Green Car News

  • 2017 Hyundai Ioniq Electric

    Measuring the energy efficiency of a new vehicle is one thing, but ascertaining its overall environmental impact can be more complex. A debate still rages over the overall carbon footprint of electric cars compared to those powered by fossil fuels. But for the past 20 years, the the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy has tried to come up with some concrete answers. DON'T MISS: Hyundai Ioniq Electric beats Prius Prime, BMW i3 on energy efficiency (Nov 2016) Every year, the ACEEE issues rankings of the environmental impact of new vehicles sold in the U.S. Today, it issued its 2017...

  • 2017 Tesla Model S
    Tesla updates maintenance plans; higher fees now include hardware updates

    Electric cars may require significantly less maintenance than internal-combustion cars, but even they will break down eventually. So the Silicon Valley automaker offers maintenance plans, which allow owners to prepay for annual inspections and other routine work. Early in the life of the Model S...

  • 2017 Chevrolet Cruze Diesel Sedan
    2018 Nissan Leaf spy shots, 2017 Chevy Cruze Diesel mpg, carmakers & Trump: Today's Car News

    Today, we have spy shots of the 2018 Nissan Leaf, EPA fuel-economy ratings for the 2017 Chevrolet Cruze Diesel sedan, and analyses of automakers' claims that current EPA emissions rules will threaten jobs. All this and more on Green Car Reports. We have news from Tesla, Volkswagen, and Subaru in...

  • 2017 Chevrolet Cruze
    2017 Chevrolet Cruze Diesel sedan rated at 37 mpg combined

    With the elimination of Volkswagen diesel models, the 2017 Chevrolet Cruze Diesel is one of the few remaining options for buyers seeking a mainstream-priced diesel car. The second-generation Cruze Diesel was confirmed last year, but the initial sedan variant is only just now going on sale. We now...

  • Gas pump
    Carmakers ask Trump to review EPA rules, use discredited job projection

    Just days after the presidential election, an automaker lobbying group wrote Donald Trump asking him to change or delay an EPA decision that kept planned exhaust-emission standards through 2025. Now executives of 18 automakers have sent a second letter, asking the same thing—and echoing a...

  • 2017 Hyundai Ioniq Electric
    2017 Hyundai Ioniq to have lifetime battery-failure warranty

    Hyundai is extending the lifetime battery warranty offered on previous electrified models to the 2017 Ioniq lineup as well. The warranty applies to all versions of Hyundai's first dedicated green car, including the Ioniq Hybrid, Ioniq Electric, and Ioniq Plug-In Hybrid. As with previous Hyundai...

  • 2014 Peterbilt 579

    A prominent lobbying group believes environmental remediation funds from Volkswagen diesel settlements should be spent on new "clean" diesel vehicles. The settlement for 2.0-liter TDI cars approved last year requires VW to pay $2.7 billion into a trust, managed by a third party. Volkswagen agreed to put an additional $225 million into the trust under a separate settlement for 3.0-liter TDI vehicles. CHECK OUT: Road for electric trucks with trolley-like catenary opens in Sweden (Jul 2016) This money is to be used to mitigate the environmental impact of the excess emissions from its diesel...

  • Proterra Catalyst electric bus
    One third of new transit buses will be electric in 2020, all by 2030: Proterra CEO

    While electric cars continue to establish a beachhead in the consumer market, electric buses are making quick inroads with U.S. city transit authorities. Several companies already manufacture electric buses, which now operate in several cities around the country. But the CEO of electric-bus maker...

  • Chevrolet Bolt EV Cruise Automation test mule in San Francisco
    GM releases second Chevy Bolt EV autonomous driving video

    The Chevrolet Bolt EV may very well turn out to be a game-changing electric car in more ways than one. With an EPA-rated 238-mile range and a base price of $37,495, the Bolt EV has the potential to appeal to a much broader range of customers than previous electric cars. At the same time, it's also...

  • 2016 BMW i3
    Big energy hugely underestimates electric cars, renewable power

    Mass adoption of electric cars and renewable energy could significantly decrease global consumption of fossil fuels. But does the established energy industry view these new developments as a threat? In a recent report, ExxonMobil said coal could continue to provide the majority of the world's...

  • Section of 2018 Nissan Leaf spy shot  [image via S. Baldauf/SB-Medien, as used on Motor Authority]
    2018 Nissan Leaf spy shots: our question on electric car update

    It's the long-missing member of the trio, the last of three affordable electric cars with 200-plus miles of range expected to go into production this year. But until now, we've heard almost nothing about the 2018 Nissan Leaf. All we knew was that the second generation of the world's highest-volume...

  • John and Mimi Porter of San Diego, California, with their new 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV, in Feb 2017
    Model 3 start, VW diesel drama, Subaru first drive, Bolt EV owner impressions: The Week in Reverse

    What remarkable accusation did the Volkswagen board of directors make against its former CEO and scion of the family that founded the company? And what date does one rumor give for the start of pilot production of the eagerly awaited Tesla Model 3 electric car? This is our look back at the Week In...

  • 2017 Ford C-Max Energi

    Today, we have an updated plug-in hybrid price guide, the debut of the 2018 Hyundai Elantra GT hatchback, and an update on Elio Motors and its "84 mpg" three-wheeled vehicle. All this and more on Green Car Reports. What would Nikola Tesla think of the Tesla Model S? This amateur fan video imagines what an encounter between Tesla and his namesake car would be like. Elio Motors now says its three-wheeled vehicle won't start production until 2018. But recently-uncovered documents indicate the company may not survive until then. Looking for a plug-in hybrid? We have prices and specs for every...

  • 2016 BYD Tang plug-in hybrid SUV, made in China
    China's BYD built more plug-in cars than any other maker last year

    Time for a quick quiz: which carmaker sold more plug-in electric vehicles last year—both battery electrics and plug-in hybrids—than any other? If you're a reader in North America or Europe who managed to miss our headline, odds are you may answer "Tesla" or "Nissan," based on media...

  • Chrome exhaust pipe
    What White House faces if it tries to roll back fuel-economy standards

    Donald Trump won the U.S. Electoral College and swept into the White House on a varied platform that included significant promises to cut regulation and reduce government involvement in a wide variety of spheres. The day after his election, the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers sent him a letter...

  • Size comparison of electric-car charging stations (EVSEs) on sale today, March 2016
    Electric-car charging station safety: what you need to know

    Like any consumer product, it's important to consider safety when buying a charging station for an electric car. While plugging the vehicle into a station is straightforward, the large amount of current carried over the cord from the power source to the car makes caution worthwhile. Even...

  • 2018 Hyundai Elantra GT Sport
    2018 Hyundai Elantra GT hatchback unveiled at Chicago auto show

    Over the last 10 years, the Hyundai Elantra has emerged into the top tier of compact sedans, joining longstanding leaders like the Ford Focus, Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, and Volkswagen Jetta as well as more recent contenders like the Chevrolet Cruze and Subaru Impreza. The last-generation Elantra...

  • 2017 Chevrolet Volt
    Plug-in hybrid price guide: every 2017 model, with specs

    The number of plug-in hybrid cars has expanded greatly over the past few years. If you've had trouble keeping track of all of these new plug-in cars, fear not. A couple of weeks ago, we gathered the relevant data for every battery-electric car on sale today, and presented it to you in one place...

  • Elio E1A test vehicle, June 2016

    Elio Motors continues to drag its feet regarding the start of production for its three-wheeled, two-seat, "84-mpg" vehicle, but it may now be running out of time. The company previously said it had received 55,000 reservations for the car, representing potential sales of $300 million. Last year, it raised $17 million through small-investor crowdfunding. DON'T MISS: Will 3-wheeled so-called 'autocycles' break out this year? We're skeptical But so far, Elio has only built a handful of prototype cars. Now the company says it will push the start of series production back to 2018, according to a...

  • Nikola Tesla drives a Tesla Model S in fan-made video
    Nikola Tesla drives Tesla Model S: amateur fan video imagines

    As an auto company that exclusively produces electric cars, Tesla Motors has a very appropriate name. It is, of course, named after Nikola Tesla, a famed engineer who pioneered technologies related to electricity. So what might Nikola Tesla think of his namesake? DON'T MISS: Pilot production of...

  • Tesla Model 3 design prototype  -  reveal event  -  March 2016
    Tesla Model 3 pilot production, VW vs Piech, electric-car battery prices: Today's Car News

    Today, we look at a report regarding the start of Tesla Model 3 pilot production, conflict between Volkswagen's board of directors and ex-CEO Ferdinand Piëch, and forecasts of decreasing electric-car battery prices. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Pilot production of the Tesla Model 3...

  • Image from 'Thinking About Tomorrow' video ad for 2017 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell
    Honda Clarity Fuel Cell marketing theme: thinking about tomorrow

    A 40-year-old Fleetwood Mac song, floating childrens' heads, and hydrogen molecules all kick off the marketing campaign for the 2017 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell hydrogen-powered vehicle. Like most marketing for hydrogen vehicles, the video ad above will likely be targeted only to California drivers...

  • 2017 Nissan Leaf
    California goal: eliminate gasoline, diesel light vehicles altogether

    What if gasoline and diesel cars and light trucks were simply eliminated altogether from the new vehicles sold in a state? Residents of one state in the U.S. may, eventually, find out. California already leads the nation in promoting zero-emission vehicles, but the Golden State may soon take that...

  • Ferdinand Piech, chairman and CEO of Volkswagen Group, at 2000 Paris Motor Show
    VW Board vs ex-CEO Piech: rancor erupts over diesel cheating lies

    Statements from the boards of directors of automakers are generally dry, dispassionate, and formal. So the language of a terse item issued yesterday by the board of Volkswagen Group was remarkable in its directness. Not to mention its inferences about the company's former CEO Ferdinand Piech, who...

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