As the Membership manager of the Norfolk Chamber, getting out there and experiencing the innovation of our Chamber members is always eye opening and inspiring but sometimes i do get to have a bit of fun in the process. Today I was invited to attend Ride and Drive day with Dingles Toyota at Sprowston Manor and experience two cars that sit at either end of their range.
First up was the Prius Plug-in
One of Toyota’s true electric cars. In support of the green economy, it’s not hard to see why 85% Toyotas fleet market is made up of sub 100g/km cars when in
Norfolk the awareness of the Green Agenda is growing daily. Reducing you businesses carbon footprint has now become a critical part of lots of our member’s businesses plans and every time I visit a business they are keen to tell me how they work hard in reducing costs and thinking working hard and becoming more sustainable. Those that have a fleet of company cars can dramatically reduce costs and carbon emissions by investing in hybrid technology and this car with CO2 emissions of just 49g/km and an astounding 134 mpg is one of the many sustainable solutions to reducing a fleet’s carbon footprint and saving fuel costs. With the emergence of more and more plug in points throughout Norfolk this type of hybrid will be seen more and more on our streets and hopefully in the fleets of our businesses looking to cut down on that all important Carbon footprint.
Second up was GT86.
Yes my job does have its perks and getting to drive Toyota’s long awaited performance car is certainly up there with the best of them. Yes the little boy in me made me take this out on the road for a spin and you can instantly see why the whole point of this car is to be fun to drive. You can’t help but grin ear to ear as
you pull away from the tree lined drive of Sprowston manor and hear the growl of the 2.0 litre Boxer engine and watch as the electronic speedometer hurtles through the numbers to 60 mph in just 7.6 seconds. There is a bit of a strange anomaly with this car as for some unknown reason the earth’s gravitational pull seems to have a dramatic effect of your right foot as soon as you get in.
Although not in exactly in line with the green economy, this is an example of car manufacture catering for all types of driver and although you would want to drive a Hybrid for work, you would want a GT86 in your garage at home.
So In my last few months I have experienced helicopters, steam-trains and cars, so what’s next in line for my excisions into the diverse Norfolk business community’s offerings? There is so much to choose from so one can only wait and see.
