John Voelcker, Contributing Editor
Articles
-
Daimler, the parent company of Mercedes-Benz, announced that it will invest up to $1 billion to build electric SUVs and batteries in and around its assembly plant in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
The plans,...
-
Shell bashes bans on gasoline cars, proposes carbon pricing insteadThe prospect of bans on gasoline and diesel new-car sales have become a much greater threat not only to automakers but to oil companies as well, now that China has said it is studying such a move. The world's largest car market has not announced any timetables for such a ban, which will likely be...
John Voelcker -
The 2018 Nissan Leaf has three types of cruise control: how they differWhen the 2018 Nissan Leaf electric car arrives at dealerships early next year, it will offer fresh styling inside and out, more power, a 150-mile range, and an array of standard or optional active-safety features. It will come in Nissan's standard three trim levels—base S, mid-level SV, and...
John Voelcker -
Building Bolt EV, electric cars with 100 miles or more, Mercedes EQC, Porsche Mission E: Today's Car NewsToday, we've updated our list of electric cars on sale this year with more than 100 miles of range, nodded to Norway as its drivers reserve a future electric Mercedes, honed in on the very fast charging in the Porsche Mission E, and flagged the catch in a rumored new EV policy from China. All this...
John Voelcker -
Porsche Mission E electric sport sedan: 200-mile recharge in 15 minutesWhile there have been lots of concept cars and production announcements, the first serious German competitor to the Tesla Model S and Model X won't arrive for at least another year. And what could prove the most potent of them all—the production version of the stunning Porsche Mission E...
John Voelcker -
Foreign makers might build electric cars in China, but rumored rule change has a catchChina's announcement 10 days ago that it was assessing a timetable for ending sales of new cars with gasoline or diesel engines continues to reverberate. The country intends to dominate global production of lithium-ion battery cells and electric vehicles, for a host of reasons from industrial power...
John Voelcker -
VW e-Golf leases, California after fossil fuels, 1,100-mile electric bus, CR-V Hybrid: Today's Car News John VoelckerToday, we've got a couple of Volkswagen electric-car stories, California's plans to eliminate fossil fuels, a very long-range electric bus, and a look at the whys and whethers of China's recent...
-
China wants all electric cars: will it work? Reasons and reactionsIt was quaint and adorable when Norway did it, saying it would end sales of cars with internal-combustion engines by 2025. The Netherlands followed suit, with little fanfare. More recently, France and the U.K. have enacted various forms of bans on non-electrified vehicles, on varying schedules. Now...
John Voelcker -
How did Proterra get an electric bus to cover 1,100 miles on a charge? A bigger battery, of courseThe laws of physics tend to be immutable, at least until you get into esoteric disciplines like quantum science. In the case of electric vehicles, one law provides that higher energy capacity in a battery allows a vehicle to travel further. That's the principle electric-bus maker Proterra has used...
John Voelcker -
2017 VW e-Golf lease can cost more than longer-range Chevy Bolt EVModel years can be confusing: the 2017 Volkswagen e-Golf electric car just went on sale this month, at a time when some other makers have already rolled out 2018 models. The 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV, meanwhile, went on sale since last December; at some point this fall, we expect to get information on...
John Voelcker -
Honda CR-V Hybrid displayed in Frankfurt; US likely next, but when?Five months ago, Honda showed a hybrid version of its CR-V compact crossover utility vehicle at the Shanghai auto show. Now, a European version of the Honda CR-V Hybrid is being shown at this week's Frankfurt auto show. Having teased it twice around the world, will the hybrid crossover come to...
John Voelcker -
Plug-in hybrid Porsche driven, life with Tesla Model S 100D, GM vs China, Range Rovers with plugs: Today's Car NewsToday, we have a couple of stories on plug-in hybrid luxury SUVs (they're all the rage), along with more on owning a new Tesla, a warning by GM about China, and a couple of self-driving Audi concepts. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Over the weekend, as always, we ran down last week's...
John Voelcker -
The Porsche Cayenne is the second best-selling vehicle in the German sports-car maker's North American lineup, as SUV sales swamp those of passenger cars at luxury brands.
A considerable number of...
-
GM CEO Barra attacks China gas-car ban, suggests buyers should decideGeneral Motors CEO Mary Barra met with reporters in Shanghai on Friday, discussing the company's vision of the future: "a world with zero crashes, zero emissions, and zero congestion." The company doesn't think, however, that China should be quite so hasty in pushing to ban cars that actually do...
John Voelcker -
Frankfurt electric cars, Tesla Autopilot crash, Pacifica Hybrid back, China's audacity: The Week in ReverseWhy might all the electric-car concepts at last week's Frankfurt auto show be a sign of desperation? What news out of China could scramble the future of the global auto industry? This is our look back at the Week In Reverse—right here at Green Car Reports—for the week ending on Friday...
John Voelcker -
Pacifica Hybrid returns, 2017 Leaf deal, Nissan electric cars, states vs Trump EPA: Today's Car NewsToday, we've got more plans for more electric cars from Nissan and Mitsubishi, a coming duel between states and the Trump EPA, why a 2017 Nissan Leaf is a great deal, and the return of the only seven-seat plug-in hybrid minivan. All this and more on Green Car Reports. The Renault Nissan Alliance...
John Voelcker -
2018 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid sales have resumed after recallThe Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid is the sole plug-in hybrid minivan for sale anywhere in North America, but it hasn't had a particularly smooth rollout. Its seven seats and 33 miles of EPA-rated electric range make it appealing to families who want a plug-in vehicle with more than five seats and more...
John Voelcker -
States to force emission, fuel-economy rules showdown with Trump Administration?Continuing political turmoil and news coverage of the Trump Administration haven't stopped the president's agency heads from drastically reshaping policies on energy, the environment, and emissions. Comments are now being taken on the reopened EPA limits on vehicular carbon emissions for 2022...
John Voelcker -
Some car companies release their business plans and goals publicly, others don't.
This morning, the Renault Nissan Alliance (now including Mitsubishi as well) released a new six-year plan laying out...
-
Mazda electric car, VW e-Golf prices, India vs China, green-car deals: Today's Car NewsToday, we've got new details on Mazda's 2020 electric car, a deal for Prius owners on a Hyundai hybrid, a longer list of green-car deals for the month, and a significant new report on why smaller turbocharged engines don't deliver what they promise. All this and more on Green Car Reports. We've...
John Voelcker -
Toyota Prius owners: Hyundai will give you $1,000 to buy an Ioniq HybridThe Toyota Prius is undoubtedly the world's best-known hybrid car, and it's now been in production over four generations for more than 20 years. There have been more than 6 million Priuses built so far, and the U.S. represents the car's largest single market. That means lots of current Prius...
John Voelcker -
2020 Mazda electric car to share Toyota underpinnings, technologyMazda is a tiny carmaker on a global scale, producing just 1.6 million vehicles a year. It competes with four companies (GM, Nissan-Renault, Toyota, and VW Group) that each sell around 10 million a year, as well as numerous other smaller makers still larger than Mazda. In a world where reducing the...
John Voelcker -
India actually beat China to all-electric new-car pledge, targets 2030China made headlines around the world on Sunday when state media reported that the country is developing a timetable to end production and sales of new vehicles with gasoline engines. While Norway, The Netherlands, France, and the U.K. have adopted different timetables for various versions of such...
John Voelcker -
Frankfurt electric cars, Tesla Autopilot crash, plug-in hybrid Ford van, anxious Germans? Today's Car NewsToday, we continue our coverage of all the electric concepts and production cars at the IAA Frankfurt auto show, we read through the NTSB report on a Tesla Autopilot fatality, we consider how desperate German carmakers may be, and we ask your opinion on the fate of CAFE standards. All this and more...
John Voelcker