Hybrids

The 2012 Toyota Prius V wagon hasn't even reached U.S. dealers--it'll arrive this fall--but surging global demand has already convinced Toyota to raise production. The world's largest maker of hybrid-electric vehicles will boost Prius wagon production from 3,000 to 5,000 per month by September...

Smaller, more efficient engines that equal the power of larger, lazier ones are how automakers all over the world plan to raise fuel economy. Today Ford [NYSE:F] doubled down on engineering as the best way to boost gas mileage, with announcements about three separate technologies it plans to use in...

According to startup plug-in hybrid maker Fisker Automotive, production of its 2011 Fisker Karma luxury sports sedan recently started in Finland. The company says it is focusing on delivering cars to dealers, so aside from giving a very small handful of journalists some quick driving time within...

It may be the most star-crossed program in recent automotive history, and now it's apparently dead. According to Reuters, General Motors has canceled work on the planned plug-in hybrid version of its Cadillac SRX crossover sport utility. The canceled SRX plug-in would have been the second GM car...

The Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Transportation have unveiled their updated fuel economy labels. There's some new information aimed squarely to inform consumers looking to buy a hybrid vehicle, plug-in hybrid, or electric car. First and foremost are the MPG or MPGe ratings...

It's interesting to see the variations among green technologies as automakers, both in production cars and motorsports, strive for greater fuel efficiency and reduced emissions. The most common means for automakers to boost gas mileage thus far have been hybrid-electric technology and turbodiesel...

Oh, the horror, the horror. Once again, the world is coming to an end. No, not tsunamis, or earthquakes, or tornadoes, or plagues. Not even locusts. Nope, it's the evil specter of hybrid technology that will conclusively decimate all of mankind, depriving it forever of driving fun, pleasure, and...

If you plan to shop for a new car this year, there will be a range of plug-in hybrids and EVs competing for your attention. But according to a new survey, only about 30% of you feel comfortable considering them -- and some of you are downright offended by their presence. The news comes from...

Sometimes we get nicely produced video, and sometimes we get our codriver to shoot it on the fly. For the 2012 Toyota Prius V station wagon we drove last week, it was very much a case of the latter--complete with a mutli-tone "bong" interruption from the Toyota Entune system. Our one-minute video...

Toyota executives will go to extraordinary, absurd lengths to avoid defining the body style of the new 2012 Toyota Prius V. Bob Carter, brand sales chief for Toyota Motors in the U.S., first responded with confusion over the question. Presented with a list of alternatives--sedan, hatchback...

Gas prices are going up, smaller cars are better than ever, and once again, U.S. car buyers are turning their sights toward higher gas mileage. For that, there's nothing that beats the 2011 Toyota Prius, with its 50-mpg combined EPA rating. But will that Prius hold up? Will the battery pack and...

Hybrid cars, often defined in the public eye by the distinctive shape of the Toyota Prius, are frequently derided as dull and no fun to drive. While the Tesla Roadster smashed the stereotype of plug-in electric cars as slow and dorky, hybrids haven't been as lucky. So here are a couple of hybrid...

There's nothing like a story translated from overseas media, concerning a related but not-quite-the-same model of a new hybrid car, to get people all in an uproar. So here's the real deal on the 2012 Toyota Prius V station wagon/minivan: It will still arrive in U.S. dealerships this fall. That's...

Like many articles, this one started with a reader question. Casey Krakowiecki wrote: I'm interested in buying a new Toyota Prius hybrid. I hope you can answer a couple of questions that will help me. (1) Are the rechargable batteries guaranteed for 8 years? If they fail at 7 years and 11 months...

"We have not yet fully accepted the fact that we need a new car. Some call it denial. But we do need one." That's how our friend Gordon Platt began a note asking our advice on what cars he should consider as he sets out to replace the family's aging 2003 Toyota Sienna minivan. "What are your...

The 2012 Honda Civic range, launched at last month's New York Auto Show, includes two models devoted to wringing out as many miles as possible from every last drop of gasoline. The one with the highest gas mileage is the 2012 Civic Hybrid, rated by the EPA at 44 mpg on all three test cycles: city...

World supplies of the highly popular Toyota Prius hybrid could be further threatened by new electric power problems in Japan. The Japanese government requested on Friday, May 6, that the Hamaoka nuclear power plant system shut down all of its reactors, which supply to the central Japanese power...

Here in the U.S. the government, both at the federal and state level, offers an array of incentives for eco friendly vehicles such as clean diesels, plug-in hybrids and electric cars. However, the U.S. isn’t the only major automotive market with such incentive programs in place. Over in China...

The largest single model launch at the New York Auto Show two weeks ago was the 2012 Honda Civic line, with five separate models, new styling, and better fuel economy. The highest gas mileage in the entire lineup comes from the 2012 Honda Civic Hybrid. Honda projects it will achieve 44 mpg for each...

You may recall a few weeks back we reported on police forces all around the nation downsizing their vehicle fleets from big and brawny V-8 sedans to a new-generation of V-6 sedans and SUVs. Turns out the federal government is following suit, switching its vehicle fleet from mostly full-size cars to...