Syndicate

Among the many substances emitted by autos back in the "good old days" were the refrigerant gases that would leak from older auto air conditioners. Freon, also known as R-12, was replaced starting in the early 1990s with R-134a, which did less damage to the ozone layer. Now concern has expanded to...

It's a wonderful TV news flash: Blind people in peril from killer electric cars! News at 11. The fear is that electric vehicles are so silent that blind people can't hear them coming, so new draft safety regulations may now require electric vehicles to emit sounds. There's just one problem...

With a fuel economy of 36 mpg in the city and 41 mpg on the highway, the new 2011 Lincoln MKZ Hybrid already lays claim to the title of being the world’s most fuel efficient luxury sedan, and now it’s making the headlines once again. Lincoln will sell its new hybrid at the same base price as...

Almost a year ago, General Motors launched a little marketing campaign connecting its 2011 Chevrolet Volt range-extended electric car to the figure "230 mpg." As we pointed out at the time, they were basing that projection on a proposed formula for fuel usage patterns that made a lot of assumptions...

Ending weeks of speculation, Tesla and Toyota announced today that they plan to develop an all-electric version of Toyota's RAV4 small crossover, using Tesla's battery and electric drive technology in Toyota's vehicle. Last week, chairman Akio Toyoda announced that Toyota was already working to fit...

The 2011 Ford Fiesta subcompact is one of the more eagerly awaited cars arriving in the U.S. market. Winning points for styling, equipment, and performance, it's Ford's first high-volume European car to be sold here. But eager buyers and test drivers will have to take a breath and wait for just a...

It hasn't been easy being a Fiat fan in the U.S. these last, oh, 20 or 30 years. Sneers of "Fix It Again, Tony!" due to rusty and unreliable cars were followed by Fiat fleeing the U.S. market in 1983 with its tail tucked between its legs. But now, with the imminent debut of the 2011 Fiat 500 late...

Last week's heat wave prompted another eruption of that perennial question: Won't electric cars that recharge from grid power overload the nation's electricity system? Or put more bluntly: Will electric vehicles bring down the U.S. power grid? The answer, equally bluntly, is: No. They won't. (And...

You've got to be at least somewhat extroverted to drive a 2010 Smart ForTwo minicar, the smallest car sold in North America. People stare at it, point at you, and often ask you variations of, "What on earth makes you want to drive that?" Now, for the most extroverted of Smart owners, there's a new...

You may remember that in California, 85,000 lucky owners of three hybrid vehicles were granted special stickers giving them access to High-Occupancy Vehicle lanes, even with only a single occupant in the car. Well, their luck runs out on December 31, the last day those stickers are valid. While...

As we count down the months before the first 2011 Chevrolet Volts arrive at dealers in California, New York, Michigan, and Washington, D.C., it's time for the latest reboot of the Chevy marketing machine to kick into action. Chevrolet said in a press conference last week it would start running ads...

The Smart brand has enjoyed modest success in the U.S. since its launch here back in 2007 but with a lack of any new models or updates, the oddly-designed minicar brand has fallen largely off the radar of late. That’s all about to change as a facelifted 2011 Smart Fortwo has just been revealed...

Less than six months from now, the first 2011 Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric vehicles will be sold by dealers in selected launch markets. Today, General Motors showed a few more cards, releasing news in various presentations on additional early markets, production numbers, and answering...

Tesla's on a roll, it seems. Two days after its successful public stock offering, the company has released details of the latest updates to its Roadster electric sports car--known as "Roadster 2.5" after software-release numbering. The 2.5 version sports some new styling at front and rear...

Quick, name the last automaker to go public before yesterday's Tesla Motors IPO. Stumped? It was Ford Motor Company. The year was 1956. Perhaps buyers of Tesla Motors stock [NSDQ:TSLA] were optimistic because they had little context to assess the comapny. Tesla's stock soared from its offering...

There was a time when 'electric vehicle racing' was nothing more than an oxymoron. While teams of dedicated engineers, speed junkies and volt-heads have lit up drag strips with custom-built EV quarter-mile kings for years, the concept of racing production electric vehicles has yet to take off. But...

Hybrid technology's responsible for those airy fuel economy numbers from the likes of the Honda Civic Hybrid and the Toyota Prius, but the 40-mpg barrier's about to be broken by a pair of compact cars--without any batteries or hybrid add-ons whatsoever. Earlier this year, we showed you the 2012...

If you're shopping for a hybrid vehicle, time is drawing to a close to take advantage of the Federal government's hybrid tax credits. But before those credits expire at the end of 2010, there's one new hybrid you'll want to add to your shopping list: the upcoming 2011 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid. It's...

We’ve heard a lot about the upcoming 2011 Chevrolet Volt, read up on all the specs, even seen a few videos of prototypes doing the rounds at GM proving grounds around Michigan, but sadly, for the great majority of Americans, getting a feel for what the Volt is really like to drive is still months...

The sporty hybrid coupe will hit dealerships later this summer.