Body

  • Updated Tesla Model S conversion kit from Unplugged Performance

    Unplugged Performance now offers a body kit that updates the look of older Tesla Model S electric cars.

  • 2016 BMW 7-Series prototype
    Next BMW 7-Series To Use 'Carbon Core' Based on i3 Electric Car Body

    The BMW i3 electric car and i8 plug-in hybrid sport coupe are audacious examples of advanced technology in many ways. Not the least of it are body shells made of carbon-fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) mounted atop an aluminum rolling platform carrying the powertrains and crash structures. BMW has...

  • Larte Enigma body kit for Tesla Model S
    Tesla Model S Body Kit: Definitely Different, Range-Robbing Too?

    Body kits--add-on components and replacements for a car's front and rear fascias and door sills--are often a good way for owners to make their vehicle stand out from the crowd. Often used on luxury brands and tuner cars, the updated looks are usually edgier and more aggressive than the factory...

  • Volvo C30 electric concept, 2010 Detroit Auto Show
    Could Your Car's Body Be Its Battery Too? Volvo Is Trying

    The biggest challenge for battery electric vehicles is clearly the cost and the weight of today's lithium-ion battery packs. Now Volvo is experimenting with a new composite material that can store and release energy more quickly than a convention lithium-ion cell and, it says, might one day replace...

  • Are Public Charging Stations Really Needed for EV Deployment?

    There's been a lot of discussion and consideration given to the topic of public charging stations for electric vehicles. The old "chicken verses egg" conundrum is called to mind as auto makers and politicians seem to fumble around without really knowing what to do and where to allocate funds. Will...

  • President Bill Clinton
    Bill Clinton: Feds Should Subsidize Buyers' Switch to Electric Cars

    Former President Bill Clinton recently visited social network digg.com  for a special Earth Day interview that touched on electric-vehicle policy and legislation. He answered user questions about many ecological and environmental topics--including third-world development and global warming--as...

  • GM Recycling

    When you think of a brand-new, gleaming, 2010 model car rolling out of your driveway, what materials come to mind? Steel, chrome, soft-touch interior plastics, maybe even supple leather upholstery? Well, how about some old carpets, ground-up milk cartons, and shredded, faded, raggedy blue jeans? Recycled materials: feedstock Those materials, and more, are among the increasing amount of recycled materials that find their way into new cars these days. And the Detroit News has written a fascinating description on how the industry has--very quietly--become a lot greener in its materials choices...

  • 2010 Toyota Prius with chief engineer Akihiko Otsuka, at right
    Coming Up: Toyota Prius To Be Sold In Multiple Body Styles

    Since it was launched in 1997 in Japan, and 2000 in the US, the Toyota Prius has only been sold as a single body style. From 1997 to 2003, it was a subcompact four-door sedan. Since then, it has been a midsize five-door hatchback, thoroughly redesigned for 2010. Now, Toyota executives told its...

  • 2007 Mazda2
    Preview: 2011 Mazda2

    Mazda will launch its global subcompact, the Mazda2 five-door hatchback, in the US market roughly a year from now. Its first appearance in North America will be at December's 2009 Los Angeles Auto Show. Price is likely to be around $16,000. It is based on the same platform as the eagerly awaited...

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