Green Car News
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Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson isn't known for being a fan of electric or hybrid vehicles. Usually when we write about him on Green Car Reports it's to comment on the latest daft stunt or anti-electric piece on the program, but naturally, we're prepared to give credit where credit is due. Actually, upon seeing Clarkson's latest invention, the P45 hybrid microcar, maybe credit isn't due after all. A quick look at it is enough to see why--if a Transformer had a child, this is what it might look like half way between changing from a robot to a car. Several years ago, Clarkson tested the Peel...
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2014 Chevrolet Cruze Clean Turbo Diesel: Chicago Live PhotosAs one of two new U.S.-built diesels going on sale in 2013, the 2014 Chevrolet Cruze Diesel is a hugely important car. Chevy launched the Cruze Clean Turbo Diesel (to use its full, rather awkward title) earlier this morning at the Chicago Auto Show, and now we can bring you photos of the car from...
Antony Ingram -
Kia Cross GT Hybrid Concept: 2013 Chicago Auto ShowLaunched today at the 2013 Chicago Auto Show, the Kia Cross GT does nothing to make us doubt Kia's future design direction. The dramatic luxury crossover concept really stands out, reaching far beyond the company's budget roots. It's the tech under the skin that interests us though, as the Cross GT...
Antony Ingram -
2014 Kia Forte Five-Door: Chicago Auto Show Live PhotosIt's a lot of fun attenting auto shows. We get to see the latest cars the second they're unveiled, hear the reactions of other show-goers, and write about it to audiences eager to see where their next car is coming from. But it's also hard work, which is why we rather appreciated Kia's offer of...
Antony Ingram -
2014 Kia Forte 5-Door: 2013 Chicago Auto ShowKia Motors America has today unveiled a new 5-door version of the Forte at the 2013 Chicago Auto Show. The sleek five-door hatchback has what Kia describes as 'European styling', and goes head-to-head with cars like the Ford Focus with its hatchback practicality. Topping the engine range is a...
Antony Ingram -
Ford Adds Charging-Station Search To Energi Plug-In HybridsMyFord Mobile, Ford's smartphone app for the Ford Focus Electric, will soon be available on the brand's plug-in hybrid models too. The app allows customers to manage vehicle functions from their smartphone, such as viewing the state of charge, timing charging sessions, setting cabin temperature and...
Antony Ingram -
Electric cars are often described as "zero emission vehicles". That's true, to an extent - you won't find a drop of any substance eminating from their non-existent tailpipes. But naturally, they get their energy from somewhere, and that somewhere is a country's electricity grid. Those can be less than clean, as China's recent smog problems from coal-burning plants illustrate. It means China is a pretty bad country to run an electric car. Bottom of the pile: India According to Shrink That Footprint (via The Guardian), India is the dirtiest country in the world in which to run an electric car...
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2014 Chevrolet Cruze Clean Turbo Diesel: Full DetailsIt's been a long time coming, but the wraps are now off Chevy's first diesel-powered passenger car since 1986. The 2014 Chevrolet Clean Turbo Diesel model is being unveiled today at the Chicago Auto Show, and will go on sale the summer in the U.S. and Canada. The 2.0-liter direct-injected and...
John Voelcker -
Classic BMW Coupe Becomes 800-Horsepower Electric CarBMW's ActiveE coupe is a great little electric car. Even more so when it's working. It looks pretty good, there's decent performance on offer, and drivers enjoy BMW handling and BMW quality without having to feed a drop of gas into it. An electrified 1-Series coupe will never be quite as cool as...
Antony Ingram -
Do Small Turbo Engines Really Give Better Gas Mileage?Back in November, we asked whether tinier, turbocharged engines were really the best way to get good gas mileage. Our assertion was that with the latest generation of small turbocharged engines replacing larger variants, the real-world gas mileage improvement is nowhere near that of the on-paper...
Antony Ingram -
Ford Boost Dealers Selling Plug-In Electric Cars To 900If you're trying to get your hands on a plug-in Ford, it should soon get a little easier. Ford will more than quadrouple the number of dealers able to sell its plug-in models, the Ford Focus Electric, C-Max Energi plug-in hybrid and Fusion Energi plug-in hybrid this year. According to The Detroit...
Antony Ingram -
2013 Tesla Model S Ready For Delivery: So Close & Yet So FarAfter just about four years of waiting, my 2013 Tesla Model S has arrived. Almost. The call from the Tesla delivery rep came on February 4, the last day of the two-week delivery window promised back in December. My car, with metallic green paint, 60-kilowatt-hour battery pack, black leather...
David Noland -
Electric car owners coming out of winter will know just how much of a drain a car's accessories can put on their range. That makes energy-efficient accessories like the Bose Energy Efficient Series audio system available with the 2013 Nissan Leaf an easy option to understand. With no engine roar to contend with, the Nissan Leaf could actually be an ideal environment in which to enjoy your music, but it wouldn't quite be as enjoyable if it curtailed your car's range. As a result, Bose developed a system that uses only half the electrical current of a typical system, as well as being smaller...
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Better Place Bails Out Of Both U.S. And AustraliaIf you've been following our reports on battery-swapping company Better Place, the news probably won't come as much of a surprise. The company has decided to shut down its operations in the U.S. and Australia, to concentrate on its original markets of Denmark and Israel. Loss-making Better Place...
Antony Ingram -
Does $5K Tool Really Cause Chevy Dealers To Drop Volt Electric Car?If you were a car dealer, would you decide not to sell a plug-in electric car because you had to buy a $5,000 tool to service it? We didn't think so. Late last year, trade journal Automotive News wrote a story saying that a few Chevrolet dealers have stopped selling the Chevy Volt range-extended...
John Voelcker -
Mazda Diesel Daytona Racer Used Synthetic FuelOne of the more hotly-anticipated cars of this year is the diesel variant of Mazda's new 6 sedan. It's a striking car on the outside, but its efficient clean diesel engine should make it striking on the road too--with cleanliness and efficiency being key priorities. Efficiency is always a priority...
Antony Ingram -
Tiny Chevy Spark Minicar Lures Younger, Newer BuyersWho'da thunk it? Young buyers may love Camaros and Mustangs, but when it comes to smaller cars, American brands have traditionally played second best to imports. But the Chevrolet Spark minicar is proving much more successful, bucking all the trends. It's even stealing plenty of buyers off its...
Antony Ingram -
Which Hybrids Get Good Mileage Even If You Hot-Rod?We're always interested to hear what sort of cars our readers drive. We're even more interested to hear what gas mileage you're all getting from those cars. Testing a car for a weekend, or a week, is all well and good, but a wide cross-section of owners will always get wildly varying results...
Antony Ingram -
It's become increasingly common for carmakers to solicit volunteers to lease new-technology cars for a year or two, to gather real-world data about how the cars are actually driven and used. But those cars remain development prototypes, not production-quality vehicles. And as BMW ActiveE drivers have learned of late, sometimes there can be quality issues--and, now, an official recall. The limited-edition ActiveE is BMW's electric conversion of a BMW 1-Series two-door sedan, of which 700 are now on U.S. roads. On January 17, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued a...
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Cheapest Car To Own Over Five Years? Scion iQ, Says KBBWhat motivates you to buy a green car? For some, it's the desire to do just a little to help the environment. For others, it might be the technology. Some may simply want to save money. If the latter is a major factor, you may be interested to know that the cheapest car to run over five years is...
Antony Ingram -
Predicting Chevy Volt Sales: Is California Inventory The Key?Analyzing electric-car sales numbers and prognosticating on them is somewhere between a parlor game and a black art. Now one blogger has applied some Nate Silver-like statistical analysis to try to divine predictive patterns in sales of the Chevrolet Volt, the range-extended electric car that's...
John Voelcker -
Forbidden Fruit: Mercedes-Benz A Class Quick DriveSelling luxury vehicles is a delicate balancing act. Concentrate on your most wealthy clientele and the market is lucrative, but limited. But go too far the other way, catering for the mass market, and you risk damaging your reputation. This is the barrier Mercedes-Benz has had to cross in...
Antony Ingram -
Honda Fit EV Now Available On East Coast TooA select few drivers on the U.S. West Coast have already been enjoying Honda's token contribution to the electric car market, the Fit EV. Now their counterparts in some East Coast markets will be able to lease the small EV too. Drivers in California and Oregon have had access to the 118 MPGe...
Antony Ingram -
Electric-Car Maker Tesla Gains In Brand AwarenessIf you're reading this, you probably already know a little bit about Tesla. Brainchild of entrepreneur Elon Musk, producer of electric vehicles, and upstart in the automotive market, Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] has been one of the highest-profile new brands of recent years. That high profile has done...
Antony Ingram