edge at a time when more people are looking for a cost-effective way to go greener. The Mini comes in at $33,750, while the Toyota Prius hybrid starts at $39,990 and the BMW 118d opens from $42,170.

During the Global Green Challenge, and competing in the Eco-Challenge section the Econetic achieved an overall economy figure of 3.13L/100km – and on one stage it dropped to an amazing 2.9L/100km (97.4mpg).

The overall CO2 emission result for the little Ford in the Challenge was just over 84gm/km, an improvement over its official figure of 98gm/km – where the Prius pips it with 89gm/km.

How the rest of the green field measured up

Mini Cooper D

1.6L turbo diesel, 80kW/240Nm; 3.9L/100km; $33,750 104gm/km CO2

Showing that frugal can be funky, the Mini D marries instantly-recognisable street-cred styling with efficiency technologies including a stop-start engine system and regenerative brake energy capture. But it’s not cheap, and lacks the practicality needed for a household car.

Toyota Prius

1.8L petrol engine and electric drive motor, 100kW/142Nm plus electric drive, 3.9L/100km, $39,900 89gm/km CO2

The signature car for early green adopters has been vastly improved in the new generation. It’s more powerful, more economical and better built. But there are still some irritating aspects to the design, which tends to polarise people, and its lack of pulling power makes it a trial outside the city limits.

BMW 118d

2.0L turbodiesel, 105kW/300Nm; 4.5L/100km, $42,170 119gm/km CO2

The latest addition to BMW’s 1-Series range is a techno-marvel carrying similar economy systems to the BMW Mini D it joins on the Green Car of the Year shortlist. But you pay through the nose for saving the planet in a BMW, and the price puts it well out of reach of most small-car shoppers.