2011
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Top 12 American Idols Create 12 Different Custom Fiesta Graphics
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The Tesla and TAG Heuer Odyssey Begins!Certainly, TAG Heuer is a pioneer, as is Tesla Motors, and this week, together they launched a 23,000-mile road trip appropriately dubbed the "Odyssey of Pioneers." The Odyssey departs Basel, Switzerland, tomorrow morning, striking out for Zurich, stopping only to charge its batteries at...
Jennifer Knightstep -
Biodiesel Bamboo Cabs: Philippines Town Turns Taxis Green
It's not a particularly new story, these days, but hey, it's also Friday. So we thought we'd revisit one of the more unusual attempts at green cars we've seen. This morning, a friend sent us an e-mail with photos of two taxis commissioned by the Philippine town of Tabontabon, in the province of...
John Voelcker -
A Visit To Tesla’s Colorado Dealership: All-Electric a Mile High
Tesla’s Become a Normal Sight Among the Boulder Scene
Jonathan McGrew -
Making EVs is Easy; Making GOOD EVs Is Hard, and Costly
We're now well and truly on the road to plug-in vehicle nirvana, with the 2011 Nissan Leaf, the 2011 Chevrolet Volt, and various other plug-in and electric vehicles due to hit the market within the next couple of years. But there now seem to be hundreds of car companies, enthusiastic business...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Aston Martin Goes Green With Zebra-Skin Baby Swan From Toyota
Last summer, lots of people thought it was a joke when famed British sports car maker Aston Martin said it would offer coachbuilt versions of Toyota's tiny iQ minicar, in the guise of the greenest Aston ever, the Cygnet. (A cygnet is a baby swan, by the way.) Well, it wasn't a joke. And now Aston...
John Voelcker -
At December's Los Angeles Auto Show, Hyundai made a big splash by saying it would no longer offer V-6 engines in its Sonata midsize car or its Tucson compact crossover. Instead, it replaced them with higher-performance, more fuel-efficient four-cylinder motors. But Hyundai's just one of many makers boosting the four-cylinder into prominence. Data from a survey of 2009 sales shows that four-cylinder models rose from 52 to 62 percent of car sales, and were even fitted to a record 15 percent of light trucks sold. The percentages of share are important because overall sales plummeted more than 20...
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The People Want the Nissan Leaf: 56,000 Pre-Orders Say So
The People Want the Nissan Leaf: 56,000 Pre-Orders Say So
Jonathan McGrew -
Honda CR-Z Hits 7,000 Orders Since February Release
The New Sporty Hybrid Seems To Be Winning Over Customers In Japan
Jonathan McGrew -
And The Top 3 Finalists For World Green Car Are?
The winner of the 2010 World Green Car award will be announced at the opening of the New York Auto Show in April and we will have to wait until then to see which vehicle prevails, but the list has now been narrowed down to only three remaining vehicles. The top three finalists for the World Green...
Eric Loveday -
GM Planning Engineless All-Electric Cars To Follow the Volt
Bob Lutz, the retiring eminence grise of General Motors, is known for pithiness and plain speaking. Yesterday, he tossed off a nugget of news: GM is working on a range of pure electric cars, without range-extending engines, that will follow the 2011 Chevrolet Volt--most likely a few years hence...
John Voelcker -
Nissan Juke Expected At 2010 New York Auto Show
The Anything-But-Normal Crossover Is Bound To Get Attention
Jonathan McGrew -
We're eagerly waiting to get our hands on a 2011 Honda CR-Z for a test drive. The two-seat coupe, Honda's latest dedicated hybrid, is the spiritual successor to the 1983-1991 Honda Civic CRX, and we're devoutly hoping it's as fun to drive as its predecessor. The performance numbers aren't particularly stellar, with acceleration from 0 to 60 mph quoted at 9.7 seconds, and projected fuel economy ratings of 36 mpg city, 38 mpg highway when fitted with a continuously variable transmission (CVT). But small cars that aren't very fast can still be major fun to drive. If Honda can duplicate the CRX's...
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GM Plug-In Hybrid Program Underway, Vehicle Still Unconfirmed
Recent spy shots posted by our sister site Motor Authority show that despite delays, General Motors is continuing to develop the plug-in version of its Two-Mode Hybrid system. While the system is being tested in a discontinued Saturn Vue crossover, it now seems likely to appear in a version of...
John Voelcker -
2011 Ford Mustang V-6 With 305 HP Rated At 31 MPG Highway
Ford's on a roll lately, selling more cars in the U.S. than General Motors last month. And it's vowed to achieve best-in-class fuel economy numbers for every new model it launches. So the news today that its revised 2011 Ford Mustang with the 3.7-liter V-6 engine has been rated at 19 mpg city, 31...
John Voelcker -
2011 Lexus CT 200h Makes U.S. Debut at New York Auto Show
Well, when we get it wrong, we really get it wrong. Just yesterday, when we reviewed the new green production cars from the Geneva Motor Show, we said the new 2011 Lexus CT 200h compact hatchback hybrid would be restricted to Europe. Not so. This morning, Lexus dropped a press release saying the...
John Voelcker -
2010 Geneva Motor Show: Green Car Concepts Roundup
Yesterday we covered the new green production cars at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show, now underway in snowy Switzerland. Today, we get to cover the cooler, sexier side of the show: concept cars! So, here's our roundup of notable green and advanced-technology concept cars at Geneva. Audi A1 e-tron...
John Voelcker -
Volkswagen Will Dominate the World of Electric Cars. Got That?
Maybe it's just the translation. But auto writers often chuckle at announcements from German manufacturers that come across as just a touch bombastic. Latest case in point: Volkswagen's long-term plans for vehicle electrification, released at the Geneva Motor Show this week. Key excerpt...
John Voelcker -
No, sadly, we're not at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show, underway this week in Switzerland. But we've been keeping close tabs on the introductions via our colleagues throughout the High Gear Media network. Here's our list of the green cars shown at Geneva that are headed for production. Most of them (except where noted) are headed for the U.S. market. We'll follow up with a similar roundup of the greenest concept cars from Geneva. 2012 Audi A8 Hybrid While its various e-tron electric concepts got more attention at Geneva, Audi's first production hybrid vehicle also debuted. The 2012 Audi A8...
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Lease Your Tesla Roadster Now, Only $1,658 Per Month
Have you ever dreamed of owning Tesla Roadster, but simply could not muster together enough money for the $109,000 electric supercar? Well, Tesla has the answer. Now you can lease one for only $1,658 a month. Sounds like a bargain, but there's a catch. Tesla has just opened up a leasing...
Eric Loveday -
Electric-Car Dealerships Struggle, But Why Such Surprise?
A recent article in the Oakland Tribune highlights the high failure rate of independent car dealerships selling only electric vehicles. Frankly, we're not at all surprised. We worried readers might find a subtext that the slew of EV-only dealerships that have closed--in Berkeley, Concord, Davis...
John Voelcker -
Geneva Motor Show Preview: 2011 Fisker Karma Space Frame
While no journalist has yet driven a 2011 Fisker Karma with just nine months left before launch, the company will show the plug-in extended-range electric luxury sports sedan's aluminum space frame at this week's Geneva Motor Show. Designed to distribute elements of the car's plug-in hybrid...
John Voelcker -
Lotus Brings Hybrid Technology To Geneva Next Week
Who Says You Can Have Some Sports With Your Hybrid
Jonathan McGrew -
2011 Lexus CT 200h Compact Hybrid To Debut In Geneva
Lexus Creates Another Hybrid That Looks More Like a Standard Car
Jonathan McGrew
