London black cab spawns range-extended electric delivery van

LEVC VN5The company that made London's iconic black cab greener is now doing the same with delivery vans. London Electric Vehicle Company (LEVC) is using its extended-range electric taxi as the basis for a new van. Called the VN5, it's currently available to order, with deliveries of right-hand drive vehicles for the United Kingdom scheduled to begin...

2021 Audi A7 plug-in hybrid fastback: US details confirmed

2021 Audi A7 55 TFSI e plug-in hybridAudi is adding a third plug-in hybrid model to its United States lineup. The 2021 Audi A7 55 TFSI e will join the Q5 55 TFSI e crossover and A8 60 TFSI e sedan in U.S. showrooms this fall, the automaker announced Wednesday. The A7 plug-in hybrid uses a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-4 gasoline engine and 7-speed dual-clutch transmission, with an...

Former Smart plant was headed all-electric, now might make diesel SUVs

Daimler Hambach factoryHere's a textbook case of taking two steps forward, and one step back. The former Smart factory in Hambach, France, became all-electric when the brand dropped its gasoline models, and was initially planned to continue making electric cars for fellow Daimler division Mercedes-Benz. Instead, the factory may build gasoline and diesel SUVs. That's...

Report: Audi A9 EV due in 2024 could be a high-efficiency flagship

2019 Audi E-tronThe "highly efficient electric car" Audi said was being developed by its new Artemis team for 2024 won't be a compact vehicle as originally expected, but a large flagship sedan, Autocar reported Monday. The new model has the internal codename E6, but could take on the A9 E-Tron name for production, the magazine reported, citing anonymous sources...

2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime: How its 42-mile range and 38 mpg compare to rivals

2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime XSEOfficial EPA ratings were posted Monday for the 2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime, and they’re exactly as anticipated by Toyota ahead of the model’s launch. That includes a rating of 42 all-electric miles on the model’s plug-in charge, then 40 mpg city, 36 highway, 38 combined. With a full charge and a full tank of gas, the RAV4 Prime can...

Jay Leno drives Canoo’s subscription-only electric van

Canoo electric car on Jay Leno's GarageCanoo won't put its subscription-only electric van on the road for customers until sometime next year, if all goes well, but Jay Leno already got to drive it for a recent episode of his "Jay Leno's Garage" YouTube show. Leno also toured Canoo's Torrance, California headquarters. Founded as Evelozcity, and including some Faraday Future veterans...