compliance car
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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 impact of the rules has been intense. Last month, the powerful California Air Resources Board (CARB) released modifications that gave those carmakers a different way to meet the rules--but kept them on the original timetable. DON'T MISS: Changes To CA Rules May Cut Zero-Emission Vehicle Requirement...
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Plug-In Electric Car Sales In May: Leaf, Volt, Others Surge: FINAL UPDATE
As spring arrives, sales of plug-in electric cars have traditionally risen from their winter levels. During the months of May through August, monthly sales are usually among the highest of the year. At least for May, that rule holds as strongly for 2015 as it did last year. DON'T MISS: Will 2015...
John Voelcker -
One Man's Fiat 500e Electric Car Might Get Him To Sell His BMW
It's been said before, but the only way to understand why electric cars are a better way to drive is to drive one. The shorthand for that rule is "getting butts in seats." That's the process of putting inexperienced drivers behind the wheel of modern plug-in vehicles to let them experience the...
John Voelcker -
Plug-In Electric Car Sales In Apr: Pace Continues Steady: FINAL UPDATE
Sales of plug-in electric cars in April held few real surprises, coming in at about the average rate of previous months. The now-aging Nissan Leaf saw deliveries of 1,553 units last month, bringing the year's total to 5,638 and the total delivered in the U.S. since December 2010 to almost 78,000...
John Voelcker -
Why We Call Out Compliance Cars Among All Electric Vehicles
Often reader comments raise issues that are worth covering for a broader audience. So when our reader Brian Lakatos wrote to ask us about the tone of recent coverage of electric cars, we responded at some length--and then decided to turn the response into an article. (Plus, we hate wasting copy...
John Voelcker -
Washington State Loves Electric Cars, But Gets Very Few: Here's Why
Washington state loves electric cars, but misses out on many of them.
Stephen Edelstein -
Toyota has been more than abundantly clear in its belief that the best approach to reducing fuel consumption and offering zero-emission vehicles lies in a combination of its present-day hybrids and future hydrogen fuel-cell cars. It no longer sells the RAV4 EV electric SUV whose powertrain was developed by then-partner Tesla Motors. And sales of its plug-in Prius have fallen to a fraction of their previous heights. DON'T MISS: Despite Quick Charging, Toyota Exec Says Electric Cars Won't Work For Long Ranges But karma is a funny thing. Now, it appears that Chinese regulators may force Toyota...
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2015 Chevrolet Spark EV Price Cut To $25,995; $139 Lease, No Money Down
The suggested retail price of the 2015 Chevrolet Spark EV electric car will be cut by $1,650, to $25,995, GM announced today. Chevrolet's chief global marketing officer, Tim Mahoney, announced the price cut today in a luncheon speech at the Washington Automotive Press Association. Mahoney also said...
John Voelcker -
2016 Chevrolet Spark EV To Be Sold At Retail In Canada
It may not have too many more years to live, but the Chevrolet Spark EV will be sold in some new markets starting with the 2016 model year: three Canadian provinces. While General Motors had offered the Spark EV for fleet purchase in parts of the country, it wasn't available to retail...
John Voelcker -
Third Recall For Fiat 500e: 5,600 Electric Cars To Be Checked For Software Fault
Roughly 5,600 Fiat 500e electric cars will be recalled by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles to fix a potential software problem with the cars' Limp Home mode. In a notice issued Saturday, the company said that, "incompatible software between Electric Vehicle Control Unit and Battery Pack Control Module may...
John Voelcker -
Plug-In Electric Car Sales In Mar: Leaf Surpasses Volt In Total Sales Since 2010: UPDATED
For more than four years, the Nissan Leaf and Chevy Volt have been the highest-volume plug-in electric cars sold in the U.S. Last month, for the first time in roughly three years, the Nissan Leaf's total U.S. sales surpassed those of the Chevrolet Volt. With March deliveries of 1,817 Leafs...
John Voelcker -
Lease Extensions For Honda Fit EV, Two Years At $199 A Month, To Be Offered
With the first three-year leases of Honda Fit EVs now set to end in June, drivers of Honda's only electric car have been wondering what will happen to their cars now. Many of them would like to hang onto the cars. While Honda won't let them buy the car, the company has decided to offer those...
John Voelcker -
Suppose you could get a new electric car for $83 a month--and its running costs per mile were only a fraction of what a gasoline car would in fuel. That'd be almost a free car, right? Indeed, the allure of such a deal added to the viral nature of the Internet led to sales of roughly 100 Fiat 500e electric cars in California over the last week alone via group buys among the members of two different racing-oriented communities. DON'T MISS: 2015 Fiat 500 Updated With New Instrument Cluster, Display Options We first learned of the "feeding frenzy" to lease the little Fiat 500e from Joe Nuxoll, a...
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Toyota RAV4 EV Electric Car Recalled For Shift Flaw In Tesla Software
Toyota is recalling certain RAV4 EV electric cars over a software issue.
Stephen Edelstein -
Plug-In Electric Car Sales In Feb: Cold-Weather Doldrums Continue: FINAL UPDATE
Winter is always a slower sales time for plug-in electric cars than the warmer months, and last month looks like it won't be any exception. Sales of most of the highest-selling battery-electric and plug-in hybrid models stayed roughly at levels similar to those of January. While a blockbuster...
John Voelcker -
Is The Next Chrysler Compliance Car An Electric Fiat 500X?
For those not familiar with the term, a "compliance car" is a zero-emission vehicle built in small numbers and sold largely or exclusively in California. Its sole purpose is to keep an automaker in compliance with the state's requirement that its six highest-selling carmakers sell or lease a...
John Voelcker -
FINAL UPDATE: Plug-In Electric Car Sales In Jan: Winter Slump Sets In
Last year's U.S. sales of plug-in electric cars were the highest on record, but now the traditional winter sales slump has set in with a bang. Electric car sales usually dip during the coldest months, and last January was the lowest sales month of the year--but this January's results apparently...
John Voelcker -
FINAL UPDATE: Plug-In Electric Car Sales Continue Rise In 2014, To 118,500
Plug-in electric car sales during 2014 rose above the 100,000 level, to total roughly 118,500. Last year's total represents a 27-percent gain over calendar year 2013. It's the third annual increase in full-year sales in the U.S. since modern electric cars first went on sale in December 2010; the...
John Voelcker -
General Motors said today that it will begin selling its 2015 Chevrolet Spark EV in the state of Maryland this spring, the first East Coast state in which the electric minicar will be available. The Spark EV has a connection to the state: Both its 105-kilowatt (140-horsepower) electric motor and its drive unit are manufactured at a GM plant in White Marsh. ALSO SEE: Tesla P85D Destroys Dodge Challenger Hellcat On Dragstrip: Electric Car Thrashes 707-HP Hemi (Video) The Spark EV for 2015 has a rated range of 82 miles and is powered by a 19-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack using cells...
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California, Washington Lead All Other States In Electric-Car Ownership Rates
California has close to half the nation's plug-in electric cars.
Stephen Edelstein -
What's The Best Electric Car To Buy For The Average Consumer?
Automotive journalists often use each other as information sources, or to get reality checks on new material. Recently, a colleague asked, "If auto journalists had the choice of only driving electric, which production electric car would you purchase--and why?" Which seemed like an excellent topic...
John Voelcker -
Plug-In Electric Car Sales In Nov: Leaf Grows, Volt Wanes (FINAL UPDATE)
Sales of plug-in electric cars continued at a steady pace in November, reflecting continued strong vehicle sales of all types in the U.S. market. The Nissan Leaf set a new November record at 2,687 cars sold, its 22nd straight month of sales increases year-over-year, while the Chevy Volt delivered...
John Voelcker -
Which Electric-Car Makers Are Serious? U.S. Sales Show Top Three
Two years ago, we pointed out that several electric cars now on sale were purely "compliance cars," built in minimal numbers purely to comply with California rules that require sales of zero-emission vehicles. But almost four years after the first Nissan Leaf went on sale in December 2010, it's...
John Voelcker -
Plug-In Electric Car Sales In Oct: Leaf Record, Soul EV & e-Golf On Sale: FINAL UPDATE
With two months of sales still remaining in the year, the Nissan Leaf broke its own record for most electric cars sold in the U.S. in a single year. October saw deliveries of 2,589 Leafs, bringing the year-to-date total to 24,411--which exceeds the 2013 total of 22,610, the previous record. DON'T...
John Voelcker