Antony Ingram, Contributing Writer
Articles
-
Renault's absence from North America means the Zoe electric car won't be reaching U.S. shores any time soon. And that's kind of a shame.
It's about as chic as you'd expect for a car originating from...
-
F1 Racing's Focus Turns To 2014's More Fuel Efficient EnginesThe 2013 Formula One racing season is already underway--and already causing controversy--but from an engineering standpoint much of the focus is already on 2014. That's because from the start of next season, new engine regulations are set to significantly improve the cars' fuel efficiency, and...
Antony Ingram -
How To Make A Semi Much More Efficient: Cummins 'SuperTruck'Consider this: The average semi truck is actually quite economical. No, really. A typical long-haul truck averages between 5.5 and 6.5 mpg. But it's also really, really heavy--up to 80,000 pounds, for a fully-loaded trailer. That's around 36 tons, which puts some perspective on how hard each of...
Antony Ingram -
What 2013 Looked Like For Greener Cars, Back In 1988The rate at which technology develops makes predicting the future incredibly difficult, but people get it right sometimes. They get it wrong sometimes too, and you'd have found a mixture of both in the April 3, 1988 issue of the Los Angeles Times Magazine, which peered 25 years into the future--to...
Antony Ingram -
Confirmed: Traffic Pollution Can Cause Asthma In Kids (Not Just Trigger It)It's long been suspected, but a new European survey confirms it: Children living near areas of heavy traffic are more at risk of asthma. Previously, it was thought that pollution from traffic might only be a trigger for the condition, but the Los Angeles Times reports on a European study that it...
Antony Ingram -
Electric Buses Good For CA? Not If Made By Chinese Company, It SeemsWe might live in a global economy, but in periods of economic downturn people like to know they're supporting their own country's economy. That's why some are a little displeased by Long Beach Transit's decision to buy ten elecric buses--made by a Chinese company. According to The Press-Telegram...
Antony Ingram -
A Toyota Prius is many things, but a convenient lawn mower isn't one of them. Useless, right?
Luckily, it is now possible to buy a hybrid lawn mower, known as the Raven MPV-710.
In many ways, a...
-
BMW i3's Tall Skinny Tires To Boost Efficiency (And Cut Noise)Most people give them little thought, but tires are one of the most important components on a car. They are, of course, your only point of contact with the road. So ultimately, tires are responsible for everything from performance, through cornering, to efficiency and noise. Tires of the future...
Antony Ingram -
China Imposes Much Tougher Fuel-Efficiency Standards On New CarsChina's ongoing and recent air pollution issues are leading to swift rethinking of the country's transport policy. After several months of choking smog engulfing its major cities, the country has finally imposed strict fuel economy standards in a bid to cut fuel use--and pollution. Reuters reports...
Antony Ingram -
2014 Mitsubishi Mirage: Brief Drive Of NY Auto Show DebutYes, the green paintwork was a deliberate choice. Not that the Mitsubishi Mirage, widely expected to be unveiled at the New York Auto Show next week, isn't available in any other colors. But we couldn't pass down an opportunity to drive one which matches with the site's green focus. The new Mirage...
Antony Ingram -
Volvo V60 Plug-In Diesel Hybrid: Quick Drive Of NY Auto Show DebutDiesel cars are at their most economical on long, steady journeys, and plug-in hybrids are at their best for shorter trips. So why haven't the two been combined yet? Actually, they have--and you're looking at the very first one. The Volvo V60 Plug-In Hybrid is the first diesel plug-in hybrid...
Antony Ingram -
2014 Kia Forte Sedan: Pricing And Gas Mileage DetailsKia has retained its talent for styling and nose for value with its 2014 Kia Forte Sedan, but the same can't be said of the new car's fuel efficiency. The company has released pricing details for the new sedan, which slots in as the lowest-priced car in the segment, starting at $15,900--excluding a...
Antony Ingram -
Most electric car owners charge their vehicles at home--it's one of the real perks of owning a plug-in.
Some drivers may also charge at work, for most owners the second-longest stop their vehicles...
-
2013 Nissan Leaf Real-World Range: Is It Any Higher?it might not have been the number people were hoping for, but at 75 miles, an extra two miles of EPA range for the 2013 Nissan Leaf still represents an improvement. Even more so considering the EPA's electric car testing procedure for 2013 averages results from 100 percent and 80 percent charges...
Antony Ingram -
Automakers: Delay, Rewrite 'Quiet Car' Rule For 2014 Hybrid, Electric CarsElectric car fans have long been skeptical of government plans to install noisemakers to alert pedestrians to a car's presence--and now automakers are pushing for a different rule. The NHTSA wants electric and hybrid vehicles to emit a noise at speeds of up to 18.6 mph, while automakers want it to...
Antony Ingram -
Boeing 787 Battery Safety Updates: What Changes Were Made?People take air safety pretty seriously, so when smoke filled the cabin of a new Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft a few months back, the entire fleet was quickly grounded. It turned out to be an issue with the aircraft's lithium-ion batteries, used to power some secondary functions reducing load on...
Antony Ingram -
Are Diesel Cars In Europe Starting A Long Slow Decline?A few weeks back, we looked at the numbers showing diesel sales in the U.S. increasing, just as hybrids are becoming more popular in Europe. That's a shift from current preferences, which sees more than half of European car sales fitted with diesel engines, but more hybrids sold in the U.S. than...
Antony Ingram -
Vehicles In 2050: No Petroleum Required, DoE SaysIt's both exciting and frustrating living in the current automotive age. Exciting, because we're truly seeing an eclectic mix of powertrain technologies being developed, the fruits of which we're increasingly able to drive. And frustrating, because there's still no surefire way of knowing what...
Antony Ingram -
As the Geneva Motor Show finally closes its doors to the public, many will go home lusting after the LaFerrari or McLaren's P1 hypercars.
For others though, the show's indisputed star was the...
-
Mahindra E2O Electric Minicar Launches In India, Nee Reva NXRThe car you see in the images above has actually been in the making for several years, and for drivers in India it's one of the more significant vehicles released this year. It's called the Mahindra e2o, and you may recognise its previous name, the Reva NXR. The Reva name is already big in electric...
Antony Ingram -
Discounts Soar On Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrids--In New YorkLive in the New York area? If you do, you're perfectly placed to get some hefty discounts on Toyota's Prius Plug-In right now. In fact, you're in the right place to get a discount on several green models at the moment, including the regular Prius, as well as Ford C-Max and Fusion hybrids. According...
Antony Ingram -
Fisker Bid By Geely Deemed 'Too Risky' Due To U.S. Government LoansWhile Henrik Fisker's departure from the company he founded has dominated the headlines of late, Fisker Automotive itself still has other problems to deal with. Top of the list is finding a buyer to help fund its future, and up until now, two Chinese companies--Dongfeng Motor Group Co. and Zhejiang...
Antony Ingram -
Gaming The EPA Gas-Mileage Tests: Well, Europeans Are Worse...A few recent, high-profile cases have brought fuel economy testing procedure into question. When Kia and Hyundai are being sued for inaccuracies in reported EPA figures and Ford hybrid drivers are missing out on official numbers by 20 percent, suggesting the designs of some vehicles may enable them...
Antony Ingram -
2016 Chevrolet Volt To Get Three-Cylinder Range Extender: ReportRange-extended electric cars are a great idea, mixing clean electric running for the majority of drivers' commutes, with an extra few hundred miles of gasoline running for those longer trips. As we alluded to last week though, the engine isn't always perfectly optimized for its task, often a...
Antony Ingram