Green Car News

The ink's barely dry on the Tesla - Toyota deal that gives the startup electric-car maker a new manufacturing home. But today, Tesla's going public with some details on how it plans to use the former NUMMI facility in Fremont, California, to build its mainstream 2012 Tesla Model S sedan. The former...

With the impending death of the Mercury Milan Hybrid, there's just one luxury sedan that gets the EPA's top fuel economy ranking for the 2011 model year--and that would be the Milan's surviving sister, the 2011 Lincoln MKZ Hybrid. While it waits patiently for an on-sale date this fall, the MKZ...

We've told you about the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid awaiting an on-sale date later this year. Now, Ford's confirming that its ritzy cousin to the Ford Fusion Hybrid will hit the same 41-mpg city fuel economy rating. The MKZ Hybrid's EPA fuel economy will be 41/36 mpg when it goes on sale later this year...

The most anticipated electric car of 2010 has it all: a world-wide following, over 30,000 pre-orders, television advertising, and even a virtual appearance at Apple's prestigious WWDC. Even though it has even been spotted in the wild in Arizona,  the one thing Nissan hasn't given many of are test...

Volkswagen is intent on becoming the world’s leading automaker by 2018 and that means being the top dog in every segment, including hybrid and electric vehicles. Recently the automaker announced plans to start building its own electric powertrains, and now, following the debut of the new 2011...

If you're lucky you may already be on a waiting list for the 2011 Nissan Leaf. Or perhaps you've decided to get the 2011 Chevrolet Volt. If your next car is electric it could easily immunize you from fluctuating gas prices and ensure low running costs. But what will that shiny new electric car be...

The British have a long history of improbable and unlikely quests. Sometimes they succeed, sometimes they fail. So the attempt by a group of 20-something engineers to boost the image of electric cars in the public eye by driving the length of the Pan-American Highway in an electrically powered...

The Two-Mode Hybrid system for large sport utilities and trucks hasn't exactly set the world on fire. In 2006, General Motors, Daimler and Chrysler (then a single company) announced a partnership, soon joined by BMW, to develop the Two-Mode Hybrid system for large rear-wheel drive vehicles. But...

Hitting the Streets With a Six-Speed Twin Turbo

When most people think of electric vehicles, they think of low cost and environmentally friendly vehicles that are about as much fun to drive as the Flintstones’ car. Automakers like Audi and Mercedes-Benz, however, are hoping to alleviate that stigma by targeting the top end of town and...

One million gallons a day is a lot of oil. According to estimates late last week, that could be the daily rate of oil escaping from the Deepwater Horizon well in the Gulf of Mexico. To put that number in perspective, we decided to look at what it would take to compensate just for the lost gasoline...

Electric cars like the 2011 Nissan Leaf require lots of lithium and other precious heavy metals to make them go. Today's sources of lithium are far and few: Bolivia has something like 40 percent of the world's deposits, while Russia, South Africa, Chile and Argentina have some. This weekend, the...

Yes, you read that title correctly. Mitsubishi’s next-generation Lancer Evolution is reportedly getting a diesel-electric hybrid powertrain in order to make it as fuel efficient as possible--a key factor to ensuring it meets tightening economy and emissions regulations while maintaining...

On the Road and On the Track Mazda Shows Lots of Zoom

We Take Hot Laps With Both During the RMDE Last Week

Chevrolet and Nissan both have electric vehicles set to hit the streets this Fall.  But unless you're extremely lucky the chances are you won't be driving one until at least the middle part of 2011. Why? Because of limited production runs, demand is outstripping supply. Is it part of some big...

When it launched in the States in 2002, the Mini Cooper taught the auto industry that U.S. buyers will pay real money for very small cars. If, that is, they offer personality, charm, cheekiness, and good handling. But can you make a Mini into a crossover sport utility and still keep its...

As far as we know, no one has yet done a road test on the 2011 Nissan Leaf, which will go on sale in certain markets this December. We've driven the Leaf powertrain mounted in a Cube mule, and our colleague Bengt Halvorson has driven it in a Versa mule--but never the completed car. Still, we know...

The small-car band wagon is piling high with automakers, including those from Detroit, with vehicles like the 2011 Ford Fiesta, 2011 Mazda2, and 2011 Chevrolet Aveo either in showrooms already or on their way. Suzuki has recently moved the other way, introducing what many consider to be its first...

The electric revolution is underway. With testbed vehicles including the Mini E, and big-name models like the Ford Focus EV and Nissan LEAF on the way within a year or two, it's no longer a question of whether electric cars will come back.