Frankfurt Motor Show
-
For 2012, Honda is planning to revise the Insight hatchback to address several of the criticisms levied against its smallest four-seat hybrid. Now, it's released a few details of the revised 2012 Insight before it officially unveils the updated model at the Frankfurt Motor Show, which opens September 13. In the two years it's been on sale, the Honda Insight hybrid hatchback has been far from a sales success. The subcompact five-door is saddled with a noisy interior, far less interior space than its gasoline Fit hatchback cousin, and gas-mileage figures noticeably lower than the 50-mpg...
-
2012 Mercedes-Benz B-Class Compact Hatchback Due At Frankfurt
Mention Mercedes-Benz, and most Americans envision luxurious full-size or mid-size sedans, or perhaps the successful ML crossover sport utility vehicle. They probably won't imagine a compact five-door hatchback with a three-pointed star on the nose, but that car--or a coupe or crossover derived...
John Voelcker -
2012 Smart ForTwo Electric Drive Gets More Smart, Gains Speed
The 2011 Smart ForTwo Electric Drive may be the smallest, most compact highway-capable electric car on the market, but its pathetic top speed, sluggish acceleration, limited range and expensive price tag haven’t gained it many fans. But that may all change in a little under a month as...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Audi Trickles Out Urban Concept Info: Now, Content-Free Video
If you're going to shoot a teaser video of a radical new concept car, maybe it's not such a good idea to do it in a gigantic plaza in the middle of a large European city. Audi has now released the official teaser video (view it at the bottom of this story) for the e-tron Urban Concept vehicle it...
John Voelcker -
BREAKING: Renault Teases Frendzy Concept Before 2011 Frankfurt Show
Renault has just unveiled its latest electric car creation ahead of the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show. Called the Frendzy, and looking a little like the Kia Soul, the concept is a just under 14 feet in length and features a whole host of technology worthy of any concept car, including the ability to...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Audi A2 To Get E-tron Treatment for 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show
The Frankfurt Motor Show may be three months away, but it is already promising to be an exciting show for lovers of electric cars. Yesterday we heard that BMW is expected to unveil a version of its much-anticipated i3 electric hatchback, but it now appears that Audi is expected to unveil its own...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
The striking BMW Vision EfficientDynamics hybrid concept was unquestionably the star concept of September's Frankfurt Motor Show. It proved, once again, that when German carmakers turn their minds toward a new goal--in this case, a sports car with breathtaking fuel efficiency--they can produce audaciously good concepts that often end up as production cars. M1 for the new century? And now it looks like the EfficientDynamics hybrid sports coupe too will be offered for sale, starting in 2013, at a projected volume of 5,000 to 10,000 copies a year. Reports say BMW is viewing the car in the vein...
-
Mercedes-Benz To Launch Pricey Plug-In Hybrid S-Class In 2012
After lagging in development of hybrid and plug-in cars for years, Mercedes-Benz is now attacking the new technology with a vengeance. The latest proof: reports that it will offer a pricey plug-in hybrid version of its next S-Class large luxury sedan in 2012. The British magazine Autocar writes...
John Voelcker -
2011 Toyota Prius Station Wagon To Feature Lithium-Ion Battery
We've known for a while that Toyota plans to introduce more Prius body styles to expand the reach of its most recognized and iconic hybrid car. Now, images of a possible 2011 Toyota Prius station wagon have hit the media. At least in Japan. Woody Thompson, proprietor of Woody's Car Site, points us...
John Voelcker -
Frankfurt: Ah, the French! Renault's 4 Electric Car Concepts
French carmaker Renault, whose partner Nissan recently unveiled its 2012 Nissan Leaf compact electric hatchback, showed no fewer than four separate electric-car concepts at the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show. All labeled ZE for "zero emissions", they are: Twizy ZE: A tandem two-seater with performance...
John Voelcker -
Full Details: Audi e-Tron Electric Supercar, Competition for Tesla?
Yesterday we brought you the first images of the Audi e-Tron concept car from the Frankfurt Auto Show. Now, we have all the technical details of this stunning supercar propelled purely by electrons. Until now, all we knew was that the e-Tron was based on the regular R8 sports car, with the side...
John Voelcker -
Frankfurt Auto Show: Is VW's E-Up Electric Car the Next Beetle?
With the Frankfurt Auto Show now underway, Volkswagen came out with both guns blazing to underscore its green-car credentials. The latest VW concept is the E-Up, a battery electric version of its Up mini-car, with 80 miles of range. It follows the L1, an ultra-high-mileage diesel two-seater that...
John Voelcker -
It's time: the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show is upon us, and High Gear Media is live at the biggest, hottest Messe in the world to bring you the latest on green cars, diesels, electric cars, hybrid electric vehicles, E-REVs, and NEVs right here at GreenCarReports.com. We've previewed the Frankfurt show for you in the past few weeks, and now we're launching our CoverItLive updates and Twitter feeds to keep you updated on the latest breaking news from the show floor and the annual night of previews that begins in a few hours, on Central European Time. The doors to the eleven halls at the Frankfurt...
-
Frankfurt Auto Show: Plug-In Hybrid Mercedes S-Class Concept
Every other year, Mercedes-Benz unveils a "Vision" concept car at the Frankfurt Motor Show that points the way to cars it will launch in future years. This year's concept car looks just like a standard 2010 Mercedes-Benz S-Class. Instead, it's the mechanical parts that are remarkable: It's a...
John Voelcker -
2010 Fisker Karma: 67 MPG AND 0-to-62-mph In Under 6 Seconds
The 2010 Fisker Karma will be the world's first production series hybrid, or extended-range electric vehicle, when it comes off the line late this year. Customer deliveries will start next May. Just prior to the Karma's German debut at next week's Frankfurt Auto Show, the company released emissions...
John Voelcker -
Let the Range Extender Wars Begin: Lotus Unveils Tiny Engine
We've written before about upcoming tiny, powerful engines that perform like much bigger versions but get far better gas mileage. Now, British sports-car maker Lotus has used those lessons in an engine designed just for the extended-range electric vehicles of the future. At next week's Frankfurt...
John Voelcker -
Final Version of Production Prius Plug-In For Frankfurt Auto Show
While literally hundreds of Toyota Prius owners have laid down thousands of dollars (in some cases, tens of thousands) by now for plug-in conversions, Toyota has proceeded slowly. Now it is showing what it says is the final version of its prototype Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid at the Frankfurt Motor...
John Voelcker -
Toyota Prius Plug-In To Launch at Frankfurt Auto Show
Toyota will show the final version of its prototype Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid at the Frankfurt Motor Show two weeks hence, trying to keep up with the flurry of electric, hybrid, and diesel concepts to be shown there. With numerous concepts from German automakers, and GM pulling out all the...
John Voelcker -
In late May, we reported on rumors that an electric version of Audi's R8 supercar would be at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Nary a day later, Edmunds Inside Line crushed our hopesand put the rumors to rest, citing an Audi representative who refuted the blogosphere's claims. We're not ready to say "we told you so" just yet, but a new Audi microsite devoted to electricity recently appeared on the web. The site includes a countdown to September 15, 2009 in the upper left corner. What's the significance of the date? Why, that's the first day of the Frankfurt Motor Show. The site trivializes the...
-
Rumormill: BMW and Toyota To Swap Mini, iQ Platforms?
While it may not evoke as much car lust as this past weekend's unveiling of the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics Concept, BMW is rumored to be in negotiations with Toyota to borrow their iQ mini-car platform. In return, Toyota is reportedly interested in BMW's Mini division. Japan's largest automaker...
Robert Scardino -
BMW's Newest, Greenest Concept: Vision EfficientDynamics
BMW's legendary M series performance cars use big, brawny, turbocharged gasoline engines. The 2009 BMW M5, for example, has a 500-horsepower, 5.0-liter V-10. How many cylinders ??? Where ??? But the concept car BMW will unveil in two weeks at the Frankfurt Motor Show promises "the performance of an...
John Voelcker -
Mini Coupe Concept Celebrates 50 Years of Minis, Targets Audi TT
On Wednesday, August 26, 1959, a new type of small car was unveiled in Austin and Morris dealerships across Britain. Many buyers didn't know quite what to make of the Morris Mini-Minor and Austin 7even (yep, that's what they called it--for a very short while). It had seats for four, it was just 10...
John Voelcker -
Peugeot To Show First Production Diesel Hybrid, For Europe Only
We're pretty focused on the US car market here at GreenCarReports.com, so we don't write about cars we won't be able to buy all that often. Today, we're making an exception for a particularly significant technology advance. Next month, at the Frankfurt Motor Show, French automaker Peugeot will...
John Voelcker -
Claymation: Renault Twingo ZE Electric Car In The Buff
Last week we reported that Renault planned to unveil three new electric vehicles at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Today, some Wallace and Gromit style images purporting to be one of those new vehicles, surfaced on Auto Plus, a French car website. The clay model depicts the three-seat Twingo ZE, which...
Robert Scardino