Electric Cars
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Volkswagen has a critical year coming in 2020, when the German brand will launch two incredibly important vehicles nearly back-to-back. The next-generation Volkswagen Golf will arrive that year, and then, one month later, the brand will launch its first mass-market electric car, the ID hatchback. The 2020 car will be the eighth generation of the Golf nameplate, but the first for the ID hatchback, which is poised to carry the German brand into the future. DON'T MISS: Volkswagen ID: more details of all-electric concept car at Paris Motor Show Jürgen Stackman, board member and head of sales...
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2017 Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid: review of plug-in hybrid SUVThe Porsche Cayenne is the second best-selling vehicle in the German sports-car maker's North American lineup, as SUV sales swamp those of passenger cars at luxury brands. A considerable number of the pricey SUV models sold here have been the Cayenne S E-Hybrid plug-in hybrid variant: 1,316 out of...
John Voelcker -
GM CEO Barra attacks China gas-car ban, suggests buyers should decideGeneral Motors CEO Mary Barra met with reporters in Shanghai on Friday, discussing the company's vision of the future: "a world with zero crashes, zero emissions, and zero congestion." The company doesn't think, however, that China should be quite so hasty in pushing to ban cars that actually do...
John Voelcker -
Life with Tesla Model S: assessing my new 100D vs old 2013 electric carAbout two years ago, under the influence of an eager Tesla representative, I briefly considered trading in my trusty 2013 Tesla Model S 85 for a new Model S 90D. But after a 24-hour test drive, the advantages of the 90D—40 miles more range, all-wheel drive, and Autopilot...
David Noland -
Electric cars near 2 percent of German market (plug-in hybrids included), surging past USWhile Volkswagen's diesel scandal has fallen out of the public eye in the United States, its effects continue to be felt in Europe, where diesel-powered cars have long reigned supreme. Falling sales of diesel vehicles in many European countries are somewhat balanced by a boost for electric and...
Sean Szymkowski -
Why one guy bought a 2017 Nissan Leaf electric car: it was a great dealThe deals, incentives, and rebates currently available on the 2017 Nissan Leaf are generous and well documented. A handful of utility companies across the United States have offered generous discounts, likely backed by Nissan itself, to move the current-generation Leaf from dealerships to...
Sean Szymkowski -
The data has been crunched and the latest round of sales figures has arrived for a look at European electric and plug-in hybrid sales through the month of July. With another month on the books, Europe still continues to choose one specific electric car and one plug-in hybrid over all the other choices. The two cars topping each list have remained at the top of the sales charts for months. DON'T MISS: European electric and plug-in hybrid sales for Jan-June 2017 Not much of a surprise, the Renault Zoe remains the best-selling electric car across the continent of Europe. According to the latest...
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Nissan, Mitsubishi, Renault to launch 12 new electric cars by 2022Some car companies release their business plans and goals publicly, others don't. This morning, the Renault Nissan Alliance (now including Mitsubishi as well) released a new six-year plan laying out its business goal through 2022. Among the most significant: The group said it will launch 12...
John Voelcker -
2020 Mazda electric car to share Toyota underpinnings, technologyMazda is a tiny carmaker on a global scale, producing just 1.6 million vehicles a year. It competes with four companies (GM, Nissan-Renault, Toyota, and VW Group) that each sell around 10 million a year, as well as numerous other smaller makers still larger than Mazda. In a world where reducing the...
John Voelcker -
Best deals on hybrid, electric, fuel-efficient cars for September 2017Another month has gone by, which means it's time for another round of superb deals for hybrid, electric, and fuel-efficient cars. For September, many of last month's cars hold their place on the list, though incentives have gotten better for some of them. As always, offers listed here reflect the...
Sean Szymkowski -
India actually beat China to all-electric new-car pledge, targets 2030China made headlines around the world on Sunday when state media reported that the country is developing a timetable to end production and sales of new vehicles with gasoline engines. While Norway, The Netherlands, France, and the U.K. have adopted different timetables for various versions of such...
John Voelcker -
2017 Volkswagen e-Golf, 125-mile electric car, starts at $31,315The 2017 Volkswagen e-Golf gets several notable updates, including a larger battery pack and more powerful electric motor.
Stephen Edelstein -
The Florida crash that killed the driver of a Tesla Model S while that car was operating under Autopilot software reverberated far and wide in global media. While human drivers are imperfect, with reaction times limited by millions of years of evolution, they at least provide a focus for blame if they crash their cars. So the results of a National Transportation Safety Board inquiry into the fatal Tesla crash in May 2016, released on Tuesday, have been awaited with some interest. DON'T MISS: NHTSA to investigate Tesla Model S Autopilot crash that killed driver The report concluded that...
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Latest Tesla referral programs draw new CA dealer lobby complaintTesla has once again ruffled the feathers of the California New Car Dealers Association with a new round of referral programs. The Silicon Valley automaker has used referral programs for years; they usually provide perks for current owners who get friends, coworkers, and colleagues to buy a new...
Sean Szymkowski -
Ford Transit van with range-extended electric powertrain revealedAs European countries continue to crack down on emissions from road vehicles, automakers are stepping up with solutions to reduce levels of smog-causing nitrogen oxides, especially in city centers. Ford identified the commercial vehicle segment as one it believes is ripe for electrification, and...
Sean Szymkowski -
Mini Electric Concept revealed in Frankfurt auto show debut (updated)We've known since last July that an all-electric Mini Cooper will go into production in 2019. Now, we can see the first renderings of the car that will make its official debut at the Frankfurt auto show in two weeks. The Mini Electric Concept is recognizable as the three-door hardtop version of the...
John Voelcker -
Who's going all-electrified? Volvo, then Jaguar Land Rover, now Lincoln: reportAs the auto industry intensifies its embrace of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, announcements of "all-electrified" product lines continue to roll in. First, Volvo made a splash with its announcement saying that all models launched from 2019 onwards would be electrified in some manner. The...
Sean Szymkowski -
Formula E races to add Jaguar I-Pace electric-car race seriesMedia days at this week's Frankfurt motor show seemed to be all about electric cars and concepts, from mass-market brands like Volkswagen to luxury makers like Mercedes. Jaguar Land Rover, however, was able to get its own share of press by announcing that its upcoming electric car would go racing...
John Voelcker -
Predicting the future is always hazardous, but for the auto industry, this is a particularly uncertain time. Four trends—electrification, connectivity, autonomy, and sharing—are coming together in a whirlwind that could rearrange the industry and its businesses within a decade or two. That's a relatively short timeframe in an industry that spends $1 billion per platform and plans its products for seven-year lives. DON'T MISS: How important will plug-in hybrids be in 2025? Poll results The relatively rapid growth expected for plug-in electric cars, in particular, has combined with...
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World's sexiest car, Jaguar E-Type, reappears as all-electric conceptElectric cars are now accepted as future volume models for most automakers, but Jaguar Land Rover has taken a very different approach to showcase its future electric powertrains. In fact, it's not a concept for a car of the future at all, but a half-century-old Jaguar E-Type fitted with the most...
Sean Szymkowski -
2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid rated at 47 miles of rangeWhile there will be three distinct powertrains offered in the Honda Clarity mid-size sedan, most U.S. shoppers will only ever see one of them on sale. That's the plug-in hybrid, which will go on sale "later this year" as the sole Clarity to be offered at all Honda dealers. Now the 2018 Honda...
John Voelcker -
2018 Nissan Leaf: does it pioneer the 'mid-range' electric car?With the 2018 Nissan Leaf due to arrive at U.S. dealers in four or five months, next year is shaping up to be a very interesting test of what buyers want in battery-electric cars. Much of the focus has been on the new car's range rating, projected to be 150 miles combined when it's confirmed by the...
John Voelcker -
Plug-in electric car sales in Canada, Aug 2017: Chevy Volt's 50th winThe Chevrolet Volt won its 17th straight Canadian plug-in electric vehicle sales title in August, which became its 50th overall. Much has changed since its September 2011 arrival in the home of the beaver—which, we note, is not just Oregon State University’s mascot, but Canada’s...
Matthew Klippenstein -
Electric cars in UK cleaner than best diesels in summer, not yet in winterAlthough electric cars do not emit exhaust, it's widely recognized that the electricity to charge their batteries often still comes from fossil fuels. This has led to the scrutiny of electric cars to determine whether their overall "wells-to-wheels" carbon footprints exceed those of regular...
Sean Szymkowski