Tesla Plant in China May Be a First
Tesla is said to be moving closer to becoming the first foreign car company to have a wholly owned manufacturing operation in the country.
Even luxury launches can go all-electric; Hinckley shows how
Electrification is starting to surge through the automotive industry as countries implement emission regulations and the cost of batteries and associated technology drops. While the automotive sector will clearly affect a larger group of people, numerous companies have shown that boats too can go all-electric. That now extends to luxury launches... 2018 Camry Hybrid, Mercedes electric plans, rotary range extender, Best Car To Buy: The Week in Reverse
What company teased us with the possibility of 6-minute electric-car recharging? Which vehicles made it into the finalists for our Best Car To Buy 2018 award, and which didn't? This is our look back at the Week In Reverse—right here at Green Car Reports—for the week ending on Friday, October 20, 2017. Friday, we wrote that Mazda has... Mazda rotary range extender, Nissan’s chill electric van, 2018 Zero motorcycles, Cummins buys Brammo: Today’s Car News
Today, we've got a very cool electric van, a diesel-engine maker moving into electric trucks, Mazda's rotary range-extending engine, and new and better electric motorcycles. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Refrigerated trucks are a small but crucial piece of the commercial van market; now Nissan has an all-electric refrigerated van concept... 2018 Zero electric motorcycles: longer range, 6-kw charging, only a few price hikes
The research and development engineers at Zero Motorcycles were busy this past year, and for 2018, they've delivered electric motorcycles with exactly the improvements their riders asked for. Faster charging and bigger batteries are the two most critical features holding back electric motorcycles from mass adoption, and both got an upgrade this... Mazda all but confirms rotary range extender engine for electric car
How Mazda plans to integrate plug-in hybrid and battery-electric vehicles into its range of increasingly efficient gasoline and diesel models is a topic that interests parts of the global auto industry. In 2019, the small Japanese maker will offer a combustion-engine technology never before achieved in production: a gasoline engine that can work... Cummins buys Brammo electric-drivetrain group for future electric semi
Cummins has long been known for its diesel engines, but the company recently revealed its first concept truck using an all-electric powertrain. The Urban Hauler Tractor debuted last month and Cummins said it previewed a production model that could arrive by the end of this decade. Now, the diesel-engine maker officially diversified its portfolio... Which green cars didn’t make the list for Best Car To Buy 2018?
After the usual intense discussions and debates, we announced our three finalists for the Green Car Reports Best Car To Buy 2018 award earlier this week. The Tesla Model 3 was not among them, because we have to drive a car in order to evaluate it as a finalist—and Tesla declined to provide us with a car to test. The company's more affordable... Nissan e-NV200 Fridge Concept: electric refrigerated van at Tokyo Motor Show
Nissan will roll out a new electric van concept at the 2017 Tokyo Motor Show, one that it believes will help solve urban delivery congestion. The e-NV200 Fridge Concept adds a refrigerated compartment to the existing e-NV200 electric small delivery van to keep various perishable goods fresh while in transit. The brand says the e-NV200's size will... What’s Behind the Push for Electric Cars
A reader says U.S. automakers are responding to tougher emissions standards in China and Europe, not America.
Electric Nissan SUV, EPA vs ethanol, VW vs Pikes Peak, 6-minute battery recharges: Today’s Car News
Today, it appears the future may include more electric SUVs, less ethanol in gasoline, a VW electric hill-climbing race car, and much, much faster battery recharging. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Last week, Toshiba announced a battery cell that could offer the long-sought recharging time as quick as a gasoline refill. The EPA is now run... Volkswagen is developing an all-electric race car for Pikes Peak 2018
Volkswagen is developing an all-electric race car for the world’s most famous mountain race, the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in Colorado, USA on 24 June 2018. The all-wheel-drive prototype’s goal is to set a new record for electric cars at the finish line, 14,000 feet above sea level. The new motorsport project is part of Volkswagen’s process of transforming itself into the leading producer of electric vehicles. By 2025, the Volkswagen brand will already offer 23 all-electric models.
"The Pikes Peak hill climb is one of the world’s most renowned car races. It poses an enormous challenge and is therefore perfectlly suited to proving the capabilities of upcoming technologies," explains Dr Frank Welsch, Member of the Board responsible for Development. "Our electric race car will be equipped with innovative battery and drive technology. The extreme stress test posed by Pikes Peak will give us important feedback that will benefit future development, and it will showcase our products and their technologies."
The vehicle is being developed by Volkswagen Motorsport in close cooperation with Technical Development in Wolfsburg. "The race on Pikes Peak is a new beginning for us. We are developing an all-electric race vehicle for the first time," explains Sven Smeets, Volkswagen Motorsport Director. "The project is also an important milestone in our new motorsport orientation. Our team is literally electrified about taking on this incredible challenge." Volkswagen Motorsport last participated in the Pikes Peak mountain race in 1987 with a spectacular twin-engined Golf which barely missed finishing. "It is high time for a rematch," continues Smeets.
The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb—which insiders also call the ‘Race to the clouds’—has been run since 1916 in the Rocky Mountains near Colorado Springs. The race course is 12.4 miles long, and it climbs 4,700 feet to the summit at just over 14,000 feet above sea level. The current record in the class of electric prototypes is 8 minutes 57.118 seconds, set by Rhys Millen in 2016.
Volkswagen targets Pikes Peak with electric-car tech from future models
The next Pikes Peak International Hill Climb race is eight months away still, so a press release on a carmaker's entry into next June's event comes out of left field. But for Volkswagen, it's another small step to underscore its major commitment to battery-electric vehicles as its two-year-old diesel emission cheating scandal continues to... Will Nissan have an electric SUV concept at Tokyo Motor Show?
Automakers spend a lot of time trying to work out how electrified powertrains, autonomous driving technology, connectivity, and sharing will turn their industry upside down. Or not. Meanwhile, globally but especially in North America, one trend is clear right this moment: utility vehicles are hot. When Nissan put out a teaser video on Tuesday for... Proposed ethanol cuts bring EPA up against Iowa’s powerful politician
Following years of debate, the EPA said earlier this month it will study the possibilities of cutting the amount of ethanol in the United States' gasoline supply. Since 2007, the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) has required growing amounts of ethanol to be blended into U.S. fuel supplies, with E10—a mix of 10 percent ethanol and 90 percent... Toshiba claims 6-minute recharge for new electric-car battery cell
Electric cars pale in comparison to gasoline or diesel-powered cars when it comes to the time presently required to add energy for more driving distance. Although automakers have begun to curb "range anxiety" with longer-distance electric cars, battery charging times on lengthy road trips remain a hurdle for many buyers. The fastest "quick... Tesla Model 3 poll, 2018 Camry Hybrid mileage, UAW jobs, Mercedes electric cars: Today’s Car News
Today, we've got a gas-mileage test of the 2018 Toyota Camry Hybrid, a roundup of Canadian news about electric cars, a threat to the UAW, and a poll on the future of the Tesla Model 3. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Our most recent roundup of electric-car news in Canada includes awards for EV-friendly dealers, a surge in Solo sales, and... Mercedes, Smart, Daimler trucks update electric-car, electrification plans
Mercedes-Benz has already laid out its plans for a portfolio of electric and electrified vehicles, and now parent company Daimler has announced further strategy refinements for Mercedes-Benz and its other brands. The Smart brand will become all-electric, it said, while its commercial truck operations will continue to add electrified powertrains to... Mercedes, Smart, Daimler trucks update electric-car, electrification plans
Mercedes-Benz has already laid out its plans for a portfolio of electric and electrified vehicles, and now parent company Daimler has announced further strategy refinements for Mercedes-Benz and its other brands. The Smart brand will become all-electric, it said, while its commercial truck operations will continue to add electrified powertrains to…
2018 Toyota Camry Hybrid gas-mileage review: going the distance
Toyota can’t be blamed for a lack of effort: The 2018 Toyota Camry Hybrid is dripping with it. From the creased hood and cascading brow to the Modernist center console enclosed by flickers of chrome, the mid-size stalwart is anything but lazy. Our first, limited exposure to the hybrid sedan left us impressed, but with unanswered questions...