Green Car News
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Android and iPhone users can now find any electric vehicle charging station in the country, thanks to a new app from ChargePoint. The ChargePoint EV app doesn't just let drivers locate ChargePoint's own stations, but those from other providers, too. Compatible with all Android and iOS smartphones, the app lets drivers find stations nearby or search for stations near an address, and get directions to the user's station of choice. The app's map display lets you know whether a station is free or in use, and set up a list of favorite places to charge. ChargePoint-specific features include the...
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2013 Ford Hybrids' Gas Mileage Generates First LawsuitIt isn't just Hyundai and Kia in deep water over misleading MPG claims--now Ford is the subject of a lawsuit over the MPG of its hybrid models. The federal lawsuit concerns the fuel economy of its most recent hybrid models, the C-Max Hybrid and Fusion Hybrid. Filed on December 7, the lawsuit says...
Antony Ingram -
Texas Grid CEO: We Can Handle Electric Cars Just FineOn the list of reasons to dislike electric cars, arguments about electricity grids being unable to cope with demand are often fairly near the top. You'll have heard it before: The concept that, as everyone drives home after work and plugs in their electric vehicle, electricity grids fail under the...
Antony Ingram -
Grim First: Air Pollution Makes Top 10 List Of Disease Risk FactorsAccording to the 2010 Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors (GBD) Study published this month in The Lancet, high blood pressure, tobacco smoke, and alcohol abuse are the world's most dangerous risk factors for disease. Among the other top-ten items on that grim list, we also find...
Richard Read -
A Reminder: WA Electric Car Owners Pay $100 Tax From 2013If you live in Washington State, the cost of driving an electric car is set to go up in February next year. Not by a lot, it has to be said--but in an effort to get electric car owners to pay their share for the upkeep of roads and bridges, Washington electric car drivers will start paying an...
Antony Ingram -
Toyota Excited By Next Mazda-Based Yaris Small CarToyota has admitted that its Yaris small car isn't a marketing priority right now in the U.S. Instead, much of the company's efforts are going into the top-selling Corolla line--but when the firm's next-generation small car hits the streets, things could change. The next Toyota subcompact isn't yet...
Antony Ingram -
Electric vehicle startups come and go, but it's harder to ignore one fronted by "father of the Chevy Volt" Bob Lutz. That startup is Via Motors, producer of electric trucks, and it's set to unveil three new full-size electric vehicles at the Detroit Auto Show in January. Diversifying from mere work trucks, the range of extended-range electric vehicles is to include a high-performance, 4WD truck with up to 800 horsepower--known as the 'X-Truck'. Alongside this, Via will also be launching a technology-packed, luxury class 4WD SUV, and an extended-range electric 12-passenger van, for ride-share...
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Tesla Supercharger Network Expands Into East CoastThe 2013 Tesla Model S comes with one feature no other electric car can match: free quick-charging at an expanding network of Supercharger stations, usable only by Tesla owners. Following its October launch between the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles, the network now includes a station along...
John Voelcker -
2014 Mazda6 Sedan: 31 MPG Combined (Or So), But Not For SaleIn olden days, new models for the following year came out in September. Now, they're all over the calendar. The latest example is the 2014 Mazda Mazda6 sedan, of which several hundred already sit in Mazda showrooms across the country. Its highly efficient 184-hp SkyActiv 2.5-liter four-cylinder...
John Voelcker -
Could Hybrids Use Lead-Acid Batteries? Startup Says YesIt's quite easy to forget that cars have been using batteries for years before hybrids and electric vehicles arrived. The humble lead-acid battery, the planet's most recycled product, has been starting engines and providing power for car electrics ever since such a thing was required. Now, battery...
Antony Ingram -
'Twas The Night Before Christmas ...'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house, Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that St. Elon soon would be there. The Green Car Reporters were sat at the desk, Reading through comments and some were grotesque...
Antony Ingram -
2014 Chevrolet Equinox, GMC Terrain To Get eAssist Hybrid SystemStarting with its rollout in the 2012 Buick Lacrosse, GM has steadily added its eAssist mild-hybrid system to an expanding roster of vehicles. Next year, it will be offered as an option on the 2014 Chevrolet Equinox and the 2014 GMC Terrain, which will be the first crossover utility vehicles to...
John Voelcker -
You can't trust reindeer these days. Must be that celebrity status. With Christmas days away and Santa's lazy hoofed helpers sunning themselves in Hawaii on a last-minute travel deal, it's taken Lexus to come up with a solution for those vital Christmas deliveries. Last year, Ford provided the jolly old fellow with an EcoBoost-powered sleigh. Folks at the Blue Oval had worked out that those methane-emitting reindeer produce the equivalent of over 200,000 tonnes of CO2 on their Christmas Eve jaunt--ten times that of the EcoBoost sleigh. Lexus hasn't got quite as scientific with its Christmas...
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Electric Cars Are Doing Just Fine, Says Volt Patron Bob LutzSometimes the glass is half empty, sometimes it's half full. For the future of electric cars, count Bob Lutz on the half-full side--most likely containing a very nice Scotch. Lutz is not only the former GM product development czar, but the man who pushed through the Chevrolet Volt range-extended...
John Voelcker -
Global Lexus Hybrid Sales Pass Half-Million MarkLuxury automaker Lexus has hit a major milestone in hybrid sales: Half a million units. Since the company's first hybrid, the Lexus RX 400h hit the roads in 2005, over 506,000 have followed. And it's the RX hybrid which is still the best-selling line, making up over half of Lexus's total hybrid...
Antony Ingram -
Canada To Boost Electric-Car Charging Station Networks In ProvincesElectric car availability is low in some Canadian provinces, but as that changes, some companies have already begun to set up charging networks. As with the U.S. and elsewhere around the world, electric cars are expected to be most prevalent in larger cities, such as Toronto, Montreal and...
Antony Ingram -
Hong Kong, Choked By Smog, Bans Most Polluting VehiclesChoked by smog, the city of Hong Kong has finally cried "enough!" Despite setting clean air targets, the city's smog problems have been increasing every year, and authorities have finally brought in measures to ban the highest-polluting vehicles. According to Bloomberg (via Treehugger), that...
Antony Ingram -
Nissan Offers Almost $10K Cash Back On Leaf Electric CarsIf you want a Nissan Leaf then getting one before the start of January could net you a hefty cashback offer right now. Some Nissan dealers are advertising a $9,775 cashback offer direct from Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp (NMAC), Nissan's car finance arm. The offer has been running since the start of...
Antony Ingram -
General Motors and PSA/Peugeot-Citroen have penned an agreement to merge their future European small car development program, as well as focusing efforts on building a fuel-efficient, high performance small-displacement gasoline engine. The brands have abandoned plans to jointly develop a midsize car, but instead will focus on a compact crossover (marketed by both Peugeot and GM), a subcompact multipurpose vehicle (for PSA and Opel/Vauxhall) and a low-emission subcompact global platform for both companies. As Automotive News (subscription required) explains, the jointly-developed engine is...
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Tesla Reveals European Pricing For Model S Electric SedanTesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] has announced European pricing for the Model S, set to go on sale there next year. Speaking on the Tesla Blog, Tesla vice president George Blankenship revealed that the company is using a transparent approach to European pricing, making no more profit per car than it does...
Antony Ingram -
Fusion, Altima Get IIHS Top Safety Pick 'Plus'; Prius V, Camry Fall ShortFord and Nissan are celebrating the results of the latest round of Insurance Institute for Highway Safety crash testing--but rival Toyota won't be quite so joyful. The 2013 Ford Fusion and 2013 Nissan Altima have earned a Top Safety Pick+ from the IIHS, a new level above the previous Top Safety...
Antony Ingram -
Hybrid Rumors Persist For Next Nissan GT-R Sports CarOnce the perserve of the Japanese domestic market and the occasional videogame, the Nissan GT-R has subsequently become a performance icon. In its current iteration, it produces 545-horsepower from a 3.8-liter, twin-turbocharged V-6. 60 mph arrives in around three seconds and de-restricted it'll do...
Antony Ingram -
Wireless Electric Car Charging: Steady Growth Through 2020Wireless charging is nothing new--but it could be the next widely-used technology in the world of electric cars. That's according to Pike Research, which suggests wireless charging sales will surpass 280,000 by 2020. The group cites the partnerships of several electric vehicle manufacturers with...
Antony Ingram -
Toyota's Everyday Drive Website Highlights Plug-In Hybrid Benefits: VideoWhile purchasing a hybrid vehicle is a relatively easy decision these days, the purchase of a plug-in hybrid can be significantly more difficult to justify, thanks to its greater expense. In terms of the Toyota Prius, a 2013 Prius Two with no options can be configured with a sticker price as low as...
Kurt Ernst