Most Popular Posts of 2009: Prius Perks, VW Golf TDI, Ethanol & Urine! Page 2

By John Voelcker

John Voelcker

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John is Senior Editor for High Gear Media. In addition to news coverage and new car reviews, John creates and oversees all editorial for High Gear's... More

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Clunkers

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# 5: Cash for Clunkers: The Data On Why It's Working. Controversial when we wrote it, the content of this article got swamped in the partisan debate over whether Cash for Clunkers was a good thing or an abomination. Bottom Line: Older, lower-mileage vehicles got traded in for new, higher-mileage ones. Sales went up. In other words, the program did what it was supposed to.

# 4: Can Urine Rescue Hydrogen-Powered Cars? This was the first time we've ever put the word "urine" in a headline. It was our take on an obscure research paper, and it too climbed Digg. Memo to Staff: Write more about bodily functions! Bottom Line: It takes a lot less energy to split hydrogen out from urea than it does from water and natural gas, meaning the wells-to-wheels energy balance of hydrogen as a fuel could improve substantially.

# 3: Islamic Scholar Suggests Using Ethanol-Powered Vehicles May Be A Sin. This was a genuine breakout hit that we didn't expect. It got hundreds of Diggs in two days, and a gazillion comments. Bottom Line: Sheikh Mohamed al-Najimi suggested that driving or even riding in a vehicle fueled by ethanol could be considered a sin for observant Muslims. Though for some countervailing views, see our followup post.

2010 Volkswagen Golf TDI

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# 2: Will the 2010 Volkswagen Golf TDI Be Diesel's Biggest Winner? This perennial favorite showed up in our Top Five more than any other post. Bottom Line: The reviews are good, and the base price is just $21,990. We think VW's 2010 Golf TDI will sell well. But carmakers like Audi and BMW without previous U.S. diesel offerings may have a tougher time.

And the single most popular post of 2009 is ... drumroll, please ... this one. Yep, we're scratching our heads too:

Hybrid parking spot, by Flickr user rscottjones

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# 1: Prius Perks in Peril From Plug-In Privileges? We didn't see this one coming, but this become our most popular article ever on GreenCarReports.com. Zillions of Digg users took it to # 1 as a way to rail against the (perceived) idiocy of so-called Prius perks, hybrids, and all the people who drive them. Bottom Line: Some of the special benefits bestowed by government on the most fuel-efficient hybrids may soon be transferred to fully electric cars.

And for extra credit, if you want to see how popularity trends wax and wane over the months, here are all the previous Most Popular lists for GreenCarReports.com:

Most popular posts: November 2009

Most popular posts: October 2009

Most popular posts: September 2009

Most popular posts: August 2009

Most popular posts: July 2009

Most popular posts: June 2009

Most popular posts: May 2009

Most popular posts: April 2009

Most popular posts: March 2009

Most popular posts: February 2009

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