Honda plans to buy more renewable energy than any other automaker

2017 Acura NSX production at the Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville, OhioHonda has completed two virtual power purchase agreements (VPPAs) for renewable power to be produced in Texas and Oklahoma. These new agreements will help the company offset carbon from the energy it consumes at its manufacturing facilities. In 2020, Honda will purchase 530,000 Mwh per year from a wind farm in Oklahoma and then, in the fall of...

Renault City K-ZE goes on sale in China for $8,700

Renault City K-ZERenault's new all-electric city crossover went on sale in China earlier this month. Starting at just over $8,700 (after government subsidies), the baby EV offers quick at-home charging and a small footprint at the expense of speed and overall range. The City K-ZE is rated for 271 km (168 miles) of total range measured by NEDC, which might not work...

Mazda to reveal first EV in October, at Tokyo auto show

2019 Mazda 3  -  first drive  -  Los Angeles, January 2019Mazda has confirmed that it will reveal its first “mass-production battery electric vehicle” at the Tokyo Motor Show on October 23. The electric vehicle will be a completely new model, according to Mazda, and will, like the new Mazda 3, follow Mazda’s new clean-slate, human-centered design approach. Mazda is offers no further...

Daimler fined $960M in Germany over diesel trickery

2014 Mercedes-Benz E250 BlueTec 4MaticMercedes-Benz parent company Daimler has been fined 870 million euros ($960 million) for "negligent violation of supervisory duties" in the wake of its diesel emissions scandal, following similar actions against Volkswagen, whose "Dieselgate" fiasco sent tremors through Europe's automotive industry. Daimler's board waived the company's right to...

Canoo won’t let you buy the EVs they’re developing for 2021 on

Canoo electric carCanoo doesn’t want to sell you a car. It wants you to subscribe to one—one of the electric vehicles that it’s conceived and will repair, maintain, and recondition. The ambitious California company, formed by some Faraday Future refugees in 2017 and once called Evelozcity, emerged from stealth mode Tuesday—with a set of...

Toyota might soon use fuel-cell power to make hybrid and plug-in cars

2019 Toyota MiraiAlthough your next vehicle might not be powered by hydrogen fuel cells, the chances are looking far greater that your next vehicle will have been made with power from them. Toyota has announced that it’s using hydrogen fuel-cell stacks developed for its Mirai within a stationary generator system. The fuel-cell generator is undergoing testing...

Report: “All-electric future” a short circuit in UAW-GM strike

2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV at public charging stationThe electrification of General Motors may be a sticking point in the company's negotiations with the UAW, a report suggested, as GM's union employees kicked off a second week on strike over the two parties' inability to agree on new contract terms. An unidentified source told the Associated Press that GM's restructuring is a pain point for...

Commentary: Electric cars may spawn the next digital divide

BMW i3 charging at EVgo fast chargers at Chevron station, Menlo Park, CaliforniaNew technology is expensive. From cell phones and internet in the 1990s to simple electricity in the 1890s, new technologies have trickled down from the wealthy (or business) to middle class consumers. Increasingly, that’s looking to be true of electric cars as well, and as with electricity, phone service, cell phones, cable television, and...

Could 20-year, million-mile battery be Tesla’s next breakthrough?

Tesla Model YBattery research revealed earlier this month and affiliated with Tesla could suggest that the company is well on its way to bringing a million-mile battery to market. The result could last three times as long as Tesla’s current cells—6,000 cycles, across a wide temperature range—and be the electric-car brand’s “secret...

Volkswagen ID 3 might be sold in Canada, definitely not US-bound

Volkswagen ID 3Earlier this month at the Volkswagen ID3’s Frankfurt auto show introduction, VW was consistent in its messaging that the compact electric car would not be coming to the U.S.—or to North America. Volkswagen Group of America CEO Scott Keogh gave us a very good reason why bringing a crossover based on the ID Crozz—and not the ID...