The most environmental car? A used Ford Festiva

Both Wired and the Mercury News report that a used sub-compact car is actually more economical and better for the environment than a new hybrid. Wired says:

It takes 113 million BTUs of energy to make a Toyota Prius. Because there are about 113,000 BTUs of energy in a gallon of gasoline, the Prius has consumed the equivalent of 1,000 gallons of gasoline before it reaches the showroom. Think of it as a carbon debt -- one you won't pay off until the Prius has turned over 46,000 miles or so.

The funny thing is, the demand is going up and of course the supply is fixed, which is of course driving up the price for these used cars. From the Mercury News article:

The Geo Metro — with all of three cylinders — that were written off long ago, except with die-hards and collectors, have gone from $2,725 Blue Book value in May-August 2006 to $3,050 this year. It cost $9,000 to $10,000 when it was introduced in 1989.