John Voelcker, Contributing Editor

John Voelcker is an accomplished automotive journalist with a diverse background in the industry. As a cofounder of Tempting Fate Tours, he has delved into the world of adventurous car experiences, providing enthusiasts with unforgettable journeys for a year and a half. With a passion for automotive journalism, Voelcker's expertise extends to his tenure as a Contributing Editor at Internet Brands. During his stint, he has contributed valuable insights and engaging content to one of the most respected automotive publications in the industry. Previously, Voelcker served as the inaugural Editor of Green Car Reports under the Internet Brands Automotive Group. For over nine years, starting in 2009, he played a vital role in reporting, editing, and providing news coverage and new-car reviews. His contributions also extended to sister sites, including The Car Connection and Motor Authority, solidifying his reputation as a trusted source in the automotive community. In addition to his editorial work, Voelcker has actively covered advanced auto technologies and energy policy for a multitude of esteemed publications. Wired, Popular Science, Tech Review, IEEE Spectrum, and HybridCars.com are among the platforms that have featured his articles. Recognized for his expertise, he was appointed as one of the jurors for the prestigious North American Car and Truck of the Year Awards in 2015. With a wealth of experience behind the wheel, Voelcker has driven electric and hybrid cars from dozens of automakers, along with countless other vehicles. His firsthand experiences provide a valuable perspective in his automotive reporting. Voelcker's editorial journey has taken him through various notable magazines, including This Old House, Metropolis, Psychology Today, Exposure, Mother Earth News, Budget Living, and IEEE Spectrum. His diverse background showcases his versatility and ability to cover a wide range of topics. Voelcker holds a BS in Industrial Engineering from Stanford University, which adds a unique analytical lens to his automotive reporting. Splitting his time between the picturesque Catskill Mountains and vibrant New York City, he finds inspiration in both the tranquility of nature and the dynamic urban environment.

Articles

Chevrolet Bolt Concept: 200-Mile, $37,500 Electric Car Concept (Live Video & Photos) John Voelcker January 12, 2015

General Motors CEO Mary Barra had hoped to have a Steve Jobs moment this morning, but news about the Chevrolet Bolt Concept for a 200-mile electric car leaked late Friday night.

Still, with no...
2016 Chevrolet Volt: 50-Mile Range, 41 MPG, Five Seats, All New (Photos)
The 2016 Chevrolet Volt range-extended electric car, which will be unveiled this morning at the Detroit Auto Show, is sleeker, has more electric range, and is projected to get higher gas mileage when its engine is operating. The compact five-door hatchback also has a fifth "seating position,"...
John Voelcker January 12, 2015

Range Rover Launches Two Diesel Models At Detroit Auto Show; Jaguar F-Pace Named
Tonight, Jaguar Land Rover unveiled its first diesel-powered models to be sold in North America, joining the three German luxury brands in adding more fuel-efficient diesel engine options to its largest, heaviest sport-utility vehicles. The diesel will be offered as an option this fall on two...
John Voelcker January 11, 2015
Why 'Bolt' Is A Really Terrible Name For Chevy's Electric Car
Monday morning, General Motors CEO Mary Barra is expected to unveil a new battery-electric concept car at the Detroit Auto Show. It's the first look at a future production vehicle with a projected 200 miles of electric range, at a price said to be around $30,000. Assuming the leaked stories are...
John Voelcker January 11, 2015
BREAKING: Chevrolet 'Bolt' Concept 200-Mile Electric Car To Target Tesla: UPDATED
On Monday, General Motors will unveil a concept version of a $30,000 battery-electric vehicle with 200 miles of electric range that will arrive on the market before the planned Tesla Model 3, according to reports. Called the Chevrolet Bolt, the concept is a compact five-door hatchback that uses...
John Voelcker January 10, 2015
How Big Is The 'Little' MINI Cooper Countryman? It's THAT Big
Size is relative, and what counts as a small car today would have been viewed as much larger 50 years ago. Nowhere is that more obvious than in the case of perhaps the definitive front-wheel-drive economy car, the British Mini. DON'T MISS: New 2015 MINI Cooper With Five Doors Confuses...Well...
John Voelcker January 9, 2015
2015 Ford Mustang EcoBoost: Less Power On Regular Gas John Voelcker January 9, 2015

Many carmakers are using smaller engines with turbochargers to try to boost fuel efficiency in new cars, but Ford has been among the most public in promoting the technology.

Its EcoBoost line of...

West Coast Electric Highway Serves Thousands Of Electric-Car Drivers
While the bulk of the battery-electric and plug-in hybrid cars sold today have a range of less than 100 miles, that doesn't stop some owners from using them for longer trips. The secret is to use DC quick-charging stations, which can recharge an electric car's battery pack to about 80 percent of...
John Voelcker January 9, 2015
The Tesla Gigafactory Is Big; Really, Really Big--This Big, In Fact
Photos can be deceptive, as any online-dating aficionado will tell you. So it's hard to tell from photographs just how large the lithium-ion cell gigafactory in Nevada that's being built by electric car-maker Tesla Motors will really be. DON'T MISS: Tesla Gigafactory For Electric-Car Batteries...
John Voelcker January 9, 2015
Conventional Gasoline Engines A Minority In 2 Years? Not So Fast...
Progress must be coming at a much faster pace than we thought: Conventional gasoline engines will power only a minority of the new cars sold just two years hence, according to a new report. That means more than half the vehicles sold will have hybrid, diesel, natural gas, or plug-in electric...
John Voelcker January 7, 2015
Tesla Gigafactory For Electric-Car Batteries: Site Work Continues (Photos)
Last September, Nevada governor Brian Sandoval signed a bill granting various tax breaks and incentives to Tesla Motors for construction of its massive battery "gigafactory" outside Reno. Now, photos taken yesterday show that work on the site--empty desert land less than a year ago--is well...
John Voelcker January 7, 2015
Natural-Gas Vehicle Sales Globally Won't Quite Double In 10 Years: Analyst
Cars running on natural gas have been around for decades now, and presently represent 2 to 3 percent of global auto production. Their tailpipe emissions are much cleaner than gasoline or diesel cars. And North American production of natural gas has soared over the last decade. You might think that...
John Voelcker January 6, 2015

Will Tesla Model X Success Depend On Women Buying The Electric SUV? John Voelcker January 6, 2015

There's no denying that SUVs and crossover utility vehicles are popular--and getting more so, if 2014 sales charts are any indication.

So the upcoming Tesla Model X all-electric seven-seat SUV should...
Toyota Offers To License Hydrogen Fuel-Cell Patents, For Free
Toyota announced today that it would make more than 5,600 patents on fuel-cell technologies available for use, free of royalty payments, to a wide array of companies in the transportation sector. Those patents include many granted for innovations that led to the production version of the Japanese...
John Voelcker January 5, 2015
ChargePoint To Release Home Charging Station For Electric Cars
ChargePoint, which operates a network of public charging stations for plug-in electric cars, announced today that it would offer a home charging station this summer. The ChargePoint Home, as it's logically dubbed, has a sleek modern design--and it's compact, at only about the size of a tablet...
John Voelcker January 5, 2015
Low Gas Price An Opportunity For Higher Gas Tax? Not A Chance
With gasoline costing 40 percent less than it did just six months ago--and under $2 a gallon in many states--you might think this would be a good time to discuss raising the Federal gas tax. You would be wrong. The Federal gas tax hasn't risen since 1993, and the U.S. Highway Trust Fund has been...
John Voelcker January 5, 2015
2016 Chevrolet Volt Breaks Cover At CES Last Night (Photos)
One week from today, the new 2016 Chevrolet Volt range-extended electric car will be unveiled in Detroit. But Chevy has been teasing the new car since August, releasing a partial image here, a powertrain tutorial there, and GM's largest brand did it again yesterday at the Consumer Electronics Show...
John Voelcker January 5, 2015
Nissan Leaf Sets New Annual Record For U.S. Electric Car Sales
The Nissan Leaf, which has long been the world's best-selling electric car, has added another laurel to its crown. With December sales of 3,102 units, total Leaf sales in the U.S. for 2014 totaled 30,200 last year--a new yearly record for any plug-in electric vehicle in the country. Since it first...
John Voelcker January 5, 2015

Will The 2016 Chevy Volt Be A 'Mass-Market' Electric Car? Should It Be? John Voelcker January 4, 2015

While battery-electric cars are pretty simple in concept, it's often much harder for auto marketers to explain the benefits of range-extended electrics and plug-in hybrids.

Last summer, Chevrolet's...
2015 Chrysler 200 Four-Cylinder: Gas Mileage Review
The 2015 Chrysler 200 mid-size sedan is a good-looking, comfortable, and modern entry in a very competitive segment of the car market. Part of the Fiat-led product renaissance at Chrysler, it replaces the grim, dated previous 200 derived from the old Sebring and largely relegated to car-rental...
John Voelcker January 2, 2015
Good Green-Car Year, DeLorean Hovercraft, Top Stories Of 2014: Today's Car News
Our last daily roundup of stories for 2014 is a short one, since we're taking time off today and tomorrow to celebrate the New Year along with most of the Western world. Overall, 2014 was a good year for green cars, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council--which laid out the numbers for...
John Voelcker December 31, 2014
Green Car Reports Year In Reverse: Our 5 Biggest Stories In 2014
It's December 31, when we like to look back to see which stories were our most popular over the entire year. Boy, did we get some surprises this year! Not a single electric-car story cracked the top five, despite the huge traffic we get on plug-in cars in general and particularly many of our Tesla...
John Voelcker December 31, 2014
Green Car Reports Scorecard: 3 Stories We Got Right In 2014, 3 We Didn't
We published roughly 1,800 stories on Green Car Reports this year, covering everything from fuel economy (it's rising) to electric cars (there are more on sale than ever). Every news site strives for 100-percent accuracy, but very few reach that mark. That's why there are Retractions sections in...
John Voelcker December 30, 2014
Fight To Watch: Georgia Plans To Alter Electric-Car Tax Credit
Over the last two years, the metropolitan Atlanta area has become one of the single best sales regions for the Nissan Leaf electric car. That's due to a $5,000 Georgia state tax credit for the purchase of a battery-electric vehicle, which can be used to cut state income-tax liability over one, two...
John Voelcker December 30, 2014