NEXT MONTH'S BRITISH INTERNATIONAL MOTOR SHOW IS GETTING CHARGED UP ABOUT ITS NEW SHOWCASE OF THE LATEST ELECTRIC VEHICLES

Buying a car always poses a number of questions. How many people will it need to carry most of the time? Will it be used for short journeys through town or long motorway journeys? Is parking a problem? Is the boot big enough for your golf clubs? What will it cost to insure for your age group? Is it quick to accelerate and how many litres will you get per kilometre?

Now there are even more questions to ponder. How will it affect my carbon footprint, is it a gas guzzler and what about its emissions?

Luckily next month's international motor show will give a range of options from the most luxuriest, fastest cars to the greenest ones.

During the show at London's ExCel Centre in July, the Electric Vehicle Village, sponsored by Co-operative Insurance, will bring together one of the largest collections of zero-emissions vehicles ever seen in the UK, with a display of more than 20 vehicles which are propelled solely by battery power.

Kirsty Perkinson, motor show marketing director, said: "The aim of the feature is to highlight the significant advances made in developing zero-emissions vehicles and to reflect the mushrooming demand for these cars. Vehicle manufacturers are pushing the engineering boundaries to produce cleaner and greener forms of transport."

These will include the Super Light Car from the NICE Car Company, the well-known G-Wiz, models from new brand Quiet Cars and the Tesla Roadster - a two-seat electric sports car, as well as future-focused concept models.

G-Wiz is a funky little car that is selling well in the UK and is being tested in Spain and other European countries as well as the USA. The G-Wiz was designed in California and is manufactured by the Indo-US Reva Electric Car Company.

So you could be the first to find out about - or get your hands on - the best-selling electric vehicle when it arrives in Spain.

The 2008 model offers improved performance, interior space and safety, while continuing to deliver very low emissions motoring. It has been redesigned to give more interior room by repositioning the seats while the curved windscreen improves driver vision. Although Mallorca has a good road system, parking in towns can be a problem, especially in and around Palma. The smaller the car, the better in these circumstances. Around urban roads the G-Wiz is small, nippy and easy to park. It can hit a top speed of about 80kmh and has swift acceleration to 48kmh, which leaves its competitors standing. More importantly, for urban driving, it has a tiny turning circle so it is easy to maoeuvre, simple to park and good fun to drive.

When you consider that a car has a greater impact on the environment than any other consumer goods purchase, it pays to think green if possible. Obviously a little electric car would not be practical if you drive from one end of Mallorca to another every day! But it will make a nice runaround for townies.

Electric vehicles can be charged at home, at work or at the growing number of off-street (car park) and on-street charging points. Electricity is so efficient that for the price of a tank of petrol you can drive a G-Wiz for a year.

Going electric makes sense because a number of scientists believe half of all the oil reserves have been used up while global demand for oil is on the rise. Also pollution is a growing threat, particularly in cities, and vehicle emissions actually kill more people than road accidents in the UK. Scientists also argue we need to act now to drastically cut our carbon emissions, which are causing the CO2 levels to rise and bringing about climate change. While cars are becoming more energy efficient, there are more vehicles on the roads around the world so cars still account for about one-third of all emissions.

Electric vehicles are around 70 per cent greener than the equivalent fossil-fuelled car, which is an increasingly important consideration for new car buyers.

Music and cars

The 2008 British Motor Show takes place at ExCeL London from July 23 until August 3 and is expected to attract more than 550,000 visitors.

As well as offering the chance to see the broadest range of cars at any UK exhibition, the show will include a host features to keep the crowds entertained including:

• The Heritage Enclosure and Parade - a driving display providing the sights, sounds and thrills of supercars from the last five decades
• The Marine Experience - the British Marine Federation brings marina glamour with a line-up of luxury craft and a programme of on-water entertainment
• Kidz Car Zone - fun-packed entertainment for the drivers of tomorrow
• Drift School - a chance for visitors to be driven sideways around a demanding circuit by professional drivers
• The Autoglym Supercar Paddock - a high-octane collection of luxury marques
• The 4x4 Experience - a challenging terrain for testing the best of the off-road pack
• Motor Theatre - a thrilling live-action stunt show
• The Motor Show Music Festival - featuring world-famous live acts in the purpose-built dockside arena each night of the Show

The Motor Show Music Festival, in partnership with Virgin Radio, takes place from 23 July to 3 August. A host of world-famous acts - including Meatloaf, UB40, Jools Holland, Deep Purple, Status Quo, Squeeze, Alice Cooper and Chicago - will perform live every evening alongside the British International Motor Show in a stunning open-air waterfront arena, making it this summer's hottest ticket.

www.britishmotorshow.co.uk

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