John Voelcker, Contributing Editor
Articles
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Electric car sales to soar, hydrogen UPS van, better batteries, Apple car: Today's Car News John VoelckerToday, we've got some optimistic projections on electric-car sales, possibly better batteries with a not-very-secret new ingredient, and an all-electric UPS van with a hydrogen range extender. All...
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UPS electric van with fuel-cell range extender to be tested in CaliforniaConsiderable skepticism remains that passenger vehicles powered by hydrogen will become a major part of U.S. sales any time soon—or ever. Quietly, however, analysts suggest that hydrogen may provide a solution to the different challenges of producing zero-emission heavy trucks and delivery...
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Tesla electric semi, plug-in car sales, CAFE changes impact, China's importance: Today's Car NewsToday, we've got an update on Tesla's promised semi tractor, some real-world analysis of the possible impact of fuel-economy rules, and the start of our monthly report on sales of cars with plugs. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Which is more important to the future of electric cars, China...
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Tesla Autopilot gets automatic braking just as Consumer Reports downgrades safety rating (updated)Six months ago, Tesla abruptly announced that it had upgraded its electric cars with a new package of sensors for the Autopilot driver-assist system, known as "Hardware 2." The equipment was being fitted to all new Tesla Model S and Model X electric cars then in production—but there was a...
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Extra fuel used if 2022-2025 CAFE rules delayed would be low: here's the mathBarbie never said "Math is hard!" The talking doll did, notoriously, say "Math class is tough!" in 1989, sparking a media firestorm over gender roles in childrens' toys and then a voluntary recall by Mattel for offended parents. Reworded, however, the point remains accurate: many people don't...
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Is China more important to the future of electric cars than the U.S.? Poll resultsMany U.S. car buyers still aren't aware that the Chinese market surpassed North America in volume and importance fully a decade ago. Similarly, in advanced automotive technology, a case can be made that China is more important than the U.S. Nowhere is that more evident than in plug-in electric...
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Tesla Model 3 risk, BMW diesel, EPA deletes science, Shanghai electric-car surge: Today's Car News John VoelckerToday, we run down a whole host of electric cars that Chinese buyers saw and we didn't, look at a potentially risky move by Tesla on its affordable Model 3, and explain why the EPA has eradicated all...
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Six things to know about new hybrid cars (if you haven't paid much attention lately)For the past few years, plug-in electric cars have gotten more publicity than their small share of the market deserved. That's exactly what had happened to hybrids a decade earlier—and hybrids still outsell cars with plugs, even if they're no longer getting outsize publicity. We've been...
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EPA website removes climate-change pages, because science contradicts Pruitt policy goalsOn Saturday, tens of thousands of people joined a Science March in Washington, D.C., to support use of data-based science to set government policy on climate change. The day before, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency removed detailed climate data and scientific information because it appeared...
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Drive Oregon goes Forth: new name, broader mission, more statesOregon is a state that punches well above its weight in promoting and adopting zero-emission vehicles and plug-in electric cars. Smaller than California, it offers a laboratory where EV makers can try out new programs and experiment with new marketing and charging programs to see how they work...
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Volkswagen T-Roc video teases new small SUV five months early (updated)Sales of crossover utility vehicles—the ones that look like tough, capable, high-riding SUVs but actually sit on passenger-car underpinnings—continue to surge all over the world. Carmakers are meeting the demand by adding new varieties (four-door coupe utility vehicle, anyone?) and...
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Tesla electric car battery life, Toyota fuel-cell fervor, new diesels still dirty, coal-free England: The Week in ReverseWhy did readers post 1,000 comments when we asked whether Toyota's fuel-cell cars were foresighted or foolish? What good news did we get this week for Tesla Model S electric-car owners? This is our look back at the Week In Reverse—right here at Green Car Reports—for the week ending on...
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2018 Chevy Volt, Fisker electric, Eurodiesels still dirty, Audi on the moon, Model T myth: Today's Car News John VoelckerToday, we've got a few details on next year's Chevy Volt plug-in hybrid, we bust a myth about alt-fuels, there's video of a new electric Audi, and we look at some disturbing diesel test results. All...
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Tesla battery life, EPA loves coal, electric-car charging basics, tiny VW T-Roc: Today's Car NewsToday, we review data (and lots of charts!) on Tesla battery life, cover an EPA shocker, go over the basics of electric-car charging, and more. All this and more on Green Car Reports. The battery life of Tesla Model S electric cars is looking pretty good, so far. It appears the head of the agency...
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Electric car charging: the basics you need to know (updated)The number of plug-in electric cars on North American roads grows every year, and with them come new buyers. Each new electric-car driver will have a few things to learn, so we've rounded up some tips on how, where, and when how to charge up that new plug-in vehicle. Whether you're already an...
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Tesla Model S battery life: what the data show so farPerhaps the biggest question in buyers' minds over electric cars is how long the batteries will last. Most new-car buyers have mobile phones whose batteries have only lasted a couple of years, perhaps less. Even as electric-car battery packs are warranted against outright failure for eight or 10...
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Did EPA head ask coal lobby to fight Paris climate pact? Claim disputedThe Trump administration is either having a robust internal debate on its climate positions or floundering incoherently as various interests vie for the president's attention. Its intentions for the Paris Climate Agreement that the U.S. signed last year remain entirely unclear. On Monday, Trump's...
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Tesla expands Superchargers, Volvo electric car, Uber in Oregon, self-driving updates: Today's Car NewsToday, more Tesla Superchargers coming, news on Volvo's first all-electric car, and what Uber wants its Portland drivers to do. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Tesla plans to double its number of Supercharger outlets globally as it prepares for the launch of its high-volume, less expensive...
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Last year, techies, auto journalists, and Apple fans spent a great deal of time debating the existence, technology, and potential prospects of an "Apple car" project that the company never officially...
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Tesla to double global Supercharger fast-charging network this year, it saysTesla continues to make sweeping changes as it prepares for the launch of the Model 3, its first mass-market electric car. The company has announced a significant expansion of its global network of Supercharger DC fast-charging stations. Executives believe, it said, that charging should be...
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Used Tesla prices, electric VTOL jet, more fast charging, China's EV role: Today's Car NewsToday, we've got the results of another poll (this one on China), good news for Tesla owners, a jet without engines, and some possibly good news about the EPA. All this and more on Green Car Reports. While values of used electric cars like the Nissan Leaf have plummeted, the prices of used Tesla...
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How likely is it China will outpace the U.S. in electric-car adoption? Poll resultsChina is the biggest new-car market in the world, and has been since 2010. The world's largest country also has some of the smoggiest cities on the planet, and that's a source of increasing public agitation. So at national, state, and local levels, a variety of Chinese government entities are using...
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Pruitt won't kill EPA 'endangerment' finding on climate changeThe current EPA administrator, Scott Pruitt, does not accept the scientific consensus on human contribution to climate change, though he has given some contradictory statements on that matter. His views correspond closely to those of his boss, President Donald Trump, who notoriously compared the...
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China's Buick Velite 5 is a Volt with a nose jobChina is hugely important to General Motors, as it is to virtually any global automaker. It's the largest market in the country and, recently, it has put in place an increasing set of requirements that more vehicles sold there be fully or partially electric. It also happens to be by far the largest...
John Voelcker