Green Car News

A decade ago when Toyota introduced its first hybrid Prius, buyers were not too accepting of the funky looking vehicle.  It slowly won over the hearts of environmentally conscious buyers, but took years to gain widespread acceptance.  Toyota was alright with that, they saw a bright future ahead...

The city of Hillsboro, Oregon recently signed onto a deal to install 16 ChargePoint charging stations made by Coulomb Technologies. Hillsboro is the 5th largest city in Oregon, but will become the first city in the state to employ the ChargePoint system.  The 16 charging stations will be located...

The Nikkei Business Daily has reported that Toyota plans to produce between 20,000 and 30,000 plug-in hybrids in 2012. The Japanese automaker has already committed to leasing 500 plug-ins for government and corporate use by the end of this year. The plan is hardly a surprise. While traditional...

Ric Richards is the independent owner of a McDonald's restaurant in Cary, North Carolina. He's about to be the first McDonald's owner to offer a dedicated parking space to charge plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles. In that way, he's an environmental pioneer. In addition to the ChargePoint...

The redesigned 2010 Buick LaCrosse will add a fuel efficient 2.4 liter, 4 cylinder engine to the lineup.  But of even more interest, according to GM execs, a hybrid model is also expected in the near future. GM's global vehicle line executive James Frederico appears to confirm this but did not...

One of the knocks on hybrid vehicles comes from the vision-impaired community. Many hybrids disengage their internal combustion engines at slow speeds. When a driver slows to a stop or accelerates from a controlled intersection, the vehicle often uses only battery power. If you can't see it, and...

Mitsubishi is planning to begin collaboration with local governments and businesses throughout Japan in order to establish a widespread charging network in public areas. The goal for the company is to provide ample charging locations for its i-MiEV electric car before it goes into mass production...

Recently we brought you an article from the French research group IFP in which they point out that plug-in hybrids make economic sense for buyers, but what about full electric vehicles?  Well, IFP has done the research on that too and the results are not as promising. According to Philippe...

In the world of electric performance cars, there are two names to know: Fisker and Tesla. The man behind the upcoming $87,900 Fisker Karma plug-in hybrid sports sedan wants you to know the difference. Seasoned auto designer and CEO of Fisker Coachbuild, Henrik Fisker has an enviable résumé for...

Politician's Start To Ask the Hard Questions

Tesla Motors freshly infused with nearly a half billion in loan guarantees from Uncle Sam will now be expand its dealership base from the Golden State to the Big Apple. On July 14 the electric car maker will open its first dealership for a media preview in New York City.  The store will be in the...

What is the environmental impact of widespread use of EVs?  Well that all depends on where you live. For example, an EV driven in France emits only 15 g/km of CO2, but the same vehicle driven in India would emit a staggering 160 g/km of CO2.  Why such a difference?  France provides most of their...

The International Electrotechnical Commission, abbreviated as the IEC, is working hard to establish a standard for the smart electrical grid with the capability of communicating with other vehicles. Previously we had reported about the standard the IEC is working on for the charging cable, but they...

Find Out How You Can Help Steer the Economy

The Lightning GT is a high-end ultraluxury electric car which first debuted in 2008 and is slated to go into production in Spring 2010. The $240,000 vehicle is powered by four 120 kw motors and a 36 kwh lithium-ion battery that allows it to produce a jaw-dropping 700 hp. The car would go form 0 to...

Chrysler's on the skids right now, no doubt about it. June sales plummeted 42 percent, and some consider its takeover by--errr, sorry, partnership with--Italy's Fiat to be the blind leading the lame. But Fiat is far from the company it was 20 years ago, when it folded its tents and snuck out of the...

Over in Europe, utility companies, automakers, and countless others are working diligently to come up with a global standard for EV charging plugs. The discussions have been ongoing for nearly a decade now, but a final decision is expected within the next year. Automakers, charging system...

According to the French research organization IFP, making lithium-ion powered hybrids makes economic sense right now for both the carmaker and the buyer. The research company came to this conclusion after extensively researching a true cost of ownership over the lifetime of a vehicle.  Their...

It's a Jeep! It's a golf cart! No! It's an Anvil? The Georgia based Tomberlin Group showcased their electric low speed vehicle (LSV) on the CBS Early Show on Monday and it looks nothing like anything else on the road today. Dubbed the "Anvil," it has a top speed of 25 miles per hour and is legal...

Tesla Motors has asked the courts of San Mateo County, California to dismiss the lawsuit filed against them by co-founder and former CEO, Martin Eberhard. Eberhard sued Tesla on May 26 for libel, slander and breach of contract. Tesla's response was characteristic of their current CEO, Elon Musk...