By Lena Babaeva Coradini

There have been a couples of editorials and articles around on the EPA's New Fuel Efficiency Labels, which will be implemented in 2012, and which are aimed to help the consumer realize the differences between electric, hybrid and diesel fuel cars.  The labels are currently up for public review on the EPA's site.

Label 1 uses a letter grade from A+ to D to give an instant good/bad rating that takes both fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions into consideration. Just below that, the EPA plans to list a not-yet-created Web site where people can learn more about the ratings and how their personal driving habits could effect them. The amount of money a car owner will save (or spend) over five years is prominently displayed, which is effective since cost-savings could definitely draw in buyers who aren't interested in the car's environmental standards. Below that, a range of environmental factors, from CO2 emissions to the presence of other pollutants. And on the right hand side you'll see a QR code, which will let people compare dealer prices and the efficiency of other cars on the spot--pretty useful for anyone on the lot.

The second label doesn't use a letter grade, it's obviously horizontal, and it's a bit simpler. On the second label it's also easy to see the different labels for gasoline cars (top), electric vehicles, compressed natural gas vehicles and hybrid vehicles (bottom). They're slightly modified to show the different MPG ratings when using gas only or an electric/gas mix--an extremely nuanced set of data since some people might not understand how a hybrid car works. It's handled pretty well on the hybrid label.

I am curious to see which of the labels will win out and be considered the best for educating consumers.