smart News

  • 2011 Chevrolet Volt test drive, Michigan, October 2010

    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...

  • Audi A1 e-tron Concept
    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...

  • G-Wiz charging in the U.K.
    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...

  • G-Wiz charging in the U.K.
    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...

  • Think City electric vehicle
    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...

  • BMW Megacity Vehicle official teaser
    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...

  • 2012 Smart-Nissan hatchback

    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...

  • 2010 Smart Electric Scooter and Bike Concepts
    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...

  • 2011 Wheego Whip LiFe electric car
    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...

  • 2010 Smart Escooter Concept
    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...

  • 2011 Smart Fortwo
    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...

  • Motive Industries Kestrel EV
    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...

  • Li-Ion Motors Wave II, Progressive Automotive X-Prize winner.

    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...

  • 2010 Smart ForTwo Cdi
    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...

  • Smart ForTwo display team
    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...

  • 2011 Smart ForTwo Electric Drive
    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...

  • 2009 Smart fortwo Brabus
    Smart Car Ownership Looking Like a Fad In the U.S.

    Research Shows Urban Dwellers In the U.S. Won’t Be Return Buyers

  • 2011 Smart Fortwo
    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...

  • 50 Kw Leaf Charger

    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...

  • 2011 Scion iQ
    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...

  • 2011 Smart Fortwo
    Need a Smart Car? Try Giving Blood

    Blood Centers of the Pacific Entice Donors With a Small Car

  • 2011 Coda Sedan prototype - charging socket
    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...

  • Great Smart Car Road Trip: A Smart in Malibu on PCH
    Great Smart Car Road Trip: The Final Verdict

    To Drive a Smart or Not To Drive a Smart

  • 2011 Smart Fortwo
    Great Smart Car Road Trip: The Smart Versus The Canyon

    Sporty Might Not Be the First Adjective That Comes To Mind

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