There's no doubt that automobiles across several manufacturers are becoming more environmentally friendly.
Honda has been making this effort for years. The Union of Concerned Scientists, a leading science-based nonprofit working for a healthy environment, has given Honda the "Greenest Automaker in the U.S." award for the 5th consecutive time in 2010. You can read more about the rankings here.
Honda continues to work on "greening" their products in order to continually reduce their carbon footprint. A way to allow individuals to interact with their fuel consumption are the two Eco Assist™ features.
These two features include the Eco Assist™ "coaching bars" and the green ECON button.
Eco Assist™ and the ECON button, which have already been features in Honda Hybrid vehicles, are now available in the new 2012 Civic sedan, coupe, HF and Hybrid models.(Civic Si models does not have the Eco Assist™ features).
The Eco Assist™ feature includes bars that illuminate around your spedometer. If you keep the bars in the green, then you will get the most out of a tank full of gas. If the bars turn blue, you are outside the zone of fuel efficient speed. If you do not want to use these feature, you can simply turn it off.
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The ECON button is simple and effective. Just one push on the green button located on your dashboard and the engine is then triggered to operate more efficiently. If you want to turn it off, just push the button again to return to "regular mode".
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Understanding how to appropriately utilize these features may take some practice, but it is worth the effort. Since we all would like to be more environmentally conscious and save our money, taking advantage of the Eco-Assist™ will allow you to squeeze more miles out of your Honda. And, with the 39 MPG rating for the new 2012 Honda Civic models (except the Hybrid, naturally), you will likely make fewer stops at the gas station.
Reference: http://automobiles.honda.com/civic-sedan/fuel-efficiency.aspx
