Hybrids
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In less than six months, General Motors has unveiled three separate 2016 vehicles that use its hybrid and plug-in hybrid Voltec powertrain. The Chevrolet Volt and Malibu Hybrid, and the Cadillac CT6 Plug-In Hybrid, span three different vehicle segments. One's a compact hatchback, one's a mid-size volume sedan, and the third is a full-size luxury sedan. DON'T MISS: Cadillac CT6 Plug-In Hybrid: Big Battery, More Electric Range But the powertrains for all three vehicles have been designed to use very similar hardware, with their different four-cylinder engines spanning displacements of only 1.5...
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Hey, Media: Electric Cars Aren't Hybrids, The Difference Matters
It all started with an article by Edmunds that boiled down to "owners of green cars are trading them in for SUVs in record numbers." That may be true--and it has since been widely covered and recirculated by many other sites--but the auto-data giant neglected a crucial point that it really ought to...
John Voelcker -
2016 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid To Launch At New York Auto Show
It took a bit longer than expected, but Toyota will launch a hybrid-electric version of its popular RAV4 compact crossover utility vehicle at next week's New York Auto Show. The company sent out a teaser photo this morning, showing the rear of a RAV4 with badges saying "Hybrid" and "Limited" on the...
John Voelcker -
2016 Hyundai Tucson Shows Two Different Hybrid Concepts In Geneva
The new 2016 Hyundai Tucson will arrive later this year, but not all of its variants will be offered in the U.S. At the Geneva Motor Show earlier this month, Hyundai showed off two hybrid models we likely won't see: a 48-volt mild hybrid and a plug-in hybrid, both of them fitted with diesel...
John Voelcker -
Kia Trail'ster e-AWD Soul Hybrid Concept Unveiled At Chicago Auto Show
At the very first automaker press conference of the Chicago Auto Show, Kia pulled the wraps off its Trail'ster Concept: an all-wheel-drive hybrid versions of its Soul that uses an electric motor to power the rear wheels. Bolder styling cues, a ride height more than 2 inches higher, and a fully...
John Voelcker -
Kia Soul To Get Hybrid AWD? 'Rugged Runabout' For Chicago Show Adds Electric AWD
Kia will unveil a concept car with electric all-wheel drive at the 2015 Chicago Auto Show.
Stephen Edelstein -
The Hyundai Motor Group, encompassing both the Hyundai and Kia brands, is known as one of the most aggressive competitors in the global auto business. And the company has big plans for expanding its lineup of green vehicles, as we learned in an interview last week with Ki-Sang Lee, a senior vice president who's head of its R&D Center for "eco-friendly vehicles." We spoke with Lee and several other company executives at last week's Detroit Auto Show, at which the company launched its 2016 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid and Plug-In Hybrid models. The following questions have been condensed and...
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Green Car Reports Year In Reverse: Our 5 Biggest Stories In 2014
It's December 31, when we like to look back to see which stories were our most popular over the entire year. Boy, did we get some surprises this year! Not a single electric-car story cracked the top five, despite the huge traffic we get on plug-in cars in general and particularly many of our Tesla...
John Voelcker -
2016 Toyota Mirai Fuel-Cell Car Will Alter Industry As Prius Did, Says Exec
Toyota hopes its fuel-cell car will have as big an impact as the Prius.
Stephen Edelstein -
Infiniti Q80 Inspiration Hybrid Concept Unveiled At Paris Motor Show
Infiniti has made little secret of its desire to launch a new flagship that would finally fill the void left by the departure of its largest sedan, the Q45. Today, at the 2014 Paris Motor Show, we now have our first solid look at the automaker’s progress--in the form of the stunning Q80...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Citroen Compressed-Air Hybrid For Paris Motor Show: Cactus Airflow 2L Concept
A hybrid system, broadly defined, is any two power sources that combine to provide torque to drive a car's wheels. While most are hybrid-electric--a combustion engine plus one or two electric motors powered by a battery pack--other types exist as well. France's PSA Peugeot Citroën is...
John Voelcker -
Electric-Car Battery Use: Already Higher Than Hybrids' Total?
You see a lot in the press these days about the low sales of plug-in electric cars. While deliveries have risen every year--and have outpaced hybrid sales at the same point after launch--electric cars clearly remain only a tiny piece of the global car market today. But those low sales nonetheless...
John Voelcker -
Mazda's American customers are still waiting on their first diesel model, but the Japanese brand could soon offer its home-market customers a diesel hybrid option too. According to the Yomiuri Shimbun (via Autoblog Green), Mazda could start building diesel-hybrids as early as 2016. Mazda was due to launch a diesel version of its Mazda6 midsize sedan back in the Spring, complementing its range of fuel-efficient Skyactiv gasoline models. That launch date was delayed by an unspecified length of time back in January, as Mazda needed to "deliver the right balance between fuel economy and...
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Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Carries Over, Eco Gets 32 MPG--But Where's That Plug-In?
The 2015 Hyundai Sonata is nearly entirely new--save for the steadily improving Hybrid edition. Hyundai says the Sonata Hybrid will stick with its existing gas-electric drivetrain and body style through the 2015 model year, while the rest of the range takes on a more subdued look and more refined...
Martin Padgett -
Mercedes Diesel Fuel Economy: European Model Beats 60 MPG
Range is often discussed when the subject of electric cars comes up, but it's also relevant in the world of internal combustion. Driving the most economical car in the world would still be a pain if the tank only allowed for fifty miles between trips to the gas station. If your car could do more...
Antony Ingram -
Honda Previews Hybrid 'Concept B' Hatch At Beijing Auto Show
It's a sign of how important the Chinese car market is becoming, that major automakers seem to show as many new concept vehicles in Beijing as they do at more traditional auto show venues. The latest to emerge from the Chinese show's halls is Honda's Concept B, previewing a hatchback due on the...
Antony Ingram -
Surprise NY Auto Show Appearance: New 2015 Lexus NX Crossover
The 2015 Lexus NX compact crossover has had a long gestation, with two concept vehicles shown over the last 18 months. It was finally, officially unveiled yesterday at the Beijing Auto Show, as Lexus had announced it would be. Then, unexpectedly, it popped up halfway around the world--at the New...
John Voelcker -
2015 Toyota Camry: New York Auto Show Live Photos
Toyota's Camry is a classic case of where improving something just a little can make a disporportionately large difference. As America's best-selling passenger car, one with an available hybrid model, any improvements are big news. ALSO SEE: Where Do U.S. Electric Cars Save Money The Quickest?...
Antony Ingram -
If ever any car brand should have offered a hybrid before now, it would be Subaru. Now we've driven the 2014 Subaru XV Crosstrek Hybrid, its very first hybrid offering. It's a much better car than the Crosstrek on which it's based, but little of that improvement has anything to do with the hybrid powertrain. While the hybrid Crosstrek gets better gas mileage in EPA ratings, the increase isn't huge--and we didn't see an increase in real-world testing against the non-hybrid Crosstrek we tested in December 2012. Fuel economy: Call it a draw? The 2014 XV Crosstrek Hybrid is rated at 31 mpg...
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Most Popular Car Line In California? The Toyota Prius Hybrid--Again
The Toyota Prius Family is the most popular car line California for the second year in a row.
Stephen Edelstein -
Mercedes-Benz S-Class Plug-In On Sale Early 2015, C-Class Hybrid Later
While Mercedes-Benz and other German luxury automakers (Audi, especially) are betting on diesel powertrains on a larger scale in helping to make their lineups more fuel-efficient, they're starting to concede that to some luxury shoppers, plug-in hybrids are seen as a 'greener'...
Bengt Halvorson -
2014 Lexus CT 200h Update Appears At Los Angeles Auto Show
November is fairly late for the next model year of a car to arrive, but now we've finally seen the updated 2014 Lexus CT 200h compact hybrid hatchback. The lightly restyled model was unveiled at the Guangzhou Motor Show, but made an appearance just hours later at the Los Angeles Auto Show as well...
John Voelcker -
Another Lexus LF-NX Crossover Concept: Tokyo Motor Show Photos
The startling Lexus LF-NX Concept, launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, appeared with a new powertrain at the Tokyo Motor Show. And this one's not the hybrid system it was shown with previously The LF-NX Concept that Lexus has been showing this year previews a production model that...
John Voelcker -
Toyota Prius C Concepts: Tokyo Motor Show Photo Gallery
The car we know as the Toyota Prius C, the smallest and least expensive member of the Prius hybrid family, has a different name in Japan: Aqua. And the Aqua has been a roaring sales success in Japan, which led Toyota to produce no fewer than four Aqua concept cars showing additional models and trim...
John Voelcker