Hybrids

In hybrid and electric cars, regenerative braking systems are used to convert kinetic energy into electrical energy under braking, slowing the car down and improving gas mileage or all-electric range. But Nissan’s latest iteration of the Japanese-market Serena minivan uses regenerative...

Jaguar Land Rover like every other automaker in the world, is working hard to make its range of luxury cars greener and more economical to drive. We've already seen some evidence of that, thanks to the Range Rover Range_e prototype plug-in diesel hybrid we spotted in the wild last year and...

As scientists have been warning for some time, the U.S. is at risk of losing its leadership in areas like Physics and Chemistry, thanks in part to a lack of public interest in the sciences. So when we found out that Toyota had paired its 2012 Prius V wagon with How Things Work for a web TV series...

With the yen weak against the dollar, Japanese automakers like Honda, Nissan and Toyota are working hard to relocate production of U.S. market cars to the U.S. Now it seems Honda has chosen the U.S. as its development base for the next-generation Honda Civic, due some time around 2016. The...

After more than 300,000 miles of testing, Google’s automated self-driving Toyota Priuses have proven that self-driving cars have a future. Now Google is adding another hybrid car to its self-driving fleet: the 2012 Lexus RX450h luxury crossover SUV. “To provide the best experience we...

It’s been a while coming, but the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has finally approved gas-mileage ratings for the 2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid. As Ford predicted, the $25,995 hybrid has achieved an official rating of 47 MPG City, but its highway rating of 47 mpg improved on Ford’s own...

For years, the unmarked police car has helped law enforcement agencies around the world capture speeding drivers, pounce on unsuspecting criminals and provide covert investigative opportunities. Powered by a large, powerful engine capable of high-speed pursist, the traditional unmarked cop car is...

Lexus is voluntarily recalling some of its now-discontinued HS 250h entry-level hybrid luxury sedans after it determined that incorrectly-adjusted components on the rear suspension arm could age prematurely and cause suspension failure. According to its official release, the safety recall only...

What’s the price of luxury green driving? If you’re BMW, and that luxury is the all-new 2013 ActiveHybrid 7 full hybrid, the answer is $84,895. With pricing just announced, the luxury hybrid is powered by 3.0-liter, twin-scroll turbocharged inline six-cylinder engine and a 40-kilowatt...

Thanks to the spiraling costs associated with building cars in Japan and shipping them to the U.S., Honda has announced that the 2013 Civic Hybrid will be made in the U.S. Currently made in Japan and shipped to customers in North America, the U.S. version of the four-door compact hybrid sedan will...

It’s one of the least popular luxury hybrids in the world, but at six years old, the current 2012 Lexus LS600h L -- just like the rest of the Lexus LS family -- is starting to show its age. Which is why Toyota has been working hard on a complete redesign of the Lexus LS range, which it will...

Thanks to data published by most automakers every month, it’s pretty easy to find out which cars sell the most. But before any cars are sold, which cars are the most researched by buyers? According to our own data, and some observations we’ve noted from the U.S. Department of...

Have you ever wondered what life would be like if one tiny thing in your world changed? For example, what if you earned more money? Or had a different name? What if Toyota made a 7-seat version of its Prius V wagon? We can’t tell you what life would be life with more money or a different...

Earlier on this year, we asked you if the 2012 BMW ActiveHybrid 5 was really green, or not? Now we've had a chance to drive it. Combining a 3.0-liter TwinPower Turbo straight-six engine and full-hybrid drivetrain into a 5-series body, the ActiveHybrid 5 looks just like any other premium 5-series on...

Over the last few years, we’ve seen an increase in the amount of driver-friendly technology being added to cars to make them easier to use. Normally, that includes things like iPod connectivity, satellite navigation and bluetooth hands free, but the 2013 Nissan Altima -- along with all of...

Believe it or not, Toyota has now sold more than 4 million hybrid cars worldwide since it launched the original Toyota Prius hybrid in Japan in 1997. According to Toyota, the milestone was passed in late April, when the 2012 Toyota Prius C had only been on sale five or six weeks. But while it --...

With the 2012 Toyota Prius V wagon, 2012 Toyota Prius C, and 2012 Toyota Prius plug-in hybrid all launching within the past 12 months, it’s been easy to forget that there are other Toyota hybrids outside of the Prius brand. In fact, the 2012 Toyota Camry Hybrid and 2012 Toyota Highlander...

It’s no secret that Los Angeles has some of the worst air pollution of any city in the U.S., especially around its ports, where long lines of trucks wait idling to fill up with cargo from docking ships. But a new project from German electronics company Siemens could see that change forever...

Prejudice is a strange thing. Not only does it shape our opinion of the world around us, but it influences everything from the food we eat to the car we buy, either consciously or subconsciously. In the automotive world however, it seems that brand prejudice can be overcome with a little marketing...

Following in the tire-tracks of its older, larger and wagon-variant siblings,the 2012 Toyota Prius C has been awarded the coveted Top Safety Pick Award by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). A separate set of crash tests from those carried out by the National Highway Traffic Safety...