Electric car sales in Germany finally start to soar: Tesla leads

2018 Tesla Model S and 2018 Tesla Model XIt's starting to look like China will lead the world in adoption of plug-in electric cars, but which carmaking nations will follow it? While electric cars were launched simultaneously in Japan and the United States, Europe lagged somewhat behind. Now, however, Germany—home to the largest piece of Europe's auto industry—appears to be...

Rome joins European ban-diesel bandwagon after German court ruling

Chrome exhaust pipeFirst Paris, then a pair of German cities, and now the Eternal City. Two weeks ago, the mayor of Rome announced on her Facebook page that the city would ban diesel cars altogether by 2024. It's not clear whether the ban applies solely to the older, most-polluting diesels as it does already in Paris, or to any vehicle with a diesel engine. CHECK...

Opel to swap Ampera-e (aka Bolt EV) for all-electric Corsa model in 2020

Opel Ampera-eIt's been six months since General Motors completed the sale of its Opel division in Europe to PSA Group, the French parent of the Citroën, DS, and Peugeot brands. With the sale came licenses to run out the model life of GM-designed vehicles sold as Opels (and Vauxhalls in the U.K.) while PSA developed successors on its own underpinnings. Now...

Europe takes the lead in very fast electric-car charging

Allego 175 kw Ultra-E Charging Station in GermanyEuropeans will soon have the opportunity to enjoy quiet, emission-free, long-distance motoring with far shorter charge times when driving electric cars along Germany's autobahns. The charging network Allego has rolled out its first 175-kilowatt ultra-fast charging stations—dubbed "Ultra E"—at its first location in Kleinosthei, along...

In Germany, neighborhood solar starts to eat away at utility revenue

Photovoltaic solar power field at Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, TennesseeFive years ago, an electric-utility think tank issued a dire warning to its members: Your century-old business model is ending. The continually falling costs of renewable energy generation, especially solar panels, would begin to erode utilities' business from its most profitable customers, the study said. Now, in Germany—hardly known for...