Why doesn’t everyone on the planet drive a green car? We know we’re in trouble, right? Even on the far, far right wing, the biggest climate deniers are starting to come around and admit that hey, maybe digging up a bunch of dinosaur juice and setting it on fire is, in fact, contributing to global warming and climate change.

There are a few major upsides to green cars:

• Assuming the recharges are sourced from solar and wind powered stations, the electric car isn’t really contributing to climate change at all. Hybrid cars like the Tesla can seriously reduce your carbon footprint. This is the main point: They’re better for the environment. That’s why they were invented, and that’s why the early adopters were willing to spend quite a bit of money to get their hands on them. Also, many states offer incentives similar to New York green driver incentives.
• Green drivers are prepared for the next wave of regulations. Sooner or later, you’re probably going to be looking at various fees and penalties for driving your old Ford pickup. Maybe not today, maybe not three years from now, but sooner or later it’s going to be very expensive, if not illegal, to drive conventional gas powered cars. Not to mention, we are going to run out of fossil fuels at some point in the future. A green car means you’re prepared for the future today.
• They’re actually pretty fun to drive. They tend to be quick to accelerate, they’re lightweight and compact, making tight turns. Even if you don’t come across an opportunity to own a hybrid or an electric car anytime soon, you should at least seek out a chance to test drive one of them just for the fun of it.

Then there are the downsides, and the downsides are… pretty big:

• Green cars are somewhat expensive. The Tesla Roadster costs about a hundred grand, and that’s the entry-level model. There are private jets in that price range. It’s well worth the investment if you can afford it, but most of us can’t. Until the cost of green driving comes down significantly, it’s simply not going to be an option for any but the wealthiest and environmentally-devoted drivers.
• We’re still figuring out how to give these cars a little more “oomph.” They’re amazing for driving in the city, but if you like being out in the woods, not every green car can handle those steep, gravelly roads and uneven terrain. They’re so futuristic that they seem to have been built for a world where everything looks like Metropolis and we get around the city by being sucked through giant glass tubes like in Futurama. Traffic school or defensive driving courses can teach you how to get around safely in the city, but that won’t help you when your electric car gets you stuck in the woods because it can’t go uphill very well.
• The interest isn’t always there. There are some holdouts, some people who don’t believe in climate change, and probably won’t believe in it even when they’re swimming to work. Some people, including a whole lot of lawmakers, aren’t convinced that green cars are even necessary, they think it’s all a big con game, and they might never be convinced.

Someday, green cars will be the norm. Conventional fossil-fuel-powered automobiles simply aren’t sustainable, we’re going to run out of oil, and we’ve got to do something about the planet. We’ve got to make some changes before that happens. These cars need to become more affordable, more powerful, and more accessible before the average driver can even entertain the idea of buying one.