electric car

Nissan Proves a Big Market Exists for Cheap Electric Cars

Ariel Schwartz — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 10:56:52 -0400

Abandon your doubts that an affordably priced EV will do well. Nissan's news yesterday confirms it: Almost 22,000 people in North America have contacted Nissan since it announced, in August, that the LEAF EV sedan--expected to hit showrooms in fall 2010--will cost approximately $20,000.

France Spending $2.2 Billion on Electric Car Charging Network

Ariel Schwartz — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 14:02:51 -0400

The Nuts and Bolts of Wheego's Electric Car

Chris Dannen — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 18:41:12 -0400

This week I had the privilege of test driving Wheego's low-speed electric vehicle, the Whip, which costs about $12,500 after a $7,500 tax credit that expires this year.

Fisker, Kleiner Perkins Team Up for $39,000 Plug-in Hybrid Mystery Car

Ariel Schwartz — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 14:58:30 -0400

Audi EV Concept Boasts Insane Torque

Chris Dannen — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 15:44:14 -0400

The Tesla Roadster may be fast, and the VW E-Up might be economical, but those go-karts don't have anything on the Audi e-tron.

What Will the 2010 Plug-in Prius Look Like?

Ariel Schwartz — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 16:24:02 -0400

We won't get all the juicy details about the 2010 plug-in Prius hybrid until next week's Frankfurt Motor Show, but in the meantime Toyota has released a few choice highlights about the car, which will be leased at the end of this year to 500 customers in Japan, the U.S., and Europe as part of a test run.

Fisker Plays It Safe, Claiming 67.2 mpg for the Plug-in Karma

Ariel Schwartz — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 18:46:16 -0400

Audi Teaser Web site: Do Lawnmowers Mean an Electric Car Is on the Way?

Kit Eaton — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 07:10:16 -0400

Audi just gave a new spin to rumors it's got an electric car ready to unveil at the Frankfurt Motor Show by launching a teaser Web site. How's the German car-maker whipping up an alt-fuel frenzy? With videos of lawnmowers.

Seriously--check it out:

Will T. Boone Pickens' Natural Gas Taxi Plan Work?

Ariel Schwartz — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 11:55:31 -0400

T. Boone Pickens isn't a man that gives up. After the former Texas oil magnate's giant wind power plan fell by the wayside, Pickens took up a new cause: natural gas vehicles. Most recently, Pickens took a trip to Dallas to promote the city's shift to a natural gas taxi cab fleet.

The Nissan Leaf: The First Electric Car for the People?

Ariel Schwartz — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 13:13:31 -0400

ETV Motors Building Hybrid Electric Car Powered by Jet Turbine Engine

Ariel Schwartz — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 13:08:25 -0400

The plug-in electric car business is still in it's infancy, but that hasn't stopped start-ups from experimenting with new ways to charge and run EVs and plug-in hybrids. Enter ETV Motors, an Israeli start-up that has built a Toyota Prius with a jet turbine engine.

Toyota's Big Electric Car Blunder

Chris Dannen — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 08:52:52 -0400

Bill Reinert hates the plug-in electric car. He hates ethanol too. And what Bill Reinert hates matters to every car-buying American: he's Toyota's national sales manager and in-house energy sage, and he knows his stuff. But is he too smart for Toyota's good?

Mercedes-Benz Reveals All-Electric Gullwinged Supercar

Ariel Schwartz — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 15:49:15 -0400

Inside Tesla's First East Coast Store

Chris Dannen — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 15:52:13 -0400

California-based Tesla Motors opened its third retail store today in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood, kicking off a rapid retail expansion plan that should land stores in eight major U.S. cities before the end of 2009.

How To Make Electric Cars Go Mainstream: Sell Batteries Separately

Ariel Schwartz — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 14:14:37 -0400

What's stopping electric cars from dominating vehicle sales? Price. More specifically, the high price of EV batteries, which jack up overall vehicle costs considerably. So it comes as no surprise to learn that UC Berkeley researchers have found that electric vehicles could go mainstream more quickly if battery price is taken out of the equation.

GM Emerges from the Rubble of Bankruptcy. Now What?

Ariel Schwartz — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:08:19 -0400

GM returned from the black hole of bankruptcy today with promises of impending change in its corporate structure and products.

Piss-Powered Cars Move Closer to Reality

Ariel Schwartz — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:59:02 -0400

Hydrogen power has long been hampered by the lack of an inexpensive, renewable fuel. As it turns out, the solution may be right underneath us. Researchers at Ohio University have discovered that hydrogen can be produced from urine using an electrolytic process at only a fraction of the cost of generating hydrogen from water.

One Small Electric Car and Its Big Fight for Buyers

Chris Dannen — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 09:00:13 -0400

In the race to build the first affordable electric car, one company is taking an unusual approach: they're not treating it as a race at all. "We don't want to be the first, or the biggest. We just want to be the best," says Mike McQuary, CEO of Wheego electric vehicles .

Google's G1 Designers Reinvent the Electric Car With ATNMBL

Kit Eaton — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 06:24:52 -0400

Designers Mike and Maaike, already famous for the odd-looking Google G1 phone, have taken a stab at reinventing the concept of the car. Gone are speed, danger and human drivers, in are comfort, efficiency... and slowness.

Chevy Volt Pre-Production Prototype Revealed

Ariel Schwartz — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:42:25 -0400

Dale Vince Drives 100 mph in a Wind-Powered Car

Ariel Schwartz — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 16:31:02 -0400

Wind energy might not be the power source of choice for most forward-thinking car makers, but that hasn't stopped Ecotricity founder Dale Vince from working on a wind-powered electric car. Last year, Vince described the car as "An out and out sports car. Capable of 0 to 60 faster than a V12 Ferrari, able to top 100 mph for sure--and do 150 miles on one 'tank'. All with zero emissions.

T. Boone Pickens, Kleiner Perkins Back Upstart U.S. Automaker V-Vehicle

Clay Dillow — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 14:13:55 -0400

VC powerhouse Kleiner Perkins and Texas oilman T. Boon Pickens, two outspoken advocates of green transit technology, have teamed up to provide V-Vehicle Company $100 million to bring a “high quality, environmentally friendly and fuel-efficient car” to market in the U.S. Though details on the product itself are vague, the company’s choice of the descriptor “fuel-efficient” suggest it will be a highly-economical internal-combustion automobile.

Why Did Daimler Take a 10% Stake in Tesla Motors?

Ariel Schwartz — Tue, 19 May 2009 12:34:31 -0400

This morning Daimler announced plans to take a 10% share in Tesla, Elon Musk's electric vehicle start-up. So why did the German auto giant snap up such a large piece of a struggling young company? Simply put, Daimler wants the benefit of a small company's ability to dream big, and in return Tesla wants the comfort of monetary security.

Better Place Unveils EV Battery Swap Station in Japan

Ariel Schwartz — Wed, 13 May 2009 15:17:19 -0400

Israeli electric car infrastructure company Better Place inched closer to creating an electric car revolution last night when it unveiled its first automated battery swap station in Yokohama, Japan. The $500,000 car wash-like system takes only 80 seconds to change batteries, and can be powered completely by solar panels.

What's It Like to Drive Nissan's Electric Car? [Pics]

Chris Dannen — Tue, 12 May 2009 18:53:42 -0400

On Tuesday, I took Nissan's first and only electric vehicle, the EV-02, for a test-drive. The car--the only EV prototype Nissan has built to date--should be available to the public sometime in 2010, according to Nissan's North American Director of EV, Mark Perry. So how's the drive?