The Industrial Revolution that started around 1750 in England was powered largely by coal. With Watt's invention of the steam engine and the emergence of railways in the mid-nineteenth century, the carbon-dense fuel was central to the change from an agricultural economy to an industrial one. Last Friday, however, marked a watershed moment for... The day without coal: Britain’s first one since 1882
The Industrial Revolution that started around 1750 in England was powered largely by coal. With Watt's invention of the steam engine and the emergence of railways in the mid-nineteenth century, the carbon-dense fuel was central to the change from an agricultural economy to an industrial one. Last Friday, however, marked a watershed moment for...
Back in 2014, Tesla had a spate of problems with the drive units in early-production versions of its Model S electric sedan. (The drive unit is essentially the car’s power train: electric motor, inverter, and gear box.) High-profile multiple failures occurred in long-term test cars driven by Motor Trend magazine and the automotive website...
Five years after the first Subaru Crosstrek hit the streets, the small Japanese automaker with a cult-like following has significantly updated its unexpectedly successful small crossover utility vehicle. The 2018 Subaru Crosstrek will hit the streets later this year wearing a new exterior and an updated interior, although the mechanicals are...
Economists call them "externalities." They're the costs of people's actions on other people or communities—though the people taking those actions don't have to pay for those costs, even as they harm others. The emissions from combusting fossil fuels to propel vehicles are clearly a prime example. DON'T MISS: A Brief History Of Smog, Which...
Which makers showed plug-in electric concepts in Shanghai that were conspicuously absent from the New York auto show? What caused Tesla to recall more than 50,000 of its electric cars? This is our look back at the Week In Reverse—right here at Green Car Reports—for the week ending on Friday, April 21, 2017. Friday, we explained a...
Today, a Tesla recall, more cars with plugs from Shanghai, disarray on climate policy under Trump, and depressing data on distracted driving. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Tesla will recall 53,000 Model S and Model X electric cars to replace a potentially defective gear that could cause their parking brakes to stick. We're still...
Although fuel prices remain relatively cheap in most areas of the United States, it seems that interest in electric vehicles may be growing. According to a new survey from AAA, interest in electric vehicles among American consumers now rivals that for full-size pickup trucks. However, if that's the case, why do sales of electric vehicles remain...
As the Trump Administration nears its 100th day, it seems fair to say that it is still emitting mixed messages on multiple issues, from foreign policy to climate change. On that latter, it's important to reiterate that the president and many of his appointed agency and department heads deny the science of climate change. On the campaign trail, the...
Tesla has made an unexpected success out of its pioneering luxury electric vehicles, which offer a healthy dose of performance for good measure. Hyundai's Genesis luxury brand, while taking a couple pages from Lexus for its launch strategy, may be following a similar path to Tesla for a future sport coupe. The Australian outlet Drive reports a V-8...
The Jeep Yunto Concept made its debut Wednesday at the Shanghai auto show, and it appears to be a plug-in hybrid. The automaker has been tight-lipped about the concept's drivetrain, but the vehicle on display in China clearly shows "PHEV" badges on the front doors. No surprise there, as the Chinese government is currently pushing alternative fuel...
Tesla has issued a voluntarily recall for roughly 53,000 of its Model S and Model X electric cars to address an issue in which the parking brake might stick in the engaged position. The recall was first reported yesterday by CNBC. The vehicles affected were built between February and October of 2016, and 31,000 of them were sold in the U.S. It is...
In designing, testing, and producing the Nissan Leaf, the first modern electric car sold in volume, Nissan made a design decision that some other companies didn't. It chose not to build an active thermal-conditioning system (otherwise known as cooling) into its battery pack. Instead, it relies on ambient air to shed heat—which got the maker...
Today, it's almost all about China and the Shanghai auto show, including live photos and details of electric and plug-in hybrid concept cars—and why China is making Toyota very, very unhappy. All this and more on Green Car Reports. We've got more from the very green Shanghai auto show, including live shots of a couple of concept cars that...
Large auto companies are likely aircraft carriers: it takes a long time for them to change direction, and far longer yet to get them aligned on a new course. To various degrees, the world's carmakers have started to produce and sell vehicles that plug-in, whether for some or all of their travels. Except Toyota. The Japanese company that's not only...
The electric-car market may be in for a serious downturn when current federal tax incentives end, assuming the Trump administration declines to extend them, according to a new analysis. In 2010, the government began offering tax credits of $2,500 to $7,500 to the first 200,000 U.S. buyers of plug-in electric vehicles from each automaker. Those...
After being teased last week, the Chevrolet FNR-X Concept crossover made its debut yesterday at the Shanghai auto show. The new shape, which sports a plug-in hybrid powertrain, is intended to showcase the design talents of Chevy's Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center in Shanghai It's the second concept to be named FNR—for "Find New Roads,"...
Ford has aggressive electrification plans for China. In a recent announcement, the U.S. automaker said that 70 percent of the vehicles it sells in the country by 2025 will be hybrids—either plug-in or conventional—or fully electric. Ford builds vehicles in China through a joint venture with Chongqing Changan Automobile Company, and the...
Audi has injected a dash of sporting character and a look at the future of electric-vehicle design into its latest e-tron concept car, which made its debut at the 2017 Shanghai auto show. The Audi e-tron Sportback Concept previews a coupe-esque electric utility vehicle to come following the introduction of the brand's all-electric e-tron SUV...
Today, we've got more from the influential Shanghai auto show, more Tesla updates, the end of debate over climate science, and a huge heavy-duty hydrogen vehicle. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Following yesterday's update on 2017 Tesla Model S price and feature changes, today we updated you on a smaller set of changes to the 2017 Tesla...
The challenges of building fueling infrastructure for passenger cars powered by hydrogen fuel cells are well known by now. Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai now lease low volumes of fuel-cell vehicles in selected areas of California where a few dozen hydrogen fueling stations are now up and running. The challenges for fueling may be less daunting for...