Electric Cars

At the Detroit Auto Show in January 2009, Toyota revealed its electric iQ city car.  At the time is was purely a concept and Toyota did not state its intentions to get into the pure electric car game.  Indeed Toyota's longstanding reluctance to build pure electric cars is understandable as they...

Nissan has placed focus on their yet-to-be-released EV for over a year now. They claim this car will be priced similarly to ordinary cars and capably carry an entire family. They promise a mainstream vehicle with widespread appeal. But what about hybrids? All of the talk surrounding this EV may...

Ener1 and Think have teamed up to provide an integrated electric drive system for the Japan Post.  The vehicles will undergo full electric conversions at the Japanese based company Zero Sports. Ener1 supplies the lithium-ion batteries required for the vehicle while Think is responsible  for the...

If there was an award for the "Most Badass Hybrid Debut In 2010," the new BMW X6 ActiveHybrid would win. BMW won't call it a sport utility vehicle, and for good reason. There's not much utility left in it. Oh, but there's plenty of sport. The so-called "sports activity coupe," was spotted near the...

It's hard to describe the Velozzi SOLO in one sentence, because my words keep getting jumbled up. They just don't seem to jive: this minicar is a lightweight lithium-ion battery electric hybrid multi-fuel vehicle with an onboard turbine to charge its battery. It gets hazy after "hybrid," doesn't...

  The drumbeat of anticipation is getting louder ahead of the unveiling of the new Nissan EV this coming weekend. In the midst of all this electric excitement some articles were published claiming Nissan wont be unveiling one, but three EVs. This derived from a report in Japan's Best Car Magazine...

The Fisker Karma extended range electric vehicle is nearing production with a scheduled introduction next year, but the orders are already adding up. According to the company, they have received 1,400 orders for this unique, sporty, plug-in.  The first orders should go out either in May or June of...

Nissan is currently developing a hybrid system that could be utilized in some of the companies smaller vehicles before full electric vehicles take over the roadways.  Though Nissan remains committed to EV technology and will continue development of several electric vehicles, they also realize that...

Though not quite as premature as Christmas decorations in stores on Labor Day, Motor Trend's September 2009 issue hit the shelves just in time for August. The new edition includes capsule reviews of 168 cars for sale in 2010 and 2011. The Toyota Prius, the Honda Insight, the Fisker Karma and the...

If your vehicle requires a plug and you find yourself near Boston, you might consider staying at the Element Lexington hotel. The hotel's parent company, Starwood, has partnered with CarbonDay Automotive to offer a ChargePoint Networked Charging Station to guests and other area travelers. The...

Nissan is gearing up for the global unveiling of its new pure electric car on August 2nd. They just released some more details about the car and demonstrated its drivetrain in a C-class sedan mule based on the Tiida/Versa. The car will be a 5 seat hatchback powered by an 80 KW motor and 24 kwh...

It seems like there’s an iPhone application for everything, from the very useful (restaurant reviews and menus) to the ridiculous (iSteam, which fogs your screen when you blow into the microphone). The prototype app created by Nissan falls into the “useful” category, at least for Nissan EV...

Recently we reported that Toyota had little intent on producing an EV in the near future, they instead intend to focus solely on hybrids.  Therefore, it's not surprising that rumors are swirling around about a possible Prius based sporty hybrid coupe. Toyota may build this coupe as a direct...

According to GM's product development chief, the company is on track to release a plug-in SUV by 2011.  There has been some doubt surrounding GM's future in regards to plug-in vehicles since the company announced bankruptcy and sold off the Saturn brand that was expected to be the first brand to...

Lithium-ion technology has seen use in laptops and cell phones as well as numerous other devices for over a decade.  People have grown accustomed to the expectations of these batteries.  Cell phones lose their charge-holding capacity after a few years, and laptops with strenuous use can see...

If you had to guess which manufacturer was putting components of their electric powertrain into creating a hybrid-powered motor-home, chances are, you wouldn’t say Shelby SuperCars. But in an agreement formalized July 24th between SSC and Jones & Son Chassis, that’s exactly what they plan...

Toyota has stuck to their game plan of introducing some of the best hybrid vehicles in the world.  Their Prius has topped hybrid sales charts for years now and they have consistently come out with new hybrids and improved upon existing models.  They have also shown little to no interest in EVs...

The NHTSA announced the final guidelines of the CARS program.  For months now, this program has been commonly referred to as the Cash For Clunkers program, but now after finalization it is officially called CARS short for Car Allowance Rebate System. The document containing all of the information...

EEStor Inc is a Texas based startup that has been working in stealth mode for years to develop a disruptive breakthrough battery technology which would be extremely useful in electric cars.  The material they use is called Barium Titanate (composition modified) and has already been demonstrated to...

Though little known, Balqon Corporation is a leading developer and manufacturer of  zero emission heavy duty vehicles.  They specialize in Class 7 and Class 8 heavy duty commercial applications.  Now they have decided to break from tradition and offer all of their Class 8 yard tractors and...