Electric Cars

Let's face it. EVs are still a very small, very niche market. Expensive, short on supply and not even universally supported throughout the USA there are a whole series of achievements EVs will need to attain before they are considered regular cars. Here's the five most important things EVs will...

Unless you've been asleep for the past two months the chances are that you already know that Tesla Motors is about to launch it's IPO. You're probably also aware that predicted investment from the IPO is now at $178 million, up $78 million from original estimates.  But just how is Elon Musk...

If most mainstream media outlets are to be listened to we are a few short years from seeing stranded EVs dotting our major highways after running out of electricity short of the next charging station, but is this really an accurate depiction of what life with an EV will be like? While traditional...

We’ve heard a lot about the upcoming 2011 Chevrolet Volt, read up on all the specs, even seen a few videos of prototypes doing the rounds at GM proving grounds around Michigan, but sadly, for the great majority of Americans, getting a feel for what the Volt is really like to drive is still months...

Having recently announced plans for its U.S. headquarters in Los Angeles, Chinese battery specialists and electric vehicle manufacturer BYD has now announced that it will establish its new European headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany. The Shenzhen-based automaker is likely to build its latest...

Until now the words electric, car and Mercedes have had an uncomfortable union. While Mercedes' cheapest car, the diminutive Smart ForTwo, has an electric version, its 62.5 mph top speed is hardly enough to get car buyers excited about converting to electric. But Mercedes super-sexy, bright yellow...

The 2011 Nissan Leaf has been a runaway success for Nissan, with the Japanese automaker already taking in 14,000 reservations for the cute electric vehicle and order books filled out well into next year. The first Leafs--or is it Leaves?--will hit the streets in December and the big surprise is...

Tesla has previously hinted that its electric powertrain technology could be applied to a number of vehicle platforms and that the company would eventually expand its lineup beyond the current Roadster and upcoming Model S sedan. In fact, at Tesla’s announcement of interest in acquiring a $465...

What happens when you're the first mainstream automaker to bring an EV to market after an eight-year absence of highway-capable, mass-produced EVs? Accolades a-plenty, lots of media attention and test-programmes worldwide. But what do you do when rival companies bring out a more versatile, more...

A few years back Chrysler was working on all manner of electric vehicle and plug-in hybrid technologies, even going so far as to release a number of concepts as well as establish a separate division called ENVI to develop them into production models. Ever since Chrysler’s bankruptcy and eventual...

 GM's answer to the 2011 Nissan Leaf, the 2011 Chevrolet Volt is nearing production readiness. But a European badged Volt is taking part in a publicity long-distance drive in the U.K., GM's Detroit engineers are still tweaking the software responsible for ensuring the 40 mile-per-charge range...

Ford is at the forefront of the alternative power push, having been one of the first on the market with a hybrid vehicle and now less than a year away from launching its first all-electric model. However, we are still at the start of the alternative power revolution but in as little as a decade we...

The ink's barely dry on the Tesla - Toyota deal that gives the startup electric-car maker a new manufacturing home. But today, Tesla's going public with some details on how it plans to use the former NUMMI facility in Fremont, California, to build its mainstream 2012 Tesla Model S sedan. The former...

We've told you about the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid awaiting an on-sale date later this year. Now, Ford's confirming that its ritzy cousin to the Ford Fusion Hybrid will hit the same 41-mpg city fuel economy rating. The MKZ Hybrid's EPA fuel economy will be 41/36 mpg when it goes on sale later this year...

The most anticipated electric car of 2010 has it all: a world-wide following, over 30,000 pre-orders, television advertising, and even a virtual appearance at Apple's prestigious WWDC. Even though it has even been spotted in the wild in Arizona,  the one thing Nissan hasn't given many of are test...

The British have a long history of improbable and unlikely quests. Sometimes they succeed, sometimes they fail. So the attempt by a group of 20-something engineers to boost the image of electric cars in the public eye by driving the length of the Pan-American Highway in an electrically powered...

When most people think of electric vehicles, they think of low cost and environmentally friendly vehicles that are about as much fun to drive as the Flintstones’ car. Automakers like Audi and Mercedes-Benz, however, are hoping to alleviate that stigma by targeting the top end of town and...

What does a pizza delivery teen, a taxi driver and a courier have to do with EVs? Not much right now, but could these and other professional drivers hold the key to truly prove that EVs have what it takes to hit the big time, or do they risk condemning EVs to the history books forever? Chinese auto...

Electric cars like the 2011 Nissan Leaf require lots of lithium and other precious heavy metals to make them go. Today's sources of lithium are far and few: Bolivia has something like 40 percent of the world's deposits, while Russia, South Africa, Chile and Argentina have some. This weekend, the...

Chevrolet and Nissan both have electric vehicles set to hit the streets this Fall.  But unless you're extremely lucky the chances are you won't be driving one until at least the middle part of 2011. Why? Because of limited production runs, demand is outstripping supply. Is it part of some big...