Electric cars only need 100 miles of range, some carmakers say; is it true?

Slide from 2017 Hyundai Ioniq presentation on electric cars at Washington Auto Show, Jan 2017Hyundai first made the argument that energy efficiency in electric cars is just as important as their range, as part of its launch of the Ioniq Electric hatchback, EPA-rated at 124 miles. Now Honda is making that argument as well, based on a news report it confirmed saying that the Clarity EV electric mid-size sedan will have a battery range of...

2017 Kia Niro: gas mileage review

2017 Kia Niro Touring, Catskill Mountains, NY, March 2017However you choose to view the 2017 Kia Niro hybrid—Kia says it's a crossover utility, we call it a wagon—it's a good-looking and relatively capacious small car. The debate over segments comes because the Niro has neither the ground clearance of a utility vehicle nor available all-wheel drive, making it more of a wagon or "square...

What Trump did and didn’t say in Detroit on EPA emission rules

Donald TrumpOne of the challenges of today's uber-polarized political environment is that fear and alarmism increasingly overtake the factual realities of an issue. This appears to be the case with President Donald Trump's Wednesday appearance in Detroit to announce the reopening of the comment period for EPA emission rules for vehicles in model years 2022...

Porsche Mission E electric car to cost less than Panamera sedan

Porsche Mission E concept electric carPorsche's most ardent fans no longer complain about the expansion of the German sports-car maker's lineup into sedans and, even worse, sport-utility vehicles. The large Panamera sedan and the Cayenne and Macan SUVs are not only some of Porsche's more popular models, but fund its development of the fabled 911 rear-engine sport coupe and the Boxster...

After Audi e-tron, next electric car to be compact BMW i3 competitor

2016 Audi A3 e-Tron Sportback, San Francisco Bay Area, Oct 2015Next year, the Audi e-tron luxury electric crossover is expected to arrive at U.S. dealers, bringing Audi into direct competition with the Tesla Model X roughly three years after the world's first all-electric utility vehicle went into production. But with a pledge to sell 25 percent of its cars with plug-in electric capabilities by 2025, VW...

Which luxury brand will do best in electric cars? Poll results

Rendering of BMW i5 electric crossover utility vehicle, from patent drawings [Indian Autos Blog]Within the next two years we will see new all-electric luxury cars from Audi, BMW, Jaguar, and Mercedes-Benz appear in actual showrooms. All four of those makes have shown concepts for their pricey, 200-mile-plus electric cars, and most of them are expected to go on sale in the second half of next year as 2019 models. But which make is likely to...

EPA to reopen emission-rule review; how important is this step?

Donald TrumpTomorrow is expected to be the day when President Donald Trump announces the EPA will reopen the comment period for the vehicle emissions standards it finalized in the waning days of the Obama Administration. The event will likely be accompanied by predictable language: Trump will be “highlighting the need to eliminate burdensome regulations...

Why I canceled my Chevy Bolt EV electric-car order: a reader explains

Doug Kerr, daughter Andie Kerr, fiancee Barbara Gleason; Fiat 500e, Ford Focus Electric, Fiat 500eThe advent of affordable 200-mile electric cars promises to increase public acceptance of cars with plugs—or at least that's the hope of both carmakers and advocates. The first of those, the 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV, is now entering the market, state by state, to great acclaim. But not every electric-car fan is sold on the Bolt EV's...