Electric Cars
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We follow plug-in cars pretty closely here, and occasionally we manage to break stories. One was the production green light for the Cadillac Converj electric car concept, confirmed by GM as the Cadillac ELR coupe just six days later. So when we see an article that's ... let's say implausible ... it's hard not to write a rebuttal. Yesterday, in the widely followed trade journal Automotive News, product editor Rick Kranz penned a piece suggesting that the Cadillac ELR would have rear-wheel drive, which he calls a "game changer" for the electric Caddy coupe. (It's subscription only, so you may...
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Buying An Electric Car: Pay More Now, Or Wait A Bit?
As demand for electric and plug-in cars continues to remain high, many dealers and some private individuals are offering cars like the 2012 Chevrolet Volt on auction sites like eBay. With “Buy-It-Now” prices well above the starting sticker price of $39,995, these Volts pose an...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Nissan Leaf Electric Car Relegates Gas Cars To The Garage, Nissan Says
It might have an official EPA-approved range of just 73 miles, but the Nissan Leaf, Nissan’s first production electric car, is quickly becoming the primary car in multi-car households where a Leaf is owned. According to Nissan North America, many early adopters purchased the Leaf intending it...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
GM Offers Loan Cars To Chevy Volt Customers While Crash Fires Are Investigated
A few weeks ago we told you about a 2011 Chevrolet Volt which had caught fire in a storage yard three weeks after it was subjected to an official National Highway Traffic Safety Administration crash test. But after a second Chevrolet Volt caught fire at the NHTSA test labs last week following a...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Where Do Hybrid, Electric Cars Sell Best? We Find Out
While hybrid and electric cars are becoming more popular throughout the U.S., it isn’t a secret that buyers in some areas are more keen to buy a hybrid or electric car than others. Now NPR has published an interactive map detailing just where electric and hybrid cars have proved popular this...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
2011 Tokyo Motor Show: Every Electric & Plug-In Concept Car
As thousands of members of the press decend on Tokyo ready for the 2011 Tokyo Auto Show to open on Wednesday, Green Car Reports brings you a preview of the electric and plug-in cars we're expecting to see at the show. From tiny micro-commuter concepts to electric sports cars the line-up is...
Antony Ingram -
The late-night arguments are over, the statistical comparisons and product specs are put away, and we've made our choice. The GreenCarReports Best Car To Buy Award for 2012 goes to a pair of cars: the 2012 Toyota Prius V wagon and the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid. The two new 2012 entries together make up two-thirds of an expanded Prius hybrid range that we feel offers the best way for new-car buyers with a variety of different vehicle needs to drive green. 2012 Prius V wagon Judging from the regular stream of e-mails asking us when someone will make a hybrid minivan or wagon, Toyota...
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GM Exec Confirms 2014 Chevrolet Cruze Plug-In Hybrid Model
The Chevrolet Cruze compact sedan is an important car for General Motors. It's hugely outselling its lackluster predecessor, the Chevy Cobalt, and the EPA rates the special Cruze Eco model at 42 mpg in the highway cycle, giving it gas-mileage bragging rights. Plug-in hybrid to join diesel model But...
John Voelcker -
2012 Toyota Prius V & Plug-In: Green Car Reports Best Car To Buy 2012 Nominees
Ask pretty much any car buyer about green cars or hybrids and, chances are, that person will likely mention the Toyota Prius sooner or later. Until this year, though, the Prius has been a single model: a subcompact four-door sedan from 2000 through 2003, and then two generations of mid-size...
John Voelcker -
2012 Mitsubishi 'i': Green Car Reports Best Car To Buy 2012 Nominee
Last year, the only volume battery electric car on sale in the U.S. was the Nissan Leaf. But for 2012, there's a new electric vehicle in town: the 2012 Mitsubishi 'i'. The egg-shaped minicar is Mitsubishi's first plug-in offering, but it's actually been around longer than the Leaf, with tens of...
John Voelcker -
San Diego: Car2Go's Choice For First All-Electric Car Share Service
The City of San Diego has become the first city in North America to offer an all-electric car sharing network, thanks to Car2Go. A fleet of more than 300 all-electric Smart ForTwo Electric Drives were present at the November 18 launch event. A subsiduary of Daimler North America Corporation, the...
Antony Ingram -
Chevrolet Volt Ready To Go On Sale In China, Priced At $75K
General Motors has revealed the eight Chinese cities in which the Chevrolet Volt range-extended electric car will be sold. The Volt will go on sale in Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Wuxi, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Foshan towards the end of this year. However, with GM not keen to hand over some...
Antony Ingram -
While a handful of Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric cars have been destroyed in fires, potential Volt buyers are not deterred by sensationalist media reports around the blazes, says trade journal Automotive News.
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2011 Nissan Leaf: 11K Miles, No Battery Issues, Defroster Needs Work
Back at the end of March, I took delivery of our very own 2011 Nissan Leaf electric car. So far, we’ve told you about long-distance drives, explained five things we’ve learned after 5,000 miles, and what we’d learned after 5 months with the car. But as fall quickly heads towards...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Nissan Leaf Electric Car Was Top Priority For CEO After Japanese Earthquake
The devastating earthquakes that hit Japan earlier this year may have severely affected the production of cars worldwide, but according to Nissan Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn, his primary concern was to get production of the Nissan Leaf back on track. According to an article published in The New York...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Will Electric Cars Lose Value Quickly? Some Say Yes, We Disagree
For over 80 years, the Kelley Blue Book has been valuing new and used cars for the benefit of the auto industry. Used by automakers, car dealers and consumers alike, it has become the ultimate go-to guide for realistic valuations on virtually any age or condition of car. But although the Kelley...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Want A Tax Break On An Electric-Car Charging Station? Act Now!
For several years now, the Federal Government has offered tax credits to people buying brand new highway-capable electric cars, as well as those installing electric car charging stations. But while the $7,500 federal tax credits towards the purchase of an electric car most likely won't end for...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Epic Killer Wasp Gives Away Electric ATV In Latest Publicity Stunt
What do you get if you cross a cult-horror movie filmmaker, an electric car, and a killer wasp? We weren’t sure either, until Californian electric vehicle specialist Epic EV announced the official launch of its all-electric All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV) -- the Epic Amp. As part of the Epic Amp...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Electric cars are normally considered to be pretty efficient when compared to gasoline-engined cars, but if you want to buy the most efficient electric car on the market today you’ll have to buy a 2012 Mitsubishi i. Ranked number 1 in the EPA’s Annual Fuel Economy Guide, the 2012 Mitsubishi i has been rated by the EPA with a city economy of 126 Miles-Per-Gallon equivalent (MPGe), and a highway economy of 99 MPGe. Beating last year’s winner -- the 2011 Nissan Leaf -- by a substantial margin, the Mitsubishi i not only becomes the cheapest mainstream electric car on the market...
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Are The BMW i3 And i8 Electric Cars A Mission Impossible?
At the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show, BMW introduced its press conference with a preview of the next installment of the Tom Cruise Mission Impossible movie series. BMW features prominently in this production, with its plug-in hybrid supercar i8 as one of the team’s advanced tools. The movie's...
George Parrott -
Nissan Picks Coulomb To Keep Its Charging Points Up To Date
Once in a while, you get an announcement that looks interesting but requires ... ummmmm ... some interpretation. During the barrage of car launches, interviews, press releases, and general running around that comprised media days at the recent Los Angeles Auto Show, we got a press release with the...
John Voelcker -
Pump Rebels Calendar: Sex Sells, Even For High-MPG Cars
Have you ever bought a product solely because it was advertised by someone you find attractive? It's okay, you're among friends - you can tell us. If you answered yes, then you'd better get saving for that energy-efficient vehicle, as a new yearly calendar called Pump Rebels (via the mynissanleaf...
Antony Ingram -
Electric Honda Fit EV: Details, Live Photos From L.A. Auto Show
One year ago, Honda unveiled a prototype Fit EV electric car at the Los Angeles Auto Show. This year, it showed a refined version that it says it will offer for lease next summer in California and Oregon, expanding into six East Coast markets early the following year. Lease only, no sales Honda...
John Voelcker -
Infiniti Sneaks Pictures Out Of New Electric Sports Car Concept
All eyes might be focused on the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show, but luxury automaker Infiniti has decided to turn attention to the 2012 Geneva Motor Show, where it plans to unveil a range-extended, electric sports car concept. We don’t know anything at this moment about the car’s...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield