Why Robert Bollinger decided an electric utility truck was ‘obvious’

Robert Bollinger on Day One of Bollinger Motors, in empty garage, Hobart, New York, late 2015One week from today, in a pricey supercar club in Manhattan, journalists, electric-car advocates, and perhaps a few celebrities will gather for the unveiling of a new electric vehicle. It's not another fast, luxurious sedan or crossover utility vehicle. Instead, it's an electric utility truck called the Bollinger B1. DON'T MISS: All-electric...

Hyundai-Kia electric-car production to soar to 50,000 next year

2017 Hyundai Ioniq Hybrid, Ioniq Electric, and Ioniq Plug-In Korean siblings Hyundai and Kia will aggressively increase production of electric cars next year, according to a report in the Korean press. The production increase comes amid the combined automaker's goal to become the second largest maker of green vehicles (hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and electric cars) by 2020. Hyundai-Kia set the goal in 2014...

2018 Nissan Leaf to have e-Pedal: here’s what that means

Teaser for 2018 Nissan Leaf debuting on September 6, 2017No, the new 2018 Nissan Leaf electric car isn't going to have only a single pedal—despite at least one headline late yesterday claiming that. Honest. But the "e-Pedal" in the next generation of Nissan's highest-volume plug-in vehicle does offer some interesting new features. DON'T MISS: Latest 2018 Nissan Leaf teaser shows ProPilot Assist...

Tesla Supercharger electric-car charging sites in CA surge (photos)

Expansion of Tesla Supercharger site in Rocklin, California    [photo: George Parrott]In January 2016, before the public introduction for pre-orders of the Model 3, Tesla had 585 Supercharger locations around the world. By the end of June 2016, that number had climbed to 655. Then the potential of 400,000-plus reservations for the more affordable Model 3 pushed Tesla to promise it would double those charging locations by the end of...

VW intends to price its ID electric car five-door hatchback aggressively

Volkswagen I.D. lineup, Photo: Groenl7Volkswagen intends to take on the growing global electric-car market in an aggressive way, given the automaker's range of I.D. electric-vehicle concepts over the last couple of years. While a complete portfolio of electric cars will eventually find their way into production, the first high-volume electric Volkswagen will be a production version of...

Lucid looking for savior, perhaps, after Ford declines to buy company

Lucid AirThe image of the electric car as the future of passenger vehicles has led to a wealth of start-up companies hoping to cash in on the newest type of automotive propulsion. Starting a company—an automobile company at that—is not an easy task, however. Now Lucid Motors (nee Atieva) may be on the brink of discovering that. A new report...

When will Tesla Model Y crossover to go into production? Poll results

Teaser for Tesla Model Y electric SUV due in 2019The Tesla Model 3, the first mass-market electric car from the Silicon Valley carmaker, is now nominally in production. Scaling up from a trickle of hand-assembled cars to 10,000 units a month is Job One to keep Tesla afloat by letting it sell cars to hundreds of thousands of hand-raisers globally who put down a $1,000 deposit on the car. Still...

Why all electric-car owners should follow Formula E racing

2016/2017 Team ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport Formula E race carIn North America and Europe, the old saying—"Win on Sunday, sell on Monday"—probably no longer applies. That is, winning races over the weekend probably does little if anything to boost sales of passenger cars and light trucks, certainly not the way it did in the U.S. in the 1950s and 1960s. But like owning an electric car, the FIA...

European electric and plug-in hybrid sales for Jan-May 2017

2017 Renault ZoeAnother month, and another round of European electric car sales data is ready for dissemination. Electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles continue to earn a healthy share of the European car market, and it's clear there's still a definitive electric car for Europeans. That is the Renault Zoe, which once again leads the way in the...

Chevy Bolt EV plant shutdown extended, due to slow Sonic sales

2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV electric cars outside dealership    [photo: Patrick Reid]One of the biggest tests of an automaker's discipline is what it does when sales start to ebb and inventories of unsold cars swell. Does it keep the production lines churning, and dial up its incentives to keep new-vehicle deliveries flowing? Or does it prioritize profitability and suspend production until inventories are back where they should...

11 things you need to know about Formula E electric-car racing

New York City ePrix FIA Formula E electric-car race, Red Hook, Brooklyn, July 2017We've just spent a packed, very hot weekend at the New York City ePrix, the first time the FIA Formula E electric-car racing series has come to the country's media capital. It was our first Formula E race, and like many who follow electric cars, we learned a lot. More than that, we got a better sense of why this facing series is important, and...

Tesla will rule the world, says German analyst; skepticism may be warranted

Tesla Model 3 design prototype  -  reveal event  -  March 2016There's no denying Tesla has accomplished a lot since the Model S was introduced in 2012. It pioneered the luxury electric car segment and put an unrivaled charging network into place through its Supercharging stations. On one side, it certainly seems like Tesla is poised for electric vehicle domination—and that's what one German analyst...

BMW’s plug-in car sales rise, keeping it in same class as Tesla, Nissan, GM

2017 BMW i3Tesla may garner much of the buzz surrounding electric cars, but BMW has quietly become a significant challenger in the electric-vehicle sales race. Nissan, General Motors, and Tesla have all 100,000 to 300,000 plug-in vehicles globally, but this year, BMW and its Mini brand are on track to deliver its own 200,000th plug-in vehicle later this...

Best deals on hybrid, electric, fuel-efficient cars for July 2017

2016 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid, Catskill Mountains, NY, Feb 2016The month of July brings plenty of juicy deals on battery-electric, plug-in hybrid, conventional hybrid, and fuel-efficient vehicles. Much like last month, many of the deals remain. However, there are a few newcomers to the list for July—including one vehicle that may startle a few consumers. Without further ado, here are this month's best...

Electric-car road trip: lessons learned in Chevy Bolt EV over 1,300 miles

2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV electric car, June 2017 road trip from VA to KY and back  [Jay Lucas]Launched in December, the 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV is the first mass-priced electric car to go on sale with a rated range of more than 200 miles: 238 miles combined, according to the EPA. Most owners use their Bolt EVs for daily commuting and trips, just like any other car. But road trips are an American tradition. We've done several stories about...