Traditionally, the North American winter months have seen a slowdown in sales of plug-in electric cars—but the rule didn't seem to apply last month.. Last month, sales of the Nissan Leaf electric car actually increased over last year's comparable number, while those of the Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid soared. While no Chevy Bolt EV 238-mile... Plug-in electric car sales for Nov: Volt soars, Prius Prime arrives
Traditionally, the North American winter months have seen a slowdown in sales of plug-in electric cars—but the rule didn't seem to apply last month.. Last month, sales of the Nissan Leaf electric car actually increased over last year's comparable number, while those of the Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid soared. While no Chevy Bolt EV 238-mile... 
With any new presidential administration comes a certain degree of legislative uncertainty. Conflicting statements on many issues by president-elect Donald Trump have produced more questions than usual about what policies he and his administration may pursue. But for present and future electric-car owners considering the purchase of a home... 
The 2017 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid has a somewhat deceptive—or perhaps incomplete—name. It is in fact a plug-in hybrid, making it the first minivan equipped with that type of powertrain to go into production. It is also the first mass-market plug-in vehicle sold by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) in all 50 states of the U.S. (The... 
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has decided to maintain existing Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards through 2025. Enacted by the Obama Administration in 2012, the standards call for automakers to achieve a fleet average of 54.5 mpg (equivalent to about 38 mpg in the real world) by that year. The decision follows the... 
The Virginia department of motor vehicles ruled yesterday that Tesla is eligible to open a second retail store in Virginia, in the state capitol of Richmond. Virginia franchise laws prevent automakers from operating their own dealerships, but the state's Department of Motor Vehicles can grant special dispensation to companies that have no... 
Today, Lucid Motors selects Arizona as the location for the factory that will build its luxury electric car, four automakers collaborate on a DC fast-charging network for Europe, and Mazda executives indicate the Japanese automaker will launch an electric car in 2019. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Nevada treasurer Tim Schwartz and... 
Minimal cars are often an appealing idea: why should one person drive a two-ton vehicle with five or more seats on local journeys of 10 miles or fewer? Then there's the crushingly difficult parking in major European, Asian, and North American cities. Add to that, perhaps, a desire for minimal use of energy and material resources. So why not design... 
Lucid Motors has become the latest startup automaker proposing to build electric cars in the U.S. The company—formerly known as Atieva—says it plans to break ground next year on a new factory in Casa Grande, Arizona. Lucid will begin production of its first electric car by 2018, it said in a statement, and expects to employ more than... 
With a slew of 200-mile electric cars planned for 2018 and later, the question of how their drivers will be able to make long-distance trips is coming to the fore in a big way. Silicon Valley electric-car maker Tesla Motors laid out the template with its Supercharger network, which now numbers 327 sites in the U.S. and more than 400 sites outside... 
Mazda may become the next automaker to commit to building an electric car, possibly one with a range-extending gasoline engine. That's the gist of numerous of conversations between journalists and Mazda executives at the recent Los Angeles Auto Show. Company officials said Mazda plans to launch an electric car in 2019, dangling hints that it may... 
President-elect Donald Trump nominated former labor secretary Elaine Chao to be his secretary of transportation yesterday. She will follow current DoT secretary Antony Foxx, who himself succeeded Ray LaHood in 2013. Foxx has focused on safety recalls following the GM ignition scandal, as well as tactics to reduce distracted driving and rules for... 
Six years after the current-generation of the first high-volume modern battery-electric car went on sale in the U.S., the 2017 Nissan Leaf carries on virtually unchanged from the previous model year. The Leaf remains the best-selling electric car in history, although its sales have slowed recently—perhaps due to the design's age and... 
Tesla Motors will soon begin rolling out software to restore lost Autopilot driver-assistance features, its CEO says, as a prelude to what the company claims will be the launch of genuine self-driving capabilities. Last month, Tesla announced that it was equipping new Model S and Model X electric cars with a more elaborate suite of sensors, known... 
Today, read our first impressions of the 2017 Smart ForTwo Electric Drive, see why the U.S. may be experiencing a hatchback renaissance, and find out the Environmental Protection Agency's goals for ethanol in 2017. All this and more on Green Car Reports. In its review of the Tesla Model X P90D, Consumer Reports declares the electric crossover... ![2017 Smart Fortwo Electric Drive - first drive, Miami, Nov 2016 [photo: Jeff Jablansky]](http://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/2017-smart-fortwo-electric-drive--first-drive-miami-nov-2016-photo-jeff-jablansky_100583828_t.gif)
On a hot, muggy day in south Florida, nothing is more comforting than knowing that your well-cooled car will make it to its destination. When that car is a reboot of the Smart Fortwo Electric Drive, the tiny battery-powered European city slicker—and you’re surrounded by a sea of drivers who couldn't care less about keeping to a speed... 
Despite pressure to lower the amount of ethanol blended into the U.S. fuel supply, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has boosted its proposed ethanol volume for 2017. Under the Renewable Fuel Standard enacted in 2007, specific quantities of ethanol must be blended the national fuel supply. Recently, critics have tried to cap that amount... 
Stricter global emissions standards may finally force the majority of established automakers to get serious about electric cars. But while automakers build more electric cars to meet emissions standards, the extra cost of developing these new models may eat into profits. That's the conclusion of a new report from global investment bank Morgan... 
The U.S. may be in the midst of a somewhat unlikely hatchback renaissance. Three- and five-door body styles have never been as popular in the U.S. as in other markets, with U.S. buyers often opting for four-door sedans while dismissing hatches as "econoboxes" or "econocars." During the past year, passenger car sales have also slumped as consumers... 
Consumer Reports has an interesting relationship with Tesla electric cars: it's complicated. The magazine initially praised the Tesla Model S, but pulled its "recommended" rating after reliability issues cropped up. It has also become one of the loudest critics of Tesla's Autopilot system, criticizing the name and its beta status among other...