Jennifer Knightstep, Author

Jennifer Knightstep avatar
I was born in Detroit but raised in California, which explains my love of cars in general, but my fascination with and excitement about electric vehicles. I'm conflicted: I would love a late 1958 Corvette, but can I have it electric, please? I worked for seven years as a researcher at the General Motors Media Archive and have grown to love the rich and varied history of the industry as a whole. I find the infrastructure for the EV revolution particularly interesting, and enjoy writing about it.

Articles

  • Third-Gen Toyota Prius Ride & Drive, Day 1: First Impression

    Last month, I drove the Lexus HS 250h for one week, and this week, I'm test driving the third-gen Toyota Prius. When I sat inside, my first thought was: boy, I wish they had given me the Prius first,...

  • Ford Focus BEV to be Featured on the Green Car Challenge

    Jay Leno is a car fanatic. We know this is a fact, like we know Corvettes are cool and it's impossible to kiss your own elbow. So when he got his own show, The Jay Leno Show on NBC, was anyone surprised when he added a segment about cars? The segment is called the Green Car Challenge, and it...

  • Audi of America President Says Volt is 'Car for Idiots'

    Of all of the Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, as a writer, my favorite is the First Amendment, the one protecting the right to free speech. But that right doesn’t cover everything we speak, does it? Even as children, we learn that lying is wrong and that hurling insults is bad manners...

  • Hybrid Car Sales Surge in U.S. in August

    When the Cash for Clunkers (CARS) program here in the U.S. ended, I wondered how many of the buyers who took advantage of the rebate chose to purchase a hybrid. Buying a hybrid made the most sense, in my view, especially with the slight surge in gas prices just before the program launched. If I...

  • Mercedes-Benz BlueZERO Adds Range-Extending Technology

    At the NAIAS this January in Detroit, Mercedes-Benz unveiled a triad of sleek EV concepts called BlueZERO. The modular build of the three concepts makes it possible for them to share architecture and technology, such as front-wheel drive, but have three different drive system configurations. That...

  • Al Gore Versus the Rare Earth Metals

    Let’s imagine for a moment that Al Gore’s wish is granted and we all gave up our fossil-fuel guzzling, carbon-dioxide spewing cars in favor of efficient, gas-electric hybrids, like the Toyota Prius. While endangered penguins celebrate the re-growth of the polar ice caps, and we all enjoy...

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    WSJ Reports BYD to Sell in U.S. Ahead of Schedule

    The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Chinese automaker BYD is planning a new-share sale in China to fund the earlier-than-planned launch of their battery electric vehicle here in the States. The...

  • Semcon and Volvo Collaborating on Plug-in Technology

    Over the past year, a team of specialists from Semcon, Volvo Cars, Vattenfall, ETC and Energimyndigheten (The Swedish Energy Agency) has been developing a set of plug-in hybrid demo vehicles at Volvo's Concept plant. The three vehicles will be complete this fall, and the team will use these...

  • Ford Unveils Vehicle-to-Power Grid Communication System

    What if there was a way your plug-in electric vehicle could talk to your power grid, so you could decide when to charge, how long it would take, and what it would cost?   That's the question Ford Motor Company asked, then they set out to develop a system that would do just that. Today, they...

  • 2010 Insight and Prius Earn IIHS "Top Safety Pick" Award

    The 2010 Honda Insight and 2010 Toyota Prius were two of three of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's newest 2009 Top Safety Pickaward winners. According to the Institute's website, in order to qualify for Top Safety Pick, a vehicle must earn the highest rating of "good" in the...

  • Kerri Martin Joins Coda Automotive as CMO

    Behind every iconic brand is a skilled marketing team led by a brilliant visionary. Think Mini, think VW. Kerri Martin is the visionary leader to iPod-ify those brands, to make them hip, interesting, desirable. Today, Coda Automotive announced that Martin, 39, will be their first Chief Marketing...

  • Lexus HS 250h Ride & Drive, Day 3: Road Trip

    In a word: comfortable. That is the best one-word summary of our long road trip in the Lexus HS 250h. Two words? VERY comfortable. Our road trip was from metro Detroit to Cedar Point, a round trip of about 250 miles, mostly on the freeway using cruise control. Our average miles per gallon was 37.6...

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    Lexus HS 250h Ride & Drive, Day 2: Running Errands

    Today I took the Lexus HS 250h running errands with my five-year-old, Sophie. Bank, grocery store, dry cleaners, that sort of thing. At the end of the day, I'm still impressed, and so is Sophie (she...

  • Lexus HS 250h Ride & Drive, Day 1: First Impression

    It’s ten o’clock on Saturday night and I have the windows down, the moon roof open, and “Time to Pretend” by MGMT buzzing in my ears. I feel giddy, invincible, like the road was made for me and I’m the only one on it. Headlights appear in my rear-view mirror and I glance down at the...

  • Velozzi Launches Minicar with Turbine Battery Charger

    It's hard to describe the Velozzi SOLO in one sentence, because my words keep getting jumbled up. They just don't seem to jive: this minicar is a lightweight lithium-ion battery electric hybrid multi-fuel vehicle with an onboard turbine to charge its battery. It gets hazy after "hybrid," doesn't...

  • Is Toyota Building a Yaris-Based Hybrid?

    Japan's Asahi newspaper is reporting that Toyota is likely to add a compact hybrid to its line-up in Japan by late 2011. The hybrid-only model, which may also be produced in France for sale in Europe, will use the platform and engine of a re-modeled Yaris, and is expected to compete with Honda's...

  • Nissan’s iPhone App to Remotely Monitor Battery and A/C Levels in New Upcoming EV

    It seems like there’s an iPhone application for everything, from the very useful (restaurant reviews and menus) to the ridiculous (iSteam, which fogs your screen when you blow into the microphone). The prototype app created by Nissan falls into the “useful” category, at least for Nissan EV...

  • Guess Who's Building a Hybrid Motor-Home

    If you had to guess which manufacturer was putting components of their electric powertrain into creating a hybrid-powered motor-home, chances are, you wouldn’t say Shelby SuperCars. But in an agreement formalized July 24th between SSC and Jones & Son Chassis, that’s exactly what they plan...

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    Do Hybrid Drivers Get More Traffic Tickets?

    In a study published this week by San Francisco-based Quality Planning Corporation, it appears that the drivers of hybrid vehicles are more likely to get a traffic ticket or into a collision than...

  • Mercedes-Benz Announces S-Class Hybrid

    How could Mercedes-Benz possibly improve on their gorgeous S-class sedan? It's already the very definition of sleek design and lithe handling. But apparently, looks and handling weren't enough. They made it a hybrid. But not just any hybrid. Mercedes upped the ante and made it a certified...

  • Chrysler Seeks the Closure of 64 GEM Franchises

    Citing lower-than-expected demand and poor sales, Chrysler, owners of the low-speed neighborhood electric vehicle brand Global Electric Motorcars (GEM), looks to close 64 of its franchised retail outlets. The vehicles, which include six-passenger and utility models, are only legal for driving on...

  • Prius Tops List in Japan's June Car Sales

    June marked the first time in history that a hybrid topped the list of best-selling autos, out-selling all other vehicles across Japan. In May, the third-generation Prius beat out all other cars, which doesn't include popular mini-vehicles with engine less than 660 cc. But in June, the Prius...

  • Detroit Electric and Dongfeng Motor Pen Deal

    China is obviously committed to making the change from fossil fuels to electric power to move their vehicles. It seems that news of electric vehicle development is pouring out of China, with new partnership announcements coming one after the other every week. This deal is no exception, with Detroit...

  • Energy Secretary Chu: Electric Vehicles Inevitable

    Recently, Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu has been delivering a wave of commencement speeches at various universities. During a speech at CalTech last week, he is quoted as saying we needed to prepare for the "inevitable transition to electricity as the energy for our personal...

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