The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) has released its 18th annual list of the greenest and meanest new vehicles on the market, with the smart fortwo electric drive named the top green vehicle available.
The Smart ForTwo Electric Drive tops the Greenest List once again this year with the highest Green Score ever. Toyota’s Prius Plug-in and original Prius perform exceedingly well again in 2015, jointly taking spot #6. The original Prius also scores a 54 (but is not listed on the Greenest). At #10, the Mitsubishi Mirage was the sole conventional vehicle to earn a spot on the list this year, although the conventional Smart ForTwo is not listed only because its all-electric counterpart had already claimed a spot on the Greenest List. Six out of 12 places in this year’s Greenest List were claimed by plug-in electric vehicles.
Electric vehicles claimed additional spots on this year’s Greenest List largely due to the inclusion of one vehicle that just missed a spot on the 2014 Greenest List (the Ford Focus Electric), as well as two vehicles that were left off the list last year due to low sales volume (the Spark EV and Fiat 500E). Two mid-size vehicles also appear on the Greenest List: the Nissan Leaf and Toyota Prius Plug-in, indicating that green need not mean small. This year’s list also features a diverse array of manufacturers: nine different automakers are represented by the 12 top-scoring vehicles, including two American manufacturers (Chevrolet and Ford) and two European manufacturers.
The following vehicles comprise the Greenest List for 2015:
| Make and model | Specifications | Emission standard | MPG city | MPG hwy | Green Score |
| Mercedez-Benz Smart Fortwo Elec. Drive Convertible / Coupe | Electric | ZEV / Bin 1 | 3.61 | 2.77 | 61 |
| Chevrolet Spark EV | Electric | ZEV / Bin 1 | 3.81 | 3.24 | 59 |
| Fiat 500E | Electric | ZEV / Bin 1 | 3.63 | 3.21 | 59 |
| Toyota Prius C | 1.5L 4, auto CVT | SULEV II / Bin 3 | 53 | 46 | 57 |
| Nissan Leaf | Electric | ZEV / Bin 1 | 3.75 | 3.01 | 57 |
| Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid | Electric / 1.8L 4, auto CVT | PZEV / Bin 3 | 3.90 / 51 | 3.04 / 49 | 54 |
| Lexus CT 200H | 1.8L 4, auto CVT | SULEV II / Bin 3 | 51 | 48 | 54 |
| Honda Civic Hybrid | 1.5L 4, auto CVT | Bin 3 | 44 | 47 | 54 |
| Honda Civic Natural Gas | 1.8L 4, auto | PZEV / Bin 2 | 27 | 38 | 54 |
| Mitsubishi Mirage | 1.2L 3, auto CVT | Bin 5 / LEV II | 37 | 44 | 54 |
| Ford Focus Electric | Electric | ZEV / Bin 1 | 3.271031094 | 2.941176471 | 53 |
| Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid | 1.4L 4, auto | PZEV / Bin 3 | 42 | 48 | 53 |
At the same time, it’s important to note that some of the Greenest are only being offered in a handful of states, and that the larger classes are not represented. Hence ACEEEE also identifies practical options among the top widely available, automatic transmission, petroleum-fueled models. The Greener Choices list includes trucks and SUVs, such as the Ford F-150, the Chevrolet Trax, and the Nissan Quest. The gasoline-powered Chevrolet Spark and Honda Fit top their respective car classes. As the list demonstrates, consumers can make greener choices whatever their vehicle needs may be.
Domestic manufacturers claimed five of the 12 Greener Choices spots:
| Make and model | Specifications | Emission standard | MPG city | MPG hwy | Green Score |
| Toyota Prius C | 1.5L 4, auto CVT | SULEV II / Bin 3 | 53 | 46 | 57 |
| Toyota Prius | 1.8L 4, auto CVT | PZEV / Bin 3 | 51 | 48 | 54 |
| Mercedes-Benz Smart ForTwo Convertible / Coupe | 1.0L 3, auto [P] | ULEV II / Bin 5 | 34 | 38 | 53 |
| Honda Fit | 1.5L 4, auto CVT | LEV III ULEV125 / Bin 5 | 34 | 41 | 51 |
| Toyota Prius V | 1.8L 4, auto CVT | SULEV II / Bin 3 | 44 | 40 | 51 |
| Chevrolet Spark | 1.2L 4, auto CVT | Bin 4 | 30 | 39 | 51 |
| Ford C-Max Hybrid | 2.0L 4, auto CVT | Bin 3 | 42 | 37 | 48 |
| Subaru XV Crosstrek Hybrid | 2.0L 4, auto CVT Awd | PZEV / Bin 3 | 30 | 34 | 46 |
| Chevrolet Trax | 1.4L 4, auto stk | Bin 4 | 29 | 34 | 45 |
| Chevrolet Colorado / GMC Canyon | 2.5L 4, auto | Bin 4 | 20 | 27 | 38 |
| Nissan Quest | 3.5L 6, auto CVT | LEV III ULEV125 / Bin 5 | 20 | 27 | 36 |
| Ford F-150 | 2.7L 6, auto stk | Bin 4 | 19 | 26 | 36 |
The Meanest List this year is comprised of heavier medium-duty vehicles and European sports cars that are the least friendly to the environment:
| Make and model | Specifications | Emission standard | MPG city | MPG hwy | Green Score |
| Ram 2500 (CLASS 2B) | 5.7L 8, auto 4wd | LEV II | 12 | 17 | 17 |
| Chevrolet G2500 Express / GMC Savana (CARGO CONVERSION) (MDPV) | 6.0L 8, auto | Bin 8 / ULEV II | 10 | 15 | 18 |
| Bugatti Veyron | 8.0L 16, auto Awd | Bin 5 / LEV II | 8 | 15 | 19 |
| Bentley Mulsanne | 6.8L 8, auto stk | Bin 5 / LEV II | 11 | 18 | 21 |
| Mercedes-Benz G 63 AMG | 5.5L 8, auto 4wd | ULEV II / Bin 5 | 12 | 14 | 21 |
| Mercedes-Benz G 550 | 5.5L 8, auto 4wd | ULEV II / Bin 5 | 12 | 15 | 22 |
| Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe | 6.7L 12, auto stk | Bin 5 / LEV II | 11 | 19 | 23 |
| Lamborghini Aventador Roadster | 6.5L 12, auto Awd [P] | Bin 5 / LEV II | 10 | 16 | 23 |
| Toyota Sequoia FFV 7 | 5.7L 8, auto stk 4wd | Bin 5 | 13 | 17 | 23 |
| Lexus LX 570 | 5.7L 8, auto stk 4wd | ULEV II / Bin 5 | 12 | 17 | 23 |
| Ferrari FF | 6.3L 12, auto 4wd | Bin 5 / LEV II | 11 | 16 | 23 |
| Nissan Armada | 5.6L 8, auto 4wd | Bin 5 / LEV II | 12 | 18 | 23 |
12 Greenest Cars for 2015 (click to enlarge)
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