The Car of the Future

President Bush recently urged the U.S. to kick its ‘addiction to oil.’ But that would require automobiles that don’t rely on gasoline. Are such cars on the way?

How much oil do our cars use?

About 70 percent of oil consumed in the U.S. is used in transportation-four-fifths of that in cars and trucks. Americans consume nearly 21 million barrels of oil a day, a figure that has risen steadily in recent decades, as more of us have embraced heavy, low-mileage SUVs. If Americans truly want to achieve "energy independence" from foreign oil, we'll need cars that don't burn gasoline.

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