Hybrid Cars News & Blogs

Latest Update Confirms Volt Progress on Track and On Schedule

With its on-sale date barely a year away, a recent briefing by the tech team in charge of developing the Chevrolet Volt E-REV (Extended-Range Electric Vehicle) indicates that things are moving along at an impressive and very encouraging clip. Chief Engineer Andrew Farah confirmed that 80 pre-production vehicles have been built and over 250,000 evaluation miles have been run up on this groundbreaking plug-in hybrid that encompassed everything from hot testing in Death Valley to runs up Pikes Peak as well as a 65-percent calibration drive. Farah also said that Compact Power Inc. has manufactured all 300 of the battery packs and is more than satisfied with the performance of the LG-supplied component cells. "It's an important time for the Volt. The...
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SEMA Scene Green: Toyota Shows A More Eco-Friendly Prius

Adding both visual presence and environmental edge to its highest-mileage U.S. offering, Toyota publicly unveiled a pair of new Prius one-offs at SEMA aimed at furthering the cause of long-term sustainability. The prime example is the Prius Aerius (Latin for "belonging to the air"). It wears a four piece body kit from Five Axis Design that's made from polyurethane and partially recycled materials and was evaluated using racing-derived computational fluid dynamics (CFD) programs to ensure it maintained the standard car's exemplary 0.25 drag coefficient. The wheel/tire fitment builds on that base, wrapping Yokohama Super E-Spec low rolling resistance tires made from 80 percent non-petroleum materials and featuring a distinctive "leaf-graphic" tread...
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Feds Greenlight Funding Aid For Mileage-Maxing Three-Wheelers

This week, President Obama signed a bill that makes fuel-efficient three-wheeled vehicles eligible for supplemental development assistance through loans from the Department of Energy (DOE). Prior to its passage, only manufacturers of four-wheeled vehicles qualified for consideration to get a chunk of the $25 billion available under provisions of the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Incentive Program (ATVMIP). Terms of this new legislation -- which specifically came in the form of an amendment authored by Representative Brian Bilbray (R-California) and Representative Adam Schiff (D-California) attached to a previously passed energy appropriations bill -- extend consideration to include all "fully enclosed vehicles that are capable of...
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Fisker Buys Ex-GM Plant, Will Build Affordable Plug-In Hybrid

Joined by Vice President Joe Biden and Delaware's Governor Jack Markell, fledgling plug-in hybrid entrepreneur Henrik Fisker announced that his firm has signed a letter of intent to purchase the shuttered GM assembly plant in Wilmington for $18 million and turn it into the new home of Fisker Automotive's Project NINA. When an additional $175 million in modifications and upgrades are completed, the facility will turn out a new line of more affordable mainstream plug-in hybrid sedans to complement the high-profile Karma luxury model that will be made by Valmet in Finland and go on sale here next summer. Fisker says the still-unnamed Project NINA vehicle, which is due to start production sometime in 2012, will cost under $40,000 after federal tax...
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Name The Volt's Signature Color and Win a Test Drive

General Motors has launched a contest to help determine what it will call the "signature" exterior color of the new Chevrolet Volt when the car goes on sale late next year. GM describes the paint -- which will be exclusive to the Volt -- as "silver with an emerald hue," and is asking the public to suggest a fitting name that will round out an exterior palette that already includes Black, Silver Ice Metallic, Cyber Gray Metallic, Crystal Red Metallic and a premium White Diamond Tri-Coat. Full details regarding the competition can be found at chevroletvoltage.com, but the basics call for entries to be accepted from now until the morning of November 4, at which time a team at Chevy will pick three finalists. According to Maria Rohrer, director of...
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