Without question or debate, alternative fuels and hybrid technology are not only becoming more sought after in the new & used Chevy vehicle world but more imperative in the grand scheme of the automotive industry.  With the Toyota Prius starting a fast-growing trend, Chevrolet followed suit with a range of hybrid vehicles such as the Malibu Hybrid, the upcoming Malibu Eco, the Silverado Hybrid, the Tahoe Hybrid, and so forth.  But as great as hybrid technology is and will become the end game is simple:  fossil fuels are finite and as such we're operating on borrowed time.

That's where new technologies like the Chevrolet Volt's all electric operation and today's topic, compressed natural gas, comes into play.  In the future - be it 10, 20, or 100 years or more - we won't have access to normal, 87-octane or even super unleaded fuels of the kind we all know and hate to buy, and though still in its infancy the time of the alternative fuel is now.

And Chevrolet - your favorite auto manufacturer for the past 100 years - is on the cusp of this new trend.

Following the best international sales figure they've ever seen, Chevy now has another honorable, noteworthy "best" on their hands:  a huge investment by cellular and land line giant AT&T in compressed natural gas or CNG technology.  Chevrolet recently invested over $565 million dollars in alternative fuel advancement programs and it seems to have paid off as AT&T has recently signed up to order 1,200 CNG-powered Chevy Express vans through the year 2018.  These vans will not only use CNG as their fuel source but are said to run with 25 percent fewer carbon emissions.  As of now CNG isn't incredibly simple to produce but it's inexpensive overall and, as refining and production technologies are enhanced, the price will only fall.

AT&T representative Jerome Webber, vice president of fleet operations, points to the current low cost and American-made, job producing gas as the selling points of the deal with Chevrolet:

"CNG technology is important to AT&T because it helps us reduce our fleet-based carbon emissions.  It is also cost-effective and readily available in our country right now" (source:  Chevrolet In The News, February 10, 2012).

So what are the downsides, you ask?  Nothing really.  Even with a CNG upfit on an Express 2500 or Express 3500 cargo van the vehicles still retain General Motors' 3-year/36,000-mile warranty as well as the 5-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty.  Chevrolet's compressed natural gas vans also meet all EPA and California Air Resources Board emissions-certifications requirements - although why wouldn't they being as they burn fuel 25% cleaner?

For more on alternative fuels and Chevrolet's involvement, subscribe to our blog today.  If you're interested in the plausibility of a CNG or otherwise outfitted vehicle, contact your sales team by email and request some information.

Chris Dugan
Handy Chevrolet
St. Albans, VT  05478