John Voelcker, Contributing Editor

John Voelcker is an accomplished automotive journalist with a diverse background in the industry. As a cofounder of Tempting Fate Tours, he has delved into the world of adventurous car experiences, providing enthusiasts with unforgettable journeys for a year and a half. With a passion for automotive journalism, Voelcker's expertise extends to his tenure as a Contributing Editor at Internet Brands. During his stint, he has contributed valuable insights and engaging content to one of the most respected automotive publications in the industry. Previously, Voelcker served as the inaugural Editor of Green Car Reports under the Internet Brands Automotive Group. For over nine years, starting in 2009, he played a vital role in reporting, editing, and providing news coverage and new-car reviews. His contributions also extended to sister sites, including The Car Connection and Motor Authority, solidifying his reputation as a trusted source in the automotive community. In addition to his editorial work, Voelcker has actively covered advanced auto technologies and energy policy for a multitude of esteemed publications. Wired, Popular Science, Tech Review, IEEE Spectrum, and HybridCars.com are among the platforms that have featured his articles. Recognized for his expertise, he was appointed as one of the jurors for the prestigious North American Car and Truck of the Year Awards in 2015. With a wealth of experience behind the wheel, Voelcker has driven electric and hybrid cars from dozens of automakers, along with countless other vehicles. His firsthand experiences provide a valuable perspective in his automotive reporting. Voelcker's editorial journey has taken him through various notable magazines, including This Old House, Metropolis, Psychology Today, Exposure, Mother Earth News, Budget Living, and IEEE Spectrum. His diverse background showcases his versatility and ability to cover a wide range of topics. Voelcker holds a BS in Industrial Engineering from Stanford University, which adds a unique analytical lens to his automotive reporting. Splitting his time between the picturesque Catskill Mountains and vibrant New York City, he finds inspiration in both the tranquility of nature and the dynamic urban environment.

Articles

Even A 3000-MPG Chevy Volt Has To Turn On The Engine Sometimes John Voelcker July 27, 2011

As Chevrolet very often point outs in marketing its 2011 Volt extended-range electric car, more than 70 percent of U.S. vehicles cover less than 40 miles a day.

That means that if you recharge a Volt...
EPA Says Toyota Prius Hybrid No Longer 'Most Fuel-Efficient'
Ask Americans about fuel-efficient cars, and many will name the iconic Toyota Prius hybrid, with gas mileage rated by the EPA at a combined 50 miles per gallon. So you'd expect the EPA to rank the Prius as the best midsize car on its list of Most and Least Fuel Efficient Cars, right? It's not...
John Voelcker July 27, 2011

2012 Toyota Camry Hybrid: New Style, Same Old Hybrid System
Sometimes, you find information in the strangest places. Take the YouTube video, "Georgetown Plant on the 2012 Camry," apparently posted by Toyota of the Black Hills, a dealer in Rapid City, South Dakota. It's got some shots of the newly redesigned 2012 Toyota Camry moving down the production line...
John Voelcker July 26, 2011
Ford Polls Facebook Fans For 2012 Focus Electric Noises (Video)
Whether you think they're needed or not, all electric and hybrid cars are going to be required to fit noisemakers so that they can't be missed at speeds of 15 mph or below. To involve its fans, Ford posted four possible sounds for the noise that its upcoming 2012 Ford Focus Electric will emit as...
John Voelcker July 26, 2011
Breathe Easy, Californians: Electric-Car Rebates Survive, Cut To $2,500
It came down to the wire, but in the end, California's program of purchase rebates for buyers of qualifying plug-in electric cars has survived the state's grim budget crisis. Last Thursday, we wrote about the decisions facing the California Air Resources Board: How much could it really afford to...
John Voelcker July 25, 2011
Ford Hybrids Prove Durability By Racking Up Most Taxi Miles
Ford has issued data showing remarkable reliability among the battery packs and electric motors in its hybrid vehicles, not the least of them the ones used in grueling taxi service in cities like New York and San Francisco.
John Voelcker July 25, 2011
Bankrupt Norwegian Electric-Car Maker Think Gets Russian Owner John Voelcker July 25, 2011

Well, it's official: After its fourth bankruptcy in two decades, the Norwegian electric-car maker Think Global has a new owner.

As rumored last week, he's lumber baron Boris G. Zingarevich, of St....

Will 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In Get Us Used To Plugging In?
Last week, Toyota said it expects to sell 16,000 or more 2012 Prius Plug-In Hybrid models in the U.S. next year, once the car is launched (in June or before). For all intents and purposes, it's a standard Toyota Prius hybrid with a larger battery pack that uses lithium-ion cells. The car can be...
John Voelcker July 25, 2011
Chinese Electric Bus Catches Fire On Road, Not The First One
Chinese media are reporting that an electric bus caught fire in Shanghai at noon on Monday. And this is apparently not the first such incident. A Reuters report indicates that at least one earlier incident has been reported in the Chinese press within the last three months. A local Shanghai blog...
John Voelcker July 20, 2011
Check Out New, Quicker, Smarter, Slicker Motor Authority Site!
If you're reading this site, you're likely interested in high gas mileage, hybrids, clean diesels, electric cars, and other vehicles that fall into the category of "green cars." You may or may not be interested in luxury and sports cars. But if you are, this is the time to check out our sister...
John Voelcker July 20, 2011
2012 Nissan Leaf: More Standard Equipment, Higher Price
The 2012 Nissan Leaf electric car will include more standard equipment, but it will carry a higher price tag as well. Announcing the updates for the second Leaf model year, Nissan said today it will expand U.S. sales of the Leaf into several Southeastern states plus Illinois. The 2012 model of the...
John Voelcker July 19, 2011
2012 Chevy Impala Gas Mileage Rated At 30 MPG Highway
With discussions of raising gas-mileage standards beyond the 34 mpg they'll reach in 2015, there's a lot of shrieking about how we'll all be driving subcompacts if the rules get any tougher. Hogwash. Consider the 2012 Chevrolet Impala, Chevy's rapidly aging full-sized four-door sedan. Equipped with...
John Voelcker July 19, 2011

BMW ActiveE Electric Car Shown On Leipzig Assembly Line (Video) John Voelcker July 18, 2011

You might call it pure propaganda, but confident young BMW worker Mirco Schwarze describes the process of assembling the BMW ActiveE electric car in a way that makes it all quite palatable.

The short...
Xtranormal Explains Plug-In Cars, Mostly The 2011 Chevy Volt
By now, you may well have seen short video clips of crudely animated people talking in monotonous tones, with more than occasional mispronunciations and odd rhythms. They're Xtranormal animations, created by feeding your dialogue into a website that animates them based on the author's choices of...
John Voelcker July 18, 2011
BMW To Provide 4,000 Cars For 2012 Olympics, Electric Cars Included
The 2012 Olympics to be held next summer in London may be the greenest yet, with spectators and many participants moving by mass transit among the various venues. Still, automotive partner BMW plans to provide up to 4,000 vehicles for use during the events. Now we learn that 200 of those will be...
John Voelcker July 15, 2011
Relax: E15 Gasoline Won't Arrive For A Year Or More, GAO Says
E15 gasoline has been much in the news lately, but all the hullabaloo may have been a bit premature. The U.S. Government Accounting Office, better known as The Gummint's in-house auditor, says that E15 won't appear at the pumps until sometime next year. Just because the EPA has allowed the sale of...
John Voelcker July 14, 2011
First Fisker Karma To DiCaprio, 3,000 Orders Behind Him, CEO Says
Fisker Automotive says it will, finally, deliver its first 2011 Fisker Karma range-extended electric sports sedan later this month. The lucky recipient, it turns out, will be none other than actor Leonardo DiCaprio. He's the man who kicked off the whole hybrids-for-Hollywood-stars trend, by showing...
John Voelcker July 13, 2011
Range Anxiety Antidote: You Don't Drive As Far As You Think
It's been known among electric-car advocates for years that so-called "range anxiety" is somewhat overblown. That's despite, we might add, advertisements by a large U.S. company that sells a range-extended plug-in car that highlight its ability to let you drive it across the country on the spur of...
John Voelcker July 12, 2011

Chrysler's Most Important Car Ever: 2013 Dodge Compact Sedan John Voelcker July 12, 2011

Never mind the Eminem "Imported From Detroit" Super Bowl ad.

Ignore the freshened versions of Chrysler and Dodge models dating back to 2006 or before.

The most important new car for Chrysler...
Nissan Leaf News: Electric-Car Updates Coming For 2012, 2013
The 2011 Nissan Leaf, the world's first modern battery-electric car built in volume by a major automaker, is starting to hit its stride. Now the evolution of the Leaf is getting clearer, as Nissan officials confirmed changes and updates to the car for the 2012 and 2013 model years. More than 4,000...
John Voelcker July 12, 2011
Mitsubishi Joins The Crowd, Unveils Solar Charging Station At HQ
It's moving from an innovation to a fad, this business of solar-powered charging stations for electric cars. The latest car company to jump on the bandwagon is Mitsubishi, which will launch the diminutive four-door, four-seat 2012 Mitsubishi 'i' electric minicar in November at a price of just...
John Voelcker July 11, 2011
Prius Shortages Will End For 2012, Sales Will Rock, Toyota Says
It's been a tough couple of years for Toyota. First was the entire sudden-acceleration mess, along with multiple recalls covering almost 10 million cars. Then came the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, which devastated Toyota's intricate global network of parts and assembly plants. But with a return...
John Voelcker July 11, 2011
Volvos A La Volt: Swedish Carmaker Tests Range Extenders In C30, V60
Swedish carmaker Volvo now operates a test fleet of all-electric C30 hatchbacks, and it's also rolling out another experimental car, a V60 wagon with a diesel engine driving the front wheels, and an electric motor powering the rear. The two cars are now spawning a second generation of test...
John Voelcker July 11, 2011
Think Went Thunk: What Does Electric-Car Bankruptcy Teach Us?
A little more than three weeks ago, Norwegian electric-car maker Think Global declared bankruptcy--for the fourth time, actually. In a pithy piece published a week later, Pike Research analyst Dave Hurst suggested a few lessons that can be learned from Think's latest collapse. The entire article...
John Voelcker July 8, 2011