Green Car News

Drivers in Europe have been reaping the benefits of a wide selection of diesel cars for years, but with the fuel set to become more popular in the U.S. too, many carmakers are expanding their range of diesel vehicles. Mazda is one of those carmakers, with the next generation Mazda6 and the 2013...

Although Audi has no production plans as yet for its A3 e-tron electric car, the automaker is still working hard to promote electric cars through its small A3 e-tron test fleet. Last month, Audi released a video in which we met some of its e-Pilots: the lucky few Audi employees chosen to put the A3...

It’s official: not only does the 2013 Ford C-Max Energi Plug-in hybrid travel further in all-electric mode than the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-in hybrid, but it will cost less too. As Ford detailed last night, its first plug-in hybrid will retail for $33,750, has a combined gasoline + electric...

If there's one thing to be said for the relatively steady uptake on electric cars, it's that there's a friendly, tight-knit community of electric car owners ever-ready to hand out advice. Whatever you want to know about owning or driving an EV, it's never difficult to find someone who can help out...

The Nissan Leaf may have gone on sale in December 2010, but later this year, production of Nissan’s all-electric hatchback will start for the first time in Smyrna, Tennessee. We’ve been looking forward to the 2013 Nissan Leaf for some time, with hints from Nissan that...

Let's make one thing clear right up front: I think the 2012 Tesla Model S is the coolest freaking car in the history of Western Civilization. I put down my $5,000 deposit more than two years ago. I've chugged the Tesla Kool-Aid, extra-large size. But after a 7-minute spin in a dark green Model S...

Ethanol continues to be a political football, with the alcohol fuel coming under fire from the auto industry, environmental pressure groups, and others. The latest to line up against the corn-based fuel is a coalition of industrialized livestock and poultry producers that might collectively be...

Honda delivered its first coporately-leased all-electric Fit EV back in December 2010 to the city of Torrence, California, one month after announcing it at the 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show. Since then, Honda has continued deliveries of its Fit EV to fleet customers, but at the start of last week...

The 2013 Audi Q5 Hybrid crossover has had a long gestation, but reports say it will finally reach the U.S. market this fall. On sale in Europe for a year now, the hybrid Q5 was originally launched at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show. Technical details had emerged even before that. Now a report in...

A few months after going on sale, the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-in hybrid has been given an official crash-test rating by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Unlike the 5-star rated, five-door Prius liftback it is based on however, the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid only...

Man-made carbon dioxide might be something we're trying to reduce, but on its own, carbon is an abundant and rather useful element. It's also been central to two of the most important scientific materials discoveries of recent years--graphene, and carbon nanotubes. The latter involves rolling the...

Volkswagen is often credited with inventing the "hot hatchback", when the original Golf GTI emerged in the mid-1970s. The company could also lay reasonable claim to inventing the first diesel hot hatchback, as powerful TDI models of the car have been sold in Europe for well over a decade. Now, U.S...

Electric-car drivers in the U.S. are now asking, What is a fair price value for use of public Level 2 charging stations? In the U.S. and Europe, multiple networks of charging-spot providers have proliferated. Some are or were free, others offer a variety of payment terms, authentication systems...

It's only a few more months before Ford's first plug-in hybrid car hits the market, in the shape of the 2013 Ford C-Max Energi. The C-Max Energi is just part of a five-pronged attack on the hybrid and plug-in market this year, joining the 2012 Ford Focus Electric, and flanked by the regular C-Max...

Electric cars are getting a lot of press these days. But much of it omits the experience and viewpoints of the people closest to plug-in electric cars: the owners who paid actual money for them and drive them every day. Now, a group representing electric utilities is surveying plug-in buyers to...

With Tesla Motors opening new Tesla Stores at a rapid pace, the 2012 Tesla Model S all-electric sport sedan has now been seen by hundreds of thousands of people. Thus far, however, very few of them, however, have gotten behind the wheel. Tesla's working to change that, with a traveling nationwide...

Hybrids are great. Economical, clean, soothing, relaxing, quiet, thrilling... Okay, perhaps not the last one, as thrills are conspicuously absent from many hybrids on the market today. However, some carmakers are changing that image with powerful and luxurious models--and Lexus is one of those...

Although electric cars are very energy efficient, electric car battery packs can’t store as much energy as a tank full of gasoline, resulting in much shorter driving range between fill-ups than a gas car. At present, engineers around the world are working on the problem, developing everything...

Normally, a manufacturer announcing that it will drop a four cylinder model in favor of a six-cylinder variant would lead to wailing and gnashing of teeth, to those of a green disposition. With the 2013 Toyota Sienna minivan however, it's no big deal losing the unpopular 2.7-liter four-cylinder, as...

After an hour in a 2012 Tesla Model S all-electric sport sedan, one thing became clear: It's a viable car. The Model S gives Tesla Motors a shot at turning into a real car company. That's a provisional judgment; as many journalists have noted, 10-minute drives or an hour driving and riding in...