PLANS to blight the beautiful Mid Wales landscape with 47 metre high steel pylons has led to folk questioning the credentials of wind power more than ever.
But doing your bit for the environment shouldn’t be such a drag. Simply change the car you have for a second generation Skoda Fabia GreenLine.
The hatchback starts at £13,685, and if Skoda’s figures are to be believed, then the Fabia GreenLine II is unbeatable when it comes to economy and emissions.
A quoted 83.1mpg and 89g/km are among the lowest of any car on sale today, meaning free road tax and no obligation to pay the London Congestion Charge.
If only the Welsh Assembly Government could offer such an appealing package?
Instead, narrow-minded south Walian politicians propose dumping a giant 20-acre substation, to be built in either Abermule or Cefn Coch, on the residents of Mid Wales, along with miles-upon-miles of giant pylons to carry a 400,000 volt power line to link the earmarked hub with the existing Wrexham-Shrewsbury transmission line.
In contrast, Skoda Fabia GreenLine II customers are offered a car that can do 932 miles on a single 45 litre tank, meaning London to Prague is achievable without the need to refuel.
And as small cars go the GreenLine II isn’t badly kitted out, either. Cruise control, 15-inch alloy wheels and front fog lights are all fitted to the vehicle as standard, as is stop/start technology, a system that automatically switches the engines off if the car is stationary with the clutch disengaged.
The 1.2 75bhp TDI engine of the car I was testing may not offer much poke, but apart from that the drive is pretty much the same deal as the standard Fabia.
But what sets the Fabia apart from Skoda's other Greenline II models is its conventional gearing. While the company’s larger cars require taller gears to get their economy and emissions down, the Fabia does so with its lower weight and engine alone, so the transmission is less leggy than that of the other Skodas and hence it doesn’t require you to adapt your driving style as much.
The Czech firm are not offering big thrills here, but in terms of value and running costs they have the competition licked.
Welsh Assembly take note, you don’t have to ruin people’s lives to save the planet!*
* Skoda did however do their best to embarrass me as much as possible by sending me a white test car complete with a lime green roof and rear spoiler!