Green Car News
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Hyundai arrived first to market with the world's first production hydrogen fuel-cell crossover utility in 2013 with the Tucson Fuel Cell, and we have a good idea of what to expect from the brand's follow-up act. The Korean brand unveiled a lightly-disguised concept this week that previews its next fuel-cell SUV to come in 2018, which remains unnamed so far. Hyundai has simply referred to this conceptual fuel-cell SUV as its ... "Next-Generation Fuel Cell SUV." DON'TMISS: Hyundai FE Fuel Cell Concept previews hydrogen-powered SUV coming in 2018 The brand made it clear, however, that the...
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Tesla electric-car plant expansion could double size of Fremont factoryElectric-car maker Tesla is at a pivotal time in the 13-year-old company's history as production of its mass-market Model 3 ramps up and ambitious plans to roll out additional vehicles loom. Coinciding with the production start of the Tesla Model 3 are plans for a major expansion the Silicon Valley...
Sean Szymkowski -
Chevy Bolt EV reviewed by BMW i3 driver: electric cars comparedOwners of specific electric cars sometimes tend to become boosters and fans for their particular EV as well as plugging in to drive in general. So it was with Tom Moloughney, whose purchase of the very first 2014 BMW i3 REx range-extended electric car in the U.S. he wrote about for us three years...
John Voelcker -
More Hyundai electrics, RIP NGVs, European plug-in sales, advertising poll: Today's Car NewsToday, we've got the latest on Hyundai-Kia's aggressive electric-car plans, a eulogy for natural-gas cars, plug-in sales in Europe, and a poll about the future of ads for cars with engines. All this and more on Green Car Reports. We polled our Twitter followers on when ads for cars with tailpipes...
John Voelcker -
Hyundai-Kia: eight electric cars by 2022, dedicated EV platformIt's long been said in the auto industry that Hyundai-Kia is the only competitor that truly scares industry colossus Toyota. Thirty years ago, the Korean company was a bit player, producing designs adapted from obsolete Mitsubishi technology. Today it's a major global player, reacting fast to...
John Voelcker -
European electric and plug-in hybrid sales for Jan-June 2017The numbers are in, which means it's once again time take a look at European electric and plug-in hybrid sales. Delivery and registration data is compiled from January through June of 2017, and once more, it remains clear Europe has a favorite electric car. The Renault Zoe walks away with an even...
Sean Szymkowski -
Natural gas vehicles were first promoted starting in about 2000 as a way to reduce reliance on imported oil and cut tailpipe emissions. Their promise appeared to grow near the height of the global financial crisis, when gas prices hovered around $4 per gallon across much of the United States. The domestic fuel promised to cut carbon-dioxide emissions and cut fuel costs for drivers—at a time when electric cars were essentially nonexistent. DON'T MISS: Smallest state poses big question: natural gas or renewable energy? This left a market primed for natural-gas vehicles, one in which the...
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When will ads for cars with tailpipes be banned as health hazards? Poll resultsJust 30 years ago, people could smoke anywhere, including offices, malls, and restaurants. The 1987 opening of a New York City restaurant called "Nosmo King" (read it again) was considered a bizarre, if amusing, idea that restauranteurs said would bankrupt the place because no one would give up...
John Voelcker -
Karma redux, gas stations vs charging, electric cars for Rallycross, CAFE changes: Today's Car NewsToday, the least efficient plug-in car, why rallycross should go electric, possible CAFE changes, and where electric cars should charge. All this and more on Green Car Reports. We drove the Fisker Karma in 2012; now we've driven the 2017 Karma Revero, the reborn version of the sleek, low...
John Voelcker -
Trump NHTSA might reduce fuel-economy rules for two-thirds of U.S. vehiclesConsumers all over the world, but especially in North America, are buying more crossover utility vehicles and fewer passenger sedans and hatchbacks. The U.S. auto industry makes the bulk of its profits on light trucks, which include crossovers, pickup trucks, and even minivans. The Trump...
John Voelcker -
Will Rallycross go electric? Michael Andretti on why series is perfect for EVsRallycross has become a sensation in motorsport relatively quickly: similar to autocross, a single car races against the clock on a set course or "stage," usually in the dirt, mud, or gravel—anything other than a paved track, in other words. Drivers with the best time are deemed the winner...
Sean Szymkowski -
Gas stations aren't a model for electric-car charging: ChargePoint CEOFor more than a century, motorists have been accustomed to gas stations, which provide places to stop and fill up a car with fuel, in recent years with larger and larger convenience stores attached. The model is so commonplace, it may mean drivers don't know electric-car charging stations even...
Sean Szymkowski -
The 2018 Karma Revero remains as much of a head-turner today as the low, sleek four-door sedan was when it debuted a decade ago under another name. It also happens to be a range-extended electric luxury sedan, though we tend to think that the Karma would sell just as well if it ran on coal dust and baby-seal blood. It's a big, low, handsome shape, and we were happy to get a chance to drive the updated version of what began life as the 2012 Fisker Karma. DON'T MISS: First TV ad for Karma Revero as sales to start in June First shown as a concept at the 2008 Detroit auto show, the Karma was...
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BMW vs Tesla; Merkel vs electric cars; $10K off Leaf, i3; Germany's iPhone moment: Today's Car NewsToday, Tesla and its impact on the German auto industry crop up in two very different reports, you can get $10,000 off an electric car (if you live in San Diego), and we honor Dull and Boring drivers. All this and more on Green Car Reports. With continued attention on Tesla's latest product, we...
John Voelcker -
Do German makers face 'iPhone moment,' after dodging diesel bullet?The Volkswagen diesel scandal has largely fallen out of the public eye in the U.S., as VW and Audi buy back and modify roughly half a million noncompliant vehicles sold from 2009 through 2016. In Germany, meanwhile, the major sellers of diesel vehicles—not only VW Group but also Mercedes...
John Voelcker -
San Diego utility offers $10,000 off Nissan Leaf, BMW i3 electric carsFor southern California residents, it's an excellent time to start considering the purchase of a BMW i3 or Nissan Leaf electric car. San Diego Gas & Electric has joined a host of other utility companies in the state in offering incentives towards the purchase of an i3 or a Leaf. In total, the...
Sean Szymkowski -
German Chancellor Merkel rejects electric-car quotas for Europe: 'not well thought out'German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the country's leader, has detailed why she believes electric-car quotas are not a viable answer to emission and other issues plaguing Europe. Merkel, a member of the conservative Christian Democratic Union, instead urged a much bigger-picture strategy, rather than a...
Sean Szymkowski -
Does Tesla Model 3 compete with Bolt EV and Leaf, or BMW 3-Series?There's a new generation of the BMW 3-Series sport sedan coming next year, and rumors suggest there will be an all-electric version in 2019 or 2020. If so, there's only one car that it would be targeting: the Tesla Model 3, the 220-mile or 310-mile electric sedan from the Silicon Valley carmaker...
John Voelcker -
Like the company's three previous electric cars, the Tesla Model 3 launched into production with a splashy media event during which owners received the keys to their new cars and the company's fans applauded. Like the Model S and Model X, production is starting at very low rates, with the rate of increase—to 5,000 cars a week by December 31, CEO Elon Musk says—closely watched by analysts, owners, and advocates. The Model 3 is the culmination of Tesla's August 2006 "Secret Master Plan," which has played out more or less as Musk envisioned it. DON'T MISS: Which electric car will...
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Mini E next month, Lunar Rover at 46, Ford Hub visit, Model 3 assessed: Today's Car NewsToday, a baffling visit in NYC, a tiny two-seat electric car for China, whether the Tesla Model 3 should really be dubbed "Car 2.0," and how does the Lunar Rover compare to a modern electric car? All this and more on Green Car Reports. As always, we ran down last week's top green-car news stories...
John Voelcker -
We visited NYC's Ford Hub; we still don't know what it wasThose who've lived in New York City since 2001 sometimes choose to avoid the World Trade Center site when possible. The area has largely been rebuilt into a combination of offices, shopping, and the 9/11 Memorial and Museum, with construction on some very tall towers still ongoing. A lunch date...
John Voelcker -
Baojun E100: GM's tiny, two-seat electric car for ChinaMost North Americans and Europeans will likely never have heard of Baojun, but it's one of many brands operated under General Motors' SAIC-GM-Wuling joint venture in China. Its portfolio is mostly made up of small sedans, multi-purpose vehicles (small minivans), hatchbacks, and a crossover utility...
Sean Szymkowski -
Senate panel rejects clean-energy cuts, boosts DoE funding insteadThe Senate Committee on Appropriations recently exhibited a quality somewhat rare in U.S. politics these days: bipartisanship. The committee released a lengthy report on the 2018 fiscal year budget for the Department of Energy that walks away from the Trump Administration's efforts to defund clean...
Sean Szymkowski -
All-electric Mini E for 2019 to appear at Frankfurt show in concept formThe first Mini E, cobbled together by putting a battery pack where the rear seat used to be, was BMW's very first attempt at building a modern electric car. Only a few hundred were built, back in 2009, but the quick project gave the German company real-world experience on how electric-car drivers...
Zach Bowman