Honda Civic Natural Gas Named 2012 Green Car Of The Year

Green Car Journal, a magazine that focuses on “green” automotive products, has named the Honda Civic Natural Gas as its 2012 Green Car of the Year at the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show.

The announcement took place Thursday, as the mag chose the Civic as tops out of a field of five cars. The other four were the Ford Focus Electric, the Mitsubishi i, the Toyota Prius V, and the Volkswagen Passat TDI.

2012 Honda Civic Natural Gas

That mix included one diesel, two electric cars, one hybrid, and one natural-gas-powered vehicle, which obviously was the winner. Six automotive and environmental experts made up the judging panel, along with Green Car Journal editors. Jay Leno and Carroll Shelby were two of the judges.

The Civic won in part because it’s the only natural-gas-powered car mass-produced on an assembly line sold in the U.S., and in part because its fuel can be sourced domestically and costs around 30 percent less than gasoline. It only takes about five minutes to refuel the car at stations that offer the fuel, and it can be refueled overnight at a buyer’s home. On top of that, the Civic costs $26,155 and offers a 240-mile range.

If you’re in the market, Honda offers the car through 200 dealers in 36 states. Now those dealers have one more sales tool at their disposal.

[Source: Green Car Journal]