Turning green: Cars.com names U.S. cities with greenest car shoppers

(April 20, 2013) CHICAGO — Cars.com has compiled a list of U.S. cities with the most environmentally-conscious car shoppers. The list was assembled analyzing data from Cars.com's millions of visitors who searched for hybrids or other environmentally friendly cars. The study's findings indicate that shoppers on the West coast tend to be the greenest.

"It is not surprising that California and other West Coast cities top the list with some of the greenest car shoppers. That part of the country has long led the charge in the green movement," said Joe Wiesenfelder, Cars.com's executive editor and resident green automotive guru.

"With abundant charging stations, special perks for eco-friendly drivers in some western cities and robust infrastructure, the West Coast is well equipped to cater to the needs of eco-conscious drivers."

As car shoppers nationwide continue to embrace green cars, Cars.com has found that the following cities have the greenest car shoppers (ranked from greenest to least green):

    1. San Francisco—Oakland—San Jose, Calif.
    2. Monterey—Salinas, Calif.
    3. San Diego, Calif.
    4. Portland, Ore.
    5. Eureka, Calif.
    6. Washington D.C.
    7. Honolulu, Hawaii
    8. Lima, Ohio
    9. Medford—Klamath Falls, Ore.
    10. Sacramento—Stockton—Modesto, Calif.

"We've continued to see an increase in shoppers searching for hybrids or eco-friendly cars. From 2012 to 2013, we saw a 5% jump in these searches and a 106% increase in 'green' inventory listed on the site," said Wiesenfelder. "As automakers continue to introduce new hybrids that meet the needs of a wide array of drivers, dealer inventories are also growing to meet the needs of shoppers looking to go green."