Green Car News

  • BMW Vision EfficientDynamics (a.k.a. i8)

    The announcement of the all-new BMW sub-brand took the automotive industry by surprise earlier this year, but after check out the facts sounds like an interesting move to differentiate BMW’s offering in the hybrid and electric market. Our last report covered the car formerly known as the Megacity and now known as the symbol…wait that something different entirely. Getting back on track, the Megacity will be introduced to consumers sometime in 2013 as the i3. Now in a set of spy videos caught by Bimmerpost.com we get a close look at the i8 sports coupe. If the i8 sounds familiar or...

  • 2011 Mazda Mazda2
    8.9 Earthquake Spares Small Car Manufacturing Plants in Japan

    As the full effects of last week’s 8.9-magnitude earthquake are still sinking in there has been questions in the automotive industry as to whether Japanese car manufacturers would be affected. Now there are bound to be some issues especially considering the damage to the nuclear power plant...

  • 2011 Subaru WRX STI
    Subaru Offers Sports Tickets As Part of Regional “Subaru Saves Lives” Campaign

    When you think of Subaru the first thing that might come to your mind is the WRX or possible all-wheel drive. Neither of those are incorrect, but Subaru wants to stand for more than that; the company wants to be known for their social conscious and as such is running a campaign that will end...

  • 2011 Hyundai Elantra
    2011 Hyundai Elantra Wins Best Value and Fuel Economy

    There is no doubt by now that you have seen gas prices rise in your area. There is also no doubt that this may seem like déjà vu. Let us remind you of the summer of 2008 when gas prices were climbing to all time highs here in the U.S. and consumers were starting to dump their large...

  • Nissan LEAFs arrive in the U.K.
    Will $4-a-gallon gas ignite an electric-vehicle frenzy?

    As gas prices rise, electric cars look better and better. But any chances manufacturers had the last time gas hit $4 a gallon were extinguished thanks to the 2008 recession, which made electric vehicles’ high upfront costs unpalatable. Now it looks like they’ll have a second chance to...

  • Aptera 2e production intent vehicle
    What Ever Happened To...? 5 Electric Cars We Should Have by Now

    Nissan may have got heat recently for its long, drawn out and significantly delayed rollout of the 2011 Nissan Leaf, but it isn’t the only company struggling to fulfil its own sales figures for 2011. Over the past two years there have been a whole barrage of cars which were promised to the...

  • 2011 Toyota Prius

    Think car buyers understand what a hybrid is, or a plug-in electric car? Think again. A new survey conducted by research firm Synovate finds that many of almost 1,900 new-car "buyers and intenders" don't understand how hybrid vehicles work. Worse, most of them don't seem to understand how conventional hybrids--which have now been sold in the U.S. for a decade--differ from cars that plug in. Survey data shows that most consumers consider buying fuel-efficient cars to save money, not for altruistic or environmental reasons. But we suspect unfamiliarity with these types of cars is bound to deter...

  • Speed Limit 55
    Should The U.S. Lower Speed Limits In Order To Curtail Fuel Consumption?

    The recent spike in oil prices has got the whole world focused on fuel consumption, so much so in some parts that countries are lowering their national speed limits in an effort to reduce their national fuel consumption levels. One such country is Spain, which reduced its speed limit for cars from...

  • Bluecar EV
    Pininfarina Signs Deal For Production Of Bluecar Electric Vehicle

    The last we heard of Pininfarina and its Bluecar electric vehicle was that the company was looking to start production but a lack of financial support meant the project was never able to pass the concept stage. That was almost two years ago, however. Fast forward to today and we have news that...

  • 2012 Ford Focus Electric at 2011 Geneva Motor Show, photo by Robert Llewellyn
    Ford Makes EV Competition With Focus Electric's Superior Cold Weather Performance

    For the last couple of years we have see the electric vehicle (EV) market on the move. It is something we have been watching with great fascination here at AllSmallCars.com. From the success of the Tesla Roadster (despite some bad reviews) to the launch of U.S. made electric microcars, the TH!NK...

  • 2011 Chevrolet Volt outside Detroit-Hamtramck assembly plant
    Chevy Volt Production May Rise; It's Not As Simple As You Think

    It all started when General Motors CEO Dan Akerson said the company wanted to "double" production of the 2011 Chevrolet Volt, its range-extended electric car. Various media outlets reported the news with varying degrees of accuracy. So far, GM has not officially said it will make more Volts...

  • Ford Fiesta ECOnetic
    Ford Still Bearish On Diesels, Product Chief Derrick Kuzak Explains Why

    It’s the age-old question: Why do we still not have the wide range of clean-diesel models that automakers have offered to the rest of the world for decades? It’s proven that diesel powered cars can offer hybrid-like fuel economy--even better in some situations--as well as thrilling...

  • Google Maps Offer Charging Stations Information

    In the connected world of modern electric vehicles your car probably already knows where the nearest charging point is. But what happens if you’re planning a long trip and want to acquaint yourself with the area around a charging point before you go? Enter Google and its online map tools, which now includes the location of every known public electric vehicle charger. A post on Google’s own LatLong blog explains how it all works: users of Google’s online Maps can now use the search terms “EV Charging Station” along with an address or neighborhood location to be...

  • IED Abarth scorpION Concept
    Abarth ScorpION: The Electric Car With A Sting In Its Tail

    What happens when you give an Italian design studio free reign to create an electric car wearing one of Italy's most celebrated badges? You get the Abarth ScorpION concept, by IED. Unusually the ScorpION wasn't present on Abarth's own stand amongst the hotted-up Fiat 500s and a single seater series...

  • Gas pump
    You'll Pay $700 More For Gasoline This Year (If You're Average)

    According to the Department of Energy, the average U.S. household will pay $700 more for gasoline this year than it did in 2010. In a weekly review of the oil market, the department's Energy Information Administration noted that prices will rise at least 10 cents more over the current national...

  • BYD, at Detroit auto show
    Build Your Dream, or Disaster? Wikileaks, Buffet & Electric Car Woes

    An open policy of reverse engineering, doors that fall off and shady sales practices are hardly the things you’d expect of an automaker trying to make it into the U.S. market. But as newly surfaced diplomatic cables published on Internet whistle-blowing site WikiLeaks show, the battery firm...

  • Veritas RSIII Roadster plug-in hybrid. Photo by Translogic.
    Green-Car Faceoff: Who's The World's Fastest Plug-In Hybrid?

    We don't spend much time covering single-seat speed machines like the Veritas RSIII Roadster here on Green Car Reports. But the previously gasoline-centric performance car crowd is quickly coming around to the remarkable acceleration benefits of stored electricity. The latest example? Veritas is...

  • 2010 Audi A3 TDI
    Audi Powers Onward With Clean-Diesel Lineup For U.S. Buyers

    While Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz are the long-term diesel stalwarts in the States, relative newcomer Audi has ambitious plans. During a lengthy teleconference yesterday, Audi confirmed that it would add TDI clean-diesel models to every car it offers in the U.S. market by 2015. Audi has frequently...

  • Renault Twizy Z.E. electric vehicle

    Is it a car? Is it a scooter? No: It's a Twizy, which could be considered a combination of the two. If you're following the world of electric cars with a keen eye then you'll no doubt be aware that French manufacturer Renault is taking electric vehicles quite seriously, just like its Japanese partner Nissan. A few years back Renault revealed a group of four electric 'Z.E.' concepts, the Fluence sedan, the Kangoo delivery van, the Zoe subcompact and the Twizy microcar. Since then we've seen the DeZir electric sports car concept and a further preview of the Zoe. We've also seen the Kangoo and...

  • Tata Pixel Concept, 2011 Geneva Motor Show
    Video: Tata Pixel Concept's 'Spin On The Spot' Parking

    It's not coming to the States--at least not for several years--but the Tata Pixel concept shown at last week's Geneva Motor Show is worth paying attention to. It shows how a more upscale four-seat urban car could be built on the underpinnings of the tiny Tata Nano, the world's cheapest new car. One...

  • Honda launches Fit EV electric car and Accord plug-in hybrid test program in Torrance, CA, Dec 2010
    Up To 15 Mile Electric-Only Range For Honda Plug-In Hybrid, Debuts In Accord In 2012

    Honda has been slow to the game when it comes to plug-in hybrids and electric cars but at the recent 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show the automaker proved that it was not completely in the dark in this area. On display at the show was a new version of its Fit compact car powered by an electric...

  • ECOtality Blink charging stations for electric & plug-in cars
    Fill Your Cart and Your Car: Supermarket Charges Electric Cars

    In the past few years we’ve seen electric charge stations pop up everywhere from gas stations to electronics stores and banks. But now electric car owners in the Pacific Northwest have a new place to charge: the grocery store. Enter Fred Meyer Store. Based in Portland Oregon, the firm has...

  • Tesla Motors - Model S lithium-ion battery pack
    How Much Does a Tesla Model S Battery Pack Cost You? We do the Math

    Yesterday Tesla Motors Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Ownership Experience George Blankenship wrote an update on the upcoming Model S electric sedan on the company blog. Alongside an update on the alpha testing of Tesla’s much anticipated seven seat sedan, Blankenship outlined the...

  • 2011 Chevrolet Cruze Eco, New York City, March 2011
    2011 Chevy Cruze Eco Gas Mileage: We Get 34 MPG--Which Is Fine

    With political uncertainty in oil-producing states, and the rising gas prices that brings, you can expect to see a lot more headlines saying "40 MPG!" We just did a quick overnight road test of a 2011 Chevrolet Cruze Eco with the six-speed manual transmission, which the EPA rates at 28 mpg city and...

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