Range-Extended Electric Vehicle
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The planned relaunch of the Fisker Karma range-extended electric luxury sedan isn't likely to happen until at least the middle of next year. And when it does happen, new owner Wanxiang will probably sell the car under a new brand name: Elux. But we may learn more detail about the phoenix-like resurrection of the sleek, stunning, plug-in four-door as early as this month. DON'T MISS: Fisker To Be Renamed Elux, New Karma Not On Sale Before Next Year That's the implication, at least, that's conveyed by the splash screen (and sole page) on The New Fisker, a site set up last year to provide details...
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Why We're Calling The 2016 Chevy Volt A Plug-In Hybrid
Since the launch of the Chevrolet Volt almost five years ago, a battle has raged over what to call it. Is it a range-extended electric car, as GM strongly preferred, or a plug-in hybrid as others insisted equally forcefully? GM's goal in calling the Volt a "range-extended electric" car was to...
John Voelcker -
2011-2013 Chevrolet Volt Recall Limits Idle Time To Avert Carbon Monoxide Danger
GM is recalling older Volt models for a software fix that will limit idle times.
Stephen Edelstein -
Plug-In Electric Car Sales In Feb: Cold-Weather Doldrums Continue: FINAL UPDATE
Winter is always a slower sales time for plug-in electric cars than the warmer months, and last month looks like it won't be any exception. Sales of most of the highest-selling battery-electric and plug-in hybrid models stayed roughly at levels similar to those of January. While a blockbuster...
John Voelcker -
Want A Fisker Karma? Lots Of Used Ones For Sale
A significant number of used Fisker Karma sedans are currently available used.
Stephen Edelstein -
2016 Chevrolet Volt Powertrain: How It Works In Electric, Hybrid Modes
The new 2016 Chevrolet Volt is sleeker, has more electric range, higher gas mileage, a fifth seat, and should be both faster and quieter on the road. But while GM hasn't explicitly said so, it's no longer as much of a range-extended electric car (or "series hybrid"). The new 2016 Volt should be...
John Voelcker -
Chinese maker Wanxiang, which bought the defunct Fisker Automotive out of bankruptcy, will rename the carmaker Elux, according to a Reuters report this morning. The company has also pushed back the planned relaunch of the Karma range-extended electric sport sedan until at least the middle of next year, it says. DON'T MISS: Fisker Karma Will Be Relaunched With 2012 Design, Updates (Sep 2014) The Reuters report was attributed to unnamed source inside the company who were not authorized to speak on its behalf. But the story suggested that Wanxiang is sinking "millions" into updating the Karma...
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Amp Electric's Workhorse Wants To Be 'Tesla Of Trucks' For Electric Delivery Vans
Aside from economic recession and cautious buyers, one of the biggest challenges for companies that want to sell electrified commercial trucks turns out to be ... making or converting trucks. Amp Electric, a surviving veteran of several generations of electric-truck development, decided to solve...
John Voelcker -
FINAL UPDATE: Plug-In Electric Car Sales Continue Rise In 2014, To 118,500
Plug-in electric car sales during 2014 rose above the 100,000 level, to total roughly 118,500. Last year's total represents a 27-percent gain over calendar year 2013. It's the third annual increase in full-year sales in the U.S. since modern electric cars first went on sale in December 2010; the...
John Voelcker -
2016 Chevrolet Volt: 50-Mile Range, 41 MPG, Five Seats, All New (Photos)
The 2016 Chevrolet Volt range-extended electric car, which will be unveiled this morning at the Detroit Auto Show, is sleeker, has more electric range, and is projected to get higher gas mileage when its engine is operating. The compact five-door hatchback also has a fifth "seating position,"...
John Voelcker -
2016 Chevrolet Volt Breaks Cover At CES Last Night (Photos)
One week from today, the new 2016 Chevrolet Volt range-extended electric car will be unveiled in Detroit. But Chevy has been teasing the new car since August, releasing a partial image here, a powertrain tutorial there, and GM's largest brand did it again yesterday at the Consumer Electronics Show...
John Voelcker -
Will The 2016 Chevy Volt Be A 'Mass-Market' Electric Car? Should It Be?
While battery-electric cars are pretty simple in concept, it's often much harder for auto marketers to explain the benefits of range-extended electrics and plug-in hybrids. Last summer, Chevrolet's chief marketing officer, Tim Mahoney, said the marketing for the new 2016 Chevy Volt would be...
John Voelcker -
All-wheel drive is an increasingly popular option among buyers in virtually all segments of the automotive market, partly driven by surging sales of small crossover utility vehicles. But is Chevrolet developing an all-wheel-drive version of the new 2016 Chevy Volt range-extended electric car it'll introduce next month? DON'T MISS: UPDATED: 2016 Chevrolet Volt To Launch In January: What We Know So Far The company has renewed its trademark on the CrossVolt brand name, according to a recent report in Autoblog--leading to speculation that a future vehicle in the Volt range might offer AWD. The...
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2016 Chevrolet Volt: Another Video Teaser, This One On Snow And Ice
Can the upcoming 2016 Chevrolet Volt manage to propel itself on what looks like an inch or two of snow? Why, yes, actually, it can. In fact, the new Volt appears to behave just as any other front-wheel-drive car would on a similar surface. DON'T MISS: UPDATED: 2016 Chevrolet Volt To Launch In...
John Voelcker -
BMW i3 REx: Road-Tripping With 72 Electric Miles, 1.9-Gallon Gas Tank
An owner takes his range-extended electric car on a 462-mile road trip.
Stephen Edelstein -
2016 Chevrolet Volt To Add On-Demand Regenerative Braking
With little morethan three weeks to go until the 2016 Chevrolet Volt is revealed, its maker is dribbling out more tantalizing details on the all-new car. The latest is a YouTube video published yesterday that shows two members of the development team--familiar faces to Volt fans--demonstrating a...
John Voelcker -
UPDATED: 2016 Chevrolet Volt To Launch In January: What We Know So Far
For most of 2014, there was very little news about the Chevrolet Volt range-extended electric car, and its sales in 2013 and 2014 have been stagnant at roughly 2,000 cars a month. The most recent item of note was a $5,000 price reduction on the 2014 Volt in August 2013, to bring it closer to the...
John Voelcker -
2016 Chevy Volt: Front Styling Teaser Photos, Charging Details Released
A bit more of the styling of the all-new 2016 Chevrolet Volt has been revealed, in photos that Chevy released from a sneak preview of the car last night for current Volt owners in Los Angeles. The range-extended electric car will be revealed in its entirety at the Detroit Auto Show in January, but...
John Voelcker -
Over its first six months of U.S. sales, the 2014 BMW i3 electric car--with or without its innovative optional range-extending engine--has done quite well in the sales charts. In each of the last three full months (August through October), BMW sold more than 1,000 i3s, giving it the highest percentage of plug-in cars sold of any carmaker in the States. DON'T MISS: Which Electric-Car Makers Are Serious? U.S. Sales Show Top Three The BMW i3 has not done so well, however, in its home market of Germany. According to a recent article in Car and Driver, BMW will boost incentives on the i3 to...
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Deliveries Of Via Motors Range-Extended Electric Vans Start After EPA Certification
Via Motors has begun delivering its Chevrolet Express-based vans following EPA certification.
Stephen Edelstein -
Homeowners Board Adds Markup To Chevy Volt Charging: Owner Balks, Power Cut Off
A Volt owner in Michigan had power to her detached garage cut off after refusing to pay a higher electricity rate.
Stephen Edelstein -
Relaunched Fisker Karma To Use Quantum Software (Again)
Fisker will license Quantum control software for the relaunched Karma, with an option for the planned Atlantic.
Stephen Edelstein -
2016 Chevy Volt: Bigger Battery, More Motor Power, New Range Extender Engine Details: EXPANDED
General Motors took the wraps off its second-generation Voltec electric-drive system this morning that will power its 2016 Chevrolet Volt range-extended electric car. Company executives declined to give specifications for power of the two electric motors, the range-extending engine, or range of the...
John Voelcker -
2016 Chevrolet Volt To Use New 1.5-Liter Four As Range Extender Engine
Later today, details about the powertrain of the new 2016 Chevrolet Volt will be released when GM CEO Mary Barra speaks to the Detroit Economic Club. But a GM press release this morning announcing further investments in Michigan manufacturing by the company included one nugget: The 2016 Volt will...
John Voelcker