Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield, Contributing Writer

Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield is a self-confessed petrol head. She grew up in a carless family but was able at a very early age to name cars passing her on the street while other girls her age were more interested in Barbie Dolls. Although she trained as a classical musician she’s now a full-time broadcaster and journalist, covering green fuels and tech. After passing her driving test she’s owned a wide selection of cars, including a 1962 Morris Minor Woodie Hotrod; a single seat electric bubble car; a ’92 Honda Prelude; a ’91 Volvo 240; a ’04 Toyota Prius Plug in Hybrid (which she converted herself); an ’85 VW electric factory built rabbit; and a ’09 Smart ForTwo CDI Nikki specializes in electric vehicles, but also enjoys clandestine gas-guzzling, working on the rule that the larger and noisier the better. She is also loves riding motorcycles, but currently doesn't own one. Nikki also hosts the TransportEvolved podcast. She lives in Bristol UK with her wife, their two daughters and their Border Collie.

Articles

Want A Good Deal On A Used, High MPG Car? Wait Till The Holidays Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 18, 2011

If you’re in the market for a used car -- especially a small car or hybrid that gets good gas-mileage -- you might know that used car prices have been dropping since early this summer.

But...
Whoops: 2012 Toyota Prius C Compact Hybrid Shown In Brochure Leak
In the automotive industry, leaks about an upcoming product normally fall into two categories: genuine mess-ups, or a purposeful, pr-driven leak designed to give a new car extra attention. But we the latest leak from Japan -- an entire Toyota Aqua Hybrid sales brochure -- falls squarely in the...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 18, 2011

Audi e-Tron Spyder Frolics In Malibu: Video
Until Audi unveiled its concept e-Tron Spyder plug-in hybrid car at the 2010 Paris Auto show, the words diesel and sexy didn’t go well together. Now the company has proven otherwise with the release of a short video showing the Audi e-Tron Spyder concept driving around sunny Malibu...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 18, 2011
Want To Know What Life Is Like With An Electric Car? Watch This
Here at Green Car Reports, we bring you the latest news in the world of green cars, covering everything from cars that get great gas mileage through to hybrids, alternative fuels and of course, plug-in cars. While we can tell you the latest news in the world of plug-in cars as well as share our own...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 17, 2011
Mercedes-Benz Recall Clean-Diesel Cars For Fuel Leak (Again)
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has just published details of a recall affecting 6,872 Mercedes-Benz clean-diesel cars. According to documents published on the NHTSA website, the recall is to addressfaulty fuel-filter seals which can cause diesel fuel to leak onto the...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 17, 2011
2012 Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid Confirmed For Europe, U.S. Will Have To Wait
Volvo has just confirmed that its first ever plug-in hybrid electric car -- and the world’s first plug-in hybrid station wagon -- will go on sale in early 2012. But the Swedish automaker has reiterated that while Europeans will get the Diesel-electric through-the-road plug-in hybrid, there...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 17, 2011
Metropolitan Police (London) Go Electric With 2011 Zero DS Motorcycle Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 14, 2011

Think of police and motorcycles, and you probably think of highway patrol officers riding large, heavy Harley Davidsons like the 2012 Electra Glide.

In Europe, most police departments make use of...

2012 Ford Focus Electric Won’t Have a Pedestrian Alert Noisemaker
For some time now there’s been a battle raging between politicians, advocacy groups and the electric car industry over compulsory noise-makers in electric cars. Now the latest twist comes courtesy of Ford, which has announced that its 2012 Ford Focus Electric will initially ship without any...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 14, 2011
Green Grand Prix Winner Proves Anyone Can Get Great Gas Mileage
Silverstone, the home of the British Grand Prix, normally rings to the sound of heavily tuned race-cars and squealing tires in almost continual gluttonous praise of gasoline, but yesterday it hosted a different type of motor sport event: the RAC Green Grand Prix. Sponsored by roadside assistance...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 13, 2011
Nissan Drops 2012 Leaf Charging Station Price. Is It Cheap Enough?
Yesterday, Nissan announced that it had reduced the price of its official 2012 Nissan Leaf home charging station to make it more affordable to Leaf drivers. But while Nissan has dropped the price of a standard supply and installation of the Nissan-branded Aerovironment charging station from $2,200...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 13, 2011
Nissan Develops 10-Minute Rapid Charger For Leaf Electric Car
[EDIT: Since publishing this story, it has come to our attention that this story is indeed about storage technology, not charging technology. We're investigating our sources to try and better understand the advancement made in Japan] The time it takes an electric car to fully recharge from empty...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 11, 2011
Is Hyundai Working On An Elantra Touring Plug-in Hybrid? Possibly
Despite reports that it won't offer battery electric cars, Hyundai might just be working on a plug-in car after all, says German website Auto Motor und Sport. A month after Hyundai unveiled the 2012 Elantra Touring (known as the i30 in other counties), Auto Motor und Sport reports that the Korean...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 11, 2011

2011 Zero DS Electric Motorcycle: First Ride Report Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 11, 2011

If you read last week’s review of the 2012 Zero S, you’ll know that we’ve recently visited the headquarters of Zero Motorcycles in Scotts Valley, California.

Five years ago, Zero...
2012 Mitsubishi i Just Wants To Be Normal, Goes On Road Trip
The town of Normal, Illinois is no stranger to electric cars. Home to one of Mitsubishi’s factories, the town became home to a 1,000 strong electric vehicle test fleet earlier this year. Then in July, town officials announced residents would get an additional purchase incentive worth an...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 10, 2011
2011 Nissan Leaf Outside U.S.: More Expensive, More Features
In the past year the 2011 Nissan Leaf has launched in many different countries across the world, from Japan through to Ireland and Australia to Canada. But while you probably know the Nissan Leaf’s sticker price varies from country to country, you may not know there’s a few subtle...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 10, 2011
GM Makes 2012 Volt Production Line Tweaks, Delays 2nd Shift
Earlier this year, General Motors announced that it would start a second shift at its Detroit-Hamtramck factory some time towards the end of 2011 to meet its production goals for the 2012 Chevrolet Volt. But on Friday the company announced that it was shelving plans to introduce a second shift...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 10, 2011
Five Ways To Keep Your Gas Mileage Good This Winter
It’s October, and for thousands of motorists in colder states that means only one thing: winter is on the way. But as the trees start to turn to golden reds, the winds start to blow and fall quickly turns to winter, here are five things you should do to help your car keep its gas mileage high...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 7, 2011
BREAKING: EVCup Unplugs 2011 Racing Season, Blames Competitors
The organizers behind the 2011 EVCup have just announced that its 2011 season has been cancelled, with further racing events held off indefinitely. Launched back in January last year, the EVCup promised all the thrills and spills of gasoline-fueled car racing, without any of the noxious gasses or...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 7, 2011

No, 2012 Ford Focus Electrics Don’t Have Roof-Mounted Solar Panels Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 7, 2011

Back in August, Ford announced that it would enter into a partnership with solar panel firm SunPower to help 2012 Ford Focus Electric owners install photovoltaic solar panels on their houses, which...
2011 Zero S Electric Motorcycle: First Ride Report
In its five-year history, Zero has gone from a single electric motorcross bike to a global operation, building five different electric motorcycles for a variety of markets. So while we were visiting Tesla in California last week, we decided to drop by on Zero's Californian headquarters for a few...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 6, 2011
Forget Spark Plugs: Plasma-Based Ignition Makes Engines More Efficient
As long as the internal combustion engine has existed, engineers have been trying to find better ways of igniting the highly combustable mixture of air and gasoline that powers cars. Everything from higher voltage coils through to electronically-timed ignition and making spark plug tips from metals...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 6, 2011
BMW Executives Detail More About 2014 i3 Electric Car
BMW might be working hard to encourage drivers to become electronauts in its Active E electric car trials due to start in the next few months, but the German automaker has already started to drip-feed details of its 2014 i3 electric car to the press. Just last month, BMW unveiled its latest concept...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 6, 2011
What Kind Of People Are Ordering The 2012 Tesla Model S?
You’ve heard about the 2012 Tesla Model S Sport, read our first ride review, and seen our 2012 Tesla Model S gallery -- but unless you’ve already put down a deposit for the 2012 Tesla Model S you won’t be getting one for a while. So who is getting a 2012 Model S? What kind of...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 5, 2011
2012 Chevrolet Sonic Goes Extreme To Attract New Customers
When automakers start designing a new car, it’s customary to have a specific demographic of customer in mind. This not only helps to design a car which best suits the needs of a particular subset of buyers, but it also gives the advertising teams something to aim for when coming up with crazy...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield October 5, 2011