Prototype Sumitomo tires recover energy as they roll

Sumitomo electricity-generating tire conceptThere's wind power, solar power, and—tire power. Sumitomo Rubber is developing a new tire that can restore energy to a car as it drives down the road. The energy recaptures static electricity generated when the tires deform and return to their original shape as they roll down the road. Recovering energy from a portion of tire rolling...

Automakers rebuff EPA mpg rollbacks, cut side deal with California

TrafficSome of the largest automakers in the U.S. have banded together with California—to set an example for the EPA and its long-stalled emissions and fuel economy revamp. The agreement between Ford, Honda, Volkswagen, and BMW's U.S. division would raise fuel-economy standards by about 3.7 percent a year through 2026 to a final target of about 50...

As EPA heads toward emissions rollback, Americans are driving more

Southern California traffic - by flickr user David R. BlumePolicymakers have long pointed to two straightforward paths for cutting carbon emissions: cleaning up the vehicle fleet itself, by making it more efficient (and electrified), and reducing the total number of vehicle miles traveled (VMT). While the new-vehicle front is affecting serious progress—likely soon slowed by pending changes to...

Justice Department investigating Ford emissions certifications

2017 Ford GT originally commissioned by John Cena - Image via Mecum AuctionsSome 2017 and newer Ford vehicles may have illegally polluted more than the company claimed during emissions certifications, and the company admitted Friday that criminal investigators were looking into the matter. The disclosure that the U.S. Department of Justice began investigating the Ford vehicles in February was made during the company's...

2019 full-size pickup truck mpg champs: Ford vs. Chevy vs. Ram

2018 GMC Sierra 1500With electric pickup trucks from Ford, GM, and others—including newcomers like Rivian—looking likely to arrive in the next few years, the truck field could be on the verge of a clean, quiet, tailpipe-emissions-free shakeup. That said, you wouldn’t know this segment as being poised on a revolution. Progress in the efficiency and...

EPA says fuel economy rose in 2017, but it may be falling again

2019 Honda InsightAn EPA report released Wednesday shows that cars are getting better gas mileage in response to rising fuel economy standards. Yet a roaring economy and low gas prices have put Americans on a truck-buying spree, and the EPA is working to undermine those standards. According to its annual automotive trends report, the average new car reached a...

Shutdown has held up EPA certification, new vehicle introductions

Exhaust emissions from tailpipe [photo: Simone Ramella, 2005, used under Creative Commons 2.0]Now that the government has reopened after a 35-day shutdown, EPA employees are going back to work facing a backlog. Toward the end of the shutdown last week, executives at all three major Detroit automakers expressed concern about certification delays that could affect new models they plan to bring to market. It can now begin addressing that...

Chevy Silverado mpg: Turbo-4 lower than V-8 in gas mileage test

2019 Chevrolet Silverado 1500Until all cars can become electric, it makes sense to support making internal-combustion passenger cars as fuel-efficient as possible. It makes even more sense for popular, thirsty large pickups, where each mpg improvement can save a lot more gallons of gas. Unfortunately, some of the latest attempts as improving fuel economy in big...