John Voelcker, Contributing Editor
Articles
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Niro Plug-In Hybrid coming, VW vs Tesla, OK hybrid owners win, EPA for dirtier diesels: Today's Car News John VoelckerToday, we've got good news from Oklahoma and bad news by a former Oklahoman, VW attacking Tesla, the incipient plug-in model of the Kia Niro, and an update on used electric cars. All this and more on...
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2018 Kia Niro Plug-in Hybrid to launch in U.S. at end of yearLast month, the Kia Niro Plug-In Hybrid went on sale in the United Kingdom, offering British buyers a mass-priced compact wagon with 25 to 30 miles of electric range. While it shares its underpinnings with the Hyundai Ioniq Plug-In model, the Niro has more of a wagon shape than Hyundai's five-door...
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Nissan electric SUV, emission-defeat devices, no free Model 3 charging, Tokyo show cars: Today's Car NewsToday, we've got news from the Tokyo Motor Show press days, including a new Nissan electric crossover concept and a Toyota luxury fuel-cell car, plus bad news for Tesla Model 3 buyers and a bill before Congress to allow emission-defeat devices. All this and more on Green Car Reports. The Tokyo...
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When will the U.S. ban sales of new cars with engines? Take our Twitter pollTo many, many drivers and car owners, the idea that the internal-combustion engine could go away is almost beyond comprehension. It's been with us for a century, it's vastly expanded both freedom and economic opportunity for hundreds of millions of people worldwide, and it's wrapped into our daily...
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Nissan IMx Concept electric SUV debuts at Tokyo Motor ShowThe long-awaited all-electric crossover utility concept from Nissan finally made its public debut Wednesday morning on the first press day at the Tokyo auto show. Dubbed the Nissan IMx, the compact crossover concept includes both fully autonomous driving and an electric range given as more than 370...
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Tesla Model 3 future, death of the engine, 10K plug-in sales, Dieselgate modifications: Today's Car NewsToday, a death in the family, a future competitor for Tesla's Model 3, 10,000 plug-ins from one maker in one month, and some Dieselgate engine updates. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Regulators have approved modifications to certain VW Group 3.0-liter V-6 TDI diesel engines used in Audi...
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The very first working four-cycle internal-combustion engine was invented by Niklaus Otto in 1876, and in due course it changed the world.
A quarter of a century later, gasoline engines,...
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How will Tesla Model 3 do over the next year? Poll resultsIf ever a car were in "production hell"—to use Tesla CEO Elon Musk's memorable phrase—the Tesla Model 3 is, right around now. From the first hand-built Model 3s delivered in late July through the end of September, fewer than 300 cars have gone to buyers—far short of the 1,500...
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Western fast charging, Tesla in China, 2019 Prius V spy shots, Best Car winners of the past: Today's Car NewsToday, we've got reports of what Tesla will do in China, spy shots of the next Prius V hybrid, more fast-charging for electric-car drivers in Western states, and some Best Car To Buy history. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Over the weekend, we ran down last week's top green-car stories. We...
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Seven years of Green Car Reports Best Car To Buy winnersAs we head into final deliberations for the Best Car To Buy 2018 award, it's worth looking back over our first seven years of winners. The list of seven different models or lineups gives a sense of just how far green cars have come—and how fast they've evolved since 2011. Our first award that...
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2019 Toyota Prius V to shift from wagon to SUV design, but will it have AWD?With gas prices remaining cheap and all vehicles getting better fuel economy these days, utility vehicles are all the rage among U.S. buyers. Whether smaller crossovers or bigger SUVs, utilities have not only ended the market for traditional wagons but are eating significantly into sales of...
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Tesla to build electric-car factory in Chinese free-trade zone: reportChina is the world's largest car market, and the country plans to phase out sales of new vehicles with combustion engines in the future. Tesla makes and sells only electric cars, and it aspires to become a volume automaker, meaning China is key to its future. The Chinese government effectively...
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2018 Camry Hybrid, Mercedes electric plans, rotary range extender, Best Car To Buy: The Week in Reverse John VoelckerWhat company teased us with the possibility of 6-minute electric-car recharging?
Which vehicles made it into the finalists for our Best Car To Buy 2018 award, and which didn't?
This is our look back...
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Mazda rotary range extender, Nissan's chill electric van, 2018 Zero motorcycles, Cummins buys Brammo: Today's Car NewsToday, we've got a very cool electric van, a diesel-engine maker moving into electric trucks, Mazda's rotary range-extending engine, and new and better electric motorcycles. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Refrigerated trucks are a small but crucial piece of the commercial van market; now...
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Mazda all but confirms rotary range extender engine for electric carHow Mazda plans to integrate plug-in hybrid and battery-electric vehicles into its range of increasingly efficient gasoline and diesel models is a topic that interests parts of the global auto industry. In 2019, the small Japanese maker will offer a combustion-engine technology never before...
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Which green cars didn't make the list for Best Car To Buy 2018?After the usual intense discussions and debates, we announced our three finalists for the Green Car Reports Best Car To Buy 2018 award earlier this week. The Tesla Model 3 was not among them, because we have to drive a car in order to evaluate it as a finalist—and Tesla declined to provide us...
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Electric Nissan SUV, EPA vs ethanol, VW vs Pikes Peak, 6-minute battery recharges: Today's Car NewsToday, it appears the future may include more electric SUVs, less ethanol in gasoline, a VW electric hill-climbing race car, and much, much faster battery recharging. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Last week, Toshiba announced a battery cell that could offer the long-sought recharging time...
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Volkswagen targets Pikes Peak with electric-car tech from future modelsThe next Pikes Peak International Hill Climb race is eight months away still, so a press release on a carmaker's entry into next June's event comes out of left field. But for Volkswagen, it's another small step to underscore its major commitment to battery-electric vehicles as its two-year-old...
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Automakers spend a lot of time trying to work out how electrified powertrains, autonomous driving technology, connectivity, and sharing will turn their industry upside down. Or not.
Meanwhile,...
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Tesla Model 3 poll, 2018 Camry Hybrid mileage, UAW jobs, Mercedes electric cars: Today's Car NewsToday, we've got a gas-mileage test of the 2018 Toyota Camry Hybrid, a roundup of Canadian news about electric cars, a threat to the UAW, and a poll on the future of the Tesla Model 3. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Our most recent roundup of electric-car news in Canada includes awards for...
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What's ahead for Tesla Model 3? Take our Twitter poll
Auto-industry CEOs virtually never admit that the new product that could make or break the company is "in production hell," but that's now obviously the case for the Tesla Model 3. Deliveries last months totaled just 220 units, far below Tesla CEO Elon Musk's July projection of 1,500 during...
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Powerful Polestar, banning cars with engines, Best Car To Buy 2018, wireless charging: Today's Car NewsToday, the three finalists for our annual Best Car To Buy award, a powerful plug-in hybrid coupe from Volvo's Polestar, the importance of wireless charging, and the Netherlands takes the lead. All this and more on Green Car Reports. First, the Dutch planned to ban sales of new cars with combustion...
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How much does wireless charging matter for electric cars? Poll resultsThe announcements by BMW and Mercedes-Benz that they would offer wireless charging as an option next year raise a question for electric-car advocates. How important is the ability to recharge a vehicle without plugging in a cord? On the pro side, wireless charging may be easier for owners and...
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One of these 3 vehicles will be Green Car Reports' Best Car To Buy 2018Fans of green cars have spent much of the past year eagerly waiting for a pair of electric cars to be revealed to the public and then to go on sale. By far the most attention and hype has been focused on the Tesla Model 3, the Silicon Valley carmaker's lower-priced and much higher-volume vehicle...
John Voelcker