Audi AI:Trail concept splices trail-ready with autonomous-ready

Audi AI: Trail quattro conceptEarlier this week at the Frankfurt auto show, Audi revealed a strikingly different adventure-vehicle concept car that’s designed to show, according to the brand, “a comprehensive concept for sustainable mobility off the beaten track.” The AI:Trail completes a quartet of concepts with similarly colon-punctuated names—the...

Green Car Reports’ top 10 greenest cars for 2019

2019 Hyundai Ioniq ElectricEfficiency went further and farther for 2019 model-year vehicles in almost every sense of the two words. Green Car Reports’ top 10 fuel-efficient vehicles all have one thing in common: plugs. But where they go from there is anything but common among the vehicles. The most efficient vehicles on our list did more with their energy than the...

Are states overtaxing EV drivers to make up for lost gas taxes?

BMW i3 charging at EVgo fast chargers at Chevron station in Menlo Park, CaliforniaSome states are assessing additional fees on electric vehicle owners that end up being in excess of what the average car owner pays in gas taxes, consumer advocates said Wednesday. Consumer Reports found that 26 states (up from 17 a little more than a year ago) have implemented policies mandating additional registration fees for owners of electric...

EPA chief softens stance on fuel-economy rollback

EPA Acting Administrator Andrew WheelerU.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) chief Andrew Wheeler is sending signals that the Trump administration's plans to roll back Obama-era fuel-efficiency standards may not go forward as originally outlined. According to Wheeler, "key aspects" of the strategy are still under review. Wheeler told Bloomberg that while the administration remains...

All-electric Jaguar XJ flagship due in 2021, with unconventional design

Teaser for electric Jaguar XJ due in 2020Jaguar teased an all-electric XJ sedan at the Frankfurt auto show Tuesday, confirming reports that the company's flagship four-door will take the fight to Tesla in 2021. This announcement confirms electrification for Jaguar's large sedan, which Jaguar has been teasing for quite some time. It still remains unclear, however, whether the XJ will be...

Electric truck hopeful Rivian gets $350M investment from Cox

Rivian R1SThe independent electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian is getting another big shot of capital, care of Cox Automotive, the companies announced Tuesday. Cox, which is a major player in the automotive retail and logistics space, is pumping $350 million into Rivian. Rivian will benefit from the capital injection as it tools up to build its electric R1T...

BMW i Hydrogen Next fuel-cell X5 SUV could arrive as soon as 2022

BMW i Hydrogen Next development vehicle (fuel-cell X5)BMW announced Tuesday that it is working on a next generation of fuel-cell drive systems, to first be presented in a limited-production version of the BMW X5 in 2022, and then in a more widely available model starting in 2025. In a release accompanying the announcement, BMW said that the i Hydrogen Next fuel-cell development vehicle revealed at...

Mercedes-Benz Vision EQS rethinks the S-Class as all-electric

Mercedes-Benz Vision EQS conceptWith the debut of the Mercedes-Benz Vision EQS show car at Frankfurt Tuesday, the German automaker is pointing to more than just future electric vehicles. The EQS “points the way to the future of Mercedes-Benz,” the automaker declares, and says that it provides an outlook on “a new dimension in sustainable luxury.” Under...