Hybrids
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If you own a car as unique as the Tesla Roadster, why not advertise your business with it? That's what one Monaco resident did with this electric sports car clad in the standard issue yellow and black. The owner, who runs a New York City cab company which uses mostly hybrid vehicles, recently put his Tesla on display at the French Côte d'Azur. Though it caught the eye of many passersby, this cab is unfortunately, not in service. Nevertheless, according to one report by Autoblog Green, Tesla taxis may not be so far-fetched. Kudos to Xavier Navarro for spotting this gem on the French site...
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Sanyo To Supply NiMH Batteries to PeugeotThe Nikkei is reporting that Sanyo Electric Co. has signed an agreement with PSA Peugeot Citroen to supply nickel-metal hydride batteries for diesel-electric hybrids. Peugeot wants to be the first car maker to put diesel-electric powertrains into production vehicles. The French auto company will...
Robert Scardino -
Most Popular Prius Posts for October: Floor Mat RecallIt's the end of October, but we'll spare you the lame Halloween jokes and dive directly into the most popular posts of the month on AllAboutPrius.com. Just like the month before, only two of September's most popular posts reappeared: the 2010 Toyota Prius Reference Guide (by now the year's...
John Voelcker -
Hide the Children! Porsche Goes Green And Hybrid, Purists BlanchEuropeans have been slow to the game with hybrids, having bet most of their green strategy on highly efficient clean diesels. But they are increasingly hedging their bets, learning to work with electric motors and battery packs. In the sports-car world, aside from startups Fisker and Tesla, no...
John Voelcker -
Toyota Prius To Add Coupe In 2011 To Target 2011 Honda CR-ZBuilding on the success of the 2010 Toyota Prius hybrid, which is close to sold out due to worldwide demand, Toyota is planning to add additional body styles to the Prius line. Now, the first details of those cars have emerged, and one new model will apparently be a two-door coupe that targets the...
John Voelcker -
Biden Blurts Out Fisker Nina Plug-In Hybrid Line: Sedan, Coupe, CrossoverThere's nothing like a little old-fashioned reporter shoe leather, especially when few other automotive media outlets bother to make the trip. Our colleague Gary Gastelu of Fox News traveled down to Delaware yesterday, to cover the official announcement of Fisker Automotive's $18 million purchase...
John Voelcker -
While Chrysler was an original partner in development of the Two-Mode Hybrid system used in pickups and sport utilities by Chevrolet, GMC, Cadillac, as well as upcoming sport utilities from BMW and Mercedes-Benz, its hybrid history has not been happy. The company made fewer than 1,000 Dodge Durango Hybrids and Chrysler Aspen Hybrids before killing those large sport utilities last December and shutting the Delaware plant that built them. But recent reports indicate its next large green truck, the 2011 Dodge Ram Hybrid pickup, remains on track for a launch next year. Details of the hybrid...
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Toyota Combats Prius Factory Emissions With Flower PowerToyota City, Japan, smells pretty sweet these days according to a report by Richard Blackburn at drive.com.au. Japan's largest automaker has developed two new flower species to help offset CO2 emitted by the Prius factory there. The leaves of one of the flowers, based on the cherry sage, absorb...
Robert Scardino -
Mitsubishi Evo To Go Plug-In Hybrid? World's Tuners Feel FaintWe can't help it. Once in a while, we like to toss in big honkin' performance cars, like the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500. And even screaming smaller tuner sedans, like the 2010 Subaru STi WRC and Mitsubishi Lancer Evo. But now comes news to rock the world: The next generation of the Mitsubishi...
John Voelcker -
Here It Is: New 2012 Ford Escape, But Will There Be a Hybrid?The Ford Escape compact sport utility, including its hybrid model, is now long in the tooth or beyond. It was first introduced as a 2001 model, and has been restyled twice. It still sells well, though, and Ford continues to update the hybrid model. Nonetheless, it's overdue for replacement. Now...
John Voelcker -
Hybrids, Yes, But No Dedicated Hybrid Models for NissanNissan has made a bigger bet on electric cars than any other automaker, with plans to launch its 2012 Leaf electric car globally. But if electric cars are the future of green vehicles, hybrids are today's state of the art. And there, Nissan has lagged. It is developing its own hybrid system, but...
John Voelcker -
Plug-In Advocates Target Toyota Over Climate Change, But Why?Here at GreenCarReports.com, sometimes we get e-mails that make us scratch our heads. For instance, why would advocacy group Plug In America target Toyota, which offers the popular 2010 Prius? Why would it slam the world's undisputed leader in hybrid-car development, the company that made...
John Voelcker -
Gasoline may be averaging around $2.50 a gallon right now, but gas mileage remains an important factor in choosing a new car. Now the EPA has released 2010 fuel efficiency figures for all new cars and trucks sold in the U.S. Hybrids from Ford, Honda, Lexus, Mazda, Mercury, Nissan, and Toyota dominated the ratings. Perhaps not surprisingly, the best gas mileage of any new vehicle comes from the 2010 Toyota Prius. The quintessential hybrid is rated at 51 mpg city / 48 mpg highway, for a combined rating of 50 mpg. The EPA's FuelEconomy.gov website offers a downloadable guide that rates all new...
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2010 Fusion Hybrid Takes Credit For 73-Percent Ford Hybrid Sales RiseWith record unemployment numbers and an active global recession, it's not news that vehicle sales have been lousy, falling by more than one-third from the record levels of a few years ago. But at least one maker's green cars are doing better than ever: Ford's U.S. sales of its hybrid-electric...
John Voelcker -
Ford Names Director of Global ElectrificationIf there was ever any doubt that Ford wants to be known for hybrids and electric vehicles, that was put to rest today, after the Dearborn, Michigan, based automaker named a "Director of Electrification." The newly created position will be filled by Nancy Gioia, who has served almost four years as...
Robert Scardino -
Prius Patent Problems? Trade Panel to Investigate Infringement ClaimA U.S. trade panel has agreed to investigate claims that Toyota infringed privately held patents in designing its hybrid electric vehicles. Toyota is widely acknowledged to be the industry leader in hybrids, having sold more than 2 million globally since 1997. If the allegations are upheld by the...
John Voelcker -
Panasonic Linking PC Batteries Together To Power CarsIf Panasonic gets its way, your average laptop battery could be the electric vehicle power source of the future. The Japanese consumer electronics company announced Thursday that it has developed a method of binding standard lithium-ion batteries together (Tesla Motors style), for use in...
Robert Scardino -
Infiniti Confirms 2012 M35 Hybrid Sedan, Its FirstWhile Nissan goes full-bore into electric cars, including projected sales of 20,000 of its 2012 Nissan Leaf, the company's Infiniti luxury marque has neither electric cars nor hybrids in its 2010 lineup. But that will change next year, when it launches the redesigned 2011 Infiniti M luxury sedan...
John Voelcker -
In March we told you that Nissan's luxury brand, Infiniti, planned to release a hybrid version of their M sedan. Today the Japanese automaker has confirmed that the new hybrid will be available in the spring of 2011 for the 2012 model year. This will be Infiniti's first offering in the luxury hybrid field and the powertrain has been developed entirely in-house. It's a single electric motor, twin-clutch system in which the first clutch sits between the motor and Nissan's venerable 3.5-liter V6. Infiniti says this configuration allows for "consistent driving feel under all conditions."...
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Green Car of the Year Finalists: Three Hybrids, Two DieselsThe five finalists for the 2010 Green Car of the Year Award include three hybrid models--two Japanese hatchbacks and one U.S. sedan--and a pair of German clean-diesel cars. The nominations were announced today by Green Car Journal, which has presented the award at the Los Angeles Auto Show for five...
John Voelcker -
Video: Fox News Criticizes DOE Loans to Fisker and TeslaWhile discussing two upstart electric car companies, contributors to the self proclaimed "fair and balanced" Fox News Channel (FNC) have proven that they are not smarter than a fifth grader. Jeff Foxworthy didn't even have to ask a single question. In reports criticizing recent Department of Energy...
Robert Scardino -
MPG Follies, Or, Why Electric Cars Can't Get 367 MPG. Sheesh.One of our most popular posts in August was a piece that broke down how General Motors projected a fuel efficiency of 230 miles per gallon in the city for its 2011 Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric car. Soon after GM's elaborate press event, Nissan announced with a straight face that their...
John Voelcker -
PREVIEW: 2011 Honda CR-Z Hybrid Two-Seat Sports CoupeWhile the 2010 Honda Insight is the company's big hybrid news for this year, it's far from the only new hybrid headed to us from Honda. As we've noted before, Honda will launch two more hybrids in 2010 as 2011 models. Now, Honda has released photos of its "CR-Z Concept 2009" show car, to be...
John Voelcker -
Suzuki Swift Plug-In Hybrid Headed To TokyoSuzuki says that their cars are as much fun as their bikes. Now they're trying to make one model just as fuel efficient. The Japanese automaker plans to unveil a plug-in hybrid version of the Swift hatchback at the upcoming Tokyo Motor Show. Suzuki's subcompact already has a loyal following in...
Robert Scardino