Toyota announced a handful of changes for its bread-and-butter hybrid Thursday, including iPhone integration via Apple CarPlay and Amazon Alexa-enabled smart features for the first time. In addition to these connected features, the 2020 Prius gets a new standard 7.0-inch touchscreen on its L Eco, LE and XLE trims, and Toyota's advanced driver...
Last week, in coordination with the Frankfurt auto show, Delphi Technologies announced it will be the first major supplier for the auto industry to produce an 800-volt inverter—a component that Delphi underscores is one of the enablers to allow 800-volt charging and effectively halve charging times compared to today’s 400-volt systems...
For many decades, so-called crate engines—most often V-8s—have been the basis for adding more excitement to old cars and trucks. But what about an electric motor system that’s disguised as a V-8? Electric GT, of Chatsworth, California, is in the process of doing a “TLC build” electric conversion of a 1970 Toyota FJ40...
Which automaker looked back to the late-’70s hatchback era with an electric concept car? And why is your favorite green-car site interested in a claimed record lap time at California’s Laguna Seca track? This is our look back at the Week In Reverse—right here at Green Car Reports—for the week ending September 13, 2019...
Trade war, technology shifts and a global downturn are putting “unprecedented” pressure on automakers. Sustainability is now about survival.
Audi shows how very futuristic concepts can still be off-road-focused. Tesla wears “Plaid” at the track. And VW shows wall chargers to go with its electric cars. This and more, here at Green Car Reports. Tesla announced Wednesday that a Model S set a new track record at California’s WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Turns out the...
Volvo's plug-in hybrid variant of its XC40 compact crossover is hitting showrooms in the UK, offering a glimpse of what we can likely expect within the next model year. The XC40 PHEV is based on its T5 trim, which is the range-topper for the small Volvo crossover. Unlike the regular T5, which gets power from a turbocharged 4-cylinder, the PHEV...
As a companion to the launch of its new ID 3 electric car, Volkswagen is offering a series of at-home AC charging stations. In three flavors, the new ID Charger series ranges in three levels from basic charging to a high-precision, connected suite. All of the versions will have the same 11 kw output, the upgraded models offer additional...
Tesla announced Wednesday that its Model S "Plaid" development car lapped WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca near Monterey, California, in 1 minute, 36.55 seconds this week. That set a track record for four-door sedans and proved that its flagship model can complete a hot lap at the famous circuit. *~ Some personal news ~* We lapped Laguna Seca...
Earlier this week at the Frankfurt auto show, Audi revealed a strikingly different adventure-vehicle concept car that’s designed to show, according to the brand, “a comprehensive concept for sustainable mobility off the beaten track.” The AI:Trail completes a quartet of concepts with similarly colon-punctuated names—the...
The most efficient car for the 2019 model year may surprise you, states may be recouping more than just lost gas taxes from EV drivers, and the EPA chief Andrew Wheeler signaled that the final fuel-economy freeze may not be identical to the one the agency proposed. Jaguar teased us with our first look at the upcoming XJ flagship sedan at the 2019...
Efficiency went further and farther for 2019 model-year vehicles in almost every sense of the two words. Green Car Reports’ top 10 fuel-efficient vehicles all have one thing in common: plugs. But where they go from there is anything but common among the vehicles. The most efficient vehicles on our list did more with their energy than the...
Some states are assessing additional fees on electric vehicle owners that end up being in excess of what the average car owner pays in gas taxes, consumer advocates said Wednesday. Consumer Reports found that 26 states (up from 17 a little more than a year ago) have implemented policies mandating additional registration fees for owners of electric...
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) chief Andrew Wheeler is sending signals that the Trump administration's plans to roll back Obama-era fuel-efficiency standards may not go forward as originally outlined. According to Wheeler, "key aspects" of the strategy are still under review. Wheeler told Bloomberg that while the administration remains...
Jaguar teased an all-electric XJ sedan at the Frankfurt auto show Tuesday, confirming reports that the company's flagship four-door will take the fight to Tesla in 2021. This announcement confirms electrification for Jaguar's large sedan, which Jaguar has been teasing for quite some time. It still remains unclear, however, whether the XJ will be...
Mercedes-Benz envisions an all-electric S-Class. Hyundai hatches an electric future with a hip design. BMW has a fuel-cell plan. And Honda prices its forbidden-fruit electric hatchback. All this and more here at Green Car Reports. The Mercedes-Benz Vision EQS concept, doesn’t aim to entirely replace the S-Class, but it does completely...
The independent electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian is getting another big shot of capital, care of Cox Automotive, the companies announced Tuesday. Cox, which is a major player in the automotive retail and logistics space, is pumping $350 million into Rivian. Rivian will benefit from the capital injection as it tools up to build its electric R1T...
BMW announced Tuesday that it is working on a next generation of fuel-cell drive systems, to first be presented in a limited-production version of the BMW X5 in 2022, and then in a more widely available model starting in 2025. In a release accompanying the announcement, BMW said that the i Hydrogen Next fuel-cell development vehicle revealed at...
With the debut of the Mercedes-Benz Vision EQS show car at Frankfurt Tuesday, the German automaker is pointing to more than just future electric vehicles. The EQS “points the way to the future of Mercedes-Benz,” the automaker declares, and says that it provides an outlook on “a new dimension in sustainable luxury.” Under...
Hyundai is channeling nostalgia for a past product that Americans never had with its 45 concept car revealed Tuesday at the Frankfurt auto show. But that won’t get in the way of Americans appreciating the design of this strikingly different concept—or seeing it as retro. The concept, according to Hyundai, evokes “emotional...
