Electric Cars

Maybe there's a future for battery leasing among U.S. electric-car buyers after all. Nissan had considered leasing battery packs separately before launching its 2011 Leaf, but ended up choosing to sell or lease the entire car. So the 2013 Smart ForTwo Electric Drive is the first car in the country...

We liked the 2013 Fiat 500e electric car, a lot. It may be the best of the low-volume compliance cars, in fact--though the 2014 Chevy Spark EV and 2013 Honda Fit EV are pretty great too. We're less sure how we feel about the ad campaign Fiat is using to pitch the car, under the tagline...

You're considering a plug-in electric car. Should you lease or buy? It's a question that all new-car shoppers face--but for electric cars, there are some special considerations. Each financing option has its pros and cons, so we've outlined the reasons you might opt for each alternative. LEASING...

European electric car fans will soon get to enjoy the Tesla Model S as much as their American counterparts, when the car is launched in Europe this summer. Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] has spent some of the last year preparing service and repair centers in Europe, but the company's sales network is...

So how did Rick and Christine Prell and their two teenage sons become the first family in the U.S. to buy a 2014 Chevrolet Spark EV? Turns out it was at least partly luck. The family needed a third car for Alex, their 16-year-old son who is about to turn 17, to drive to school. Alex, a car...

As predicted last month, and tweeted and teased by CEO Elon Musk, Tesla Motors showed off battery swapping for its Model S electric car at a press event last night. Held at Tesla's design studio in Hawthorne, California, the demonstration itself was simple: A Tesla Model S drove onto the stage and...

To allay fears about loss of capacity in its Leaf electric-car battery packs, Nissan announced today that it would offer what amounts to a battery leasing program after the pack goes out of warranty. The cost of ensuring minimum capacity will be $100 a month. The company now warranties the Leaf...

Add one more battery-electric vehicle to the list of electric cars for sale in California (if not the rest of the U.S.). The 2014 Chevrolet Spark EV is now available for purchase or lease at several dealerships in northern and southern California, as well as a few in Oregon. About a hundred of the...

If you want to know why road-going electric vehicles aren't powered by solar panels mounted on the roof, here's your answer. Technically it's feasible, but you'd have to do without amenities, comfort, performance, or indeed a vehicle which doesn't look like an asymmetric air hockey table. The air...

Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk confirmed that a press event to be held this Thursday evening will demonstrate battery-swapping for the Tesla Model S. The mode of communication was his favorite medium: a tweet. "Seeing is believing," wrote Musk, saying that the company will do a live demonstration of...

Tired of plugging in your Nissan Leaf or Chevrolet Volt electric car to recharge every night? Yearn for the simplicity of simply parking over a charging pad and walking away? Bosch Automotive Service Solutions feels your pain. The service arm of the German auto-parts maker is now offering a...

Tesla Motors announced this morning that it will conduct a partial recall of Model S electric sedans manufactured between May 10 and June 8 of this year to fix a potentially weakened left-rear seat attachment striker bracket. According to a post on the company's website and signed by CEO Elon Musk...

What's your first resource for electric-car information? We're hoping you answer Green Car Reports (of course!), but in reality there are quite a few by now. Today, the conservation group Sierra Club has launched its own Electric Vehicle Guide--and one of its key features is the ability to learn...

Remember the now-defunct Ford Transit Connect Electric? It was the all-electric conversion of the Transit Connect delivery van that actually sank Azure Dynamics, which declared bankruptcy in March 2012 after sales fell short of projections. If you've always wanted one, now's your chance. But...

Ford started European production of its Focus Electric at its German plant last week. It isn't just the first electric car Ford has produced in Europe, but the first electrified production vehicle period--none of Ford's existing or previous hybrid vehicles have been sold in Europe, where diesel...

Electric vehicles are still considered a risky strategy in the business world, with relatively low sales numbers not enough to convince skeptics of their business case. Nissan has had plenty of recognition for its commitment to the Leaf though, including a high ranking in the latest Interbrand...

Don't you wish more auto enthusiasts were like Jay Leno? Sure, plenty of the stuff he likes isn't overly green, but at least he can't drive his massive collection of cars all at once. And he does like plenty of electric and hybrid vehicles too--among them, the Chevrolet Volt. Leno has his own Volt...

It's pretty easy to take regenerative braking for granted, these days--virtually every electric and hybrid car on sale uses it to some extent. Maybe we should be a little more appreciative of its benefits, as Ford estimates owners of its vehicles have saved 100 million gallons of gasoline over the...

Electric cars aren't cut much slack in the mainstream media, and any issues are usually jumped upon before facts have time to surface. Recent high-profile battery failures have been seized with zeal whether automobile-related or not, but one product safety company is aiming to curtail that with...

It's probably safe to say that many readers of this site would love to sit down for a chat with Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk. While he's known for tweeting about the company--and autographing owners' Model S cars at publicity events--Musk is a pretty busy guy. While he can be refreshingly blunt in...