Hybrids

Porsche already offers a hybrid variant of its sports SUV, the Cayenne, but it's more about stemming the car's massive thirst than it is a truly green vehicle. A plug-in hybrid version coinciding with a mid-cycle update around 2014 could offer a much more gas-sipping option, however. According to...

Over the next 14 months, you can expect leaks, rumors, suppositions, spy shots, and outright guesses about the 2016 Toyota Prius to proliferate. The fourth generation of Toyota's quintessential hybrid car is a crucial model for the company. If Toyota sticks to its model cadence, we expect that...

General Motors has narrowed its portfolio of future technologies, and will focus on plug-in and electric vehicles over the coming years. The company will build on the success of its Chevrolet Volt range-extended electric car, an area where it leads its competitors, while downplaying more...

In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, there are still thousands without power--and even shelter--along the Northeast coast. It makes most of our issues look rather trivial, but admidst the chaos we've seen examples of great solidarity and ingenuity from those affected. The power losses have also...

With the 2012 Toyota Prius hybrid family now comprising four members, the subcompact Prius C hatchback is the one least like its siblings. It's smaller, with a smaller engine and battery, and less cross-section to cause aerodynamic drag. So does it consume less fuel? The EPA rates it at 50 mpg...

As more and more people enter China's middle classes, demand for automobiles is increasing all the time. So is the quality of China's cars. As the kudos of imported brands becomes more attractive, Chinese companies are working hard to compete. Some are even breaking out of China and into the...

Nissan might be investing heavily in its electric car program, but the automaker hasn't forgotten hybrid vehicles completely. In fact, the company is set to launch one hybrid or plug-in car per year for the next few years, allowing it to compete in a market where hybrid vehicles are gaining...

Volkswagen's line of TDI diesel cars has passionate fans. Now that the company is launching the 2013 VW Jetta Hybrid, it will likely gain some hybrid advocates too. But diesel and hybrid fans are very different groups, as the company's marketing surveys show. So why couldn't Volkswagen simply add a...

Lexus can claim credit for kicking off the luxury crossover market in the U.S, with the original RX. Since then, the RX models have always sold strongly--and account for 40 percent of the marque's sales. Now, it appears that a smaller model could be on the way, as Kaizen Factor reveals (via...

The 2013 Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid gives VW something it hasn’t had before: a way to appeal to hybrid buyers who won’t consider its TDI diesels—no matter how fuel-efficient they may be. The result is a relatively sporty, conventional looking compact sedan that’s fun to drive...

The 2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid has now reached dealerships throughout the country, selling 3,182 units in October. But Ford had an "October surprise" in store: The company sold 144 of the plug-in hybrid C-Max Energi version as well. That car hasn't been driven by any members of the automotive media...

Hybrid cars have well and truly hit the mainstream. After years of slow sales around a decade ago, Toyota has now sold over 4 million hybrids. And Honda recently passed its first million. But in the home of the U.S. auto industry, buyers have been slower to catch on to the concept. According to the...

As the U.S. East coast copes with the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, and New York City breathes life back into its flooded 105-year old subway system, public transit is currently in short supply. News images of huge queues for gas, people queuing around the block for buses and tens of thousands...

When the 2013 Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid arrives at dealers in late December or early January, VW will become the only carmaker offering both a diesel engine and a hybrid model of the same compact sedan. Why two such different approaches? Because, Volkswagen says, the audiences for the two cars are...

If you travel for business, taking limos and town cars to and from the airport can be a fact of life. Now that the staple of limo fleets everywhere, the Lincoln Town Car, has ended its production run, there may be a greener alternative in your future. Toyota has announced that it will build fleet...

Over the past several years, 40 miles per gallon has become a sort of high water mark for compact cars, with a long list of special efficiency-focused models aiming to meet or exceed that number. Yet for those vehicles, we're talking highway mileage. The 2013 Toyota Avalon Hybrid, on the other...

The 2013 Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid sedan was never going to match the 50-mpg combined fuel economy rating of this year's mileage champ, the Toyota Prius. When the new Jetta Hybrid was unveiled at January's Detroit Auto Show, VW executives predicted a combined rating around 45 mpg. According to...

Buyers of hybrids have long known that they can be surprisingly reliable, as well as costing little to run on a daily basis. The 2012 Annual Auto Reliability Survey from Consumer Reports has confirmed this once again. As reported via The New York Times, the Consumer Reports survey predicts the...

The debate continues over the danger of electric cars and hybrids to blind pedestrians, as regulators are once again pushing for these vehicles to be fitted with noise-generators. Advocacy groups for the blind and other research groups suggest the lack of noise from vehicles with electric...

If you’re a parent, the chances are you’ve had to make the painful choice between everyday practicality and gas mileage when looking at new cars. In fact, if your family consists of the archetypal two kids, two adults, a dog, and a whole lot of luggage, the chances are you’ve...