President Obama has announced some ambitious goals aimed at making the federal government's fleet of big cars more fuel-efficient. However, "the Beast" will be exempt. This is the nickname for Obama's 5 ton limo, rumored to have armor that is 5 inches thick.

One thing is for sure, despite his promotion of green vehicles, the president is not planning on being driven around in a hybrid, plug-in, or compact car anytime soon. Still, his overall plan should have a positive impact on the environment if its goals are achieved. For example, he wants all federal cars purchased by 2015 to have advanced technology that will cut fuel consumption. This could include hybrids, electric cars, or alternative fuel vehicles such as flex fuel cars that can run on ethanol. Because the government owns a car fleet in excess of 600,000 vehicles, this gives it a lot of purchasing power to boost clean energy technologies.

Hybrid cars have so far been a tough sell in China. High price is part of the reason, with hybrids in China costing nearly double what they do in the US. However, Chinese consumers have also shown a taste for big cars, and in 2008 sales of SUVs were up 38%. Mercedes Benz announced that it would begin shipping its midsized GLK SUV to China, and GM's Escalade is selling like crazy.

Sales of US minivans and trucks are also up. The Chinese government, concerned about energy efficiency and also reducing emissions, has tried imposing vehicle taxes based on engine size between 1 and 20%, as well as taxes on cars that fail to meet stringent fuel-efficiency standards. However, it is clearly not working, because just like in the US a higher gas tax puts more of a burden on the working class and the poor. The wealthy can afford higher tariffs for gas guzzlers and fuel.

Ford announced it would raise its annual U.S. production capacity for electric vehicles from 35,000 to over 100,000 by 2013.

While the Focus EV is due later this year, the spotlight was also on four other hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Central among these will be Ford's five-passenger C-Max Hybrid and C-Max Energi plug-in hybrid which for the first time were announced that they would be offered in North America. A seven-passenger internal-combustion engine version slated for the U.S. however will not be offered.

The car has proven a hot seller overseas, and in a separate statement, Ford said it will increase C-Max production in Valencia, Spain to continue to fill strong European demand. Since its late 2010 launch, Ford said it has sold 70,000 units in Europe, and taken orders for 30,000 more.

The company said it is now convinced the U.S. market is ready for American-made versions which will complement a broadened selection of electric vehicles.

"This is a big deal for us because we are seeing a huge growing appetite for fuel efficient green vehicles," said Jim Farley, Ford's group vice president of marketing, sales and service. "The number of people indicating fuel economy is the main reason continues to rise."