smart News
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We took a look a few weeks ago at the five electric cars we reckoned you should do your best to see at the 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show. Our list included the 2011 Nissan Leaf, 2011 Chevrolet Volt, 2011 Coda Sedan, the 2012 Toyota RAV4 EV and the 2012 Mitsubishi i-MiEV. Our opinion hasn't changed - these are still probably the most important EVs at the show as they're cars that will make up the bulk of EV sales over the next few years. However, there are other electric stars at the show too, so here's a full, alphabetical run-down of all the EVs at this year's L.A. show. 2011 Chevrolet Volt You...
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VW, Daimler: There’s a Future in Electric Cars, Not Quite Yet
Can there ever be such a thing as too much honesty when it comes to frank discussions about your company policy? Normally we’d say no, but when you start to sow the seeds of doubt about the thing you’re trying to sell we’d say otherwise. Especially in the case of Christian...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Fatal G-Wiz Crash: Confirmed - Another Car Was Involved
Just over a week ago we discussed the aspect of electric car safety, specifically that of Neighborhood Electric Vehicles or NEVs, after 47-year old mother Judit Nadal was tragically killed in her Reva G-Wiz in an accident in London, U.K. Our earlier story was based on initial reports that Mrs Nadal...
Antony Ingram -
What Consumers Should Know About Electric Car Crash Tests
Yesterday, we heard the tragic story that a U.K. owner of a Reva G-Wiz, the tiny neighborhood electric vehicle (NEV) sold in Europe as a quadricycle, was killed when her all-electric runabout hit a garden wall. The 47-year-old woman was thrown clear of the diminutive G-Wiz as it split in two just...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
THINK City World's Best-Selling City EV; 2,500 And Counting
With the media kerfuffle surrounding the 2011 Chevrolet Volt and anticipation mounting for 2011 Nissan Leaf customers, it's easy to forget that there are other electric cars out there. Even successful ones, it seems. Swedish electric city car maker THINK are more than 20 years old and have just...
Antony Ingram -
From The Fastest To The Greenest: BMW F1 Expertise For EVs
"Racing improves the breed". So said the late Soichiro Honda, believing that the lessons learned on the racing cars and motorcycles could be used to improve the marque's road vehicles. The evidence is plain to see. Technologies such as anti-lock brakes, traction control, unibody chassis...
Antony Ingram -
Smart USA has confirmed it will have a new car in its showrooms starting in late 2011--and that the new car will be sourced from Nissan. As a part of a wide-ranging cooperation forged earlier this year between Nissan-Renault and Daimler, the companies will share technology and development costs for some vehicle systems. In this case, Nissan will provide an entire vehicle to Smart. Smart USA clarifies that, "This is a separate MOU between smart USA (Penske Automotive Group) and Nissan. Daimler is not involved in the manufacture, engineering or design of this vehicle, but they support our...
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2010 Paris Auto Show: Electric Scooters from MINI, Smart
The 2010 Paris Auto Show proved there's serious energy going into electric cars, but even EVs with two wheels were well represented at the show--and by major auto brands, at that. The Smart Escooter Electric Bike seem like a logical extension for the teensy ForTwo, which looks like a beast in...
Martin Padgett -
Will the 2011 Wheego LiFe Be the First Electric Car On Sale?
Sometimes we avoid covering certain cars, for good reasons or not. One of those cars is the 2011 Wheego LiFe, a derivative of the 2009 Wheego Whip. Never heard of it? Not surprising. Wheego Electric Cars is a startup electric-car company, in this case selling an electric conversion of a...
John Voelcker -
Smart All-Electric Escooter Concept Revealed Ahead Of 2010 Paris Auto Show
Last year BMW rolled out its C1-E Concept, an all-electric scooter that represented the automaker’s vision of what a safe, environmentally-friendly and highly practical single track vehicle for city traffic could look like. Now BMW’s closest rival, Mercedes-Benz, through its Smart car...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2011 Smart ForTwo Boast Better Performance and Less Emissions
Yes, the little Smarty is back for 2011 and this time it has a new face and some new features. More importantly, to some at least, there is also a performance upgrade that will move this mini wonder from 0-60 in under 8.9 seconds. Currently, prices for the 2011 Smart ForTwo have been announced in...
Jonathan McGrew -
Motive Industries Reveals Design For Hemp-Bodied Kestrel
Sit back, relax, and take in the official design and specifications for the Kestrel, the hemp-bodied EV engineered by Canadian firm Motive Industries. We looked at the benefits of the environmentally friendly hemp construction last month, an avenue Lotus have also explored with their 2008 Eco Elise...
Antony Ingram -
For the past few years, small and medium-sized automakers have looked towards the prestige of winning the Progressive Insurance Auto-X Prize. for the X-Prize. Initially set up as a way of encouraging innovation and inspiring the next generation of fuel efficient vehicles, the Automotive X-Prize has slowly whittled the field of competitors down from over one hundred to just a handful. As the final phase of validation began last month, several electric vehicle teams remained hopeful about getting a piece of the $10 million prize fund. In return, they had to prove their vehicles capable of at...
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Smart ForTwo Diesel Drive Report: Does U.S. Get The Wrong Smart?
You'd be hard pressed to call us fans of the 2010 Smart ForTwo here at GreenCarReports. The tiny two-seater is a novel idea unfortunately let down in execution. Whilst the car is spacious despite its exterior appearance and we can't fault equipment levels and quality, some mechanical aspects let...
Antony Ingram -
1,400 Smarts Turn Up for U.K. Smartfest Car Show
Whilst the U.S. might not be warming to the 'Smart car' quite the way owners Daimler might have hoped, the same can't be said for the car's reception in Europe. 2010 marks the tenth anniversary of the Smart in the United Kingdom, and to celebrate, the marque hosted 'Smartfest' at Mercedes-Benz...
Antony Ingram -
2011 Smart ForTwo Electric Drive: Quick Drive
It's fair to say that Smart haven't had quite the success they were probably hoping for in the U.S. with their diminutive Fortwo. Gambling on consumers 'downsizing' due to spiralling fuel prices, the initial rush to own the tiny city car has slowed to a trickle. Not only that, but recent research...
Antony Ingram -
Smart Car Ownership Looking Like a Fad In the U.S.
Research Shows Urban Dwellers In the U.S. Won’t Be Return Buyers
Jonathan McGrew -
More Smart ForTwo Trouble: Owners Least Likely To Buy Another
As regular readers know, we've never been big fans of the Smart ForTwo minicar. It's not that we dislike small two-seaters; in fact, we think they're cool (unlike most U.S. car buyers, we should add). No, our problems with the Smart stem from its unpleasant driving quality--the slamming shifts from...
John Voelcker -
One of the most important aspects of electric-car ownership might not be how they drive, or how far you'll go on a charge, but how you'll actually charge it in the first place. That's why we asked "What comes first, the car or the charger?", with many potential EV owners waiting for a public charging network to appear so they can be sure they'll have somewhere to recharge. Yesterday we dialed in to a phone conference hosted by the Electric Drive Transportation Association, where representatives from groups including ChargePoint America, ECOtality, the Eaton Corporation and General Motors...
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2011 Scion iQ Minicar Coming to U.S. Next March
Sales of the Smart ForTwo minicar plummeted after gasoline came back down from $4 a gallon, but Toyota's Scion brand is readying its own minicar for sale in the U.S. The latest word is that the 2011 Scion iQ will land at dealers in March. The Scion iQ was first unveiled as a concept car at the 2009...
John Voelcker -
Need a Smart Car? Try Giving Blood
Blood Centers of the Pacific Entice Donors With a Small Car
Jonathan McGrew -
Electric Car Buying Guide
We've been watching it roll closer for years, and now it's all but here: A new era of electric cars. Just three or four months from now, the first highway-capable electric vehicles sold in volume by global automakers will appear in showrooms in California and other regions. By the end of 2011...
John Voelcker -
Great Smart Car Road Trip: The Final Verdict
To Drive a Smart or Not To Drive a Smart
Jonathan McGrew -
Great Smart Car Road Trip: The Smart Versus The Canyon
Sporty Might Not Be the First Adjective That Comes To Mind
Jonathan McGrew