Green Car News

For years, spark plugs have been used to ignite the compressed fuel-air mix inside the cylinders of a gasoline engine to produce power. Now a new prototype engine is promising a future in which a gasoline engine behaves like a diesel engine, self-igniting the fuel as it is injected into the...

Since last year, you've likely heard a lot about electric cars. You'll hear much more in the years to come. But whether you're a fan or a foe, understand this: A few of the battery-electric cars you've heard about are "real"--meaning their makers want to sell as many as they can. But quite a few of...

Yesterday, we told you electric-car sales were down slightly in April--even as overall car sales continued to recover. But while the plug-in sales will likely stay low for awhile, both ebbing and flowing, one green model benefited greatly in April: the ur-hybrid Toyota Prius. Now that all four...

Until the last few years, there have only been two real ways of getting into motor racing. One is to have lots of money, and buy your way into a drive. The other is to work your way up from the bottom rungs, and hope you're talented enough to reach the next level. Oh, and also have lots of money...

The Ford Escape Hybrid occupies a special place in green-car history. It was the first hybrid built in the U.S., the first one from a U.S. carmaker, and the first hybrid crossover utility. That makes it one of our five best used green cars. A pet project of then-CEO Bill Ford, the Escape Hybrid was...

Buying a hybrid used to be so simple. You'd go to your local Toyota or Honda dealer, and buy a Prius or a Civic Hybrid/Insight (delete as appropriate). Now, everything is going hybrid--and that includes luxury cars and supercars. You won't find us complaining: if manufacturers are making some of...

In order to become an official automaker-approved dealer, dealers often undergo a lengthy process to prove they meet with sales and service requirements before the automaker will allow them to sell its cars. For prestige, luxury or specialist cars like high-performance sports cars or plug-in...

Incentives are nothing new in the world of car buying. Discounts here, extended warranties there--we've all made use of them at some stage. When you're targeting a car exclusively at younger buyers, as Scion does, sometimes the incentives need to be a little more inventive. That's why it's giving...

We’ve passed spring break, the weather is getting warmer and you’ve turned your weekend attentions to camping trips, DIY projects and outdoor sports. For many Americans, that means digging roof racks out of their winter storage and securing them on top of the family car for the season...

You may remember that last August, we broke the story that what is now called the 2014 Cadillac ELR electric coupe got the green light for production by GM's overlords. An abashed GM confirmed the story a few days later and released the name of the new model, known until then as the Converj concept...

Pittsburgh-based aluminum giant Alcoa has developed a new coating for its aluminum building panels that passively sucks in airborne pollutants and transforms them into harmless substances. Appropriately enough, the new panels are getting one of their first commercial tryouts at a new regional...

Sales of plug-in electric cars fell last month, with especially low sales of the Nissan Leaf, following their strong showing in March. Last month, just 370 Nissan Leaf battery-electric cars were sold, down from 579 in March, and bringing this year's Leaf sales to only 2,103 in the first four...

The eagerly-awaited new 2013 Dodge Dart compact sedan will start arriving at dealerships in June. But the first volley of Darts won't include every model. The model with the highest gas mileage will be known as the Dart Aero, and it should go on sale sometime between July and September. At a Dart...

With thousands of Leafs sold since the model's launch, it appears most owners are more than happy with their purchase. For many, the Leaf will be their first taste of all-electric mobility, and they're finding that the Leaf is happy to do everything their previous vehicle did--only without...

The Toyota Prius is the world's highest-selling hybrid vehicle and the third best-selling Toyota car in the U.S. Now, after one failed attempt, it appears that Prius production will come to North America--but not until 2015 or thereabouts, as Toyota first acknowledged back in July 2010. Koie Saga...

The trickle of European and Japanese small cars into the U.S. is slow but steady. We've got the MINI, we have the Fiat 500, and Ford and Mazda have graced us with the Fiesta and Mazda2. Compared to overseas markets though, there's still a lot of small metal that we're missing out on. So where are...

Import tariffs are a double-edged sword. On the one hand, they're necessary to protect national industry, making it more expensive for overseas companies--who may have cheaper production costs--to sell their products here, allowing domestic brands to compete. On the other, it makes it more...

Last week we started a series of the Five Best Used Green Cars To Buy. We've already looked at two of the best-known green cars, the 2004-2009 Toyota Prius and the 2006-2011 Honda Civic Hybrid. Now it's the turn of a car known for its fuel, rather than its drivetrain--the Volkswagen Jetta TDI...

For people in the electric-car world, next week is a big deal. And Toyota is taking advantage of it. The company will formally launch its Toyota RAV4 EV next Monday at noon Pacific (3 pm Eastern) at the 26th International Electric Vehicle Symposium (EVS26), which takes place in Los Angeles from...

When Ford decided to kill its hybrid variant of the 2012 Ford Escape, there was much gnashing of teeth and wailing here at GreenCarReports. Giving an impressive 34 mpg city and 31 mpg highway, the first -- and maybe best -- hybrid crossover from Ford set a tough act to follow. But now we know...