Green Car News

Hey Chevy, listen up: Aliens in electric car ads don't have to be annoying--just ask Smart. The maker of diminutive city cars has ditched all references to performance, specifications and efficiency in its latest ad (via Autoblog) for the third-generation Fortwo Electric Drive, instead giving us a...

In the automotive world, nothing says a car is more safe than a 5-Star crash test rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and a Top Safety Pick award from the insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) While the 2013 Dodge Dart, Chrysler’s first compact...

The 2012 Tesla Model S electric sedan is already competent handler, but it could get even better for Model S Performance buyers. Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] has announced that it's developing a new suspension setup aimed at improving the car's already-talented dynamics. According to Wired (via Motor...

This week, we received a press release from the University of Michigan with a stunning subject line: "Emissions from new vehicles down a record 20% in five years". "Okay", we thought, as we opened the email, "what's the catch?" As it turns out, that's a little complicated. Researchers at the...

It’s no secret that electric cars sales in the U.S.--and elsewhere in the world--aren’t as high as automakers and electric car advocates would like. The reasons given for this are many and varied: some commentators say plug-in cars are simply too expensive; others say that the lack of...

Brace yourself, Californians. Gas prices are going up. Again. With the Golden State already paying some of the highest gas prices in the nation, California drivers will find it's going to get more costly than ever to fill their tanks. According to Reuters, oil analyst Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst...

Ford could have a winner on its hands with the impressively frugal 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid, but already Ford has announced a new range-topping model The Fusion Hybrid Titanium is set to top the range at $32,995, and loads on the luxury to justify the premium. Externally, front fog lamps, chrome...

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Smart took that advice to heart; its 2013 Smart ED3 is the third generation of its all-electric version of the two-seat ForTwo minicar. And it's the first one that's really a viable car under normal driving conditions. It's also the least expensive...

What Google can do with a Toyota Prius, someone else can do with a Nissan Leaf. At least, that’s the message NIssan wants to send after showcasing its own take on Google’s automated car at the 2012 Ceatec exhibition in Japan. As Engadget reports, the self-driving Nissan Leaf can move...

The market for compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles may be just about to get the kick-start it needs, as a coalition of U.S. states gets ready to buy up to 10,000 CNG vehicles. Representatives from the 22 states met in Detroit in July, to push automakers to build more CNG vehicles on the promise...

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has weighed in with his verdict on startup electric-car maker Tesla Motors: It's a "loser." So, for that matter, is another startup that's still in business, Fisker Automotive. The two car companies were lumped in with a pair of bankrupt businesses...

America has never been too fond of small cars. Big spaces and cheap gas has always encouraged larger vehicles, but a lack of genuinely talented small cars to choose from has also played a part. That's all changed in recent years, with most manufacturers now offering minicars, subcompacts and...

If you’re a fan of electric motorcycles, you’ll know that Californian-based Zero Motorcycles likes to update its range of all-electric motorcycles one a year. And, unlike many automakers and motorcycle companies, that means more than just a few new paint options and handlebar tweaks. In...

With the new VW Beetle launched last year, you knew there would be a ragtop, right? We now have photos of the 2013 Volkswagen Beetle Convertible, which includes a unique model: the only diesel convertible available for sale in the U.S. This is only the third all-new open-air Beetle in history; the...

It’s almost a year ago since a Range Rover Range_e plug-in hybrid prototype was spotted innocuously charging at a shopping mall in the U.K. Now Land Rover has confirmed its intentions to bring a plug-in hybrid Range Rover to market some time in the future. For now, how far into the future...

Plug-in car sales hit a new record in September--more than 5,500 sold in a single month--and there will likely be more records to come. But plug-in hybrids and battery electric cars are still unfamiliar to most U.S. car buyers, not to mention pricey. And there's increasing discussion that the...

Volkswagen of America has finally announced pricing for the 2013 Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid, set to be the most fuel-efficient Jetta in the line-up. Jetta Hybrids will start at $24,995, with the higher-specification SE models priced at $26,990. That means the Hybrid starts at $2,005 more than the...

It's probably not much fun being Tony Posawatz, the latest CEO of Fisker Automotive, these days. Consider the list of challenges he faces: Fisker appears to have built only 2,000--perhaps 3,000--of its Karma range-extended electric luxury sedan, not the 15,000 it projected for its first year The...

The new, seventh-generation Volkswagen Golf was unveiled early last month in Berlin, but more models were added to the lineup at last week's Paris Auto Show. And while complete details weren't forthcoming, VW Group executives offered some hints on what we'll see when the 2014 VW Golf debuts in the...

At some point, especially if you live in a large city like New York, the chances are you’ve used valet parking to make life a little easier on arrival at a parking garage, hotel, or airport. But in the age of plug-in cars, could valet parking provide another useful service: managing the...