Green Car News

  • 2012 Chevrolet Sonic  -  First Drive

    We found the 2012 Chevrolet Sonic to be fuel-efficient, comfortable, and in 1.4T form, the most refined model in this class, and one of the most engaging to drive.

  • 2011 Chevrolet Cruze Eco
    How Does Your New Car Get Better MPG Than Your Old One?

    Almost every day we hear of a shiny new car that gets a certain number of miles to the gallon, a number often greater than its predecessor. It sometimes seems like witchcraft - until significant steps towards high-tech materials are taken, rarely do cars lose weight from one model to the next (with...

  • Tesla Model S Alpha build
    Just Build It Already! 5 Green Cars We're Still Waiting For

    The concept car has a lot to answer for. They appear at motor shows around the world to preview what we can expect from future models, but invariably the production model ends up about half as interesting to look at and without most of the technology, thanks to cost constraints. Even worse though...

  • Tesla Model S Alpha build
    Tesla Promotes DOE Loans, Asks For More Money

    Electric automaker Tesla Motors posted a blog post on its website earlier this week detailing how the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Program had helped it expand and prepare not just one but many electric cars for the market. The blog post was designed...

  • Chelsea Sexton Drives HER-02 Racer (WIRED Magazine)
    Chelsea Sexton Meets Pikes Peak Champion, Takes HER For A Spin

    Former EV-1 saleswoman, electric-vehicle advocate and electric car celebrity Chelsea Sexton recently learnt that despite what some may say, size isn’t everything. Sexton, who works tirelessly within the auto industry to help electric cars make it to market got a little reward recently for her...

  • Screencap from the 'People Person' spot for the 2012 Toyota Prius family
    Behind The Disturbing Ad Campaign For The 2012 Toyota Prius

    To make its new ad for the 2012 Toyota Prius family, Toyota tapped some of the same talent that made its previous "Harmony" campaign a success. But as intriguing as the behind-the-scenes footage may be, we're not entirely sold on the new "People Person" clip. You might recall that when Toyota...

  • 2012 Chevrolt Volt Gas Station Advert

    Remember Apple’s popular Mac Vs PC adverts, in which John Hodgman’s haggard PC was constantly bettered by Justin Long’s smug Mac? After a while, Microsoft -- the firm to which the Get A Mac campaigns were so obviously targeted against -- chose play off Apple’s criticisms and producing the less popular, but cleverly marketed I’m a PC adverts to celebrate the benefits of using its operating system. Now the automotive world has witnessed the equivalent, with Chevrolet hitting back at Nissan’s Gasoline-Powered Everything ad campaign with a humorous benefit to...

  • 2012 Toyota Prius v
    2012 Toyota Prius, Prius V, Prius Plug-in Hybrid: Now With Spaceship Sound

    When the original Toyota Prius launched over ten years ago in the U.S. as a nerdy sedan, it wooed many buyers with its low-speed, near-silent operation. Now the days of the whispering Prius are over, thanks to U.S. legislation requiring every single electric vehicle and hybrid car to fit an active...

  • Engage Electric Dirt Bike
    Brammo Electric Motorcycles Bring Off-Road Playground To The U.S.

    Brammo Motorcycles -- the Oregon-based electric motorcycle company -- has concentrated for several years on bringing electric motorcycles to the masses with its Enertia commuter motorcycle and more recently, its Empluse sports bike. But now the company has embraced the high-adrenaline world of dirt...

  • Renee Zellweger's 1988 Honda CRX [via eBay Motors]
    Five Classic Cars With Modern-Day Gas Mileage

    Ask most people to name a classic or vintage car, and they’ll probably give you a list of V8 powered muscle cars not known for their high gas mileage. But the quest for fuel efficiency isn’t a new concept. In fact, there is a fairly large number of classic cars which when properly...

  • Robert Llewellyn Nissan Leaf Solar Panels
    Can An Electric Car Cut Solar Panel Payback Time? Yes, But...

    If you’re a homeowner with a suitable home and enough money to invest in a set of photovoltaic solar panels for your roof, you can easily power your home cheaply and cleanly. But while some states offer Feed In Tariff (FIT) schemes to let you sell back any excess power your solar panels...

  • 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid, production model
    Why Toyota Will Sell 2012 Prius Plug-Ins: It's The Sticker, Stupid

    Despite wrangling among electric-car fans over whether the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid's 9 to 14 miles of electric range are sufficient, one factor will make the car a success, at least in California: the valued sticker that gives drivers solo access to the HOV lane.

  • Used car salesman

    Yesterday, auto dealers met with their members of Congress to try to delay new rules that would stiffen the gas-mileage requirements for cars sold in model years 2017 to 2025. The National Auto Dealers Association made the rounds to pitch a proposal that would amend spending legislation for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the 2012 fiscal year. The amendment would forbid the EPA from taking any actions to implement fuel economy standards for those years. It is sponsored by Rep. Steve Austria (R-OH). The new standards, which would raise corporate average fuel economy to 54.5 miles...

  • We're Going To Need Electronauts
    Electronauts Only Need Apply For 2012 BMW ActiveE Electric Car

    Over the years automakers have used a huge array of techniques to entice members of the public to become test drivers in their electric car test programs. Often however, high lease fees combined with the requirement that lesses give back the prototype or limited run electric car at the end of the...

  • Li-Ion Motors Wave II, Progressive Automotive X-Prize winner.
    What Part Of 'No' Does Electric-Car Maker Li-Ion Motors Not Get?

    A little over a year ago, a relatively unknown electric automaker called Li-Ion Motors Corp. won the $2.5 million Alternative Side-By-Side Class in the Progressive Insurance Automotive X-Prize. Since then, Li-Ion Motors has been putting out regular press releases and information about its two...

  • 2011 Chevrolet Volt on test in Little Rock, Arkansas, July 2011
    Woman Buys Two, 2012 Chevy Volts, Gives One Away

    When the second ever 2011 Chevrolet Volt made rolled off the production line at General Motor’s Detroit Hamtamck facility last year, it was destined to be auctioned off in order to help raise funds for the public school system in Detroit. In that particular auction, a brand-new Chevrolet Volt...

  • 2012 Hyundai Veloster  -  First Drive
    Cheap Fuel Efficiency: Ten 40 MPG Cars For Under $20,000

    For many people, the purchase of a fuel efficient car is usually made to save money on driving, as the cost of being a car owner rises further and further. That being the case, why buy an expensive car in the first place, potentially taking years longer to pay off the fuel savings? The good news is...

  • Tiny Darth Vader uses the force on a 2012 Volkswagen Passat
    VW Ditches Darth Vader, Goes All Yoda With 2013 Jetta Hybrid

    If you remember Volkswagen’s Super Bowl advert from earlier this year involving a pint-sized Darth Vader, its 2011 Passat had a particular affinity with the dark side of the force. But as of 2013 the evil Pasatt will have a nemisis in the form of the 2013 VW Jetta Hybrid, complete with a...

  • John Petsche with his record-setting homebrew 350cc diesel motorcycle running on vegetable oil

    Combine a whole bunch of parts from motorcycles, go-karts, industrial machinery, and even generators, and what do you get? In John Petsche's case, he not only built a motorcycle that runs on store-bought vegetable oil, he managed to take home a world speed record for the 350cc Alternate Fuel class. (There are lots and lots of specialized world speed record categories, thankfully.) The homebrew motorcycle uses an industrial diesel engine that puts out a whopping 6 horsepower, which is why the record-breaking top speed was just 56.535 mph. But, hey, it's not like you can just go down to your...

  • 2008 Honda Civic Hybrid 4-door Sedan Angular Front Exterior View
    Why An Old, Used Honda Civic Hybrid Is Good For Your Health

    We all know that the venerable Toyota Prius is the most well-known of all hybrids on the market today, both in terms of numbers made and its impressive gas mileage. But if you’re in the market for a used hybrid you might be surprised to know that a used 2006-2010 Honda Civic Hybrid might be...

  • Traffic
    Electric-Car Owners To Lose If CA Carpool Lanes Get Tolls?

    State and local agencies are strapped for cash, and one source of income may be the high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes on congested freeways. In Southern California, local officials plan to convert "carpool lanes" to toll lanes with variable pricing, allowing drivers to pay up to $10 for the...

  • 2011 Coda Sedan electric car, at 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show
    Coda Secures More Funding, Continues March Towards 2012 Sedan Production

    Californian electric automaker Coda Automotive might have recently opened its first showroom and signed a deal to open a final assembly plant in Benicia, California where it plans to install the electric drivetrain in its 2012 Coda Sedans -- but it has only just closed an eight-month funding round...

  • ESB ecars Nissan Leaf Cannonball team at the finish
    Video: Irish Cannonball Run 2011 Nissan Leaf Home And Dry

    A few weeks back we brought you news that a team entered into the famous Cannonball Run, this year held in Ireland, would be doing the trip in a 2011 Nissan Leaf. We missed the end of their journey as the excitement of the Frankfurt Show got in the way, but we're pleased to report the ESB ecars...

  • The 2012 Toyota Prius. Image: Toyota
    2012 Toyota Prius Improves With Subtle Changes

    Toyota has upped 2012 Prius content across most trim levels, but has made only minor changes to the car's styling.

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