Electric Cars

Electric Rolls Royce Phantom May be In the Works

  Zenn Motors has recently indicated it no longer plans to mass produce its own highway capable electric car called the cityZENN, instead focusing on development and sale of EEStor-powered electric car drivetrains called ZENNergy Drive. Zenn is a 10% owner in Texas-bases EEStor believed to be...

Ian Clifford is the CEO of Zenn Motors.  His company has a 10.7% ownership stake in EEStor, the US based company supposedly secretly building a breakthrough battery that is ultralight, low-cost, and long-lived that doesn't require lithium and can be created using-screen printing techniques. Zenn...

  On Tuesday Fisker Automotive announced that they were selected to receive a $528.7 million loan from the US government.  Considered part of the ATVM loan program, the money will be used to develop an assembly plant to construct affordable electric cars in the United States.  It is expected to...

Experts Agree No Lithium Shortage For 10 Years, Probably Longer

For most of the week last week, a 2010 Toyota Prius (third gen) served as my every-day driver. I drove it like I would have driven my own car. I didn't take it on any long road trips, because I didn't have any distant destinations. I didn't take it to a test track to see how many miles I could...

South Australia Premier Mike Rann came to the Detroit area on a mission.  His destination was the Warren Tech Center just outside the city limits.  He toured the tech center and the battery plant at GM's research and development center.  He even spoke with GM CEO Fritz Henderson and Volt Chief...

The Tesla Model S EV is due for release in 2011.  The vehicle features an amazing 17 inch center stack display that is by far the largest ever seen in a vehicle and Tesla is considering using the screen as a way to personalize the vehicle while driving. The concept uses a software based program...

Nearly a week ago, at the Frankfurt Motor Show, Porsche CEO, Michael Macht, announced plans to produce an all-electric sports car. He recently reiterated that sentiment in the German magazine Welt am Sonntag. Macht says the company is working "intensively" on an EV, but that it will take time for...

Being a pioneer isn't easy. Just ask BMW North America CEO, Jim O'Donnell. As the German automaker continues to test 450 electric Minis (aptly called Mini Es) in New York, New Jersey and L.A., creating the charging network has proven challenging. "We are learning a heck of a lot just about the...

Coulomb Technologies has expanded their global reach by recently announcing the installation of a charging system in Germany. The system is a ChargePoint networked charging station for plug-in electric vehicles.  It will not be the first in Germany as another company called 365 Energy Group...

Better Place, known for its somewhat controversial EV battery swapping idea has now introduced a software-based solution that could eliminate or greatly diminish the range anxiety associated with electric vehicles.  Though battery swapping has met with opposition, the software called Safety Net...

In a meeting held between top Toyota executives and Toyota dealers across the nation, the company made it official that the Prius name will be seen on more hybrid models coming soon from Toyota. The meeting was held in Las Vegas over the course of Tuesday and Wednesday this week.  According to the...

We previously reported on Jay Leno's Green Car Challenge which will feature celebrities driving a Ford Focus EV around a race track in competition format outside of the Leno studio.  You can read more about it here.  Now, pictures and specs of the actual car to be driven have been released. The...

Electric car enthusiasts are excited about the potential EEStor's as-yet-unseen product known as the EESU represents. An extremely lightweight, low-cost battery that can be charged in minutes and has a functionally unlimited lifetime. Despite these amazing attributes and the fact that Zenn Motor's...

Kia Motors Corporation debut its EcoDynamics sub-brand line of vehicles at the Frankfurt Motor Show this week.  According to the company, the EcoDynamics line of vehicles is a name given to the most eco-friendly version of each model within its range.  Within the EcoDynamics is the new Sorento...

Nissan Creating

Motorcycle Inspired EV Seats Four

Volvo launched the C30 BEV at the Frankfurt Motor Show earlier this week.  The vehicle, a fully electric version of the company's hatchback model, is scheduled to undergo evaluation by the company to assess the possibility of bringing it to production within the next few years. Along with the...

The Smart fortwo ED is an upcoming pure electric car. It will be built by Daimler and use lithium-ion battery packs supplied by Tesla Motors. Testing of prototypes has been underway in Europe since 2007. Earlier this year Daimler announced it would be bringing the vehicle into global production...