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For half a century, California has been at the forefront of reducing emissions and cleaning up air pollution. And the state has made breathtaking progress since the days of early-Seventies technicolor photochemical smog alerts. But then bad things happen--and a leak at a single natural-gas well shows how much damage can be done to air quality by hydrocarbon extraction. DON'T MISS: Best Use For Abundant U.S. Natural Gas: Powering Electric Cars According to Reuters, in an article published two weeks ago, an uncontrolled leak at the Aliso Canyon storage field is emitting 50,000 kilograms...
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Environmental Justice Groups: Not So Fast, Musk--VW Diesels Must Be Fixed!
A group of environmental leaders disputes a proposal to forgive Volkswagen's diesel transgressions.
Stephen Edelstein -
Ignore VW Diesels, Make Company Sell Electric Cars: Tesla CEO Musk, 44 Others
It will cost a huge sum, likely billions of dollars, to make Volkswagen fix all of the 482,000 TDI diesel vehicles it has admitted use "defeat device" software to ignore emission laws. Indeed, it may not be practically possible for VW to modify 325,000 of those cars--and it would cost the company...
John Voelcker -
Volkswagen Proposes 2.0-Liter Diesel Fixes As Crisis Continues
Being a Volkswagen executive these days may be one of the more thankless jobs in the auto industry. Among groups including car buyers, business travelers, and environmental advocates, the first association with the brand now is often now "diesel emission scandal.” But differing customer...
John Voelcker -
2016 VW Diesel Lineup Withdrawn: Jetta, Passat, Golf, Beetle TDI Models May Be Modified
Michael Horn, CEO of Volkswagen's U.S. arm, will testify today before Congress on the VW diesel-emission cheating scandal, including what he knew and when he knew it. His testimony, released yesterday, included a nugget of future product information: VW has withdrawn its application for...
John Voelcker -
BMW i3 REx Electric Car: 'Coding' Unlocks Features Owners Want (And May Void Warranty)
The BMW i3 REx model is an unusual beast, the sole example to date of a car built specifically to comply with California regulations that define it as a zero-emission electric car even though it has a range-extending engine. That's because its gasoline range (EPA-rated at 78 miles) is more or less...
John Voelcker -
California's plan to reduce carbon emissions from transportation anticipates a mix of battery-electric and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles. Recharging batteries from the electric grid is relatively simple, but producing hydrogen fuel requires a good deal of energy to split pure hydrogen out of other compounds. To ensure that the carbon footprint of fuel-cell vehicles is significantly lower than that of gasoline or diesel cars, the state mandates that one-third of the energy used to produce hydrogen fuel be from renewable sources. DON'T MISS: California Air Resources Board Head: All New Cars...
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Tesla Success Shows 'Weakness' Of CA Zero-Emission Rules, Company Says
Tesla opposes other carmakers' attempts to change California ZEV rules.
Stephen Edelstein -
Plug-In Hybrids OK For Smaller Makers To Meet CA Zero-Emission Vehicle Rules
California's Zero-Emission Vehicle sales rules have been a major reason the state's drivers can now choose among two dozen different plug-in electric vehicles on sale today. Those rules will expand to cover more carmakers in 2018. And the behind-the-scenes jockeying by smaller makers to lessen the...
John Voelcker -
Why Electric Cars Are Rare Outside CA: Arcane 'Travel Provision' Rule
The sparsity of cars with plugs has been one of the biggest frustrations for Northeastern electric-car shoppers and advocates. While California buyers can choose among roughly two dozen different battery-electric and plug-in hybrid offerings, just a handful are available outside the state. And...
John Voelcker -
CA Green Stickers All But Gone; Q1's Plug-In Hybrid Sales Suffered This Year: UPDATE
All good things must come to an end, and so it is with the green stickers that give plug-in hybrid drivers access to California's freeway carpool lanes with just one person in the car. A total of 70,000 stickers were allotted, and the supply is now almost exhausted. A bill to allocate 15,000 more...
John Voelcker -
Scenarios For 2030 Zero-Emissions Cars In CA: Hydrogen Or Not?
With epic smog in the Los Angeles Basin, the state of California has led the nation's charge to reduce emissions from road vehicles for more than half a century. And it is now state policy to reduce emissions of climate-change gases, primarily carbon dioxide, from its 30 million-plus road vehicles...
John Voelcker -
Tesla Motors has been opening its Supercharger DC fast-charging stations at a dizzying pace lately, with 175 U.S. sites operating, and almost two dozen more either in construction or permitted. Globally that total is almost 400 sites, which likely represents more than 2,000 separate outlets. But Tesla battery swapping? Ah, that's a different story. DON'T MISS: About That (One) Tesla Battery Swapping Station: An Update Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk presided over a flashy event in June 2013 that purported to show the battery of a Model S electric sport sedan being swapped out and replaced in about...
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About That (One) Tesla Battery Swapping Station: An Update
Eighteen months ago, in the kind of flashy, highly-publicized event it's so good at, Tesla Motors said it would launch battery swapping for its Model S electric car. CEO Elon Musk presided over a demonstration in which the underfloor battery pack of a Model S was apparently removed and replaced in...
John Voelcker -
CA Smog Plan Approved By State & EPA Isn't Tough Enough: Lawsuit
Four groups are suing over a Los Angeles-area smog-reduction plan they say isn't strict enough.
Stephen Edelstein -
Changes To CA Rules May Cut Zero-Emission Vehicle Requirement
California's rules requiring six automakers to sell specified numbers of zero-emission vehicles starting in 2012 have had a substantial impact. But a meeting to be held one week from today may determine whether required volumes of emission-free cars--likely battery-electric vehicles--are cut for a...
John Voelcker -
Toyota, Honda, Hyundai Fuel-Cell Cars: How Many Will Be Sold?
With almost 250,000 plug-in electric cars on U.S. roads--and double that number globally--electric vehicles are starting to establish a small foothold in the market. More than 10,000 a month were sold this past May, June, and July. But with hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles now offered by Hyundai, and...
John Voelcker -
Why California Pushes Hydrogen Compliance Cars Over Electric Ones
We're starting to hear a lot about hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles from Hyundai, Toyota, and Honda--and we're going to hear a great deal more about them in the years to come. The first 2015 Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell was leased last month, and Toyota will bring its own hydrogen-powered vehicle into...
John Voelcker -
Last week, the very first 2015 Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell hydrogen-powered vehicle was delivered to lessee Timothy Bush in Southern California. The event was widely covered, as the fuel-cell Tucson crossover may well be the highest-volume hydrogen vehicle on U.S. roads until Toyota and Honda start delivering their own fuel-cell vehicles over the next two years. DON'T MISS: 2015 Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell: Hydrogen Crossover First Drive Still, just like the first several years of hybrid sales in the U.S.--and, most likely, a number of today's battery-electric vehicles--the first hydrogen powered...
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Tesla Model S Battery Swapping: Will It Ever Actually Arrive?
Exactly a year ago, Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk presided over a flashy demonstration in which the battery pack of a Tesla Model S electric car was apparently swapped from underneath within 90 seconds and replaced with a fresh pack. The event generated a huge amount of press, and subsequent coverage...
John Voelcker -
California Hands Loss To Tesla In Proposed ZEV Credit Changes
It was one of the thorniest issues facing the powerful California Air Resource Board: Did the ability to swap electric-car battery packs qualify for "fast fueling" incentives meant to prod carmakers to build zero-emission vehicles that could add 300 miles of range in no more time than filling the...
John Voelcker -
CA Electric-Car Incentive Update: Funds Run Out, Green Stickers Gone
Access to carpool lanes on California's legendarily crowded freeways is a big perk. So is getting a check in the mail that cuts the purchase cost. These incentives were successful in spurring sales of hybrids years ago, and they've helped sales of modern battery-electric and plug-in hybrid cars...
John Voelcker -
Compliance Car Update: Which Electric Cars Are Loss Leaders?
The Fiat 500e is perhaps the most critically lauded new all-electric vehicle that arrived in 2013. It's received rave reviews from unlikely sources, like buff-book magazines—even from Consumer Reports. There's reportedly been a long waiting list for these cars, with a $199/month lease deal...
Bengt Halvorson -
2014 BMW i3 Gets CA Carpool-Lane Access: Battery Only, So Far
As expected, the 2014 BMW i3 electric car has been awarded its "white sticker," the coveted permission to drive in High-Occupancy Vehicle lanes with only one occupant on California's crowded freeways. The range-extended version of the i3, however, has not yet appeared on the list--and there remains...
John Voelcker