Forecast: In 2030, gasoline will still power 7 out of 10 new U.S. vehicles

2019 Audi e-tron first drive  -  Abu Dhabi UAE, December 2018Given the daily churn of electric-car announcements, major manufacturing investments, and battery supply-chain news, it could be a little hard to understand one reality-check projection: that even in 2030, a solid majority of vehicles sold could still burn fossil fuel. Last week, LMC Automotive, a consulting firm with a strong reputation for its...

Canada plans its first nationwide EV tax credit

Tesla Model 3 bought [Photo by reader AH]Just as President Trump is threatening to eliminate the plug-in vehicle tax credit in the U.S. through his latest budget proposal, Canada is planning to implement its first nationwide tax credit for buyers of electric cars—one that may not apply to Tesla vehicles. Last summer, Tesla sales took off in Ontario when the company began shipping...

Tesla eliminates annual service, keeps some periodic maintenance

2019 Tesla Model 3 PerformanceElectric cars are supposed to be more reliable than internal combustion models. Certainly, they have a lot fewer moving parts and need a lot less lubrication. Yet Tesla, like most corner auto dealerships, has made money selling extended service plans for annual maintenance on its cars, sometimes mandatory. With hundreds of thousands more Teslas...

Bugatti Baby, meet the baby Bugatti electric

Bugatti Baby IILike other marquis luxury brands, Bugatti is dipping its toes into the electric waters, reviving one of its classic models, but with a twist. To celebrate the storied brand's 110th birthday, instead of shoehorning a battery pack into a classic car, or creating a wild new electric concept with lines reminiscent of an old car, Bugatti is reviving a...

Chevrolet Bolt EV to get electric sibling, with Michigan plant investment

2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV pre-productionGeneral Motors announced on Friday that it will build a second electric car for Chevrolet, alongside the Chevy Bolt EV. The new model is widely expected to be a somewhat larger crossover SUV, though GM would not confirm that at this point. MUST READ: Long-range Cadillac SUV to lead GM's next electric-car push, in 3 years It will share the Bolt's...

Electric car battery research pact seeks to keep German auto prowess

VW Battery PacksFor the past 50 years, the German auto industry has enjoyed quite the roll of growth and success in the U.S., built largely on its expertise with one specific technology: the internal combustion engine. But now the importance of that advantage is fading, with electric cars on the rise and the highest-value component within them the battery pack...

Tesla Autopilot ranks next-to-last in study of self-driving systems

Tesla Model 3 dashboard in Autopilot testing with IIHS [CREDIT: IIHS]Tesla, its owners and fans, and its CEO Elon Musk crow a lot about the capabilities of its Autopilot self-driving system. In independent comparisons, though, other autonomous driving systems keep coming out ahead. The latest is from Navigant Research, an automotive consulting firm, and the results aren't rosy for Tesla's Autopilot. It rated second...

2019 Jaguar I-Pace electric car range: Why the short circuit?

2019 Jaguar I-Pace  -  Portland, November 2018It’s not unusual for fuel gauges on gasoline cars to be inaccurate. Often they can hug "Full" so long you might suspect it’s malfunctioning—only to then swing rapidly toward the halfway mark and below. Usually these idiosyncrasies are no big deal. When the low-fuel light and chime prompt you, you’re almost always within...

Fisker solid-state batteries won’t arrive until at least 2022

Teaser for Fisker electric SUVAs part of its latest revelation of a new, mainstream electric SUV for 2021, startup automaker Fisker (the eponymous founder's second under his own name), implicitly made a somewhat startling admission: The solid-state batteries the company has been working on may not be ready any time soon. Founded by Henrik Fisker, the former BMW designer who...

Ford plans to revamp Michigan plant for 2023 electric car production

2020 Ford electric SUV teaserFord Motor Company yesterday announced a plan to build future electric vehicles at a Michigan plant that currently makes the Ford Mustang. Ironically, the plant won’t be where Ford will ramp up production next year of its Mustang-influenced all-electric performance SUV; but the move represents an important shift for Ford. Previously the...

BMW plans 12 all-electric models by 2025

Prototype for BMW iNext electric SUV due in 2021At its annual shareholders meeting in Munich on Wednesday, BMW laid out plans to bring 12 new all-electric cars to market by 2025, including five in the next two years. Along with the company's existing i3, the first five will include the Mini Electric, due on sale later this year, the iX3 SUV next year, and the i4 sedan and iNext SUV in 2021...