John Voelcker, Contributing Editor
Articles
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If you pronounce the word "buzz" with a German accent, it sounds like "bus"—which is almost surely why VW's second all-electric concept vehicle is called the Volkswagen ID Buzz.
It's the...
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Emission updates for 2015 VW, Audi 2.0-liter TDI diesels OKed by regulatorsThe $14.7 billion diesel-emission settlement among Volkswagen and regulatory agencies required VW to buy back or modify almost half a million TDI vehicles from model years 2009 through 2015. While the buybacks have received the most attention—and most owners are expected to take...
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Next Nissan Leaf, Faraday at CES, electric Fords, Tesla Autopilot update: The Week in ReverseWhich U.S. automaker dropped some bombshells about its future plans for electric cars, and Mexico too? And what did we learn at the gigantic Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas? 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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Chrysler Portal concept: all-electric minivan for CES offers some self-driving (specs updated)It was widely rumored that Chrysler would reveal an all-electric minivan at this week's Consumer Electronics Show—and now we have the details. But the Chrysler Portal concept that will debut at CES won't be showing up at your local dealer any time soon. Far from it, in fact: the Portal is...
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Next Nissan Leaf: ProPilot self-driving included, 200-mile range or more confirmedNissan CEO Carlos Ghosn today confirmed that a second-generation Nissan Leaf electric car is coming "in the near future," though he didn't specify a date or model year. The new Leaf will come with Nissan's ProPilot technology, which permits the car to drive itself autonomously within a highway...
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What will you be driving 10 years from now? Poll resultsWith news stories literally every day about autonomous vehicle tests, and the growing number of plug-in electric vehicles on sale, the future is ... well, up in the air. Readers of this site tend to be more future-oriented than many car buyers, so we polled our Twitter followers about their views...
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In recent years, Ford has acquired a bit of a reputation for opacity in its dealings with the media.
One example was its promise in December 2015 that it would introduce 13 new "electrified" vehicles...
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Tesla delivered 76,000 cars in 2016, missing its goalWhile the auto industry will start to report December and year-end sales totals today, Tesla Motors issued its year-end delivery and production results yesterday. The Silicon Valley car maker, now completing its ninth year of production, delivered 22,230 electric cars during the fourth quarter of...
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Ford plans 300-mile electric SUV, hybrid F-150 and Mustang, more U.S. productionFord released plans today for its future portfolio of electified vehicles, including an all-electric SUV with 300 miles of range Perhaps more remarkable, it will offer hybrid versions of both the F-150 pickup truck—previously discussed for 2019 or so—and the Mustang sport coupe. It will...
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2017 Mitsubishi Mirage G4: gas mileage reviewThe Mitsubishi Mirage is the underdog of small cars: slow, loud, and archaic, but scrappy. And it's been a much bigger sales success than Mitsubishi expected, given the small numbers of minicars and subcompacts sold in the U.S. these days. For 2017, Mitsubishi added a four-door sedan model dubbed...
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Tesla Autopilot, Kia Niro hybrid, used Fiat electrics, VW diesel buyback warning: The Week in ReverseWhich electric model might be the used-car bargain of the year? And exactly what kind of car is a new hybrid we just drove? This is our look back at the Week In Reverse—right here at Green Car Reports—for the week ending on Friday, December 30, 2016. Friday, we published our first drive...
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2017 Kia Niro hybrid: first drive reportAccording to its maker, the 2017 Kia Niro is the first "crossover hybrid vehicle" sold in the U.S.—but what does that really mean? We drove150 miles in two different versions of the top-of-the-line Niro Touring model two weeks ago, and concluded that the Niro represents an interesting package...
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It's clear that after several years of electric-car sales, electric utilities see a role to be played in providing the infrastructure to make them practical.
Two weeks ago, California utility...
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Deal of the year? Used Fiat 500e electric cars at $6,500?
It's well known by now that the used-car prices of low-range electric cars are low. Any 2011 through 2016 electric car not made by Tesla is likely to be cheap on a used-car lot due to worries about battery degradation and its effect on range. Used Nissan Leafs, for instance, can often be found for...
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Michigan socks hybrid owners with new fees—that don't apply to most hybrids (updated)The state of Michigan, to help pay for road repairs, decided more than a year ago to hit owners of hybrids and electric cars with additional fees starting this January 1—on top of higher registration rates for all cars. The new fees have been added to the registration bills for hybrids...
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What will be your next green-car purchase? Poll results
Well, that was decisive! Our readers are clearly, unquestionably, absolutely intending to switch from driving on fossil fuels to driving on grid electricity. That's the only conclusion we can draw from the results of our most recent Twitter poll, this one on what respondents planned to buy for...
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Musk ups Tesla Supercharger ante, teases 350-kw-plus chargingTesla CEO Elon Musk teased a new generation of the company's unique DC fast-charging stations, suggesting that a future "version 3" Supercharger would deliver as much as 350 kilowatts of power. Unsurprisingly, he did it via Twitter, his preferred medium for communicating with the world. His...
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Tesla vs Bolt EV, first Clarity Fuel Cell, more electric-car charging, Michigan hybrid fees: The Week in ReverseWhich new electric car did Woz end up getting after he praised the 238-mile Chevy Bolt EV? How much more will VW's diesel emission scandal cost it as of this week? This is our look back at the Week In Reverse—right here at Green Car Reports—for the week ending on Friday, December 23...
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It takes people to make cars: to lift and install parts, check quality, test-drive them after assembly, and so forth.
Automation has eliminated many of the jobs performed by humans a century ago on...
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Colorado, Nevada, Utah to collaborate on electric-car charging networkMuch of the U.S. innovation in electric-car incentives and infrastructure has come not from the federal government but from one or more states, especially California. With the decision years ago to let states either comply with national emission standards or adopt the stiffer California rules, both...
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Toyota changes course, offers to share hybrid technology with rivalsOver the past six months, Toyota has made some remarkable decisions about its present and future car technologies. After years of staunch opposition to battery-electric vehicles, it committed to launching one by 2020. Now, the company has decided to offer its proprietary hybrid technology in volume...
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What effect will Trump presidency have on electric cars? Poll resultsIt may reflect unshakable confidence in the future prospects of electric cars. Or perhaps it's a lack of conviction that the incoming Trump Administration can have enough effect on incentives, emission regulations, and gas-mileage rules to make a difference. Either way, the respondents to our most...
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VW 3-liter diesel updates OKed, but buyback negotiations continueVW Group announced yesterday it had reached a preliminary agreement with various regulators to resolve civil suits related to "defeat device" software in vehicles fitted with its 3.0-liter V-6 diesel engines. Those cars—a variety of SUVs and sedans sold by Audi, Porsche, and...
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Electric car battery warranties comparedIt's one of the most frequently asked questions by anyone hearing about a modern electric car: do I have to replace the battery? With 15 years of experience in mobile phones and more than that with laptop computers, most buyers know that lithium-ion batteries lose capacity over time. Replacing...
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