2011 Ford Transit Connect Electric

6.18.2010
\015\012Earlier this week, Ford released its 11th annual 2009/2010 Sustainability Report outlining measures the company is taking to decrease its environmental impact in five areas: climate change, fuel economy, mobility, vehicle safety and human rights.

6.16.2010
\015\012In a sea of safety innovation, how does Volvo, an icon of automotive safety, set itself apart?

6.10.2010
\015\012Eight months after the launch of V8-powered Panamera S, 4S and Turbo models, more fuel-efficient Panameras powered by V6 engines have begun arriving in Porsche dealerships.

BMW ActiveHybrid 7

6.8.2010
\015\012BMW has announced that its ActiveHybrid 7 model qualifies for up to a $900 tax credit under the IRS’s Alternative Fuel Motor Vehicle Credit program.

6.3.2010
\015\012Ford has announced that it is teaming up with Coulomb Technologies to install battery chargers in the homes for some of Ford’s first electric vehicle owners.

5.26.2010
\015\012A day after Nissan CEO Caros Ghosn said that the company’s 2010 production of the Leaf electric car was already spoken for by consumers who have pre-ordered, the company announced a $1.7 billion investment at its Smyrna, Tennessee plant to supply battery packs to power the vehicles.

5.26.2010
\015\012Nissan broke ground today on a new manufacturing facility in Smyrna, Tennessee that will produce the lithium-ion batteries for the upcoming LEAF. Nissan also announced that it will retool its existing Smyrna plant, which is adjacent to the new battery facility, to manufacturer the zero-emission, all-electric Nissan LEAF beginning in 2012. The LEAF plant will be capable of producing 150,000 electric cars annually.

2010 Mercedes-Benz S400 Hybrid

5.26.2010
\015\012During a recent speech at the Summit Series in Washington, D.C., Mercedes-Benz USA executive Sascha Simon told aspiring entrepreneurs that the automotive industry will go through unprecedented changes in the next 10 years caused by new laws and increased standards for greenhouse gas emissions.

5.21.2010
\015\012When my 11-year-old twin boys first sat in the A3, they were unimpressed. Besides the (slightly) race car-like “TDI” and “Clean Diesel” decals the Audi PR folks slapped on the car, there wasn’t anything overly sexy or exciting in the eye of an 11-year old boy. Then I started telling them about the turbocharged 2.0-liter diesel engine, the quick-shifting S tronic transmission, and the no speed limit autobahn-inspired German-engineered suspension.

5.21.2010
\015\012Tesla and Toyota have announced that they will cooperate on developing electric vehicles and parts, including collaborating on developing production systems and engineering.

5.18.2010
\015\012The Ford Fiesta could become the best fuel economy play Ford has to meet demand and interest for more fuel efficient vehicles. And the long-awaited ad campaign ushering the new sub-compact to the marketplace will consistently remind potential buyers that it beats all rivals in its class including those from Toyota and Honda in features as well as miles-per-gallon.

5.14.2010
\015\012Nissan has announced that the general public will be able to make reservations for the all-electric Nissan LEAF zero-emission vehicle on May 15. For consumers, this is the first step in securing a place on the list to purchase or lease a Nissan LEAF.

5.12.2010
\015\012The state of the minivan market, and a mini-minivan comparison of the segment’s two strongest players.

5.11.2010
\015\012The folks behind the group NGVsNow.com have just released a video intended to spark interest in natural gas and, specifically, compressed natural gas (CNG)-powered vehicles. I watched the video at home with my wife and kids looking over my shoulder, and let’s just say my wife asked me to turn it off 20 seconds into it.
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5.7.2010
\015\012General Motors has announced that 62 of its manufacturing plants have achieved “zero landfill” status. Instead of throwing plant-generated waste in the garbage, GM is recycling or reusing the material.

Tesla Roadster

5.6.2010
\015\012In a recent PolkView article published by R.L. Polk & Company, author Stephan Gallon takes a good, long hard look at the state of the electric car business and who is going to be buying the electric cars of tomorrow.

5.6.2010
\015\012Al Unser Jr. will drive for the ZAP Alias team as it competes in the Progressive Insurance Automotive X-PRIZE (PIAXP).

5.5.2010
\015\012Nissan has selected Hawaii as one of the initial launch markets for all-new, all-electric Nissan LEAF, with deliveries expected to begin in early 2011.

4.30.2010
\015\012Inside the world’s largest cities – such as New York, Paris and London – automotive tastes are getting small. Such is the inspiration for the Start Concept, which made its debut in Beijing last week.
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Customers who purchase any new 2010 Suzuki model will get a pre-paid gas card that, according to the company, will cover three-month’s worth of gasoline.

GM has announced that it will invest more than $890 million in five plants to build a new generation of fuel-efficient small block truck and car engines.

Honda dealers in Oklahoma have the option of selling the compressed natural gas version of the Civic, the Civic GX, to consumers. Three of the 13 Honda dealers in Oklahoma are currently selling the Civic GX as a fleet model; now, every Honda dealer in the state can sell it to consumers.

Ford will offer 100 percent of its fleet vehicles with fuel-efficient powertrains, the company announced during a live webcast today. Ford says the move will reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions and help decrease fleet customers’ ownership costs.

I have been in a self-induced automotive coma for the past 10 years. But, I am happy to report that I just woke up. My first act after this deep sleep was driving a 2010 Chevrolet Equinox, after which I had a startling revelation about General Motors and where the company stands post-bankruptcy.

Nissan has announced that it will begin taking reservations for the all-electric Nissan LEAF beginning today. The vehicle will begin arriving in dealerships in December and should be widely available in early 2011.

Ford has unveiled a new feature to its navigation systems that attempts to calculate the most fuel-efficient available route for a driver. The system is part of Ford’s new in-vehicle information system called “MyFord Touch.”

The U.S. Energy Information Administration reports that the U.S. uses about 150 billion gallons of gasoline annually. If every driver practiced eco-driving techniques, which can result in an EPA-estimated 15 percent benefit in fuel economy, more than 22 billion gallons of gas would be saved.

Jackie Stewart called the Nürburgring-Nordschleife circuit in Munich, Germany “The Green Hell.” Many race car drivers include it among the most challenging, toughest and most dangerous tracks in the world. At this famed German track, BMW recently completed a test of the all-electric MINI Electric E Race, a modified race-spec version of the standard MINI E.
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2010 Volkswagen Polo

Volkswagen won two of four categories in the 2010 World Car of the Year Awards including the overall title and green car. Sister brand Audi also captured the performance car category with the R8 V10.

Volkswagen E-Up! concept

Volkswagen and Audi have announced aggressive plans for electrification of their model lines over the coming years. Volkswagen is just now launching its first production hybrid with Touareg and will add three more mainstream models in the next four years. Audi is also launching two hybrids and both brands are bringing a range of battery electrics to market.
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2011 Porsche Cayenne Hybrid

Porsche is unveiling an all-new second generation Cayenne SUV next week at the Geneva Motor Show. The new Cayenne gets a significant weight reduction to go along with a new hybrid powertrain.

Denise Gray

General Motors director of global battery systems Denise Gray is leaving the automaker to join a California based battery start-up company. Gray's new employer has not been announced yet, but her last day at GM will be March 5, 2010. Gray has lead battery development at GM since December 2006.

Hyundai i-Flow

Hyundai will unveil its first diesel hybrid concept next week at the Geneva Motor Show. The new i-Flow is a D-segment sedan that will be joined by low CO2 emissions versions of most of the company's lineup as well as a fuel cell version of the new Tucson crossover.
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2011 Hyundai Sonata

Hyundai will publicly unveil its first hybrid vehicle for the American market at the New York Auto Show in April. The new 2011 Sonata will get two additional powertrain options, a hybrid and a new turbocharged direct injection four cylinder engine to be offered instead of a V6.
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Mercedes-Benz F800 concept

Mercedes-Benz will unveil a new concept next week at the Geneva Motor Show that previews both the next generation CLS sedan and an upcoming plug-in hybrid powertrain. The F800 Style concept is designed on a flexible platform that can also support a purely electric fuel powertrain.
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Ford Transit Connect Electric

Ford unveils two new versions of its Transit Connect small van at the Chicago Auto Show. The Transit Connect Electric that was announced at this show one year ago is now approaching production late this year with a powertrain supplied by Azure Dynamics. The second is a taxi variant with optional natural gas or propane fuel systems.
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Volkswagen Golf TwinDrive

Volkswagen is currently in the process of building a 20 car fleet of plug-in hybrid Golfs for a field test in several German cities. Green Fuels Forecast had the opportunity to learn more about the new cars and evaluate the TwinDrive Golf in Germany this week.
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Ford Ecoboost 3.5-liter V6

Just 36 months after starting development, Ford earlier this year introduced its first EcoBoost engine in the Ford Flex and Taurus SHO and the Lincoln MKS and MKT. Ford was not the first automaker to introduce gasoline turbocharged direct injection engines, but it is making a major push to take the technology mainstream. The innovations it has developed have led to the filing of 125 US patents for EcoBoost.
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Honda CR-Z 2009 concept

Honda has released a preview of the new hybrid and electric vehicles that it will display at the upcoming Tokyo Motor Show. The CR-Z is an update of the concept of the same name that debuted two years ago while the EV-N is a small plug-in EV with a design inspired by the 60s era N360.
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Ford ECOnetic badge

In the leadup to the 2008 Geneva Motor Show Ford has outlined it's European Sustainability Strategy.  The company plans to follow a number of paths in an effort to reduce fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions.  The heart of its plans is cost effectiveness.

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