![Footage from June 2016 LAPD announcement of lease for 100 BMW i3 electric cars [CBS Channel 2, LA]](https://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/footage-from-june-2016-lapd-announcement-of-lease-for-100-bmw-i3-electric-cars-cbs-channel-2-la_100641385_t.gif)
Anyone who remembers the epic, metallic-tasting, technicolor smog in the Los Angeles Basin found into the 1990s understands why air quality matters there. While the worst of the uncontrolled tailpipe emissions have now been greatly reduced, and the air is cleaner, the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide is now the major concern. So it sounded like good... LAPD’s unused electric cars gather dust sitting in garage, but why?
Anyone who remembers the epic, metallic-tasting, technicolor smog in the Los Angeles Basin found into the 1990s understands why air quality matters there. While the worst of the uncontrolled tailpipe emissions have now been greatly reduced, and the air is cleaner, the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide is now the major concern. So it sounded like good... 
Leases are a minority of overall car sales in the U.S., though the numbers soar for pricier luxury vehicles versus the less expensive, plain-Jane vehicles that serve as daily transport for most drivers. That rule flips for electric cars: Most pricey Teslas appear to be purchased outright, while smaller and less expensive electric cars are largely... 
As the auto industry plans more electric cars in higher volumes for the 2020s, one of the great debates is whether they will need to be designed from the ground up solely for battery power. Doing so allows designers to offer larger cabins due to the more compact drive motors and electronics. One of the best examples of that idea is the upcoming... 
One of the many tactics used by carmakers to boost efficiency in their vehicles is fitting low-rolling-resistance tires. Specially designed to reduce the energy wasted as heat from the friction between the tire and the road, these tires can boost efficiency by a few percentage points in an electric car. The increase often isn't as noticeable in... 
Almost since the two legendary British brands were brought together in 1998, Jaguar has played second fiddle to its sibling Land Rover. The maker of traditional, sporty British sedans was left in search of a mission as increasingly upscale Land Rovers and even pricier Range Rovers proliferated, essentially saving the company. Recently, Jaguar has... 
Volkswagen continues to invest heavily in a future of plug-in electric vehicles as it attempts to clean the diesel soot from its face following its emissions-cheating scandal. Part of that initiative is coming up with new names for upcoming all-electric models to be sold under its ID electric sub-brand. If Volkswagen's latest trademark filings in... 
Countries around the world—especially China, France, the U.K., and Norway—are aiming to phase out the sale of new fossil-fuel vehicles entirely between 2025 and 2040. So it's in automakers' best interests to begin planning and investing now in vehicle lineups that will comply with that regulatory environment when it comes. But the... ![2017 BMW i3 REx range-extended electric car [photo: Chris Neff]](https://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/2017-bmw-i3-rex-range-extended-electric-car-photo-chris-neff_100622577_t.gif)
Model naming conventions that are clear, consistent, and easy to understand across decades are a crucial part of explaining a vehicle lineup to buyers. By and large, German makers are good at arraying their lineups of sedans (and now SUVs) in "series" or "classes" that run from smallest to largest. The 2014 BMW i3 was something of an anomaly in... 
At this point, a majority of the global auto industry agrees that Tesla and its electric cars have had a remarkable impact in less than 10 years. Founded 15 years ago by two Silicon Valley engineers, Tesla won funding from venture capital, private investment, and government loans that totaled billions of dollars. In that time, short by... 
The last 12 to 18 months have seen a slew of global automakers promising rafts of new plug-in electric vehicles on sale by deadlines set several years into the future. Working to move past its worldwide diesel-emission scandal, for instance, VW Group has promised 30 battery-electric models on sale by 2025—the majority of them likely in...