Europe
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Led by Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn, carmakers are asking for less-strict European emissions standards.
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Belatedly, Germany Follows California, Offers Electric-Car Incentives
Germany will offer electric-car drivers free parking and access to bus lanes.
Stephen Edelstein -
Volkswagen Passat GTE Plug-In Hybrid To Appear At Paris Motor Show
Now that German carmakers have started to work in earnest on plug-in hybrids, expect to see a whole lot more of them in the coming years--though not always in North America. Following the Volkswagen Golf GTE plug-in hybrid it unveiled last year, which is now on sale in Europe, the second VW to...
John Voelcker -
Car Ownership Rates Plunge In European Cities; Smartphones More Important
Car ownership rates in European cities are falling.
Stephen Edelstein -
New Nissan Pulsar Compact Hatch Rivals VW Golf, But No U.S. Sales Planned
The Nissan Pulsar is a compact five-door hatchback designed for the European market.
Stephen Edelstein -
Gas-Guzzlers Now Pay More To Park In Madrid
European cities aren't always that easy to navigate when you're in a car. They twist and turn through narrow, busy streets constrained by the topography and architecture, designed long before powered vehicles were prevalent. If that's not enough, one European city--the Spanish capital Madrid--is...
Antony Ingram -
When we report on European market cars, we'll often advise you to take their official fuel consumption ratings with a pinch of salt. The current New European Drive Cycle (NEDC) test simply isn't very real-world relevant, unrealistically inflating a car's economy potential. That may change in the future, though the prospect of a new test is already causing headaches for carmakers. Automotive News Europe reports that the European Union is considering a new standardized economy test, known as the World Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP). It's likely to make economy testing much more realistic...
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Why European Gas-Mileage Ratings Are So High--And Often Wrong
We're often asked why cars sold in Europe seem to be so much more efficient than those on sale in the U.S. Typically, it's accompanied by the mention of some supposedly 80-mpg car sold in Europe--while the best U.S.-market vehicles barely crest the 50-mpg mark. Now, Reuters highlights one of the...
Antony Ingram -
Volkswagen e-Up: Driving VW's Smallest Electric Car (Forbidden Fruit)
Of the three plug-in VW cars we drove in Berlin this month, the one we liked best is the one we won't get in North America. The Volkswagen e-Up battery-electric minicar is a blast. It's small, rollerskate-agile, and performs well enough that it would be our preferred vehicle in any crowded city...
John Voelcker -
Tesla Announces European Expansion Plans At Geneva Show
Tesla Motors will add more service centers, stores, and Supercharger stations in Europe this year.
Stephen Edelstein -
Will Honda Insight, CR-Z Hybrids Be Pulled From U.S. Sale Too?
Honda will end sales of the CR-Z and Insight hybrids in Europe.
Stephen Edelstein -
Volkswagen Tiguan TDI: Forbidden Fruit Drive Report
It seems to be the season for diesel compact crossovers. Since September, we've driven the 2013 Mercedes-Benz GLK 250 BlueTEC and the new 2014 Audi Q5 TDI. Now we've added some forbidden fruit to that list: the European-market diesel version of the Volkswagen Tiguan, sold in North America only with...
John Voelcker -
The results of German national elections don't get much news coverage in the U.S. But the re-election of Angela Merkel as chancellor on September 22 could prove to have an effect on your future Audi, BMW, or Mercedes-Benz. At issue is the desire of the European Union to impose even more stringent regulations on carbon emissions on vehicles sold within its 28 member countries. While the E.U. regulates carbon emissions, that metric is almost directly proportional to fuel efficiency: the less fuel burned by the car, the less carbon is emitted. MORE: 2014 BMW i3 Electric Car: Full Details And...
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Europe's First Six Tesla Superchargers Now Live In Norway
The first Tesla Supercharger fast-charging stations are now up and running in Europe's capital for electric cars, Norway. Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] announced via its Twitter feed that 90 percent of Norwegians now live within 200 miles of a Supercharger station--well within the 265-mile range of a...
Antony Ingram -
Toyota Sells 23 Hybrids Globally; How Many Can You Name?
By this point, pretty much everyone can identify a Toyota Prius by its shape, and knows that it's a hybrid-electric vehicle. And most people know that Toyota sells many more hybrids as well. But how many of them can you name? Turns out that Toyota offers 23 separate and distinct hybrid models...
John Voelcker -
Electric Car Prototype Can Run 12 Miles On Solar Power Alone
Due to the very specific processes by which the universe works, it isn't really possible to power a modern electric car via on-board solar panels. Current photovoltaic cells simply don't produce enough power over a specific area to supply the needs of a power-hungry electric road car. It's why...
Antony Ingram -
Are Electric Bicycles Catching Cars As Europe's Favored Transport?
It shouldn't come as a surprise to discover that there are more bicycles around than there are cars. They're vastly cheaper for a start, and require no pesky tax, parking fees or indeed, fuel. As far as methods of transport go, they're second only to walking for inexpense. More newsworthy is that...
Antony Ingram -
Holland To Have World's Largest Electric-Car Fast-Charging Network
With the rate at which automakers are releasing new plug-in vehicles, the "chicken and egg" issue of whether cars or public charging points or the cars should debut first is much less of an issue than it was just two or three years ago. Even so, abundant public charging can't hurt--and any country...
Antony Ingram -
What do you call 388 electric cars and bikes driving from Vienna in Austria to Geneva in Switzerland? Answer: A world record. No, it's not funny, but then it wasn't a joke. Called WAVE 2013 (World Advanced Vehicle Expedition), a parade of hundreds of electric cars traveled between the two European cities in another awareness-raising exercise for electric vehicles. By the end of the drive on Monday, 388 vehicles arrived in Geneva with a hugely diverse range of participants crossing the finish line. Everything from the expected--Nissan Leafs, Tesla Roadsters, Mitsubishi i-MiEVs--to the strange...
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Tesla Builds Up Store Network In Europe Before Launching Model S
European electric car fans will soon get to enjoy the Tesla Model S as much as their American counterparts, when the car is launched in Europe this summer. Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] has spent some of the last year preparing service and repair centers in Europe, but the company's sales network is...
Antony Ingram -
Ford Focus Electric Production Began In Germany Last Week
Ford started European production of its Focus Electric at its German plant last week. It isn't just the first electric car Ford has produced in Europe, but the first electrified production vehicle period--none of Ford's existing or previous hybrid vehicles have been sold in Europe, where diesel...
Antony Ingram -
Toyota: No More Plug-In Electric Cars If Electricity Doesn't Get Cleaner (In Europe)?
European buyers waiting for an electric Toyota may have quite some time to wait--until the electric grid cleans up, basically. That's the word from Toyota Europe, which says it wants to see cleaner electricity generation before it commits to electric vehicles. According to Responding to Climate...
Antony Ingram -
Electric Car Sales In Europe: Most Going To Rental Fleets?
Europe has been the source of some excitement over electric cars in recent months, as several new models have all hit the market in quick succession. The third-generation Smart Electric Drive arrived at the end of last year, and the last few months have seen the new Renault Zoe and 2013 Nissan Leaf...
Antony Ingram -
Nissan Leaf Customers Get Battery Leasing Option In Europe
In America, if you want a new electric car, you go to a dealer and buy one. You might have to wait a bit of course, but generally your money gets you access to both the car and its batteries. In Europe, things are a little different. If you're Renault, you sell people a car and offer its batteries...
Antony Ingram