The Taxi of Tomorrow

A familiar sight around town as a commercial vehicle, Ford's Turkish-built minivan has a leg up on the competition, having already been chosen as Boston's taxi of the future. It won the competition in Beantown thanks in part to its ability to be converted to run on gas - the compressed natural and liquified propane kinds, that is. An <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2010/02/18/quick-spin-ford-transit-connect-electric/">electric version of the Transit Connect</a> is also available. (Ford)

Also hailing from Turkey, this vehicle was specifically designed to be a taxi and has features like wheelchair-accessible ramps on both sides and a panoramic glass roof for admiring Manhattan's skyscrapers. If chosen, it will be available with a number of powertrain choices including gasoline, hybrid, CNG and electric, and the company says that it has been engineered to easily switch between them as market demands dictate.  (Karsan)

Nissan's entry is based on its new to the U.S. NV200 commercial van platform, which is powered by a choice of small, efficient gasoline or diesel engines. (Nissan)