Hybrids
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The all-new 2012 Camry Hybrid gets excellent gas mileage, of up to 43 mpg city, 39 highway
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2011 Lincoln MKZ Hybrid: Quick Drive
Ford has been building hybrid-electric vehicles for seven years now, and the company has constantly refined and improved its hybrid system over that time. But it was only this year that Lincoln acquired its own hybrid sedan, the 2011 Lincoln MKZ Hybrid. That vehicle effectively replaced the Milan...
John Voelcker -
Ford And Toyota To Collaborate On Future Hybrid Development: Breaking
In a startling announcement, Ford and Toyota announced this morning that the two companies would jointly develop a hybrid system for rear-wheel-drive light trucks and sport utility vehicles. The system would be roughly competitive with the General Motors Two-Mode Hybrid system now used in...
John Voelcker -
Cadillac Ciel Concept: GM's Next Hybrid, Maybe, Or Not? (Updated)
Last night at an event before the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in Carmel, Cailfornia, Cadillac unveiled its Ciel concept car, which it calls "an open-air grand touring car." Under the sleek, imposing lines, the all-wheel-drive Ciel four-seat convertible is powered by a 425-horsepower, 3.6-liter...
John Voelcker -
Mazda To Launch Hybrid Version Of Mazda6 Mid-Size Sedan Soon
While Mazda prepares to unveil its new CX-5 crossover and launch its new SkyActiv engine and transmission technology, it's also quietly developing a hybrid model as well. In March 2010, Japan's small but scrappy maker of "Zoom Zoom" cars signed a deal to license Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive...
John Voelcker -
Five Things You Shouldn't Do To A Toyota Prius...Ever
The venerable Toyota Prius has been around for over a decade now, first as an awkward but fuel-efficient sedan, then a geeky hatchback and soon a platform in its own right. But while Toyota is now putting the Hybrid Synergy Drive technology from the Prius into a whole range of vehicles from tiny...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
A new Lincoln MKZ and MKZ Hybrid will be launched next year, and the 2013 MKZ Concept will debut at next year's Detroit Auto Show.
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2012 Lexus CT 200h Hybrid Hatch: Now Louder, With More Noise!
You may or may not be happy to know that the new 2012 Lexus CT 200h compact hybrid hatchback will come with a new feature not found on the 2011 model. It will make more noise. For 2012, in addition to an optional F Sport package and a new color (Nebula Gray Pearl replaces Smoky Granite Mica, if...
John Voelcker -
Reader Q: All-Wheel Drive Hybrid Or Diesel Cars (Not Trucks)?
We get some of our most interesting topics from reader questions. Past questions include how emergency responders should react to hybrid and electric cars, and whether towing a Prius behind a motorhome is a good idea. Today, we have a query about green cars (not trucks) that offer all-wheel drive...
John Voelcker -
Honda CR-Z Mugen RR Concept Shows Hybrids Can Be Sporty
A lighter carbon fiber infused body and a possible supercharged hybrid drivetrain would enable stunning performance from the Honda CR-Z Mugen RR concept.
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2012 Audi A6 To Offer High-MPG Hybrid, Clean-Diesel Models
Despite lack of an official confirmation from Audi of America, we'd bet significant money on the arrival of the Audi A6 Hybrid in the U.S. market. Why? Because the U.S. has the highest hybrid penetration of any market in the world except Japan, and "hybrid" means "high gas mileage" to a large...
John Voelcker -
BMW i3 Electric And i8 Plug-In, Under The Hood: Live Photos
BMW revealed two new electric, hybrid, and range-extended models--the BMW i3 electric car and the BMW i8 plug-in hybrid
Bengt Halvorson -
Sometimes, you find information in the strangest places. Take the YouTube video, "Georgetown Plant on the 2012 Camry," apparently posted by Toyota of the Black Hills, a dealer in Rapid City, South Dakota. It's got some shots of the newly redesigned 2012 Toyota Camry moving down the production line in Georgetown, Kentucky. You can see the revised front styling of the car, and some rear shots too. [UPDATE, Wed, July 27: The video has now been removed from YouTube, so we suspect we really did see something we weren't supposed to. Note that the first two photos in this article are screen captures...
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Ford Hybrids Prove Durability By Racking Up Most Taxi Miles
Ford has issued data showing remarkable reliability among the battery packs and electric motors in its hybrid vehicles, not the least of them the ones used in grueling taxi service in cities like New York and San Francisco.
John Voelcker -
2012 Plug-in Toyota Prius: What Do You Want To Know?
Toyota may have started the hybrid revolution with its original Prius, the first mass-produced gasoline-electric hybrid car and the vehicle which quickly became the eco badge of honor for celebrities and city dwellers alike. But ten years after the first Prius rolled into the U.S., Toyota is now...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Yo Ain't So Unique: Russian Minicar Won't Launch With Natural Gas Hybrid Drivetrain
Production of the Yo Auto CityCar is scheduled to start in the second half of next year but the technology for the planned hybrid model is reportedly still in development.
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Is A Ferrari California Hybrid Model In The Works?
Based on recent spy photos, Britain's Autocar believes that Ferrari is testing a hybrid drivetrain to be launched on an upcoming version of the Ferrari California.
Kurt Ernst -
Are There Too Many Battery Packs Being Made for Electric Cars?
According to a report from gigaom earlier this week, the electric auto industry will soon be producing battery packs at a rate far greater than the number of electric cars being built. Caused in part by a slower uptake of electric cars by consumers than was initially hoped, the article warned that...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
It's been a tough couple of years for Toyota. First was the entire sudden-acceleration mess, along with multiple recalls covering almost 10 million cars. Then came the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, which devastated Toyota's intricate global network of parts and assembly plants. But with a return to full production now moved up to September from the end of the year, the company says that sales of its crucial Prius hybrid will be better than ever for 2012. So if you're planning on buying a Prius, wait a few months and you'll have no problem. Right now, today, though? Maybe not so good. The...
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Pedestrian Alert Noises Coming To Hybrid And Electric Cars, Needed Or Not
If you like the idea of hybrid or electric cars that whir silently down the road without the noise of an engine exploding gasoline thousands of times each minute, you'd better act fast. The U.S. government is moving inexorably toward a rule requiring all hybrid and electric cars to make noise...
John Voelcker -
Which Hybrids Improve Gas Mileage The Most? Lexus, Lincoln Win
The Union of Concerned Scientists thinks hybrid-electric vehicles are a good thing, because they use less gasoline. But the savings in gas cost from that improved gas mileage varies enormously, and now the group has quantified the results. In their annual Hybrid Scorecard this year, the UCS ranks...
John Voelcker -
Lexus CX 300h Hybrid: Luxury Brand To Launch RX Baby Brother?
Last September, Toyota said the company would launch six new hybrids by the end of 2012. Now, a report from the German car magazine AutoBild suggests that one of those is a new Lexus: a baby brother for the brand's hugely successful RX 450h hybrid crossover utility vehicle. The new compact...
John Voelcker -
Toyota Adds Prius Plus Performance Package To Hot Up Hybrid Handling
Pretty much every Toyota Prius hybrid you see on the streets looks the same. Wild customization is generally limited to personalized plates that promote the driver's green credentials, solar panels, eco-living, or general hybrid luv-luv-LUV. That's about to change. Toyota announced today it will...
John Voelcker -
CA To Hybrid Drivers: Sorry, We're Just Not That Into You--Any More
Spare a thought, if you will, a momentary tear, for 85,000 doomed drivers of three models of hybrid car in California. They are the unlucky losers of a privilege that saved them time, raised the value of their vehicle, and undoubtedly increased their karmic contentment, all because of a set of tiny...
John Voelcker