Hybrids
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UPDATE: The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened a formal inquiry into the brakes of the 2010 Toyota Prius hybrid. It has now received 124 complaints of faulty brakes, out of roughly 37,000 of the cars sold to date in the U.S. Toyota said it would cooperate fully with the investigation, which applies only to the 2010 model-year Toyota Prius hybrid. [Automotive News (subscription required)] +++++++ Yesterday, we reported that Japan's Department of Transportation had forced Toyota to investigate complaints about inconsistent braking behavior in its new 2010 Toyota...
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UPDATE: Toyota Admits Braking Problems, On 2010 Prius Only
Things are moving fast in the land of Toyota safety issues and recalls. Yesterday, we told you that the 2010 Toyota Prius was being investigated for braking problems in Japan. Today, Toyota has admitted that most 2010 Prius models (those built between the start of production last spring and late...
John Voelcker -
Is Woz's Prius Acceleration Just Toyota's Wacky Adaptive Cruise?
UPDATE, February 8, 2009: Speaking in a sort-of-webchat on Digg, Toyota president Jim Lentz said of the Woz complaint, "We are working with him on the operation of the cruise control." Please forgive us while we quietly smirk. ++++++++++ It's obviously pile-on-Toyota week. Transportation Secretary...
John Voelcker -
2010 Toyota Prius Investigated In Japan For Braking Problems
Citing allegations of braking loss or slippage, Japan's Ministry of Transportation ordered Toyota to launch an investigation into possible brake problems in the new 2010 Toyota Prius hybrid. That car, currently in short supply globally and also the best-selling car in Japan, is the subject of 14...
John Voelcker -
January's Most Popular Green Car Posts: 2012 Ford Focus, Electric Ave
With the start of the new year, we're back to our end-of-month rundowns on the top five most popular green car posts of the last 30 days. For January, the top two came from our comprehensive coverage of the 2010 Detroit Auto Show. We have just one carryover this month from the year's Top Ten Most...
John Voelcker -
Toyota and Lexus Recalls: Is Your Hybrid Affected?
So much has happened around the Toyota and Lexus accelerator safety recalls over the last week that it's hard to keep it all straight. So we're taking our first stab at it by sorting out the impact of the recall on the many hybrids offered by Toyota and Lexus. The full scope of the latest recall...
John Voelcker -
"Born From Jets" may be the slogan of recently-saved-from-death Swedish Saab, but one day it may prove more appropriate for British carmaker Jaguar. The company has been awarded funding from the U.K. government to develop a small jet turbine as a range extender for a future hybrid luxury car. Its just-launched new 2011 Jaguar XJ full-size luxury sedan could gain an extended-range electric model within a few years that might provide a platform for the innovative jet-powered range extender. JET1: World's first turbine car Rover Cars, which developed JET1, the first-ever jet-powered turbine car...
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Toyota Dealers to Give Away 2010 Prius at Chicago Auto Show
As widely reported yesterday, Toyota has suspended sales of 8 models due to a faulty accelerator pedal mechanism. The defective part apparently causes the pedal to stick, resulting in unintended acceleration and loss of control of the vehicle. So what does a Chicagoland Toyota dealership do when...
Robert Scardino -
Five Questions: Nancy Gioia, Ford global electrification director
Ford was the first U.S. automaker to offer a hybrid, introducing the Ford Escape Hybrid crossover in 2004. It recently expanded its portfolio with the well-received 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid. More recently, the company has announced plans for limited numbers of plug-in hybrids, as well as electric...
John Voelcker -
To Boost Gas-Free Car Sales, Make $7,500 Tax Credit a Rebate
Speakers throughout today's Electric Drive Transportation Association conference agree: Plug-in electric cars that use little or no gasoline are coming. It's no longer an "if", it's now a "when." To help boost early adoption of cars that run mostly or entirely on grid power, the Federal government...
John Voelcker -
GM To Build Its Own Electric Motors for Future Hybrids
General Motors will become the first U.S. automaker to design and build its own electric motors for hybrid and electric cars, the company said today. While Toyota and Honda have long made their own motors, until now GM--along with Ford--has purchased them from third-party suppliers. GM views the...
John Voelcker -
Hydraulic Hybrids Gaining Traction In Several Industries
From Garbage Trucks to Sports Cars, Hydraulics Are Making Progress
Jonathan McGrew -
BMW is expected to unveil its third hybrid model at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show this March. It will be a mild-hybrid version of the all-new 2011 BMW 5-Series sedan line it has just unveiled, which will go on sale in June. The ActiveHybrid 5 will follow in the footsteps of the 2010 BMW ActiveHybrid 7, its fullsize hybrid luxury sports sedan, and use much of the same hybrid system. In the 7-Series, a three-phase synchronous electric motor is connected to the crankshaft of the car's 4.4-liter gasoline V-8 engine and drives through a new 8-speed automatic transmission. The car is a mild hybrid...
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2010 Detroit Auto Show: Lutz Lays Out (Some) GM Plug-In Plans
Cleaning up a few odds and ends from last week's 2010 Detroit Auto Show brings us to General Motors' future product plans for plug-in hybrids. In the crush of reporters asking questions (known as the "scrum") after a GM announcement, a few more nuggets came to light. GM showed its striking and...
John Voelcker -
UPDATE: Low-Thirties 2011 Chevrolet Volt Price Is AFTER Tax Credit
UPDATE: Well, it sounded too good to be true, and perhaps it was. We asked GM spokesman Dave Darovitz for comments on CEO Whitacre's "low-thirties" price for the 2011 Chevrolet Volt. Darovitz tells GreenCarReports.com that while Chevy "has not officially announced final Volt pricing, a price in the...
John Voelcker -
Fisker Gets $115 Million, New Battery Supplier, Stays on Schedule
Last Friday, startup plug-in hybrid maker Fisker Automotive announced it had raised another $115 million in funds from private backers, including lithium-ion cell supplier A123 Systems and legendary venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. Buried in the press release was a...
John Voelcker -
2010 Detroit Auto Show: Hyundai Blue-Will Plug-In Hybrid Concept
We somehow omitted one hybrid concept until now in our 2010 Detroit Auto Show coverage; it's the Hyundai Blue-Will four-door sports sedan, which is unusual in both name and looks. Some loved it, some loathed it, but we're as interested in its plug-in hybrid powertrain as in the rather nervous...
John Voelcker -
Toyota in Japan Gets Into The Prius Hybrid Bodykit Business
The Japanese auto show known as the Tokyo Auto Salon is full of as many customized cars--and just as much weirdness--as its domestic counterpart, the massive SEMA show in Las Vegas. And just as it did at SEMA, with its Aerius and Aemulus customized Prius concepts, Toyota brought a factory custom to...
John Voelcker -
Auto shows have always been the forum for unveiling the wildest, wackiest, most over-the-top drool-worthy vehicles. The shows have been more subdued over the past two years of economic turmoil, but this year, the folks at Revenge delivered something to smile about. The Revenge Verde takes its underpinnings from the old, beloved Ford GT and drops a green carbon fiber body on top. But you won't find Ford's supercharged V8 under the hood of this new machine. Instead, Revenge will offer three engine choices: a 605-horsepower Ford engine, a 638-horsepower GM LS9 powerplant, or (the hands-down...
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Five Questions: Andrew Farah, 2011 Chevrolet Volt Chief Engineer
Last weekend, we finally got the chance to drive the 2011 Chevrolet Volt. By and large, we liked it; see our full First Drive report for more details. Riding shotgun was Andrew Farah, the chief engineer for the 2011 Volt. During our ride and after, we asked him five questions--just as we did Volt...
John Voelcker -
2010 Detroit Auto Show: Ford To Bring Hybrid Batteries Back Home
Ford was on a roll at this year's Detroit Auto Show. It launched its new 2011 Ford Focus compact sedan and hatchback, which got rave reviews, and its 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid won North American Car of the Year. The company added a late-breaking press conference on Monday to make a further...
John Voelcker -
2010 Detroit Auto Show: Cadillac XTS Concept Revives GM's Plug-In Hybrid Hopes
Say "luxury hybrid," and very few people think of Cadillac. Sure, the Escalade Hybrid large luxury sport-utility vehicle has been around for a few years, but Cadillac has no hybrid sedans. That may be about to change, if the Cadillac XTS Platinum Concept unveiled this morning at the Detroit Auto...
John Voelcker -
2010 Detroit Auto Show: Full Details on the 2011 Honda CR-Z Hybrid
The 2010 Honda CR-Z hybrid is the first compact hybrid to go for a sporty edge.
John Voelcker -
2010 Toyota Prius Is Best-Selling Car In Japan
In another sign that Toyota hit a home run with the third-generation Prius hybrid hatchback, the 2010 Toyota Prius was the best-selling car in Japan during 2009. It beat out the Honda Fit, followed by the Toyota Yaris (known in Japan as the Vitz), as well as its closest hybrid competitor, the new...
John Voelcker