Many people have never heard of using Natural Gas as a vehicle fuel. Many municipal fleets of cars and buses have been using natural gas fuel for some time but even so how many people have really considered using natural gas to fuel their car? There has not been any real mass media exposure to popularize domestically natural gas or to show consumers what the advantages are of using it. Despite this, Honda has developed and is selling a CNG version of its popular Civic and so I thought I would take a look at that car with an eye to price and fueling so that visitors to this site can learn more about real world applications of the Pickens Plan which already exist.
Photo From The Honda Website
With a manufacturers suggested retail price of $24,590.00 the natural gas Civic is definitely cost competitive with gasoline fueled vehicles of a similar type. This may be the most important factor for most consumers because, as much as we may want to do something positive for the environment on a personal level, it always seems to come down to the age old question of "what's in it for me?". If I can see a benefit to myself or my family from using alternative fuels then I'm on board but if switching means some kind of personal sacrifice or the expenditure of more money or effort for "the common good" with no personal payoff I (like nearly everyone else) will be much less likely to do it.
Another reason to look at the Honda GX is because I already posted a blog on the cost and process of converting an existing vehicle to run on CNG. The cost of the conversion, as quoted in that post, seemed to average more than $10,000 per vehicle. I think that kind of investment would be prohibitive for many people, even with the available financial incentives from the government. It would be much easier just to use that money to put a substantial down payment on a new Honda GX or similar vehicle.
 The Phill home fueling station from Fuel Maker
Once you have your new CNG fueled vehicle where do you go to fill up your tank? It isn't like there is a natural gas pump at your local gas station. Honda links to the site of a company called Fuel Maker who produces a home fueling appliance for CNG car owners called Phill. I haven't been able to find a price for the fueling system yet but will post that as soon as I find it.
If CNG vehicles catch on it will be a short time before filling stations spring up and in the meantime I am sure CNG vehicle owners who have Phill appliances could create their own network to refuel each other while traveling. The fuel cost being set by their local supplier.
All in all I think that CNG vehicles offer a great alternative because they could create competition between suppliers of different types of fuel. This competition would be expected to create better service and reduced prices for the consumer as suppliers struggle to capture and maintain their market share among vehicle owners.
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