John Voelcker, Contributing Editor
Articles
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Why did a Tesla executive get so angry at Hyundai? And what's the new Lexus NX hybrid crossover like on the road? This is the Week In Reverse for Friday, July 18, 2014, right here at Green Car...
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2014 BMW i3: Is Range Extended Version Outselling Battery Only?The 2014 BMW i3 electric car has a unique feature offered by no other vehicle in the world: Buyers can choose to have it as a battery-electric vehicle, or add an optional range-extending engine that roughly doubles its rated electric range of 81 miles. With the i3 on sale now for two months, a mix...
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Audi A3 e-Tron Plug-In Hybrid: Not A Compliance Car, Exec SaysTwo years ago, we described the difference between high-volume electric cars and "compliance cars"--those built in very limited numbers solely to meet California rules that require a certain number of zero-emission vehicles to be sold each year. Now it appears that manufacturers don't want new...
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2015 Lexus NX 300h Hybrid: First Drive Of Luxury Compact Utility Vehicle
The 2015 Lexus NX is the first compact crossover from Toyota's luxury brand, and it's been a long time coming. Unlike the mid-size Lexus RX, which helped to launch the luxury crossover category 15 years ago, the smaller NX faces established competitors from the German luxury brands. But Lexus will...
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White House Responds To Tesla Direct-Sales Petition: Sorry, Talk To CongressFully a year ago, a Tesla supporter started a petition on WhiteHouse.gov asking president Barack Obama to let Tesla Motors sell its electric cars directly to consumers in all 50 states. While it got the necessary 100,000 signatures, it has taken the White House a year to respond--and its answer is...
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2015 Chevrolet Volt: Bigger Battery, But 38-Mile Electric Range RemainsWith widespread expectations that we'll see a redesigned second-generation model unveiled early next year, the 2015 Chevy Volt was expected to be a carryover model with few changes. And so it is, with one important exception: Without any fanfare, its battery capacity rose to 17.1 kilowatt-hours for...
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Hyundai Vs. Tesla: Exec Claims U.S. Funds Superchargers, Electric-Car Maker Angrily Rebuts John VoelckerEvery so often, an auto executive will say something that raises an eyebrow or two.
In this case, a Hyundai executive suggested that while his company had received no money for its hydrogen vehicles...
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Hydrogen Cars In California, Driving A Diesel Pickup Prototype, Tesla Hacking: The Week In Reverse (VIDEO)Why are hydrogen compliance cars worth more in California than electric ones? And how much is a hacked Tesla Model S worth? It's been a busy week of news, considering that it's July. This is the Week In Reverse for Friday, July 11, 2014, right here at Green Car Reports. Nissan made a splash at...
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Why California Pushes Hydrogen Compliance Cars Over Electric OnesWe're starting to hear a lot about hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles from Hyundai, Toyota, and Honda--and we're going to hear a great deal more about them in the years to come. The first 2015 Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell was leased last month, and Toyota will bring its own hydrogen-powered vehicle into...
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2014 Nissan Cube: The Last Year On Sale For Funky Tall WagonWhile Toyota's Scion xB really invented the modern "tall wagon" category, the runaway sales champion in the segment is the Kia Soul. And among the also-rans sits the even-funkier-than-Soul 2014 Nissan Cube, with its asymmetric wraparound rear window and small dash-top panel for growing grass. Sales...
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Mercedes Electric-Car Range, Saudi Fuel Economy, Tesla In China: Today's Car NewsToday on Green Car Reports: Tesla sees another eruption of copyright challenges in China, the natural-gas vehicle industry talks about diesel fuel, and we get the range and efficiency ratings from the EPA for the first Mercedes-Benz electric car. All this and more on Green Car Reports. The 2014...
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2014 Mercedes-Benz B-Class Electric Car: 87 Miles Range, 84 MPGeThe 2014 Mercedes-Benz B-Class electric car hasn't quite reached dealerships yet--several are telling customers it could be next week--and its EPA ratings for range and efficiency have been something of a mystery too. Now, courtesy of an alert electric-car fan, we know the ratings for the first...
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Whether you call them fuel-economy standards or carbon-emission limits, new vehicles sold in North America, Europe, China, and elsewhere are subject to regulations that will require them to get more...
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Tesla Owner Rates BMW i3, New Smart Car, Electric Motorcycle Road-Tripping: Today's Car NewsToday on Green Car Reports: Our resident Tesla Model S owner weighs in on the BMW i3, we learn more about the upcoming all-new Smart ForTwo minicar, and we offer advice on the best way to ride long distances on electric motorcycles. All this and more on Green Car Reports. How does a Tesla Model S...
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Nissan's DC Quick-Charging Stations: 630 CHAdeMO Sites Live TodayWhile most electric cars get charged overnight for most of their miles, the growing number of DC fast-charging sites enable longer trips when necessary. But those quick chargers--initially CHAdeMO stations for Nissan Leaf, Mitsubishi i-MiEV cars, and more recently Tesla Supercharger sites for its...
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Nissan Leaf New Battery Cost: $5,500 For Replacement With Heat-Resistant ChemistryThree and a half years after the first Nissan Leaf went on sale, Nissan has announced the cost of a replacement lithium-ion battery pack for its electric car. It's a surprisingly low $5,499 (after a $1,000 credit for turning in the old pack, which is required), plus installation fees and tax. The...
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Tesla Model S Electric Car: Simply The World's Coolest TaxiWhat kind of taxis do you ride in? Battered old Crown Vics? High-mileage Toyota Priuses or Ford Escape Hybrids? Our bet is that unless you've recently spent some time in Norway, you haven't ridden in a Tesla taxi. DON'T MISS: Envy The Man Who Owns Seven Tesla Electric Cars (In Norway) Given that...
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Want To Lease A 2009 MINI E? If You Live In Delaware, You CanOne of the earliest electric-car prototype test fleets of the modern day was made up of several hundred MINI E two-seaters, which hit U.S. roads on two-year leases from 2008 through 2010. MINI E drivers who loved driving electric--which is to say, many of them--were offered replacement BMW ActiveE...
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Early this year, we wrote about efforts in the Georgia state legislature to kill the state's $5,000 income-tax credit for purchasing a battery-electric vehicle.
Among the most generous state...
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2016 Toyota Mirai Fuel Cell Sedan: Final Design, Price Revealed For JapanToyota has said for many years that it plans to build and sell a hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle, and now the company has trickled out some more information on that car. Specifically, it provided images of the final production version's exterior design--little changed from the concept it showed at the...
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Residential Solar Competitive With Electricity In 25 States Next Year: NRG CEOSolar power for your home has been around a long time, but for many homeowners, it's required subsidies, special financing arrangements, and still delivered long payback periods. That's changing fast, according to the CEO of a major Texas electric utility. David Crane, who runs NRG Energy, says...
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Even Ferrari To Cut Carbon Emissions, With Hybrid V-12 & Turbo V-8 EnginesThe fastest, most expensive sports cars and supercars must constantly boost performance to stay competitive--and now they're also having to cut their carbon emissions at the same time. Ferrari, possibly the best-known among sought-after supercar brands, plans to cut average carbon emissions across...
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Elon Musk Takes Solar City From Silicon Valley To...Buffalo ?!?!?When he's not running electric-car startup Tesla Motors, its CEO Elon Musk has a couple of other jobs on the side. In fact, he's not only involved in CEO of one startup, but three--the other two being SpaceX (privately-funded rockets) and Solar City (solar-panel leasing), where he's chairman of the...
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2014 Toyota Highlander Hybrid: Gas Mileage ReviewThe Toyota Highlander Hybrid remains the sole seven-seat hybrid vehicle on the market, and it has been redesigned and updated for the 2014 model year. While smaller vehicles--the Prius far ahead of any other model--make up the bulk of U.S. hybrid sales, the 2014 Highlander Hybrid stands at the top...
John Voelcker