synd-vehicle-history

A paucity of plug-in car models available across the United States is holding back electric-car adoption. That's a major conclusion of a new study by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT)—the organization that helped uncover Volkswagen's diesel cheating scandal in the...

When the first-generation Nissan Leaf debuted in 2011, it quickly became the best-selling electric car in history, with no real competition. By the time the most recent version debuted in 2017, it was nearly outdated before it left dealers’ lots due to a shorter range than rivals from Tesla...

Sixteen states joined an effort this week to petition courts to review a rollback of an Obama-era regulation that capped the number of "glider" trucks, Transport Topics reported. Glider trucks are new bodies fitted with older diesel engines that predate emissions controls. Those trucks can emit up...

The first reviews of the Tesla Model 3 Performance are in, and they are positive—even occasionally glowing. Tesla has trickled out cars for review to a handful of outlets so far, including the The Wall Street Journal (and its affiliated website, Market Watch), CNET, CleanTechnica, Motor...

Efficiency comes in many automotive forms: electric powertrains, continuously variable transmissions, smaller-displacement engines. More aerodynamic designs help efficiency, too. With the 2019 A-Class, Mercedes-Benz says it's raised the aerodynamic bar. Mercedes-Benz claims that the new 2019...

Following a public spat over climate change legislation, oil giant ExxonMobil has pulled its membership from the Koch brothers-backed anti-climate-change lobbying group, American Legislative Exchange Council. Neither ExxonMobil nor ALEC has commented publicly on the reasons for the company's...

In its ongoing effort to reach profitability by the end of this year, Tesla has asked several of its suppliers to lower prices retroactively on components of the Model 3, including some contracts that date back to 2016. In a memo sent to the suppliers last week and reviewed by The Wall Street...

If you’re more than a little confused by California’s rules allowing clean cars into the much-prized diamond lanes, join the club. The state DMV and the California Air Resources Board haven’t done a great job of clarifying matters, either, though they’re getting better...

Just a few months ago, we heard that Volkswagen was not planning to develop a successor to the current Beetle but a recent filing shows that it might have one last hurrah for 2019. A June filing by supplier Magneti Marelli shows an instrument cluster that appears almost identical to the current...

Mirroring its Electrify America network of public fast chargers for electric cars in the U.S., Volkswagen announced Thursday that it will set up a similar network in Canada—called Electrify Canada, logically enough. Electrify Canada plans to set up 32 DC fast-charging stations in major...

Charging network EVgo has installed second-life batteries from two BMW i3s to its charging station in Union City, California, the company announced last week. The two batteries each store 22 kwh of electricity to help balance the load on the power grid when electric cars are charging at peak times...

A recent survey by the World Refining Association shows some oil industry executives are becoming concerned about how the proliferation of electric cars may affect their business. A core of respondents, however, seem unconvinced that electric cars are a threat. In the survey published late last...

Two future VW electric cars could be built in the U.S. for American buyers, according to a report Tuesday. VW's North American CEO, Hinrich Woebcken, told British magazine Autocar that upcoming electric cars, which may include the ID Crozz and ID Buzz, would need to be built in the States "for...

Most people buy electric cars to reduce oil consumption, but oil companies keep selling more oil every year. Now, a new study by oil industry consultancy Wood Mackenzie predicts that the demand for oil will start to decline as early as 2036, when autonomous cars become more popular. That forecast...

A Volvo executive has revealed a few details of the Polestar 2, an electric sedan that will follow next year's Polestar 1 performance coupe. The Polestar 2 will be a sedan and is expected to debut sometime in 2019, according to an interview that British publication Autocar conducted with Polestar...

Electric cars and solar power fit together like a hand in a glove. Charging with solar power, electric cars can drive using almost no non-renewable energy. Now according to a report in Bloomberg New Energy Finance last week, solar investment has dropped by 19 percent worldwide in the second quarter...

A new picture by an early buyer of a Tesla Model 3 Performance shows the car's EPA rating of 116 MPGe. That's down 14 MPGe, or almost 11 percent from the base long-range Model 3's rating of 130 MPGe, owing to the battery's and bigger motors' higher output. The EPA does not yet list the rating on...

As supplies of some older 100-mile range electric cars wind down, automakers are beginning to offer the best deals on more-capable recent models. Perhaps best of all, the cars with the best deals this month are much more plentiful and easier to find on dealers' lots than a few of the recent...

Exotic cars have always gotten attention for using innovation as well as performance to inspire buyers' passion. That hasn't changed, but one thing has: those cars' buyers are no longer inspired by pounding pistons and roaring exhaust. Going electric is now a minimum entry point, says Michael...

Tesla's vehicle purchase incentives web page on Thursday morning reported that the wind-down of incentives for buyers of its cars has begun. The change was first noted and reported by Jalopnik. Following the change, Tesla buyers will only be eligible to receive the full $7,500 federal tax credit...