Electric Cars

Automaker Audi had previously announced intentions to build a hybrid version of the Q5. This would have been their first hybrid model. These plans have apparently been scrapped. A lack of safety of nickel-metal hydride batteries is cited as the reason for the cancellation. Apparently a senior Audi...

The Norwegian government denied EV car manufacturer, Th!nk, financial aid today. Th!nk's Chief Executive, Richard Canny, estimates that the company needs between $14.5 and $29 million in aid to survive the economic crisis. This isn't the first time Th!nk has faced financial hardship. In 2006, the...

Fisker Karma The Fisker Karma isn't vaporware after all. Car and Driver caught the seductive plug-in hybrid sport sedan creeping around some cones in what might be the car's Stealth Drive mode for relaxed cruising. Notice the absence of any throaty internal combustion noise as the Karma drives...

As China makes its evolution from mass-producers of cheap low-tech junk (think thin plastic shower caps and SpongeBob toothbrushes) to high-tech designers and manufacturers, one big step in that direction is being played out at a company called BYD (Build Your Dream). From their humble beginnings...

   GYM Concept Car What if you could combine your evening commute with your evening workout? You'd save a lot of time, gas and money skipping the trip to Life Time Fitness. This might become reality if Coventry University design student, Da Feng, gets his way. Feng has designed the GYM Concept...

Detectives in Indianapolis will soon be driving Toyota Camry Hybrids to crime scenes. The city has already purchased 85 of the hybrid vehicles and expects to buy more. Indianapolis Mayor, Greg Ballard, cited fuel economy and reducing pollution as the primary motives for choosing hybrids. The cars...

The Guardian offers an interesting commentary on Electric Formula One racing cars. The author argues that the combustion engine is dying. This is marked for example by Honda recently pulling out of future F1 competition. He notes that combustion engines only can convert one third of their energy...

Some Michigan dairy farmers are turning one of their stinkiest problems into a business proposition. They're fermenting the manure of pigs and cows to produce electricity. Scenic View Dairy farm is like a lot of dairy farms. They've got nearly 3,500 cows and 9,400 pigs and acres of corn. They've...

Today, in Israel, in the parking lot at the Cinema City in Pi-Glilot, Better Place unveiled about a dozen and a half sleek blue and white charging spots, each capable of charging two vehicles, the first in what will be a network of 400 charging spots and battery swapping stations throughout Tel...

  This should come as no surprise to anyone, but last week, DailyTech reported precipitous drops in electric car sales in the U.S. They contacted dealerships Florida, Texas, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri and the Pacific Northwest. Some of the dealerships didn't pick up their phones and the ones that...

The United States Advanced Battery Consortium (USABC) and the U.S. Department of Energy have awarded Celgard, LLC. with a contract to improve lithium-ion battery separator technology. Battery separators are electronic insulating layers that prevent batteries from overheating, which improves their...

Following similar announcements from A Better Place partners across the globe, Hawaii released tentative partnership plans with the Palo Alto-based company to install a network of quick-change battery swapping stations across the Big Island. It makes perfect sense, actually, since drivers on the...

Tesla's new Senior Vice President of Global Sales, Marketing and Service, Michael van der Sande, left his first post on the company's "Think" blog yesterday. The self-proclaimed car nut replaces Darryl Siry, who announced his resignation on Monday. Van der Sande came to Tesla after spending his...

Hybrid vehicle sales fell 50% last month compared to November of 2007 even though fewer hybrid models were available last year. Analysts blame the hybrid price premium, low gas prices and tighter credit markets. This November, 16,536 hybrids were sold.  In October 21,979 rolled off dealership...

The Fisker Karma will be debuted in its production form at the Detroit Auto Show in January. The production form shown above looks very similar to the concept previously unveiled. The vehicle is a four-seat sports car that will do zero to 60 in less than 6 seconds. It is an extended-rage electric...

Ford Motor Company just submitted a business plan to Congress which is to explain the rationale for it getting a government loan. The plan includes the first information about the automakers plan to go electric. Per Ford: Ford provided initial details of an accelerated vehicle electrification plan...

Think taking the bus is eco-friendly? You're right, but it's certainly not because traditional diesel buses are fuel efficient. The average bus carries 40 people or more, which takes 40 CO2 spewing cars off the streets. Unfortunately the bus only gets three miles per diesel gallon, with its...

Rumors are flying that the popular all-electric MINI E may well spawn a group of electric BMWs, first a 5 or 7 series (the larger platform would be a better fit with the bulky, heavy lithium-ion battery packs), then perhaps a 3 series and a small SUV. There hasn't been an official media...

The small 2-seat variety of electric car remains a favored configuration.  The diminutive Smart car has undergone electrification in prototypes, and currently a fleet of 100 electric Smarts are in European test fleets.  These use older technology nickel sodium batteries. Lithium-ion battery...

Volkswagen has just introduced a new variant of its TwinDrive Plugin-in Hybrid Golf, which is based on the new Golf 6 platform. It is basically a refresh of the prior concept that had based on the at-the-time current Golf 5 platform. The car is propelled by a parallel hybrid drivetrain that...