Electric Cars
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In this post "1984" world, most consumers acquiesce to sharing their data with companies in return for better, quicker, more convenient, cheaper, or even free services. How many, however, would voluntarily turn over data about everywhere they went and when to the government, particularly a Communist government? According to a new AP report, that's exactly what electric car drivers do in China every time they get behind the wheel. Local laws in China require more than 200 electric-car manufacturers—but not the makers of internal combustion cars—to transmit 61 data points, including...
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Here’s why Kia Soul EV and Kia Niro EV both get big 64-kwh battery packsOne key specification in the 2020 Kia Soul EV that was revealed at the LA Auto Show this week was a bit unexpected: its inclusion of a large, 64-kwh battery pack. That leaves two vehicles—the Soul EV and the 2019 Kia Niro EV—with the same big battery. And both will be arriving at U.S...
Bengt Halvorson -
EV Drive coalition begins lobbying effort to save tax creditMembers of the lame-duck Congress all got letters on their desks Tuesday stating why the electric-car tax credit should be revised and extended. Along with a five-point fact sheet made public Tuesday, the effort is the first salvo in a battle by the newly-formed EV Drive Coalition to extend the...
Eric C. Evarts -
Kia Soul and Niro electrics, Mitsubishi Evo comeback, Audi e-tron GT: Today's Car NewsAt the LA Auto Show, Kia revealed two upcoming electric cars, the 2019 Niro EV and 2020 Soul EV. Mitsubishi recycled its rally-star Evo name for a new performance electric crossover concept. Audi introduced its second all-electric model, the e-tron GT. And our Twitter followers told us what they're...
Eric C. Evarts -
2020 Kia Soul EV has more punch, faster charging, and a lot more batteryAt the LA Auto Show, Kia revealed a completely new generation of its Soul—including, once again, an all-electric Kia Soul EV that makes overtures to urbanites who need box-on-wheels utility, affordability, parking ease, and some design flair but also want an electric car. The Soul EV is, once...
Bengt Halvorson -
What green-car developments are you grateful for this holiday season? Twitter poll resultsIf this Thanksgiving season proved anything, it is that our Twitter followers are a grateful group. In what often seemed a year of bad news for green cars, at least from the standpoint of U.S. domestic policy, we found several individual developments to be grateful for. Most notably, there was the...
Eric C. Evarts -
At the LA Auto Show, Kia has provided some long-awaited U.S. market details for the Niro EV. Among the most important ones: With a large 64-kwh battery pack, it will offer an EPA-rated range of 239 miles. The Niro, which Kia describes as a “multi-function crossover format,” is built on a dedicated green-vehicle platform shared with the Hyundai Ioniq, with all versions powered by at least a full hybrid system. The Niro EV’s electric motor system, making 201 horsepower and 291 pound-feet of torque, should give it perky performance; and Kia says that the floor-mounted battery...
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Audi e-tron GT electric sports car is its take on Porsche TaycanThe four-door e-Tron GT concept that Audi introduced Wednesday at the 2018 LA Auto Show is “very, very, very, very, very close to production.” Those are the words of Audi design boss Marc Lichte, not ours. The design study will earn the distinction of being the first battery-powered...
Green Car Reports -
Toyota hybrids, Rivian electric SUV, Byton, and Trump: Today's Car NewsToday's updates are all about new models from the LA auto show, including new electrics from startup automakers Rivian and Byton, a new all-wheel-drive version of the Toyota Prius, a new Hybrid version of Toyota Corolla, and a fuel-efficient new engine for the Mazda3. All this, plus President Trump...
Eric C. Evarts -
Trump vows retaliation against GM for layoffsAfter General Motors announced on Monday that it will kill the Chevy Volt as part of an effort to streamline its lineup, close five factories, and lay off 15 percent of its workers, President Trump took to Twitter to vow retaliation for the damage the layoffs could do to the U.S. economy. "The U.S...
Eric C. Evarts -
Byton reveals self-driving living-room on wheels, the K-Byte, in LAByton aims to reinvent the car by turning it into the next generation iPhone. Other automakers have talked about turning their center screen displays into iPhone-like interfaces, but not the whole car. That seems to be the goal of Byton, which says it is creating the “next generation smart...
Eric C. Evarts -
Rivian R1S electric SUV goes family style with 7 seats, 410-mile rangeTwo years from now, the electric-vehicle startup Rivian hopes to be making its R1T electric pickup truck at a former Mitsubishi (and Chrysler) plant in Normal, Illinois. If everything goes according to plan, shortly after that, in early 2021, it will start to deliver its other so-called electric...
Bengt Halvorson -
VW reintroduces the I.D. Buzz cargo van at the LA Auto Show. British Columbia plans to ban gas and diesel engines. How the media may have popped plug-in hybrids' balloon. And we ask what your favorite cars are from the LA Auto Show. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Volkswagen brought a new version of its concept electric cargo bus, the I.D. Cargo Buzz, to Los Angeles, complete with solar panels and a new self-driving system. Add British Columbia to the list of provinces, countries, states, and cities planning to ban internal combustion engines. The Canadian province plans to set...
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VW updates I.D. Cargo Buzz with solar for LA ShowCargo vans look to be the next big opportunity for electrification, as they can save a lot of pollution with all the time and mileage the spend on the road. At the LA auto show, VW updated its I.D. Buzz cargo van concept into the ultimate delivery or contractor van, with a high-powered electrical...
Eric C. Evarts -
What electric car are you most excited to hear about from the LA auto show?With the green-car oriented Los Angeles auto show ramping up into full swing today, it seemed a good day to ask our readers what models they're most excited to hear about from the show. There are several electric cars debuting at the show, including the Rivian R1T electric pickup, which the startup...
Eric C. Evarts -
Commentary: How the media may have punctured plug-in hybrids' balloonPlug-in hybrids can offer most of the environmental benefits of long-range electric cars with less cost for giant batteries or range worries. So why don't they sell better? As our esteemed former editor John Voelcker regularly noted, consumers just don't get them. As he concluded in his post...
Eric C. Evarts -
British Columbia joins governments planning to ban gas and diesel carsThe Canadian province of British Columbia plans to ban sales of new gas and diesel cars by 2040, phasing in targets for electric car sales starting in 2025. The province would join nine countries and more than a dozen cities around the world in setting a deadline to end eternal-combustion sales in...
Eric C. Evarts -
GM to kill Chevy Volt production in 2019 (Updated)General Motors confirmed Monday morning that it plans to cease production of the Chevrolet Volt in March, as part of an effort to streamline production and pivot its business more toward zero-emissions and personal-mobility efforts. The Volt was the first production plug-in car sold in the U.S...
Eric C. Evarts -
General Motors announced it would kill the Chevrolet Volt in mid-2019. Rivian revealed its good-looking electric truck. A new report details how much climate change will hurt the U.S. economy. And new solid-state batteries from China. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Following other announcements from competitive automakers, GM announced that it will cut several cars from its lineup to focus on more profitable crossovers and SUVs. Among those that will be cut is the first modern plug-in car, the Chevrolet Volt. Rivian showed pictures and revealed additional specs of its first...
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Rivian R1T all-electric pickup revealed: 400-mile range, 160-kw DC fast chargingWith the Rivian R1T pickup revealed this morning, just ahead of the Los Angeles auto show, and the R1S SUV expected to be shown here this week, a Michigan-based electric-vehicle startup called Rivian might have something that’s been a long time coming: the first widely available fully...
Bengt Halvorson -
Plug-in Subaru, Toyota hybrids, changes at the top: The Week in ReverseWhich electric automaker will get a new Chairman? What new model gets the highest gas mileage of any SUV without a plug? This is our look back at the Week In Reverse—right here at Green Car Reports—for the week ending November 23, 2018. With the Thanksgiving holiday this was a short...
Eric C. Evarts -
Gas stations OK, electric-car chargers too ugly?Delays in rolling out new electric-car charging infrastructure may not just be about economics. Aesthetics may be holding back installations in some places too, according to the manager of electric-car sharing company Zipcar in Britain Jonathan Hampson, general manager for Zipcar in the United...
Eric C. Evarts -
Toyota RAV4 Hybrid, Colorado cleans up, why not a Tesla Model 3 or plug-in: Today's Car NewsThe 2019 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid gets better fuel economy than any other SUV without a plug. We take a look at the benefits of short-range plug-in hybrids. Our readers weigh in on why they haven't yet bought a Tesla Model 3. And Colorado joins up with California emissions standards. All this and more on...
Eric C. Evarts -
Why haven't you bought a Tesla Model 3? Twitter poll resultsThe Model 3 is supposed to be the Tesla that will change the world: The first long-range electric car that is also sexy and—relatively—affordable. It won Green Car Reports Best Car To Buy 2019 award last week for its smooth performance, long range, and futuristic control screen. And our...
Eric C. Evarts