Latest Post from Gas 2.0: New Euro Kia Runs on Both Gasoline AND Propane

New Euro Kia Runs on Both Gasoline AND Propane

Posted: 28 May 2011 04:00 PM PDT

Kia’s Hamstar ad campaign for their Soul cute-ute featured a trio of hamsters dancing and driving tothe lyrics “You can get with this/or You can get with that”, and was so wildly successful that the company recently introduced a Hamstar-edition Soul … but they got it all wrong. The Kia that best embodies Black Sheep‘s “The Choice is Yours” (the song from the commercial) is Kia’s new Picanto Bi-fuel compact.

Why? Because Kia’s new Picanto Bi-fuel lets drivers choose, on the fly, whether they want to fill up with gasoline or liquid propane gas (LPG).

SO, for those of you that love the idea of a propane-powered car, but worry about finding filling stations on in a pinch? Fill up with the dino-juice. Gas hit $5.40 a gallon in your neck of the woods already? Head on over to Hank Hill’s place.

That, dear friends, is hedging your bets on the future of fuels with right-now, minimal-commitment, USDA Prime CHOICE.

According to Kia, the little Bi-Fuel gas/propane “hybrid” Picanto can travel over 370 miles on a full serving of LPG, and over 100 miles in its “range-extending” gasoline mode. Interestingly, Kia says the Picanto’s engine fires initially on gasoline, but switches over to LPG after a few seconds (something about heating up the catalysts to meet Europe’s super-strict emissions laws), so you’re “more” free from oil, rather than “totally” free, but still: there’s some very cool tech at play in this little Kia, and no reason something similar can’t make it stateside …

… hear that, Kia? Bring the Bi-fuel!

Thanks for listening.

PS – check out the Hamstar commercial mentioned earlier, below. (You’ll like it.)