Plug-In Hybrids

Based on the Converj concept first shown in 2009, the Cadillac ELR is set to become the very first Extended Range Electric Vehicle launched by a full-line luxury automaker when it hits Cadillac dealers in early 2014. Like the Chevrolet Volt, the Cadillac ELR will be primarily powered by a 16.5 kWh...

At the Detroit Auto Show, Volkswagen showed not just one but two concepts with diesel plug-in hybrid powertrains. VW not only unveiled its CrossBlue Concept for a mid-size seven-passenger crossover, it also showed the CrossCoupe Concept it had premiered last year at the Beijing Auto Show. Each...

Honda has announced its next hybrid, the 2014 Honda Accord Hybrid, will be built at its Marysville, Ohio plant in the U.S. The Japanese carmaker is investing $23 million at the plant and hiring 50 new employees, ready for production of the two-motor hybrid before it goes on sale this fall. It makes...

The average household in America consumes more than 11,000 kWh of electricity per year, much of it during certain peak daytime hours. Many utility companies benefit from this by applying the law of supply and demand; as demand goes up, so do prices. Off-peak (late at night, for example)...

Ford has announced official EPA mileage figures for its latest plug-in hybrid, the Fusion Energi. Set to join the C-Max Energi in Ford's range, the new plug-in Fusion becomes America's most fuel-efficient sedan, with a rating of 108 MPGe in city driving. That puts it 5 mpg ahead of the Toyota Prius...

Eco-minded shoppers have seen environmental issues take up more space in the news, and they've known that it was simply a matter of time before those concerns began affecting the sorts of vehicles we drive. Now, mainstream consumers are beginning to see the light. The change hasn't come overnight...

Ford may yet have to account for discrepancies between real-world mileage and EPA ratings on its hybrids, but any issues certainly aren't harming its sales. The company reports that the C-Max hybrid has become the fastest-selling hybrid ever, with 8,030 units sold in its first two months on sale...

If 2012 was the year that several companies realised the importance of hybrid and electric vehicles, 2013 will be the year that we see the fruits of their labor. Volkswagen, initially reluctant to dabble in the plug-in market, is set to launch at least two new high-volume plug-in hybrids over the...

There's a lot of discussion about hybrids and plug-in electric cars being sold to private buyers. But some of the biggest gains in reducing emissions and running costs are likely to come from vehicle fleets. While individual car owners may suddenly have to take a car 100 miles instead of their...

British luxury automaker Jaguar has cancelled plans to build a hybrid supercar, the company said today. The C-X75 plug-in hybrid supercar was originally set for launch in late 2013, following on from a concept car which used jet turbines as a range-extending powerplant. According to Autocar, those...

The new 2013 Ford Fusion is stunning on the street; it may well be the best-looking mid-size sedan on the market. And it comes with no fewer than five different powertrains, all of them as or more fuel efficient as those in the previous Fusion sedan. The first Fusion in 2005 started to re-establish...

For our final piece on last week's Los Angeles Auto Show, we put together a video on the five new plug-in electric cars officially unveiled there. Three of them are plug-in hybrids, a pair from Ford and one from Honda, and the other two are small battery-electric conversions by the makers of the...

The 2013 Ford C-Max is the first car from any U.S. manufacturer to take aim directly at the legendary Toyota Prius hybrid. Derived from a small "people carrier" of the sort that are common in Europe, it's Ford's first-ever dedicated hybrid--a vehicle sold with no gasoline-only equivalent (at least...

Honda has revealed pricing for its upcoming Accord plug-in hybrid at the 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show. The car will be priced from $39,780 when it goes on sale January 15 in California and New York. That's just a little higher than the recently-announced price for the 2013 Ford Fusion Energi at...

Mitsubishi is to unveil the 2014 Mitsubishi Outlander for the first time in North America, at the 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show. While the company claims the regular car will be one of the most efficient vehicles in its class, the real gas-sipper will be the plug-in hybrid version, due in early 2014...

General Electric is adding a large fleet of 2013 Ford C-Max Energi plug-in hybrids to its growing fleet of plug-in and electric vehicles. The 2,000 Energi models will join GE's existing fleet of Chevrolet Volts and other plug-ins. The deal is Ford's largest delivery of plug-in vehicles so far. For...

Diesel hybrids are now no longer a new concept--even if none are sold in the U.S.--but Swedish carmaker Volvo is the only company offering a diesel plug-in hybrid. That car, the Volvo V60 Plug-In Hybrid, is now in full production at the maker's Torslanda plant in Gothenburg, Sweden. Volvo V60...

With the 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show just around the corner, the world's carmakers are gearing up to show off the latest and greatest green vehicles. And in common with several recent motor shows, L.A. will have some significant launches and unveilings, whether you're interested in regular efficient...

The 2013 Ford C-Max Energi is the first plug-in hybrid from Ford to hit the road, and the company sold 144 of them in October even before letting journalists drive the car. It’s the pricier and more capable of the two C-Max models, and Ford compares it directly to the Toyota Prius Plug-In...

Porsche already offers a hybrid variant of its sports SUV, the Cayenne, but it's more about stemming the car's massive thirst than it is a truly green vehicle. A plug-in hybrid version coinciding with a mid-cycle update around 2014 could offer a much more gas-sipping option, however. According to...