Plug-In Hybrids

  • 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV

    Two bills from the Senate and House of Representatives that would radically reform U.S. tax policy for the first time in three decades are now being reconciled by a joint committee from both houses of Congress. No public hearings on those bills have been held in either chamber, and the legislation is closely guarded. It would be fair to call the process unusual. For electric-car shoppers, however, one particular provision of any final bill that emerges could prove critically important. DON'T MISS: If you plan to buy an electric car, you should do it this month The version of the bill that...

  • 2018 Chevrolet Volt
    Which plug-in hybrid would you buy today if you had to? Take our Twitter poll

    This has been something of a plug-in hybrid month. Last week we got our first drive in the 2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid, which we felt was the first affordable car with a range similar to that of the Chevrolet Volt. This week we're driving the 2018 Kia Niro Plug-In Hybrid. DON'T MISS: 2018...

  • Frame from 2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid "Beyond the Battery" ad
    Can Honda break through buyer confusion about plug-in hybrids?

    With the launch of the 2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid sedan, the Chevrolet Volt now has its first serious competition among long-range plug-in hybrids. About 25,000 second-generation Volts were sold last year, and this year's number will be about 20,000. Honda says it may sell about the same...

  • 2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid drive, Napa Valley, Caifornia, Dec 2017
    2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid first drive

    There's a new plug-in hybrid in town, and it could expand the audience for cars that provide useful electric range for daily driving while retaining an efficient gasoline engine for longer trips. The 2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid is the third and most important model in the Clarity lineup...

  • 2017 Kia Soul EV
    Best deals on hybrid, electric, fuel-efficient cars for December 2017

    If you're looking to give the gift of efficient motoring this holiday season, numerous manufacturer incentives are available this month that'll save you from breaking the bank. For December, CarsDirect has uncovered leases as cheap as $159/month and discounts as much as $18,100 on fuel-efficient...

  • 2017 Volkswagen e-Golf, first drive, New York City, April 2017
    European electric and plug-in hybrid sales for Jan-Oct 2017

    The more things change, the more they stay the same. Europe's October electric vehicle sales saw significant growth versus a year ago as 56 percent more battery-electric and plug-in hybrid hybrid vehicles found new homes and the Volkswagen e-Golf shot up the standings. But, atop that growing...

  • 2017 Chevrolet Volt in Vancouver, BC, Canada

    A record 582 Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrids were sold in Canada last month, two months after Chevy delivered a then-record 483 Volts in September. The achievement is even more impressive considering Canadian car sales dropped by 15 percent between the two months, as the industry enters its slow season. The November Volt sales are more than the 536 plug-in electric vehicles sold in all of Canada during 2011, and fell just short of the combined November sales for Toyota’s Prius conventional hybrids (Liftback, Prius C, and Prius V had 592 sales). DON'T MISS: U.S. plug-in electric car sales...

  • Mopar-modified Jeep Wrangler features all-new items from the performance parts catalog
    Jeep Wrangler Plug-In Hybrid to go into production in 2020

    Looking back at last week's Los Angeles auto show media days, one new vehicle sucked up a disproportionate amount of attention and airtime. That would be the new 2018 Jeep Wrangler, a once-in-a-decade redesign of the iconic off-roader that's the linchpin of the Jeep brand image worldwide. While the...

  • 2018 Chevrolet Bolt EV
    Plug-in electric car sales for Nov: Volt vs Prime neck-and-neck, Bolt EV just misses 3K (updated)

    Chevy didn't quite pull it off in November, but it could well happen this month in a burst of end-of-year sales. In this case, "it" would be selling 3,000 Chevrolet Bolt EV electric cars in a single month: the delivery total reported last month was 2,987. That brings year-to-date Bolt EV sales to...

  • All-electric Vespa Elettrica scooter
    Iconic Vespa Scooter, now 70 years old, gets brand-new electric powertrain

    The Vespa scooter is undeniably an icon on European streets. For 70 years, Vespas have buzzed about roadways, but the buzz will soon give way to an all-but-silent hum in the company's latest scooter. Earlier this month at the Milan Motorcycle Show, Vespa announced its first all-electric scooter...

  • 2018 Porsche Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid
    Half of all Porsches will plug in by 2025, showing importance of electric cars

    Its customers and employees know, but the rest of the world may not quite have realized that Porsche will soon sell six separate plug-in hybrid models. They span three different vehicles—the Porsche Panamera large sedan, the Panamera Sport Turismo shooting brake, and the Cayenne sport utility...

  • 2018 Volvo XC90
    2018 Volvo XC90 plug-in hybrid SUV: bigger battery, slight range boost

    It's a shock to realize that the Volvo XC90 large luxury SUV is now in its third model year. The first new Volvo in more than five years when it debuted in 2016, the seven-seat XC90 was an entirely new design that redefined luxury in a Swedish vein and won numerous awards, including North American...

  • U.S. Postal Service Grumman "Long Life Vehicle"

    The current fleet of delivery trucks used by the United States Postal Service have stood the test of time, but their high maintenance costs mean it's time to retire the iconic boxy vehicles. The USPS began soliciting bids in 2016 and five finalists now remain in the running: they are Workhorse/Hackney, AM General, Karsan, Mahindra, and Oshkosh. Two of the finalists offer electrified options—Workhorse and Mahindra—and environmental groups are urging the USPS to choose an electric future over one powered by fossil fuels. DON'T MISS: U.S.P.S. 'Long Life' Vehicles Last 25 Years, But...

  • 2018 Nissan Leaf
    Where will EVs have the highest market share in 2025? Take our Twitter poll

    China's announcement in early September that it planned to set a date to end sales of new vehicles with combustion engines should have rocked the global auto industry. The world's largest car market, at roughly 30 million vehicles a year, will at some point permit only zero-emission vehicles to be...

  • 2017 Toyota Prius Prime and 2017 Chevrolet Volt with Green Car Reports editor John Voelcker
    Will Toyota Prius Prime outsell Chevy Volt this year?

    Compared to the U.S. sales of, say, full-size pickup trucks, the monthly reports on deliveries of plug-in hybrid and battery-electric cars contain some fairly low numbers. The Ford F-Series routinely sells 80,000 a month or more, while the most any plug-in car has ever sold in the U.S. is about...

  • 2018 Ford Escape
    2019 Ford Escape to get plug-in hybrid, plus Expedition SUV hybrid, Lincoln versions too: report

    In recent years, Ford Motor Company's plans for putting more plug-in electric cars on the road have been, shall we say, murky. GM has the Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid, sales of its Chevy Bolt EV 238-mile electric car have risen every month, and it plans a pair of all-electric SUVs by...

  • 2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid
    2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid starts at $34,290 with 47-mile range

    The 2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid will start at a recommended price of $34,290 including delivery, making it the least expensive plug-in hybrid sedan on the market this year. Honda says it will go on sale December 1, and it will be offered at all Honda dealers in the U.S. That means that for...

  • 2018 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid
    Green Car Reports Best Car To Buy 2018: Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid plug-in minivan

    In 2011, Green Car Reports launched an award for the new car, or family of cars, that represented the best green vehicle introduced for the model year. The Nissan Leaf won that year because it was the sole affordable battery-electric vehicle on the market. Over the next seven years, more than two...

  • 2018 Ford C-Max

    The Ford C-Max, launched as a 2013 model, never really served the purpose its maker intended. The tall five-door compact hatchback was intended to be Ford's counter to the successful Toyota Prius hybrid line, more stylish and comfortable inside with almost the same fuel-economy rating. Its owners' real-world experience, however, bore no resemblance to the car's EPA fuel-economy ratings. DON'T MISS: 2013 Ford C-Max Energi Plug-In Hybrid: First Drive (Nov 2012) In the end, Ford was forced to reduce the C-Max Hybrid EPA ratings not once but twice, and the energy efficiency and electric range of...

  • 2018 Hyundai Ioniq
    Finalist for Green Car Reports Best Car To Buy 2018: Hyundai Ioniq

    Hyundai is known in the auto industry as an aggressive and very capable competitor, and the world's largest makers watch it closely and take it very seriously. The company didn't introduce its first hybrid car in the U.S. until 2011 and, frankly, that year's hybrid Sonata sedan wasn't very good...

  • Chevrolet Bolt EV electric car and Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid
    Plug-in electric car sales in Canada, Oct 2017: Chevy’s dominant duo

    The dominant duo of the Chevy Volt and Bolt EV continued their winning ways in the Canadian market for new plug-in electric cars during October. Chevrolet sold 424 Volts to start the fourth quarter, down slightly from 483 in September. The vehicle’s 3,431 sales through October all but tied...

  • 2018 Chevrolet Bolt EV
    Plug-in electric car sales for Oct: new Bolt EV record, Prime and Volt tied

    Chevy did it again. More specifically, GM delivered 2,781 Chevrolet Bolt EVs to buyers during October, a new high for its 238-mile electric car, and the highest reported sales of any plug-in electric vehicle last month. That brings the total number of Bolt EVs sold in 11 months to 17,083 (plus an...

  • Workhorse W-15 extended-range electric pickup truck
    Workhorse CEO: $300 million in preorders for plug-in hybrid pickup trucks

    Over seven years of plug-in electric cars and 20 years of hybrids, the pickup truck sector remains largely untouched. GM sold hybrid Chevrolet and GMC pickups for a few years, and Ford plans an F-150 hybrid in 2020. A startup company now called Workhorse (nee AMP) noticed that white space and made...

  • 2018 Kia Niro Plug-In, 2017 Los Angeles Auto Show
    2018 Kia Niro Plug-in Hybrid to launch in U.S. at end of year

    Last month, the Kia Niro Plug-In Hybrid went on sale in the United Kingdom, offering British buyers a mass-priced compact wagon with 25 to 30 miles of electric range. While it shares its underpinnings with the Hyundai Ioniq Plug-In model, the Niro has more of a wagon shape than Hyundai's five-door...

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