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Many people approach car shopping in the U.S. looking for the largest, most luxurious vehicle they can afford, from the best brand possible. Still, at least a handful of shoppers are more focused on basic transportation--and a vehicle they know they can afford. My daughter Priscilla falls into the latter category, and she recently set off on one of life's great adventures: buying her first car. MUST SEE: Natural Gas For Long-Haul Trucks: Which Version Makes More Sense? Living in a dense suburb of Boston with limited parking, she preferred a small car, but felt strongly that she needed to be...
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Owning A Tesla Model S: New Book Offers Tips, Tricks, Inside Info (Book Review)Regular readers of Tesla forums will recognize the name of Nick J. Howe, whose hundreds of astute comments recently earned him accolades for "best forum postings over time," according to a reader poll. A Florida chemical engineer and owner of a Tesla Model S P85, Howe has technical savvy, dogged...
David Noland -
2014 BMW i3 REx: Range-Extended Electric Car Drive Report, By Very First OwnerThis past Wednesday, May 21, I picked up my shiny new 2014 BMW i3 REx range-extended electric car from JMK BMW in Springfield, New Jersey. The car, in Laurel Grey, was the first range-extended i3 delivered in North America, and I will always appreciate that BMW gave me the honor of being the first...
Tom Moloughney -
2014 BMW i3 Test Drive: No Help From Salesman For Electric-Car BuyerEvery time I visit a conventional car dealership to test-drive an electric car, I'm struck by the salesman's lack of savvy about plug-in cars. The first time I drove a Chevy Volt three years ago, the salesman barely knew how to turn the car on, and had no clue about electric cars in general. The...
David Noland -
Life With Tesla Model S: New Northeastern Superchargers Now LiveAs the owner of a Tesla Model S in New York's Hudson Valley, I've long lamented the puzzling dearth of Superchargers in the Northeastern U.S. But in the last few weeks, the official opening of two of Tesla's superfast (120-kilowatt) free DC charging stations in New Jersey and upstate New York--both...
David Noland -
Plug-In Electric Car Sales In Canada For April: Volt Record SalesIn Canada, the Chevy Volt's record-setting sales last month overshadowed the Tesla Model S's equally impressive deliveries the month before, in March. Building on strong momentum in March, the Chevy Volt tallied 222 sales in April, breaking its own monthly record for deliveries of a single plug-in...
Matthew Klippenstein -
When I first heard last week that Tesla was offering Model S owners a free retrofit that would install its new underbody shield and deflector plates, I called my local Tesla Motors service center almost immediately. It seemed like a no-brainer. The titanium shield and two aluminum deflector plates were free, weighed only a few pounds, and had no effect on the aerodynamics of the car. MORE: NHTSA Closes Probe Into Tesla Model S Fires: "Defect Not Identified" Designed to deflect road debris away from the lithium-ion battery pack under the floor, the new underbody armor would presumably reduce...
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One Percent Of Norway's Cars Are Already Plug-In ElectricsOvershadowed by their spectacular sales success in March, electric vehicles hit a momentous milestone in Norway last month. Fully one percent of Norway's passenger-car fleet now consists of battery electric vehicles. And this isn't a case of rounding up, either – this is a full 1 percent. As...
Matthew Klippenstein -
Plug-in Electric Car Sales In Canada For March: Volt Returns To Triple FiguresWhile the Nissan Leaf is gaining momentum, the Chevrolet Volt remains in the driver's seat for March in plug-in electric-car sales for Canada. The Chevy Volt returned to triple-figure sales in Canada for the tenth time in March, tallying 105 sales from coast to coast. That figure was up slightly...
Matthew Klippenstein -
Life With Tesla Model S: UPDATE On Pedal Placement ProblemTwo days ago, I described in this article a frightening incident in my Tesla Model S. Approaching a downhill intersection, I inadvertently stepped on both the brake and accelerator pedals simultaneously. The car barely slowed, and it appeared I was headed for a collision with another car...
David Noland -
Plug-in Electric Car Sales In Canada, Feb 2014: Milestones, MillstonesWhile February's electric vehicle sales in Canada will have easily topped year-ago numbers, the plug-in market still faces headwinds in Canada during 2014. British Columbia hit a milestone of 1,000 plug-in vehicle sales earlier this year. With 4.4 million people, the province has about the same...
Matthew Klippenstein -
Life With Tesla Model S: One Year And 15,000 Miles LaterWell, it's now been a year since I took delivery of my dark green 2013 Tesla Model S with the 60-kilowatt-hour battery. After almost four years of waiting, those first days after delivery were euphoric. As I recall, the words "greatest freaking car in the entire freaking Universe" (or thereabouts)...
David Noland -
Last month, Tesla Motors reported deliveries of a record 6,892 Model S vehicles during the fourth quarter of 2013. Giddy investors promptly sent Tesla shares zooming higher. But many of those cars--Tesla isn't saying how many--were delivered to Europe. And if you look closely, there are signs that demand for the Model S electric luxury sedan in the U.S. may have stabilized. First, consider California: the epicenter of the electric-car world in general, and the Model S customer base in particular. Historically, California has accounted for nearly half of Model S sales, according to Edmunds...
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Why A Gigafactory? Tesla Used 1/3 Of All Electric-Car Batteries Last YearThe 210,000 plug-in electric vehicles sold around the world last year used a lot of lithium-ion batteries. But if startup automaker Tesla Motors has its way, it will soon need as many lithium-ion cells (of the 18650 format it uses) as are now built worldwide. That's why the company plans to release...
Matthew Klippenstein -
Life With Tesla Model S: NY-FL Supercharger Road Trip, ReturningLast week, in the middle of a prolonged and depressing stretch of winter weather in New York's Hudson Valley, I decided I had to get the hell out. Time for a road trip to a warm place. It was a perfect opportunity to test out Tesla's new East Coast Supercharger Highway, the just-completed string of...
David Noland -
Tesla Patents Prepare For Common Cross-Country Electric-Car Travel Via SuperchargerThis past week–almost exactly 500 days after Tesla Motors announced the first six stations in its Supercharger network–a father-daughter team in a Tesla Model S electric car became the first to cross the country by Supercharger alone. MORE: Elon Musk Talks Tesla Model X Details, Model S...
Matthew Klippenstein -
Plug-in Electric Car Sales in Canada, Jan 2014: Another Chevy-Tesla Tossup?The new year started out positively for Canadian electric-vehicle advocates, as government registration data showed Canadian plug-in electric vehicle sales topped 3,100 vehicles last year, representing a 58-percent increase over 2012. MORE: Plug-In Electric Car Sales In Canada In 2013: Up 50...
Matthew Klippenstein -
Elon Musk Talks Tesla Model X Details, Model S Upgrades, At Europe Q+A SessionsTesla Motors is notoriously stingy with information about its cars and future plans, to the great frustration of news-hungry Model S owners and fans. But in a Q & A session in Norway on February 1, Tesla CEO Elon Musk and the company's CTO JB Straubel revealed several intriguing tidbits about...
David Noland -
The final segment of my New York-to-Florida electric-car road trip, made possible through Tesla's new network of Supercharger stations along the East Coast, provided what I'd come for--time spent with old comrades--but it started gloomy. The grueling 380-mile day was brightened by the kindness of friends. It began with the sound of a frigid rain on the roof of Robin and Rosie's place in Ormond Beach. ( I keep outrunning the Polar Vortex, but then it keeps catching up.) MORE: Tesla Model S: NY-To-FL Trip, Days 1-2: From Home To South Carolina The Model S, plugged into a 120-Volt household...
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Tesla Model S: NY-To-FL Trip, Day 3, South Carolina To FloridaThe third day of my New York-to-Florida electric-car road trip, using the newly completed string of Supercharger stations along the East Coast, brought me almost to my destination in Florida. Here's how the most recent leg of my journey went. DAY 3: Santee, South Carolina, to Ormond Beach, Florida...
David Noland -
Tesla Model S: NY-To-FL Trip, From Home To South CarolinaSo far, the New York-to-Florida electric-car road trip in my 2013 Tesla Model S is progressing pretty much according to plan. That's not to say I haven't learned a few things in traveling via the newly-completed network of Tesla Supercharger DC quick-charging stations. One of them would be that...
David Noland -
Tesla Model S NY-To-FL Winter Getaway, Via SuperchargerIt's late January in upstate New York: 8 degrees F, with cloudy, light snow drifting down. The long-range forecast predicts non-stop sub-freezing temperatures for the next eight days. I need to get the hell out of here. Time for a road trip. MORE: Tesla Superchargers Now Opening Fast, Cross-Country...
David Noland -
Tesla Superchargers Now Opening Fast, Cross-Country Route CloseAfter a disappointing 2013, a year in which Tesla fell short of ambitious goals for expanding its Supercharger network, the company has picked up the pace remarkably. Just last week, seven new Superchargers came on line, the latest of a wave of 40 of the proprietary Supercharger DC fast-charging...
David Noland -
Best Western To Use 1,000 Via Range-Extended Electric Vans As Hotel ShuttlesVIA Motors has announced an $80 million purchase agreement with its Canadian distributor, Sun Country Highway, to deploy 1,000 of Via's range-extended electric Vtrux vans as shuttle vehicles at Best Western hotels. The pact is important for Via, giving it a major commitment that could kick-start...
Matthew Klippenstein