Green Car News
-
The Tesla Model S, for all its technical and design artistry, has a dirty little secret: the car has a substantial appetite for kilowatt-hours even when turned off and parked. Since the Model S was introduced in 2012, this "vampire" power drain from the cars sold so far has consumed roughly 15 gigawatt-hours of electric energy, nearly a day's output for a mid-size nuclear power plant. It's enough wasted energy to drive the cars 50 million miles. After nine months of promises to fix it, Tesla finally sent out a software update a week ago to the Model S fleet that it claims "significantly...
-
Toyota's Largest, Heaviest Hybrid: Hino 195h Truck
The Toyota Prius may be the most popular hybrid model of the many Toyota sells. But the company's largest hybrid vehicle weighs more than six new 2014 Prius Liftbacks when it's fully loaded. It's the Hino 195h, a 7- to 9-ton diesel-electric Class 5 commercial truck known as a "cab-over," meaning...
John Voelcker -
Consumer Reports Says Tesla Model S Customer Satisfaction Highest
Tesla might have had a bad day this week, but every cloud has a silver lining. While the NHTSA rebukes it for reporting a five-plus star crash test rating and the company suffers the departure of sales supremo George Blankenship, Model S customers couldn't be happier. In fact, their customer...
Antony Ingram -
Tesla's Bad Luck, Tokyo Motor Show, L.A. Auto Show: This Week In Social Media
Are you in the know when it comes to the green automotive universe? If so, then you'll be aware it was a very busy week, with both the 2013 Los Angeles Auto Show and the 2013 Tokyo Motor Show. Let's take a look and recap: The wraps finally came off the new 2015 MINI Cooper and Cooper S, and yes...
Joel Feder -
Nissan IDx Freeflow Concept, 2014 Honda Accord Hybrid Supplies, Tesla Troubles: Today's Car News
Today, we've got additional coverage of the Tokyo and Los Angeles auto shows, and much more.
Stephen Edelstein -
2014 Lexus CT 200h Update Appears At Los Angeles Auto Show
November is fairly late for the next model year of a car to arrive, but now we've finally seen the updated 2014 Lexus CT 200h compact hybrid hatchback. The lightly restyled model was unveiled at the Guangzhou Motor Show, but made an appearance just hours later at the Los Angeles Auto Show as well...
John Voelcker -
It's pretty clear that many car buyers are very interested in electric cars, and that they love them when they drive them. Electric cars have a handful of natural advantages that offset their higher purchase cost: They cost far less per mile than gasoline cars, and they're simply nicer to drive. But if awareness of the many plug-in models now on sale is slowly increasing, why are sales of plug-in electric cars lower than many makers expected? (Although higher than hybrid cars at the same point in time.) Many impediments The challenge, as always, is what insiders call "getting butts in...
-
2014 Honda Accord Hybrid Supplies Tight In 'Rolling Release'
The 2014 Honda Accord Hybrid is proving unexpectedly popular, both in Japan and the U.S., and that's causing supply challenges for Honda. Two readers have contacted us in the last week to complain that they were unable to purchase the new Accord Hybrid, which Green Car Reports named its 2014 Best...
John Voelcker -
Bad Day For Tesla: Sales VP Blankenship Out, NHTSA Threat
There must be days where Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk feels his multiple burdens more acutely than others. Today may be one, because yesterday was not a good day for Tesla. First, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued a new set of publicity rules for its crash-testing...
John Voelcker -
Nissan IDx Freeflow: Tokyo Star Makes Economy Cars Fun Again
While the tendency to assume things were always better in the old days is often misguided, there's still a lot to be said for nostalgia. Everyone loves an old movie, and who doesn't listen to some classic rock now and then? Nostalgia has also given us some great retro reinventions of classic...
Antony Ingram -
2014 Cadillac ELR: Faster On Gasoline Than On Electricity
The Cadillac ELR sounds like the perfect car for green-minded buyers after a little more luxury. Underneath is the Chevrolet Volt, a car rated highly by its owners and saving the U.S. millions of gallons of gasoline. On top, a stylish Cadillac silhouette and a typically stunning cabin. The only...
Antony Ingram -
Honda FCEV Concept Previews Next-Gen Production Fuel Cell Car: Live Photos
Honda presented a new concept car at the 2013 Los Angeles Auto Show that was powered by a hydrogen fuel cell. Called the FCEV, the new concept is said to preview the potential styling of a successor to the FCX Clarity that is scheduled for launch in 2015, the same year close rival Toyota plans to...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
The 2015 Lincoln MKC compact crossover will debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show.
-
More Tokyo Cars, Chevy Volt Mileage, 2014 Honda Civic HF MPG: Today's Car News
More debuts from the Tokyo and Los Angeles Auto Shows make headlines today.
Stephen Edelstein -
2014 Honda Civic HF Rated At 35 MPG, Up From 33 MPG Last Year
A new CVT gives the 2014 Honda Civic HF impressive fuel economy.
Stephen Edelstein -
2014 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel Tested At 28 MPG On Highway
The nation's only diesel half-ton truck may also be its most fuel-efficient.
Stephen Edelstein -
Chevy Volt Owners Drive More Electric Miles Than Nissan Leaf Drivers: Why?
Is it a case of picking the right electric car for the right job? Or could a lack of "range anxiety" really lead drivers to cover more miles? It's a kind of chicken-or-egg question, but it came to mind when our author Matthew Klippenstein sent us some data. On average, owners of the Nissan Leaf...
John Voelcker -
Volkswagen Twin Up Diesel Plug-In Hybrid: Full Photo Gallery
Volkswagen has used the Tokyo Motor Show to launch the latest member of its plug-in family, the Twin Up minicar. Based on the regular Up sold in Europe, the Twin Up ditches the usual one-liter three-cylinder gasoline engine for something considerably more advanced--the diesel plug-in drivetrain...
Antony Ingram -
The Nissan e-NV200 electric van will go on sale in Japan in mid-2014.
-
Another Lexus LF-NX Crossover Concept: Tokyo Motor Show Photos
The startling Lexus LF-NX Concept, launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, appeared with a new powertrain at the Tokyo Motor Show. And this one's not the hybrid system it was shown with previously The LF-NX Concept that Lexus has been showing this year previews a production model that...
John Voelcker -
2015 Volkswagen E-Golf Electric Car Preview And Live Photos: 2013 L.A. Auto Show
This morning, we got all the details on the new Volkswagen e-Golf electric car, ahead of its debut next week at the Los Angeles Auto Show. The E-Golf is a battery-electric version of the all-new seventh-generation VW Golf, which will go on sale in the U.S. next spring as a 2015 model. The electric...
John Voelcker -
New Cars From Tokyo, Gas-Saving Volts, Tesla Fire Drama: Today's Car News
Today on Green Car Reports: More drama around Tesla (surprise, surprise!), more reports from the Tokyo Motor Show, and more gasoline saved by driving the Chevy Volt on electricity. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Tesla and the NHTSA are wrangling over who initiated the agency's...
John Voelcker -
Honda Vezel Compact Crossover: Tokyo Motor Show Live Photos
Not many vehicles on display at the Tokyo Motor Show will make their way to U.S. shores, but here's one that will. Honda unveiled the Vezel crossover at the show, going on sale in its home market as soon as December 20. It'll be a little while longer before the Vezel appears in the U.S, and it's...
Antony Ingram -
Toyota Prius C Concepts: Tokyo Motor Show Photo Gallery
The car we know as the Toyota Prius C, the smallest and least expensive member of the Prius hybrid family, has a different name in Japan: Aqua. And the Aqua has been a roaring sales success in Japan, which led Toyota to produce no fewer than four Aqua concept cars showing additional models and trim...
John Voelcker