Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield, Contributing Writer

Articles

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  Kill (Gas) Bills: Daryl Hannah’s Bio Diesel El Camino Sold At Auction Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 17, 2012

  For years, the great and the good of Hollywood have helped encourage people to ditch gas guzzlers by turning up to red-carpet events and driving around Beverly Hills in an eclectic mix of trendy...

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  Video Shares Better Place Electric Car Battery Swap Experience

  Less than a month ago, electric car infrastructure firm and battery swap specialist Better Place started deliveries of all-electric Renault Fluence Z.E. cars to customers in Israel. In the past, Better Place has explained the basics of how its rapid battery swap stations work, but what’s it...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 17, 2012
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  2011 Nissan Leaf: One Year On, How Healthy Is The Battery Pack?

  It’s now been well over a year since the first 2011 Nissan Leafs were delivered to customers in California, Oregon, Washington and Arizona. But after one year, how are early Nissan Leafs performing? Are their battery packs still healthy, or have they started to show signs of wear already?...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 16, 2012
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  Toyota Takes You On Safari To Prius Kingdom, Binoculars Essential

  Over the past few years, Toyota has run some pretty unusual ad campaigns for its range of Prius Hybrids, from the cute Harmony TV spot through to the mildly disturbing People Person creation and the downright hilarious Cleaner Than-A-Sheep print ad. Now the Japanese automaker wants you to don...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 16, 2012
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  2012 Mitsubishi i Can Power Stop Lights, Keep Traffic Flowing

  We already know that appropriately-equipped electric cars can be used to provide emergency backup power to homes cut off from the electricity grid in a natural disaster, but can they also be used to help a city run as normal? Could they, for example, be used to power stop lights? It’s a...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 16, 2012
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  Tesla Claims $40M Advance Sales of 2014 Model X Crossover SUV

  Less than a week after Tesla Motors [NASDAQ:TSLA] unveiled the prototype of its 2014 Model X Crossover SUV at an exclusive event in Los Angeles, the Californian electric automaker has called it the fastest selling Tesla ever. According to a press release posted on Tesla’s website yesterday...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 15, 2012
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  San Francisco: Twice As Many Taxis Burn Half As Much Gas; Here's How Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 15, 2012

  In the past 15 years, the city of San Francisco has doubled the numbers of taxi cabs on its streets, up from 750 vehicles in 1997 to 1,500 this year.

  But thanks to incentives designed to get taxi...

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  2012 Ford Focus Electric Won’t Be Available Outside NY, CA Until Sept.

  Back in November, we reported that Ford was planning on starting deliveries of its 2012 Ford Focus Electric to customers in New York and California before the end of 2011, with sales in other areas due to follow some time this year. In reality, while Ford technically did get all-electric Focuses to...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 15, 2012
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  Are Electric Cars Really Bad For The Planet? Simple Math Says No

  We all know that electric cars charged from renewable sources of energy are much cleaner than gasoline-powered cars, but what about electric cars charged from electricity produced by a dirty coal-fired power plant? For some time, those against the uptake of electric cars have claimed driving an...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 14, 2012
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  2012 Toyota Prius C So Popular In Japan, Toyota Ups Production

  Toyota’s all-new compact hybrid -- the 2012 Prius C -- isn’t due to go on sale for another few months, but that hasn’t stopped it from being an instant hit in its native Japan. Known as the 2012 Toyota Aqua in Japan, the gas-sipping hybrid has proved so popular that Toyota has...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 14, 2012
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  Nissan Sets 1,500 - 2,000 DC Quick Charging Target For U.S. By 2014

  When the Nissan Leaf launched in 2010, it came with an optional Chademo direct current (DC) quick charging port that could enable its 24 kilowatt-hour battery pack to recharge to 80 percent in under 30 minutes at compatible quick charge stations. So far, there are only a handful of DC quick...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 14, 2012
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  British Police Love The Chevy Volt, Name It Top Crime Fighter

  It’s no secret that the NYPD has a fleet of twenty 2011 Chevrolet Volts which help civilian traffic enforcement agents carry out duties throughout the city of New York, but now the Chevrolet Volt’s European sibling is proving popular with law enforcement agencies in the U.K. In a recent...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 13, 2012
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  Nissan Announces Voluntary Service Campaign For 2011/12 Leaf Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 13, 2012

  Nissan North America has announced its second voluntary service campaign for the all-electric Leaf since it went on sale in December 2010.

  Offered for free to all existing owners of the 11,000...

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  2011 Think City Lives On, Still On Sale In Chicago Alongside BYD e6

  In June last year, Norwegian electric automaker Think filed for bankruptcy for the third time in its 20-year life. Since then, Think’s misfortunes have caused battery maker Ener1 to also declare bankruptcy while its own future is now in the automotive equivalent of limbo. In one small part of...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 13, 2012
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  Is The 2012 BMW ActiveHybrid 5 Really Green, Or Not?

  Just ten years ago, cars like the 2002 Toyota Prius traded performance for unbelievably-high gas mileage, bringing the concept of eco-friendly gasoline electric hybrid cars to the masses. Recently however, automakers like BMW have used full hybrid technology to give high performance luxury cars...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 13, 2012
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  2014 Tesla Model X 'Falcon Doors' May Limit Crossover Utility

  Less than twenty-four hours ago, Tesla Motors unveiled its enigmatic 2014 Model X Crossover SUV to the world, becoming the first automaker to promise a crossover utility with doors you’d normally find on a sports car. But while its ostentatious falcon doors might gain it some design kudos, it...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 10, 2012
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  2015 VW Golf Plug-in Hybrid To Debut At 2012 Paris Motor Show

  Back in the 1980s, Volkswagen worked on producing both fully-electric and plug-in hybrid versions of its Mk II Rabbit -- also known as the Mk II VW Golf. It’s been no secret that Volkswagen has been working on resurrecting an all-electric Golf in the form of its 2013 VW Blue E-Motion, but now...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 10, 2012
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  Drive a Solar-Charged Electric Car, Save $263,000 On Fuel Over 50 Years?

  Critics of plug-in cars like the 2012 Nissan Leaf and 2012 Mitsubishi i often say their high sticker prices are just too expensive to make a sound economic case for making the switch from gasoline to electric. Not so, says electric car advocate and BMW ActiveE driver Peder Norby. In fact, Norby...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 9, 2012
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  2014 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Will Be U.S. Made, Says Toyota Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 9, 2012

  Buy a gasoline 2012 Toyota Highlander crossover in the U.S., and the chances are it will have been made at Toyota’s Princetown factory in Indiana.

  Opt for the more fuel efficient 2012 Toyota...

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  2015 Acura NSX Hybrid Super Bowl Ad So Popular, It Crashed Acura’s Website

  The chances are by now that even if you didn’t watch Super Bowl XLVI, you’ve watched all of the new TV ads which aired during the event last Sunday. That means you’ll also have seen the hilarious debut advert for Acura’s 2015 NSX Hybrid, staring Jerry Seinfield and Jay Leno...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 9, 2012
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  Hertz Tests Wireless Charging For Electric-Car Rentals

  Over the past year we’ve seen car rental firms like Hertz and Enterprise launch new schemes designed to give customers a hassle-free way of renting a plug-in car instead of a gasoline one if they so wish. Now Hertz is helping Virginia-based Evatran test its wireless charging technology -- a...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 9, 2012
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  2012 Volt Cheaper To Own Than 2012 Leaf, Says Kelley Blue Book

  The 2012 Chevrolet Volt might cost nearly $5,000 cheaper more than the 2012 Nissan Leaf, but over the next five years, it might cost you less to run. At least, that’s the verdict of Kelley Blue Book (KBB) which crowned the 2012 Chevy Volt the electric choice in its inaugral Total Cost of...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 8, 2012
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  In 4 Years, Average Gas Mileage Of New Cars Has Risen By 3MPG

  In four years’ time, every automaker in the U.S. will have to ensure that their fleet-wide fuel economy is 36 mpg or better under tough new 2016 Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards. But according to a University of Michigan study, the average fuel economy of new cars and...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 8, 2012
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  Fisker Loan Woes: Bump In The Road, Or A Big Pothole?

  On Monday, we told you that California-based Fisker Automotive had announced it was laying off employees and contractors after it missed deadlines associated with its $529 million low-interest loans from the U.S. Department of Energy. But while Fisker’s cull of employees has totaled at least...

  Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield February 8, 2012