Trump: Rick Perry to lead Energy Department he vowed to eliminate

Former Texas Governor Rick Perry, 2008President-elect Donald Trump's pick to head the Department of Energy is a man who once vowed to eliminate it. Former Texas Governor Rick Perry is an ardent supporter of the fossil-fuel industry who ran for president in the last two elections. But the Energy Department was part of a memorable gaffe that helped put an end to Perry's first...

For car-sharing to grow, 6 assumptions are key: Daimler

Car2Go in Chongqing, ChinaSince its launch eight years ago, Daimler's Car2Go car-sharing service has expanded to multiple cities across Europe, the U.S., and China. Daimler—parent company of Mercedes-Benz, Smart, and a handful of other brands—was one of the first automakers to get involved in car sharing, but several other manufacturers are showing interest as...

Lucid reveals design for its luxury Air sedan, a Tesla competitor

Lucid AirLucid Motors—the California automotive startup formerly known as Atieva—had previously announced its intention to build a long-range electric luxury sedan, putting it in competition with Tesla Motors. We now have some key details and a first look at the design of this car, as well as its name: the Air. Confirming previous reports, base...

This Boston dealer is excited about the electric-car future

2016 BMW i3A major challenge for electric-car advocates is finding enthusiastic dealers who are willing to put in the effort to explain and promote them. Given the need to educate different staff on a new type of vehicle, explain the associated incentives, and respond to numerous customer questions, electric cars require dealers to invest more time than...

Nissan and Renault to share common electric-car platform in future

2017 Nissan Leaf  The Renault-Nissan Alliance currently leads all other makers in total global sales of electric cars. The Nissan Leaf remains the best-selling electric car in history, while the Renault Zoe is the best-selling electric car in Europe at the moment. These two cars account for the vast majority of the alliance's electric-car sales, with the Leaf...

Which green-car technology will matter least in 2025? Poll results

2015 Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell, 2016 Toyota Mirai at hydrogen fueling station, Fountain Valley, CAThere's no single silver bullet that will reduce the energy consumption and emissions from the 80 million new road vehicles sold globally each year. Instead, thousands of individual efforts to improve the efficiency of powertrains, reduce vehicle weight, cut wind resistance, and all the rest come into play. But alternative powertrains will likely...

Far more Chevy Bolt EVs likely to be sold than compliance requires

2017 Chevrolet Bolt EVFor the past few years, several of the electric-car models on sale in the U.S. have been "compliance cars." That means they are built primarily to satisfy California's zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate, and are generally only available in that state and perhaps a few other electric-car friendly markets. General Motors is aiming for more...