News
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Tesla's on a roll, it seems. Two days after its successful public stock offering, the company has released details of the latest updates to its Roadster electric sports car--known as "Roadster 2.5" after software-release numbering. The 2.5 version sports some new styling at front and rear, including a new front fascia (the grille-and-bumper area) that incorporates diffusing vents. There's also a different rear air diffuser that reflects, says the company, "the future of Tesla design." The changes come, Tesla says, as the result of its "close feedback loop" with its customers. "These...
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Tesla Stock Update: Day Two Trading Comes Out Nearly Flat
Is This An Indication Of the Future?
Jonathan McGrew -
Nicolas Hayek: Smart Car Creator Passes Away At Age 82
We Pay Our Respects To a Man With a Vision
Jonathan McGrew -
Mazda Miata Special Edition Goes On Sale For 20th Anniversary
Unfortunately For U.S. Customers It Won’t Be Sold Here
Jonathan McGrew -
70 New Product Launches To Come From GM By 2014
How Will These Launches Impact the U.S. Market?
Jonathan McGrew -
Nissan Experience a Hiccup With Leaf Deliveries
According To Consumers, Nissan Hasn’t Given Firm Delivery Date
Jonathan McGrew -
Small cars sometimes get a bad reputation in the American market; I mean let’s face it, no one wants to hear, “Hey that is really small.” Right? Well, maybe that would be a compliment if you had the right combination of situations. No, we aren’t talking about extensions of the human body, what we are talking about are small cars and the Top Ten places a small car comes in handy in any urban environment. Underground Parking Garages Highway Traffic Jams Alleyways Round-a-bouts Parallel Street Parking On the race track Ferries Gas pump Mall chase scenes Convention/Airport venue transport...
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2011 Nissan Leaf Misses June 30 Deadline
We've been keeping you in the loop as High Gear Media--well, me in particular--angles to be among the first to drive and own the 2011 Nissan Leaf electric car. Since Nissan opened up the ordering process to potential buyers earlier this year, the company's been aiming to release more specifics on...
Martin Padgett -
MINI Gets Cummins V-18 Turbocharged Engine
What Can We Say, Cummins Has a Sense Of Humor
Jonathan McGrew -
Clean-Diesel Mini? Green! A 3500-HP Diesel Mini? NOT Green!
We've written before about the diesel-engined Mini Cooper D that's sold in Europe, but not in the U.S. We really like the idea of a clean-diesel Mini. And now for something completely different. How about a 3500-horsepower V-18 diesel Mini? Ummmm, yes. At this week's Goodwood Festival of Speed...
John Voelcker -
VantagePoint’s Alan Salzman on Tesla and how VCs should think green
I just sat down with Alan Salzman, CEO of VantagePoint Venture Partners — perhaps better known today as the first venture capital firm to invest in Tesla Motors — to see how he’s feeling about the big win, and what it might mean for VPVP’s growing green strategy. As you can imagine, he was...
John Voelcker -
IPO Or Not, Tesla Won't Survive As Independent, Analysts Say
Quick, name the last automaker to go public before yesterday's Tesla Motors IPO. Stumped? It was Ford Motor Company. The year was 1956. Perhaps buyers of Tesla Motors stock [NSDQ:TSLA] were optimistic because they had little context to assess the comapny. Tesla's stock soared from its offering...
John Voelcker -
When auto editors go on vacation, we rent cars too. Which is how a pair of very plain 2010 Toyota Corollas in South Africa taught us a few lessons about fuel economy, green value, and what other countries drive. The bottom line: U.S. buyers get a lot more car, for a lot less money, than elsewhere in the world. Toyota has built cars in South Africa for many years, avoiding punitive duties on imported cars that have kept local car manufacturing humming for decades. Toyota minivans are everywhere, used as taxis and minibuses all over Africa. We actually drove past Toyota's giant Prospecton...
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Think Unveils EVCup Race-Ready City: Faster, Lighter, Leaner
There was a time when 'electric vehicle racing' was nothing more than an oxymoron. While teams of dedicated engineers, speed junkies and volt-heads have lit up drag strips with custom-built EV quarter-mile kings for years, the concept of racing production electric vehicles has yet to take off. But...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
How Short Is a Tata Nano? Enough To Ship Sideways On a Train
You've surely seen car-carriers full of brand-new vehicles on the highways. But many new cars roll out of the factory onto trains that carry them over much of their journey. Now a new video from India shows a trainload of diminutive Tata Nano minicars passing by an onlooker in Bangalore. The...
John Voelcker -
Tesla IPOs, Moves To Build New Roadster In-House and Stop Losses
A Busy Week For One Of the Greenest Sports Car Makers
Jonathan McGrew -
Should I Buy a Car From a Dead Brand?
The Pros and Cons To Buying Cars That Have Been Discontinued
Jonathan McGrew -
A Mini Facelift For the Popular MINI Cooper
We Give You the Scoop On What Has Changed For 2011
Jonathan McGrew -
Today was a big day for Tesla, with the company’s shares finally trading on Nasdaq and investors pouring in more than $226 million into its coffers. As with any major Wall Street listing, Tesla needed to submit an IPO filing to the SEC detailing its structure, future plans and just exactly where investor money would be going. IPO filings are usually a boon for company information and Tesla’s is no different. The electric car start-up has revealed through its IPO filing that it will use investor funds to pay for possible acquisitions and factories to start producing the Model S electric...
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Tesla Stock Surges Nearly 41 Percent On First Day Of Trading
Wall Street investors rallied behind Tesla (Nasdaq:TSLA) today, with the electric car start-up’s share price surging nearly 41 percent on its first day of trading on Nasdaq. Tesla’s share price ended the day at $23.89 a share, a gain of $6.89 on its opening price of $17. Just the day before...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Video: THINK CITY Races In English START Eco Car Trials
Check Out This Think City Setup Up As a Race Car
Jonathan McGrew -
As Governments Worldwide Tighten Fiscal Wallets, Are EV Programs at Risk?
The U.K. coalition government has warned auto industry that it cannot continue to offer financial assistance to enable it to fully recover from the global recession. In addition, concern has been raised that even purchase grants for plug-in vehicles may be at risk if the government is unable to...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Last minute sprint boosts Tesla shares to $23.89, valuation to $2.2B
The Nasdaq is closed, and Tesla Motors [NSDQ: TSLA] is ending its first day on the market at $23.89 a share, a 40.5 percent increase over the $17 pricing it announced last night. This is a rock star showing for the electric car company, which has exceeded expectations that were already sky high. As...
John Voelcker -
Toyota Sells 2.5 Million Hybrids Worldwide
Hybrid vehicles have been alternately portrayed as the saviours of modern transportation or the last gasp of the dying oil-based economy. Either way, Toyota has capitalized on their popularity with its world-beating Prius, even managing to sell more than 2.5 million hybrids worldwide--and at a...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran