Green Car News
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March was another good month for U.S. sales of the Nissan Leaf, the best-selling electric car in the world. In fact, March was a good month for several plug-in electric cars, with monthly sales up for many models, and new monthly records for a few. Roughly 9,000 electric cars were sold in March, against about 6,900 in February--an increase of almost one-third, which may bode well for the balance of the year. Market leaders Nissan sold 2,507 Leafs in March, bringing its three-month total to 5,184--logging a 12-percent increase over the 2,236 sold in March 2013, the first month in which...
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Electric Car Sales Growth, Tesla On TV, Landfill-Powered Toyota Plant: Today's Car News
Electric cars, landfill power, and bad sound editing make headlines today.
Stephen Edelstein -
Plug-In Electric Car Sales Cross 400,000 Globally In Three Years
In global terms, plug-in car sales are still a drop in the ocean. That's to be expected--we've only had volume production models for the last three or four years. Disruptive products always take a little while to get going. But global plug-in electric car sales have now topped 400,000 units--a...
Antony Ingram -
2015 Audi A3: Small Luxury Sedan With TDI Diesel Option
A decade ago, the concept of a sporting or luxurious sedan with a diesel engine was virtually unthinkable in the U.S. They had neither the refinement, nor the performance to be a viable alternative to a larger, multi-cylinder gasoline engine. All that is changing. And one of the ones helping to...
Antony Ingram -
New Range-Extended Electric London Cab A 'Masterpiece,' Says Mayor After Test Drive
London has some of the worst inner-city pollution of any city in Europe, but legislators and automakers are now working hard to correct that. Among them is Metrocab, a company that purpose-builds taxis for the city--and its latest product, a range-extended electric cab, is drawing praise from...
Antony Ingram -
Landfill Power For Toyota Plant Cuts Carbon Emissions 90 Percent
Several automakers have realized that being truly green involves much more than just building cars that don't use much fuel. The latest is Toyota, which is simultaneously powering its plant and cutting local emissions in Georgetown, Kentucky, by capturing waste gas from a local landfill site...
Antony Ingram -
If you watched 60 Minutes on Sunday night--perhaps wondering whether the show would target the Tesla Model S electric car--you may have been relieved. The segment, "Fast Cars and Rocket Ships," was nothing less than a laudatory paean to the vision and accomplishments of Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk. MORE: Tesla's Lithium-Ion Battery Gigafactory: What You Need To Know But you may also have noticed something odd. The show used what appeared to be stock footage of the Tesla Model S cruising through scenic byways and along highways, with audio of what sounded suspiciously like engine...
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Electric Car Sales, Tesla Video Tech, Electric-Bus Snafu: Today's Car News
The Nissan Leaf, Tesla side-view cameras, and Detroit Electric make today's headlines.
Stephen Edelstein -
BYD's Long Beach, CA, Electric-Bus Deal On Indefinite Hold Now
Long Beach Transit will restart bidding for its electric buses, after Federal officials questioned the legitimacy of BYD's original bid.
Stephen Edelstein -
How Reliable Is Your Hybrid? Take It Apart To Find Out
Modern vehicles are derided in some circles for their complexity, but in reality cars are more reliable today than they've ever been. Sure, stuff still goes wrong--but it usually does so with such infrequency we just notice more. Cars go and stop when we ask, and they're capable of massive mileages...
Antony Ingram -
Daimler Plans 3-Cylinder Engines For Future Compact Hybrids
Three-cylinder engines were popular with Japanese automakers back in the 1980s and 1990s, as a way of reducing weight and fuel consumption in smaller vehicles. Now, they're making a resurgence, as low weight and improved efficiency are once again at the forefront of automakers' development tasks...
Antony Ingram -
Replace Side Mirrors With Video Cameras? Tesla, Carmaker Group Ask Feds For OK
Using cameras for side mirrors isn't a new concept--manufacturers have been fitting them to concept vehicles for decades. But when it comes to road use, laws all around the world require proper mirrors, with no loopholes available for camera and screen-based systems. Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] is...
Antony Ingram -
In the world of startup electric car automakers, things don't always go to plan. With the best will in the world, release dates get pushed back, prices go up and initial promises fade away as if they were never made. It may not come as much of a surprise then to learn that Detroit Electric, a small automaker aiming to build a Tesla Roadster-like sports car called the SP:01, will no longer be building the cars in the city which shares its name. According to The Detroit News, the company will instead build the cars in Holland, a region of The Netherlands in Europe. The company first announced a...
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Tesla Fire Inquiry, Ford Hybrid Guide, Leaf Local Content: Today's Car News
Today on Green CarReports: Texas turns friendly to electric cars, we update our Ford hybrid guide, and Massachusetts plans to push plug-in cars too. All this and more on Green Car Reports. The NHTSA closed its probe into Tesla Model S fires, saying a "defect was not identified." Good news for...
John Voelcker -
Volkswagen Shows Off Its 40-Year History Of Electric Cars
While its new 2015 Volkswagen e-Golf will be the first-ever plug-in electric VW sold in the U.S., the German carmaker has a surprisingly long history of prototype electric cars. Two weeks ago, during a drive event for its VW e-Golf and e-Up production models, along with prototype Golf GTE plug-in...
John Voelcker -
2014 Nissan Leaf Domestic Content: Now Closer To Volt, Focus Electric
Last fall, we learned that the first year of U.S. production of the Nissan Leaf electric cars, built in Smyrna, Tennessee, had only 15 percent North American content. This year, the numbers are somewhat better--and they bring the Leaf closer to the domestic-content percentage of other plug-in...
John Voelcker -
Why Oil State Texas Turns Out To Be Friendly To Electric Cars
Charging stations run by utility companies make Texas a popular spot for electric cars.
Stephen Edelstein -
2014 Cadillac ELR Recalled For Stability-Control Software Issue
GM will recall 656 2014 Cadillac ELR coupes to fix a software glitch.
Stephen Edelstein -
Massachusetts is the latest state to incentivize electric-car purchases.
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Will NYC's CitiBike Shared Bicycles Get Add-On Electric Power?
ShareRoller is a removable friction-drive motor that could help energize morning commutes.
Stephen Edelstein -
NHTSA Closes Probe Into Tesla Model S Fires: "Defect Not Identified"
It looks like Tesla Motors' brief firefight is now over. Not only has the company announced the fitment of new parts designed to deflect road debris, the cause of two fire incidents towards the end of 2013, but the NHTSA has now closed its probe into the fires--absolving the Model S of blame. Last...
Antony Ingram -
Tesla Battery Shield, 36-MPG Chrysler, VW e-Up, Ford Slaps Cadillac In Video Ad: Today's Car News
Today on Green Car Reports: Tesla Motors announces a new three-part battery shield system for its Model S electric car, Ford quietly issues a video response to the polarizing 'Poolside' ad that neatly one-ups Cadillac, and we drive the smallest--and most fun--electric Volkswagen. All this and more...
John Voelcker -
Volkswagen e-Up: Driving VW's Smallest Electric Car (Forbidden Fruit)
Of the three plug-in VW cars we drove in Berlin this month, the one we liked best is the one we won't get in North America. The Volkswagen e-Up battery-electric minicar is a blast. It's small, rollerskate-agile, and performs well enough that it would be our preferred vehicle in any crowded city...
John Voelcker -
Ford Parodies Divisive Cadillac ELR Ad With 'Upside' C-Max Video
Why do we work so hard? Because hard work means "anything is possible"--and maybe you'll get a nice pool and a fancy car out of it. At least, that's the answer if Cadillac's "Poolside" ad for its ELR range-extended electric luxury coupe was to be believed. MUST SEE: Tesla Model S To Get Titanium...
Antony Ingram