The Latest Green Cars from the L.A. Auto Show

The LA Auto Show opened its doors to the public last week, with a bigger list of hybrids and alternative fuel vehicles than ever! Can't stop by to ogle and test drive the green cars yourself? Then catch up vicariously thanks to the blogosphere  

• Wired's Autopia reports the LA Auto Show shows that going green is now a must for car makers: “The industry has finally realized it has to start producing cleaner, greener vehicles if it is to not only survive, but thrive in an era of volatile fuel prices and tightening fuel economy and emissions standards.”

• The annual Green Car of the Year award went to the 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI, with its five-passenger functionality, highway fuel economy of 41 mpg, and $21,990 price tag. According to Green Car Journal, this is the first time a clean diesel model received the award, which is only awarded to cars that are already on the consumer market.

• “Driving green doesn’t mean giving up fun," says Frago, who took test drives of some of the greenest cars on the road and detailed his findings at blogging.la. Read his roundup to find out which green car he liked most.

• One cool, cute, and green car unveiled at the Show is BMW’s electric mini-E. Unfortunately, only 500 “lucky” people who can afford a $850-a-month lease will get to drive those around anytime soon. According to Autopia, “Leasing the Mini-E is little more than a real-world R&D program for BMW, which says it will use real-world drivers to further develop the EV with an eye toward production.”