Green Car News
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Volkswagen is finally dropping its long-serving 2.5-liter gasoline engine from several models, in favor of a more efficient, downsized turbocharged 1.8-liter. The 1.8 turbocharged, direct-injection four-cylinder develops 170 horsepower, the same as the naturally-aspirated 2.5. However, its 184 pounds-feet torque output is 7 lb-ft more than the 5-cylinder 2.5, developed usefully lower in the rev range. No exact mileage figures have yet been announced, but Volkswagen estimates a 16 percent highway improvement in the Jetta and 17 percent highway in the Beetle, which also receives the new engine...
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Plug-in Electric Car Sales in Canada, June 2013
This past June marked the 20th year since a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup, a dry spell even longer than the country's last World Series title. June also marked the Chevy Volt's 16th consecutive month atop the Canuck plug-in sales charts. Thanks to a June sales surge, the car GM designed to...
Matthew Klippenstein -
2014 Ford Focus Electric Gets $4,000 Price Cut To Boost Sales
Ford might have ignored the 2014 Focus Electric when it updated its range for the 2014 model year, but one aspect has finally changed: The price. That has now dropped by $4,000, to a starting MSRP of $35,200, down from $39,200. The change hasn't yet been reflected on Ford's website--which shows the...
Antony Ingram -
Subaru Swamped By Demand For XV Crosstrek In U.S., Hybrids In Japan
If any carmaker should already have had a hybrid in its lineup, it's Subaru. We've said that before, and before the end of the year, we'll know much more about the 2014 Subaru XV Crosstrek Hybrid that was unveiled at last spring's New York Auto Show. But it turns out that Subaru now has two...
John Voelcker -
Yes, Teslas Can Tow: Model S Trailer Hitch Installation (Video)
If you think about it, the Tesla Model S comes close to being the ideal tow vehicle for lighter loads. It's large, weighty and stable at speed. It's rear-drive, for good traction. And it has plenty of torque. If those aren't good tow car characteristics, we don't know what are. Now, one company has...
Antony Ingram -
Buick eAssist, Chevy Eco Hybrid Recall Questioned By NHTSA
Back in May, General Motors announced the recall of more than 38,000 Buick and Chevrolet mild hybrid sedans to check for a potentially defective electronic component. Now, following a fire in a vehicle apparently repaired under the recall, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is...
Antony Ingram -
With the rate at which automakers are releasing new plug-in vehicles, the "chicken and egg" issue of whether cars or public charging points or the cars should debut first is much less of an issue than it was just two or three years ago. Even so, abundant public charging can't hurt--and any country which provides ample fast charging will inevitably cultivate increased electric car ownership. The Netherlands is one of those countries. It's soon to have the world's largest electric vehicle fast charging network, courtesy of power and utility company ABB. By the time the network of...
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2014 BMW i3 Electric Car: Specifications And Details Released
With the global unveiling of the 2014 BMW i3 less than three weeks away, BMW has revealed a few more details on its radical new electric car. The i3 battery-electric five-door hatchback's 125-kilowatt (170-horsepower) electric motor can generate peak torque of 184 lb-ft. The motor will accelerate...
John Voelcker -
Toyota Auris Ad Complains About Auto Emissions, Doesn't Mention Electric Cars
By now, you've probably seen it: the new ad for the Toyota Auris Hybrid. But on the off chance you haven't, here's the Cliffs Notes version: Sometime in the future, a man and woman awake in their stylish apartment. It's got enough bells and whistles and Roombas to give Michio Kaku a heart attack...
Richard Read -
Historic Electric Vehicle Foundation Set Up To Preserve Electric-Car History
With more than 100,000 electric cars on U.S. roads--and thousands more added each month--advocates and historians are turning their attention to the last time cars with plugs rolled out of U.S. factories, almost 100 years ago. But as far as we know, there's no single museum or entity in the U.S...
John Voelcker -
Want To Boost Gas Mileage? Remove That Bike Rack, Says Consumer Reports
If you're one of the millions of Americans preparing for your summer vacation, you might also be readying the family's bicycles for some exercise while you're away. Chances are, this involves some kind of roof-mounted bicycle rack for your car. And this can have a dramatic effect on your gas...
Antony Ingram -
Famous Bluebird Name To Grace New Electric Sports Car
Few names evoke speed more than Bluebird, a moniker associated with a long string of vehicles faster than any other on the planet. It seems right then that the family with whom those vehicles are most associated is to launch an electric sports car of the same name, at this year's Sustainable...
Antony Ingram -
Although we hate to say it here, for certain cars, sometimes gas mileage really just doesn't matter that much. That's our verdict on the 2013 Fiat 500c Abarth Cabrio, the new convertible version of the hot-hatch 500 Abarth minicar--the one whose television ad people are still talking about. Just in time for the hottest days of a Northeast summer, we borrowed a 500c Abarth and took it out over our usual weekend test route. Both the Abarth three-door hatchback and the two-door Cabrio are rated at 31 mpg combined (28 mpg city, 34 mpg highway). The car comes only with a 160-horsepower...
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'World Record Drive' Around EU Draws 388 Electric Cars
What do you call 388 electric cars and bikes driving from Vienna in Austria to Geneva in Switzerland? Answer: A world record. No, it's not funny, but then it wasn't a joke. Called WAVE 2013 (World Advanced Vehicle Expedition), a parade of hundreds of electric cars traveled between the two European...
Antony Ingram -
Is Rust The Key To Cleaner, Solar-Generated Hydrogen?
Rust is usually something to be avoided in the automotive world, unless you're a hot-rodder looking for that sun-scorched appearance or a VW scene kid wanting the "rat look". But while most associate rust with decay, scientists are finding another use for it--and one which could improve hydrogen...
Antony Ingram -
Nissan To Add Electric-Car Fast Charging At More Than 100 Dealers
While Nissan Leaf owners in Europe have enjoyed fast charging at Nissan dealerships for some time, the scheme has been slow to make its way to America. That's set to change soon, as Nissan announces the installation of 100 DC quick chargers at dealerships across the U.S. before April 1 next year...
Antony Ingram -
Honda, Fiat Stick To Minimal Numbers Of Popular Electric Cars
With a little price war on electric cars taking place in California, there are waiting lists for the Honda Fit EV, and this year's production of Fiat 500e may be sold out. That means that Fiat and Honda will boost production to meet demand, right? Wrong. We've now talked to both carmakers, and...
John Voelcker -
Sustainable Parking Helps Cities Cut Emissions, Boost Efficiency
We've all been there: Whether the night before a major holiday, a Saturday at the local mall or in a busy area of town, finding a parking space can sometimes take an age. Then, when you think you've found a spot, you pull up to it only to find some comedian has parked a Smart Fortwo or similarly...
Antony Ingram -
In less than a year, the Tesla Model S has created a new category of car: the electric luxury sport sedan. But with impending launches by two experienced, prestigious German luxury brands, will Tesla find the Model S facing new competition among wealthy buyers who like plugging in to drive? We just drove the 2014 Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid, the first-ever plug-in hybrid car from the famed German sports-car brand now owned by Volkswagen. That car will go on sale for 2014, and is expected to find its largest audience among wealthy Californians--who get a number of incentives to drive fully or...
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Volkswagen Golf BlueMotion: High-MPG Diesel Is Forbidden Fruit For Us
With substantial weight savings and all-new drivetrains, the seventh-generation 2015 Volkswagen Golf TDI -- coming to the U.S. next year as a 2.0-litre TDI model, and also a hot hatch Golf GTD -- suggests diesel fans may get the kind of fuel-efficiency figures normally reserved for hybrid cars. But...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
VW Plans XL1-Derived Vehicles, Ultra-Budget Car
Volkswagen is best-known for its diesel vehicles for those associating the German automaker with fuel efficiency, but its future plans stretch well beyond endless TDI models. Speaking with Automotive News Europe, VW's development coordinator Ulrich Hackenberg says making cars lighter and greener is...
Antony Ingram -
2014 Nissan Versa Note Tops Subcompact Gas Mileage; Clever Aero, Light Weight
As automobile manufacturers strive for greater fuel efficiency, it's the low-hanging fruit proving most effective for immediate gains. That's why Nissan's new 2014 Versa Note--replacing the old 2012 Versa hatchback--has improved by a full 5 mpg on the old car's combined economy. The 2014 Nissan...
Antony Ingram -
June Plug-In Electric Car Sales: Year Won't Quite Double 2012
With half the year now gone, are plug-in electric cars on track to double their sales last year? Not quite. As of the end of June, roughly 41,000 plug-in cars had been sold in the U.S. That number would need to be closer to last year's total of 53,000 to keep sales on pace to double the 2012 total...
John Voelcker -
Cyclist Vs Self-Important, Entitled, Angry Supercar Driver (Video)
Owners of supercars often seem to feel a sense of entitlement. So we had to chuckle at the outrage expressed by the videographer who posted a clip of a Lamborghini Aventador momentarily forced to slow down on a narrow London street as a cyclist pulls out. You'll note that the driver of the...
John Voelcker