Lasting legacy of VW diesel scandal: EU gets serious about testing

Volkswagen Plant, Wolfsburg, Germany (photo by Richard Bartz)The Volkswagen diesel scandal left lasting imprints on the entire automotive industry, and may have changed the way regulators look at vehicles using the fuel forever. That's true not just in the United States, but elsewhere as well. The European Union is now increasing its efforts to make sure a scandal like Volkswagen's can never happen again...

Fuel-efficiency rules create jobs too, contrary to industry plaints

2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV pre-production vehicles at Orion Township Assembly Plant, March 2016Fuel economy and emission standards have been a contentious issue in recent months as the auto industry and government officials clash over regulations and their potential benefits. Earlier this year, one of the largest pieces of evidence against more stringent fuel economy regulations came from former Ford CEO Mark Fields. Fields told President...

Will VW Group’s electric cars “leapfrog” Tesla by 2025? Poll results

2017 Volkswagen Beetle 1.8T S Auto GrilleLooking back from the 2020s or 2030s, it's entirely likely that the unexpected arrival of Tesla Motors was a major force—along with legislation, perhaps the major force—in getting legacy automakers to produce electric cars. Competition has always spurred innovation, and German makers in particular were caught entirely unprepared for...

Bill to give more CAFE credits to light-truck makers introduced in Congress

Gas pumpUnder the new administration of President Donald Trump, the EPA has reopened comments on its decision to finalize emission rules for 2022 through 2025 vehicles. Meanwhile, the NHTSA—which sets fuel-economy rules that have to correspond to EPA limits on carbon-dioxide emissions—hasn't yet issued its corporate average fuel-economy rules...

If BMW i5 is canceled, what does that mean for its electric cars?

Rendering of BMW i5 electric crossover utility vehicle, from patent drawings [Indian Autos Blog]When it launched in 2013, the BMW i3 electric car was arguably the most futuristic automobile in mass production anywhere in the world. Its all-electric powertrain could be ordered with an optional range-extending engine, and it rode on an aluminum chassis topped with a strong but lightweight body shell made of carbon-fiber reinforced plastic. It...

VW to cut environmental impact of carmaking by 45 percent

Volkswagen Golf uses 27.5 percent less waterIn the wake of its diesel emission scandal, Volkswagen has done its best to portray itself as a cleaner, more thoughtful automaker. Part of the damage control plot includes a slew of new electric vehicles to round out the German automaker's portfolio in the coming years. But, what about the environmental impact and carbon-emission burden of the...

Battery maker A123 quietly became a half-billion-dollar company

A123 Systems manufacturing facility, Livonia, MichiganTen years ago, lithium-ion cell maker A123 Systems was a hot startup and a much-publicized company. This author, in fact, profiled the company for IEEE Spectrum in the technology magazine's September 2007 issue. The six years that followed proved enormously painful for the Massachusetts company, however. DON'T MISS: A123 Systems To Recall...

Tesla solar roofs can now be preordered; CA installations start in June

Tesla Solar RoofElon Musk, habitually behind schedule, announced on May 10 that anyone can now preorder a Tesla Solar Roof—a roof made of shingles with built-in solar cells. Musk had previously said preorders would open in April, and promised the product would cost less than a conventional roof if you factor in the energy savings. DON'T MISS: Tesla debuts...