John Voelcker, Contributing Editor
Articles
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The distinguishing feature of the Chevrolet Volt has always been that as long as it has charge left in its battery, it runs solely on electricity.
The gasoline engine doesn't switch on even under...
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Should Safer Cars Get Credit For More MPG? Automaker Trade Group Says YesAs corporate average fuel economy standards continue to tighten each year, car companies have so far kept pace with the rising gas-mileage rules. But automakers are seeking credit for every possible advancement in new vehicles as they look toward an average goal of 54.5 mpg in 2025 (roughly...
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UPDATE: Audi e-tron Confirmed: Sleek Electric SUV May Beat Tesla Model X On RangeWith the all-new 2016 Audi Q7 now launched at last week's Geneva Motor Show, and a diesel plug-in hybrid model to follow, luxury maker Audi can turn its attention to its next utility project. That would be a stylish all-electric crossover SUV that takes direct aim at the Tesla Model X, which is...
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Report On Tesla-Style Direct Sales Cites GM Brazil Program Ended In 2006The topic of Tesla Motors and its direct-sales model continues to roil state legislatures, with bills for and against the practice under debate in several states. In May 2009, the U.S. Justice Department issued a paper that looked at the economic effects of state bans on such direct sales. Now it...
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Tesla Road Trip, Accord Hybrid Supply, Geneva Show Cars: The Week In Reverse (Video)Why does French maker Renault returning to North America with the Twizy electric car make very little sense to us? And how did our Tesla-driving author fare as he drove cross-country, without benefit of Superchargers along parts of his route? This is our video look back at the Week In...
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Toyota Mirai Fuel-Cell Car's Ad Agency Should Study Engine Technology More CloselyOh, Toyota ... really? It's not bad enough that your Lexus brand put out two ads that inaccurately slammed plug-in electric and diesel vehicles, respectively. Now your own agency has gone and made a foolish technical error in an ad meant to pave the way for your 2016 Toyota Mirai hydrogen fuel-cell...
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The announcement that the 2017 Chevrolet Bolt electric car will go into production within 18 months seemingly sent shockwaves through the auto industry.
GM's crosstown rival Ford, which has sold...
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Electric Ford Rumor, Tesla Road Trip, Cheaper VW e-Golf : Today's Car News
We mull over a shadowy rumor about a new Ford electric car, analysts raise the idea of an oil-price collapse due to lack of storage, and there's now a new version of the 2015 Volkswagen e-Golf that's cheaper than before. All this and more today on Green Car Reports. We started off by considering a...
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Plug-In Electric Car Sales In Feb: Cold-Weather Doldrums Continue: FINAL UPDATEWinter is always a slower sales time for plug-in electric cars than the warmer months, and last month looks like it won't be any exception. Sales of most of the highest-selling battery-electric and plug-in hybrid models stayed roughly at levels similar to those of January. While a blockbuster...
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2015 Volkswagen e-Golf Electric Car Gets Less Expensive Trim LevelWhen pricing for the 2015 Volkswagen e-Golf electric car was announced last August, only one trim level was available, a lavishly equipped top-of-the-range package. Now VW has supplemented that SEL Premium version of the e-Golf with a new, less expensive model called the Limited Edition, at a price...
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Honda Accord Hybrid: Supply Now Sufficient To Meet DemandThe Honda Accord Hybrid was launched as a 2014 model, and the first few were sold back in October 2013. But over the next year, despite favorable reviews and a handful of awards, the Accord Hybrid remained a rare beast indeed on dealership lots. Now, more than a year later, it appears that supply...
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2016 Mitsubishi i-MiEV Electric Minicar To Start Deliveries This Month: UPDATEThe little Mitsubishi i-MiEV is the smallest four-seat electric car sold in North America, and its sales have been commensurate with its size: low. Since it went on sale more than three years ago, sales have totaled less than 2,000 units--against 72,300 for the larger Nissan Leaf. DON'T MISS: 2014...
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The Audi Q7 e-tron quattro diesel plug-in hybrid model was official unveiled today at the Geneva Motor Show.
The car's reveal followed last month's release of the first photos, details, and...
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All-Electric Aston Martin DBX Crossover Concept: Geneva SurpriseJames Bond would probably like this one, for its silent speed and rough-terrain capability. And it's even an Aston Martin. At today's Geneva Motor Show, the British sports-car maker unveiled a surprise concept: a sporty crossover utility vehicle with an all-electric powertrain. DON'T MISS: Lagonda...
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Nickel-Metal-Hydride Batteries For Electric Cars? Energy Density Can Rise 10-Fold: ResearchersThe division is pretty clear: nickel-metal-hydride batteries are for use only in hybrids--at least those from Toyota, which has used more of the batteries than any other maker by far. Lithium-ion cells, on the other hands, are the only ones with sufficient energy density to be used in the much...
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Renault To Return To N America With Twizy Low-Speed Electric Car?Four of Europe's six mass-market carmakers have long sold cars in North America. The exceptions, for a quarter of a century, have been the two French makers: PSA Peugeot Citroën and Renault. Now it appears that Renault may be considering a return to the continent, using its Twizy low-speed...
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Toyota Hybrid Sales Flat In 2014, Honda Up By More Than Half GloballyWith U.S. gas prices having fallen 40 percent over six months, fuel efficiency may be less important to car buyers than it was when gasoline cost $4 a gallon. Meanwhile, smaller crossover utility vehicles are supplanting sedans and hatchbacks in more and more driveways. DON'T MISS: Toyota Racks Up...
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Tesla Gigafactory: New Photos Show Progress On Battery Plant In NevadaTo be able to build and sell its planned $35,000 Tesla Model 3 electric sedan, Tesla Motors must first build its lithium-ion cell "gigafactory" in Nevada and then test and validate the batteries it produces. But if the latest photos are any indication, work is proceeding rapidly on the huge...
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With the highest rated fuel economy of any full-size pickup truck, the Ram 1500 EcoDiesel has been a smash hit for Fiat Chrysler's truck brand.
But now the company has acknowledged that some of the...
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Bill To Kill Georgia's Electric-Car Tax Credit Rises From The DeadState politics can be a funny thing. Last week, a Georgia House bill to end the state's $5,000 tax credit for purchase or lease of a battery-electric vehicle was voted down by its Ways & Means Committee. But yesterday, it mysteriously reappeared and was unanimously passed by voice vote after it...
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Consumer Reports: Tesla Model S 'Best Overall' Again In 2015Well, Tesla Motors seems to have done it again. For the second year in a row, Consumer Reports has named the Tesla Model S its "Best Overall" vehicle to buy for 2015. DON'T MISS: Consumer Reports: Tesla Model S Electric Car Is 'Best Overall' Vehicle (Feb 2014) As the well-regarded consumer magazine...
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2016 Chevrolet Volt Powertrain: How It Works In Electric, Hybrid ModesThe new 2016 Chevrolet Volt is sleeker, has more electric range, higher gas mileage, a fifth seat, and should be both faster and quieter on the road. But while GM hasn't explicitly said so, it's no longer as much of a range-extended electric car (or "series hybrid"). The new 2016 Volt should be...
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Ford Hikes Cash Incentives On Last 2014 C-Max Hybrid, Energi ModelsLast week, Ford cut prices on both the hybrid and plug-in hybrid versions of its 2016 Ford Fusion mid-size sedan. This week, the company is cutting costs for consumers in a different way: doubling its incentives to help dealers move out the last of its 2014 Ford C-Max compact tall wagons. DON'T...
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Fisker To Be Renamed Elux, New Karma Not On Sale Before Next YearChinese maker Wanxiang, which bought the defunct Fisker Automotive out of bankruptcy, will rename the carmaker Elux, according to a Reuters report this morning. The company has also pushed back the planned relaunch of the Karma range-extended electric sport sedan until at least the middle of next...
John Voelcker