![2015 Nissan Leaf charging back at home after 1,000-mile road trip [photo John Briggs]](https://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/2015-nissan-leaf-charging-back-at-home-after-1000-mile-road-trip-photo-john-briggs_100558587_t.gif)
Fears that Congress would kill the federal tax credit for purchase of a plug-in electric car were laid to rest in December when that incentive survived the $1.5 billion tax-cut bill. Now Congress has added back a handful of other tax credits related to electric cars and greener transportation in the $400 billion budget bill it passed in the wee... Budget deal restores tax credits for EV charging stations, electric motorcycles, fuel-cell cars
Fears that Congress would kill the federal tax credit for purchase of a plug-in electric car were laid to rest in December when that incentive survived the $1.5 billion tax-cut bill. Now Congress has added back a handful of other tax credits related to electric cars and greener transportation in the $400 billion budget bill it passed in the wee... 
"Overall, I think, while there were challenges associated with Model 3 ramp, we were in a deeper level of hell than we expected, so a few levels deeper than we'd like to be, but swiftly exiting, I think." Those chastened but seemingly optimistic words came from the CEO of Tesla, Elon Musk, during a conference call discussing the company's... 
With gasoline cheap and buyers continuing to shun passenger cars for crossovers and trucks, there are bargains to be had in fuel-efficient and electrified vehicles. This month's deals, courtesy of CarsDirect, includes cheap leases, low financing rates, and money off sticker prices. They cover a variety of vehicle types, with hybrids among the... 
Just a handful of companies today make the bulk of battery cells used in plug-in electric cars worldwide. Now the largest single maker of electric-vehicle cells in China has expanded its focus, from the home market to global markets and specifically the U.S. The name, CATL, may not be familiar to North American electric-car advocates, but the... ![Tesla Model S at Supercharger site in Ventura, CA, with just one slot open [photo: David Noland]](https://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/tesla-model-s-electric-car-road-trip-upstate-new-york-to-southern-california-photo-david-noland_100500011_t.gif)
One of the obvious challenges of even the latest electric cars is that you can't drive them coast-to-coast as quickly as you can gasoline cars. It's far from impossible to do such a trip—especially if you own a Tesla and can use the company's DC fast-charging Supercharger network—but it will take longer. Even under optimal... 
The Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV helped the Canadian plug-in electric vehicle market to its first 1,000-unit January last month. The company sold 174 of its plug-in hybrid SUV in its first full month on sale, representing about 30 percent of overall Outlander sales. If that ratio holds, the Outlander PHEV could become Canada’s second... 
Media days at the huge and influential Geneva show are March 6 and March 7, and this year it looks like the show will offer a lot of news for plug-in electric car fans. Several significant new production cars powered entirely by batteries are expected to make their debuts. They'll be supplemented by technology presentations from other makers eager... 
The 2019 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter commercial van launched today, the later generation of the successful delivery vehicle, and an electric version will enter production in 2019. It will debut initially in European markets, and might possibly make its way to North America—maybe. The eSprinter will borrow the electric powertrain from the eVito... ![Chevrolet Bolt EV being charged outside Go Forth electric-car showroom, Portland [photo: Forth]](https://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/chevrolet-bolt-ev-being-charged-outside-go-forth-electric-car-showroom-portland-photo-forth_100606247_t.gif)
A recent study from the University of California, Davis suggested that awareness of available plug-in electric cars among potential buyers was no higher in 2017 than it had been in 2014. Worse, only California car owners were surveyed—and that's the state in which roughly half of all the battery-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles in the... ![Tesla Supercharger site in Vacaville, California, before expansion [photo: George Parrott]](https://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/tesla-supercharger-site-in-vacaville-california-before-expansion-photo-george-parrott_100614960_t.gif)
It's accepted wisdom among electric-car fans and advocates that within a few years, mass-market car buyers will start snapping up battery-electric cars. First, battery prices have to come down to the point that electric vehicles aren't much pricier than comparable models with gasoline engines. But what it that assumption simply isn't backed up by...