Hybrids
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With 17 miles of all-electric range, all-wheel drive, and a rugged-hatchback body style, the Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid could be the perfect entry point for a lot of buyers who'd like to get started driving on electric power. Electric-car advocates, who've already moved on to one of several longer-range fully electric vehicles, and see EVs with large battery packs as the be-all and end-all of green vehicles, may dismiss models like the Crosstrek Hybrid as the creation of regulators. That might be true, but it's also beside the point in today's market. Plug-in hybrids fit those who live in...
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2019 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid first drive review: All the bits and pieces in placeThe 2019 RAV4 Hybrid is Toyota’s way of flexing its corporate might. It’s as if the automaker called on each of its departments to create the new hybrid crossover SUV. The folks from design coughed up some 4Runner and Tacoma cues to give it a butch look. The Lexus team chiseled the...
Andrew Ganz -
2019 Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid: First drive of 17-mile, 35-mpg plug-in crossoverTo understand the complicated path for Subaru’s first plug-in hybrid, first we needed to hike a mile in the automaker’s shoes. OK, more like 10 miles, actually—driving the 2019 Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid gingerly up a dusty, bouldered, steep trail, past signage cautioning...
Bengt Halvorson -
Toyota Corolla Hybrid, Tesla Autopilot safety, Rivian pickup: Today's Car NewsToyota announces it will build a hybrid version of the Corolla. Rivian teases images of its upcoming electric pickup. Mercedes-Benz launches a consumer fuel-cell test fleet. And we crunch the accident-rate numbers on Tesla's Autopilot. All this and more on Green Car Reports. At a California event...
Eric C. Evarts -
Toyota Corolla hybrid will join Prius next yearThe redesigned 2020 Toyota Corolla sedan will soon spawn a hybrid variant, the first gasoline-electric version of the automaker's popular compact car. Toyota made the announcement Thursday as it unveiled the Corolla sedan at simultaneous events in California and China, underscoring the model's...
Andrew Ganz -
Toyota teases all-wheel-drive Prius for LA auto show debutToyota has teased what is probably an all-wheel-drive Prius, slated for introduction at the Los Angeles auto show late this month. In studying the picture the company teased, with a Prius churning through the snow, it’s hard to come to another conclusion. The automaker says in a...
Bengt Halvorson -
With the new 2019 model year in full swing, and the holidays around the corner, a lot of consumers are looking for new cars. That means the deals aren't quite as good as they were in August and September when dealers and automakers were trying to clear out old inventory in preparation for the new models. Some prices have gone up and discounts down. Surprisingly, though, that has resulted in a few identical bargains reported by Green Car Reports partners at CarsDirect.com. As they have in recent months, CarsDirect researchers have limited the picks to those that have broad nationwide...
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Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid recalled for stalling, fire riskFiat Chrysler Automobiles is recalling 10,021 Chrysler plug-in hybrid vans for an issue that could result in a stall, or possibly the increased risk of a vehicle fire. In the vehicles affected—2017 and 2018 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid models with production dates of August 16, 2016 through...
Bengt Halvorson -
BMW says 85 percent of cars will still have engines in 2030Once a leader in electric cars, BMW now says it expects 85 percent of its cars still to have internal combustion engines by 2030. Speaking to Australian reporters for GoAuto at the Paris auto show earlier in October, BMW board member for development Klaus Froehlich said, “A very optimistic...
Eric C. Evarts -
2017-2018 Kia Niro hybrid recall concerns extra heat in the back seatDrive a 2017 Kia Niro (or a 2018) and find your back seat becoming a hot seat? It might be a good idea to stop driving it and call your dealership. In 2017 and some 2018 Kia Niro models, a main relay, within what’s called the power relay assembly, may not have adequate contact connections...
Bengt Halvorson -
Best deals on green cars for October 2018One of the best ways to get people to buy green cars is the same way automakers get consumers to buy any car—by making deals. Looking at October sales, among plug in cars other than Teslas, the bestsellers were those that offer the best deals from month to month. This month, many of the same...
Eric C. Evarts -
One size won't fit all for future Kia EVsFor an automaker that’s pitching itself toward the fun side of the Hyundai Motor Group, the tone for the automaker’s sizable electric push soon sounds altogether like pants. “It’s all about what fits,” said Michael Winkler, director of powertrains for Kia in Europe. By...
Aaron Cole -
Toyota revealed on Thursday that it is in talks with Chinese automaker Geely, which owns Volvo, about cooperation on hybrid vehicle technology, Reuters reported. As the company that has sold by far the most hybrids worldwide, the discussions could involve selling Toyota hybrid technology in Geely cars in China. Any agreement, however, could also be broader. DON'T MISS: Volvo's electrification push expanding to every corner of the market Under the ownership of Geely, Volvo is investing heavily in electric cars and hybrids. Volvo has announced that it will build an electric and hybrid variant...
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2019 Honda Insight recalled for rearview camera failureThe 2019 Honda Insight hybrid hasn't been on sale for long; and yet Honda is already recalling more than 6,000 of them for a rearview camera failure. The problem affects another 226,000 vehicles—2018 Accord models, possibly including some Accord Hybrids. The screen may show up blank, with...
Eric C. Evarts -
Out of juice: Infiniti Q50 Hybrid luxury sedan droppedThe long-running Infiniti Q50 Hybrid luxury sedan won't return for 2019 in the U.S., the automaker said Thursday. Infiniti spokesman Kyle Bazemore confirmed the demise of the Q50 Hybrid this year for Green Car Reports. The automaker axed the Q70 Hybrid in July. Although Infiniti didn't report sales...
Aaron Cole -
Ford requests exception to electric-car noise rule for police cruisersIt's tough to sneak up on bad guys in a loud car. That's Ford's argument in requesting an exception to a long-awaited rule that will require electric cars to make noise when they're driving at low speeds, according to a report in The Verge. First proposed in 2010, the rule has had a long gestation...
Eric C. Evarts -
Battery electrics steal sales from hybridsStrong sales of electric cars and plug-in hybrids in California seem to have a downside. According to an analysis by the California New Car Dealers Association, all of those new plug-in cars are replacing traditional hybrids, not conventional cars. So the fuel and emissions savings aren’t...
Green Car Reports -
Toyota recalls 2016-2018 Prius models for fire riskToyota is launching one of its largest recalls on one of its most popular models—the Prius hybrid. Covering all Toyota Prius and Prius Plug-in models built between June 2015 and May 2018, the recall involves a wiring harness for the car's hybrid power control unit, which can chafe and start a...
Eric C. Evarts -
That sound you hear isn’t the 2019 Honda Insight’s hybrid powertrain whirring along. It’s the undertaker coming for the vaunted Honda Civic nameplate. The 2019 Insight isn’t just a better hybrid, it’s a better compact car. I spent a week moseying around in an Insight Touring, a well-equipped $29,000 compact sedan with mid-size space for passengers and cargo that averaged about 45 mpg no matter how I drove it. READ THIS: 2019 Honda Insight first drive mpg review: 55 mpg from hybrid sedan With its soft leather trim, power-adjustable front seats, quality sound...
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2019 Honda Insight hybrid earns IIHS Top Safety Pick+ awardIn its latest round of safety tests, the IIHS has awarded the 2019 Honda Insight hybrid its Top Safety Pick+ award. The Top Safety Pick+ is the Institute's highest award, given to cars that perform well in a wide battery of crashes, headlight evaluations, and automatic emergency braking tests. The...
Eric C. Evarts -
XL trucks' Ford F-250 Hybrid gets California approvalThere's no way to save more fuel than to do it in something that already uses a lot of it. That's what hybrid truck "upfitter" XL aims to do by adding hybrid and even plug-in hybrid systems to Ford pickups. On Tuesday, the Massachusetts-based company announced that it received certification to sell...
Eric C. Evarts -
2019 Ford Fusion Energi gets longer electric rangeFord is boosting the battery size and electric range of its Fusion Energi plug-in hybrid sedan for 2019. The new battery will store 9 kwh, up from 7 kwh, to give the 2019 Fusion Energi a range of 25 electric miles, up from 21 miles. The bigger battery should make the Fusion Energi more competitive...
Eric C. Evarts -
2019 Toyota Prius C preview: $900 price increase, fewer optionsThe most affordable hybrid on the market just got a little less so. The 2019 Toyota Prius C will cost $900 more, with a sticker of $22,450, including destination, based on a recent official price list released by Toyota and shared by our partners at CarsDirect. Toyota has replaced its traditional...
Eric C. Evarts -
2019 Land Rover releases pricing for Range Rover P400e plug-in hybridBy 2024, Land Rover will have a whole new lineup of hybrid and electric luxury SUVs. As we learned yesterday, that lineup will include plug-in hybrid and electric versions of its small Evoque crossover SUV. Now the company has released pricing for its largest, most luxurious plug-in hybrid, the...
Eric C. Evarts