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Ford reverses plans to crush all its electric Th!nk cars. Ford had 
planned on crushing this environmental solution because it succeeded 
in trashing the California legislation that encouraged their use.

Ford reverses plans to crush all its electric Th!nk cars. Ford had planned on crushing this environmental solution because it succeeded in trashing the California legislation that encouraged their use.

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Oslo, Norway — Following a meeting yesterday with the Norwegian Transport Minister, Ford Europe has confirmed it will not scrap its US fleet of zero emission electric cars, but instead send them to eager customers in Norway.

Ford was planning to scrap their US fleet of electric Th!nk vehicles, but following pressure from us and other environmental groups, the car manufacturer has changed its mind. Last month, our activists occupied the roof of Ford Norway's offices, prompting Norwegian Transport and Communications Minister Torild Skogsholm to ask Ford to Th!nk again.

Now, 300 of the cars will now be shipped to Norway, and sold through Ford dealerships to eager customers. Ford has even thanked Greenpeace for having brought this issue to their attention!

Ford had attempted to justify scrapping the cars by citing a lack of US government regulation, and have since claimed that some 180 of the cars have already been scrapped. This was despite the Th!nk car's popularity with American consumers - there's been waiting lists to buy the cars since the hugely popular leasing period started in 2001. Zero-emission cars reduce urban smog, and when charged by electricity from renewable sources, they help fight the biggest threat to our planet: climate change. With rising oil prices causing increased gasoline costs, they are also a sound economic choice. Popular, clean and efficient, shouldn't this be part of the future of transport?

Ford's initial U-turn - which highlights how ludicrous the original plan to crush the electric cars was - took little over a week. We announced it on September 1st, and it has taken another two weeks to get confirmation. The first batch of cars is due to arrive in Norway in November, thanks to shipping company Wallenius Wilhelmsen, with more cars to follow in 2005.

While this is all good news, it seems this corporate leopard doesn't change its oily spots so easily. Ford still has the most fossil fuel hungry fleet of cars in the US. In the same week it reversed the crushing decision, Ford CEO Bill Ford wrote a letter to California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger opposing a proposed law that would encourage purchases of the most fuel-efficient cars.

While not scrapping electric cars is a start, Ford should now be focusing on is producing environmentally friendly, zero emission vehicles for the mass market. Currently the company likes to market a green image even though its current fleet of cars is actually less efficient than the 80-year-old Model-T Ford!

Ford should stop hiding behind empty talk about experimental fuel cells, and instead do as Henry Ford would have done; continuously improve efficiency and establish mass production of the most advanced zero emissions technology available today - modern battery electric vehicles.

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