Green Car News

With only a 1.4-liter engine and a relatively low purchase price, the regular 2012 Fiat 500 isn't what you might call an expensive car. German electric vehicle maker Karabag thinks it can make the little Fiat even cheaper though, and has installed an electric drivetrain into the car to prove it...

There are many routes to outstanding fuel efficiency, but it's often diesel that's chosen to demonstrate the highest mpg numbers and longest distances. Mileage experts Helen and John Taylor achieved both, to become the world record holders for the longest distance driven on one tank of fuel, using...

This is what it looked like yesterday when the wraps came off the production model of the 2012 Toyota RAV4 EV, Toyota's first battery electric vehicle in more than a decade. The exposition hall at the 26th annual Electric Vehicle Symposium is more likely to see displays of electric vehicle...

In the time it takes you to read this sentence, Larry "Spiderman" McBride set the first 200 mph quarter-mile run on an electric motorcycle. Crossing the line in 6.94 seconds and at a terminal speed of 201.37 mph, Spiderman and his Lawless Electric Rocket bike have set not only an electric...

Today, Toyota revealed the production version of its eagerly awaited 2012 RAV4 EV all-electric crossover, with a powertrain designed and provided by startup electric carmaker Tesla Motors. Surprising many at the event, Toyota revealed its production plans: It expects to build and sell roughly 2,600...

BMW and Daimler have traditionally been rivals in the automotive world, but last week we learned that engineers from the two rival German companies have been working together on a joint project to design and test a safer, more affordable, more efficient electric car. The Visio.M project, funded to...

Round, black, and easily forgettable--that's your average car tire. Often, we don't think about them until we need to change them, whether the tread is wearing low or we get a puncture. However, it's well worth considering them more often, as not only are they vital to your safety, but tires also...

It's one of the main points of dispute among electric-car buyers and advocates: What is the "right" number of all-electric miles? Some say maximal range is needed, e.g. the EPA-rated 73 miles of the Nissan Leaf or the promised 320 miles of the highest-spec 2012 Tesla Model S (that's not an EPA...

More often than most automakers would care to admit, that new car that you see debuted at a major auto show will undergo some minor -- and sometimes major -- alterations before it hits the dealer forecourt. Take the 2012 Kia Rio, for example. Officially launched at the 2011 New York Auto Show, Kia...

With the F1, NASCAR and IndyCar seasons in full swing, the Le Mans 24 Hour race just around the corner and grassroots series taking place all over the globe, the warmer months are heaven for those with gasoline in their veins. So intoxicated are they by the sounds, smells and sights, many are...

For as long as electric cars have existed, enterprising individuals around the U.S. have sought to convert gasoline cars to electric power. Over the years, we’ve seen everything from classic British sportscars through to SUVs and pickup trucks converted to run on electric power, with...

For U.S. armed forces, green is mostly seen these days as accents in beige battlefield camo. But reducing the cost and risk of delivering very expensive diesel fuel in vulnerable military convoys has long been a Pentagon goal, and one way to do that is to make all military vehicles more fuel...

BMW’s 1,000-strong fleet of ActiveE electric cars are stationed around the world, with the largest number of test cars concentrated in the U.S. Earlier this year, we got the chance to step behind the wheel of the very first BMW ActiveE to be delivered in the U.S., but earlier this week, we...

With gas prices high, you'd expect people to buckle down and hang onto their existing cars rather than spending the money to buy new ones, right? Errrrrrr, actually not. According to Mike Jackson, the outspoken and always quotable CEO of AutoNation, buyers who've put off their new-car purchases are...

When we drove the Renault Twizy on the island of Ibiza last month, we asked whether Renault would actually sell any. A vehicle that's virtually ideal for a sun-drenched island may not work so well in a rainy country like the U.K, or the colder climates of Eastern Europe. We did find it very much...

Several years ago, the world's auto industry heard a constant refrain: "The Chinese are coming, the Chinese are coming!" With low labor costs and a government imperative to create globally competitive car companies, Chinese makers were expected to follow in the footsteps of the Japanese and Koreans...

OK, OK, calm down. Yes, we're recommending a full-size sport utility with a huge V-8 engine as a "best used green car to buy." Why? Because there are green choices in every automotive category, and this is by far the greenest full-size sport utility vehicle. We often read in our comments that no...

It's not just cars that are getting bigger and heavier--a quick look around the local mall is enough to see that the average person on the street is more portly than their counterpart from a generation ago. Every year, obesity costs the country huge amounts of money, from $190 billion in extra...

Remember the monstrosity we showed you that'll be your next electric car charging plug? Well, it hasn't disappeared in the intervening months, and eight global automakers are set to demonstrate the new standardized fast-charging technology this month. Developed by the International Society of...

Ethanol has been problematic for several years now. Promoted as a way for the U.S. to grow its own vehicle fuel, the alcohol was so popular several years ago that Congress passed a Federal Renewable Fuels Standard as part of the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act. Now Hart Energy has issued...