John Voelcker, Contributing Editor
Articles
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The 2017 Kia Optima Hybrid is one of a pair of hybrid mid-size sedans from the Korean maker Hyundai-Kia.
It shares its underpinnings, though not a single body panel or styling flourish, with the...
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Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid: full production to start today for plug-in minivanIt's a well-reviewed new minivan design from the company that invented the modern minivan three decades ago. Unlike any other minivan, however, its large battery pack gives it 33 miles of EPA-rated electric range, and it can drive largely on battery alone despite its size, its seven seats, and its...
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Cruze Diesel first drive, Tesla loss, Mazda rotary, updated Outback: Today's Car NewsToday, we have a popular updated crossover utility wagon, a defeat for Tesla, a first drive of the new Cruze Diesel, and a radical range extender for electric cars. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Mazda's been working quietly on a rotary-engine range extender for electric cars; now it has...
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Green groups gird for battle with White House: is it 'war'?Last Wednesday, a broad coalition of environmental groups sued the Trump Administration over an executive order that lifted a moratorium on issuing new leases for coal mining on federal lands. That order would have eliminated the requirement for an environmental impact study on the impacts of any...
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Electric bikes, plug-in sales update, self-driving Tesla perpsective, corporate carbon plans vs Trump: Today's Car NewsToday, we have an update on our monthly electric-car sales report, then some perspective on those numbers, surprising news from Buick, and a shock for Tesla fans. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Electric cars get generous national and state incentives in many places, but perhaps electric...
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Putting plug-in electric car sales in perspective: they're still very lowVolume sales of plug-in cars, both battery-electric and plug-in hybrid models, began more than six years ago. From a first-year total of about 17,000 in 2011, they rose tenfold over five years, to roughly 160,000 last year in the U.S. But it's important to understand that despite their growth rate...
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Plug-in electric car sales for Mar: Leaf beats Bolt EV, plug-in hybrids beat electrics (updated) John VoelckerThe Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid again took the crown among plug-in electric cars whose makers report monthly sales.
A total of 2,132 Volts were sold in March, bringing its three-month sales to...
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Large corporations, manufacturers stick with climate pledges despite TrumpThe new U.S. president, Donald Trump, is working to eradicate every Obama policy to limit the carbon emissions that contribute to climate change. Having variously called the science behind climate change a "Chinese plot" to hurt the U.S. and referred to it using an expletive for bovine excrement...
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More Bolt EV charging, VW diesel costs, London emission fees, Mercedes vs hydrogen: Today's Car NewsToday, we have a total of what the diesel scandal has cost VW, more details on Chevy Bolt EV fast-charging rates, an update on London's stiff charges for older, more polluting cars, and a moral question to ponder. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Hong Kong closed a tax loophole, one that...
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More details on fast-charging rate in 2017 Chevy Bolt EV electric carFor a few years now, Tesla has shown what a nationwide network of DC fast-charging sites for long-range electric cars should look like. Its Supercharger network now covers virtually all of the lower 48 states, and until earlier this year, it was completely free to Tesla drivers. The Chevrolet Bolt...
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London's $27 entry charge for pre-2016 diesel cars to start April 2019For more than 13 years, London has collected a stiff charge from motor vehicles entering the congested core of the city during weekday business hours. Known as the congestion charge, the fee of £11.50 a day, or $14.50 (£10 with automatic payment, or $12.50) is levied from 6 am to 7 pm...
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When will it be unacceptable to drive a car with a tailpipe? Poll resultsNo vehicle on earth is entirely free of emissions; even electric cars charged on renewable energy have emissions associated with their manufacturing. Those emissions, however, are a tiny fraction of the carbon dioxide and other substances emitted by gasoline or diesel cars when scientifically...
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Self-driving Leaf, electric-car sales, fuel-cell challenges, Tesla deliveries: Today's Car News John VoelckerToday, we have Tesla quarterly deliveries, electric-car sales for March, a California road trip, and a fully autonomous Nissan Leaf. All this and more on Green Car Reports.
As usual, on Saturday we ...
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Riding in prototype autonomous Nissan Leaf electric car: what it's like (video)It's been a vision of the future for decades now: self-driving cars that let you get in, specify your destination, and then curl up for a bit more sleep, waking when you arrive. That kind of anywhere-any-time autonomy remains some years in the future, most engineers suggest. Automakers are already...
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Tesla delivered 25,000 electric cars in Q1 2017, plus or minusThe numbers are in, and Tesla says it delivered 25,000 electric cars globally in the first quarter of this year, from January through March. That's a new quarterly record for the Silicon Valley company, which delivered 76,230 cars last year. Analysts and Tesla fans had eagerly watched for this...
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Clarity Fuel Cell driven, Bolt EV fast-charged, Trump vs CARB, electric watercraft: The Week in ReverseWhy are two of the very earliest Nissan Leaf owners not happy with their electric car? What can you do personally to cut emissions of climate-change gases that the Trump Administration will no longer regulate? This is our look back at the Week In Reverse—right here at Green Car...
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New Musk venture, Mercedes electrics to come quicker, sensing methane leaks: Today's Car NewsToday, we have a new company from Tesla CEO Elon Musk, posh electric delivery vans, and a new sense of urgency from Mercedes-Benz. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Mercedes-Benz has decided to launch electric cars up to three years faster than it had previously planned. We explained why. A...
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Trump's climate-change order: now what happens?
These do not appear to be the best of times for President Donald J. Trump, but his agenda of eliminating regulations and promoting fossil fuels continues to roll out. This week, Trump appeared at the EPA to sign an executive order that directed the agency to reopen and reassess its Clean Power Plan...
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Volkswagen Group of America continues to work through a long list of civil and criminal lawsuits over its diesel emission cheating scandal.
Yesterday, the company said it had reached agreements with...
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Tesla software, unhappy Leaf owner, Honda Clarity first drive, Musk says 'no': Today's Car NewsToday, we have a drive report on Honda's hydrogen fuel-cell sedan, an unhappy Nissan Leaf owner, and Elon Musk playing stern daddy to an eager Model 3 buyer. All this and more on Green Car Reports. The Trump administration is working to wipe out all U.S. government climate-change efforts. What can...
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2017 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell: first drive of hydrogen-powered sedanThere are now three different vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cells on sale in California, and we've driven them all. The 2017 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell is the first one in which we were able to forget about the powertrain and simply drive. It's the best of the three, although that won't matter...
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Lessons learned from early electric car: 2011 Nissan Leaf at 90,000 milesBeing a pioneer isn't easy. When you're pioneering new automotive technology, it can be challenging and sometimes costly. Just ask anyone who owned an early turbocharged sport sedan, for instance. That also applies, in some cases, to some of the first modern electric cars, and in particular the...
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Elon Musk as stern daddy: no central Model 3 speedo, head-up display for you!Never let it be said that Tesla CEO Elon Musk isn't a man of strong opinions. His tweets are the stuff of legend, his dismissals of hydrogen fuel-cell cars as "fool cells" have been consistent for many years, and if you get his attention, he will definitely tell you what he thinks. Perhaps U.K...
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Fast-charging a 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV electric carThe 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV is the first mass-priced electric car with more than 200 miles of range to go on sale in the U.S. That alone makes it a landmark vehicle, and has led to significant interest in the first electric car that provides comparable range to that of Tesla cars over the last nine...
John Voelcker