Charged with Electric Vehicle News and Views
The carmaker plans to double the number of models produced in China, for a total of six, and increase capacity in the country, its biggest market. 
General Motors will discontinue light-duty Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana vans; Alan Mulally joins Google’s board of directors. German magazine Sport Auto test the Porsche 918 Spyder: Acceleration 0 to 333 km/h.
The fastest ever road-going Porsche, with the weight-optimised 'Weissach' package fitted, accelerates from zero to 62 mph (100 km/h) in just 2.6 seconds, from zero to 124 mph (200 km/h) in 7.2 seconds, and passes the 186 mph (300 km/h) mark after 19.9 seconds.
Three-digit records are nothing new at the Nürburgring, the go-to location when car manufacturers want to prove the pace of their latest models, but until now, these feats have always been about miles per hour, not miles per gallon.
Toyota turned tradition on its head when it took its Prius Plug-in hybrid to the track, setting out to show not how fast the car could go, but just how little fuel it could use on a single lap of the notorious Nordschliefe.
A first-of-a-kind Nürburgring record was in its sights, but with no help from any clever technical tweaks or trick bodywork. Instead, Toyota designed a genuine, real-world test with the car running in traffic during a public session and complying with all the circuit rules, including the 60km/h minimum average speed.
BMW says it may share its plug-in hybrid battery technology with other automakers; Nissan to drop Cube and Murano convertible for 2015. 
In an interview with AutoExpress, CEO Elon Musk revealed that the $35,000 vehicle will be called the Model 3 (with three bars to represent it), after Ford put the kibosh on calling it the Model E.
“We were going to call it model E for a while and then Ford sued us saying it wanted to use the Model E".
Musk has repeatedly targeted 2017 as the release window for a smaller vehicle. He's said it will be the third generation after the original Roadster and Model S, and in the interview claims it will have a range of over 200 miles per charge, probably using batteries built in Tesla's planned Gigafactory.
Musk also told the magazine about a range boost upgrade coming for the original Roadster that will give it a modern battery capable of up to 400 miles on a charge, "which will allow you to drive from LA to San Francisco non-stop."
Automotive News reports the next generation of Prius, set to begin production in December of 2015, may get an all-wheel drive option in addition to its default front-drive layout.
“I think we will possibly do it,” said Koei Saga, senior managing officer in charge of powertrain development, speaking about all-wheel drive. Saga also says that there will be two different battery options available with the 2016 Prius, a low-cost nickel-metal hydride unit or a more expensive lithium ion pack.
The choice of two batteries could possibly deliver a low-cost version using the tried-and-true nickel-metal hydride technology that Toyota has used since it launched the Prius in 1997. And for those wanting longer electric-only driving range, a larger-capacity lithium ion pack could be offered as an upper trim model with a higher price.
The 2016 Prius will ride on a new platform, making the car lighter, smaller and more efficient. ”The batteries will be renewed. Everything will be revised. And I think we will come up with a fuel economy that will surprise everyone,” Saga said.
It looks like the top selling Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV may get some AWD competition.
Automotive News reports the next generation of Prius, set to begin production in December of 2015, may get an all-wheel drive option in addition to its default front-drive layout.
“I think we will possibly do it,” said Koei Saga, senior managing officer in charge of powertrain development, speaking about all-wheel drive. Saga also says that there will be two different battery options available with the 2016 Prius, a low-cost nickel-metal hydride unit or a more expensive lithium ion pack.
The choice of two batteries could possibly deliver a low-cost version using the tried-and-true nickel-metal hydride technology that Toyota has used since it launched the Prius in 1997. And for those wanting longer electric-only driving range, a larger-capacity lithium ion pack could be offered as an upper trim model with a higher price.
The 2016 Prius will ride on a new platform, making the car lighter, smaller and more efficient. ”The batteries will be renewed. Everything will be revised. And I think we will come up with a fuel economy that will surprise everyone,” Saga said.
It looks like the top selling Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV may get some AWD competition.
Bugatti, the maker of exotic supercars such as the 1,200-horsepower Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse, is considering a model that some might feel contradicts the ethos of the extravagant brand: a hybrid.
The French manufacturer, owned by Volkswagen, has developed the blueprint for a 2015 follow-up model to the $1.7 million limited-series Veyron that may sell out this year, two sources at VW group with knowledge of the matter said.
The two-door model may rely on a 1,500-horsepower, 16-cylinder engine and will probably be limited to about 450 cars, the same as the expiring Veyron, the sources told Reuters on Wednesday.
Bugatti's new chief executive Wolfgang Duerheimer, a former R&D boss at Audi and Porsche who returned to the French brand on June 1, favours a hybrid version of the brand's next model, the sources said on condition they not be identified because the matter is confidential.
Ultra-luxury nameplates such as Ferrari, McLaren and Porsche are embracing electric powertrains after being on the cutting edge for years in upgrading chassis and engine electronics while striving to trim CO2 emissions.
Hybrid systems used in McLaren's P1 model and Porsche's 918 Spyder work to boost performance and fuel economy.
"Moving to hybrid propulsion seems like a logical next step" for supercar-makers, said Stefan Bratzel, head of the Centre of Automotive Management near Cologne. "By curbing emissions and boosting performance, they can justify building more of these cars."
The new model will beat the 431 kilometres (268 miles) top speed of Bugatti's Veyron Super Sport, which lost the title of the world's fastest production car in February to the Hennessey Venom GT, sources said.
"The new model will not be less exciting than the Veyron," a spokeswoman for Bugatti said, without being more specific. "Our customers have certain expectations."
Wolfsburg-based VW acquired the Bugatti brand in 1998 along with Lamborghini and Bentley Motors to create a stable of high-end carmakers. VW doesn't break out Bugatti's earnings in quarterly or annual reporting, but a company source says the brand has been loss-making for years on high development costs for the Veyron.
Bugatti, the maker of exotic supercars such as the 1,200-horsepower Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse, is considering a model that some might feel contradicts the ethos of the extravagant brand: a hybrid.
The French manufacturer, owned by Volkswagen, has developed the blueprint for a 2015 follow-up model to the $1.7 million limited-series Veyron that may sell out this year, two sources at VW group with knowledge of the matter said.
The two-door model may rely on a 1,500-horsepower, 16-cylinder engine and will probably be limited to about 450 cars, the same as the expiring Veyron, the sources told Reuters on Wednesday.
Bugatti's new chief executive Wolfgang Duerheimer, a former R&D boss at Audi and Porsche who returned to the French brand on June 1, favours a hybrid version of the brand's next model, the sources said on condition they not be identified because the matter is confidential.
Ultra-luxury nameplates such as Ferrari, McLaren and Porsche are embracing electric powertrains after being on the cutting edge for years in upgrading chassis and engine electronics while striving to trim CO2 emissions.
Hybrid systems used in McLaren's P1 model and Porsche's 918 Spyder work to boost performance and fuel economy.
"Moving to hybrid propulsion seems like a logical next step" for supercar-makers, said Stefan Bratzel, head of the Centre of Automotive Management near Cologne. "By curbing emissions and boosting performance, they can justify building more of these cars."
The new model will beat the 431 kilometres (268 miles) top speed of Bugatti's Veyron Super Sport, which lost the title of the world's fastest production car in February to the Hennessey Venom GT, sources said.
"The new model will not be less exciting than the Veyron," a spokeswoman for Bugatti said, without being more specific. "Our customers have certain expectations."
Wolfsburg-based VW acquired the Bugatti brand in 1998 along with Lamborghini and Bentley Motors to create a stable of high-end carmakers. VW doesn't break out Bugatti's earnings in quarterly or annual reporting, but a company source says the brand has been loss-making for years on high development costs for the Veyron.