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Review: 2009 Smart ForTwo - Undone by a Dud of a Tranny
2009 Smart ForTwo – Click above for high-res image gallery The Smart ForTwo isn't for shy people. Even though Smart USA has sold about 30,000 of these tiny two-seaters in the U.S., the little rollerskate attracts a lot of attention. On the road or in a parking lot, the ForTwo is a conversation piece, and people will come up and talk to you. Some will tell you about the Smart they saw in Europe. Others will ask if it has the guts to make it onto the highway. Most will assume it gets great gas mileage (it doesn't). But one thing's for ... Read more →
Greenlings: Can pulse and glide work to improve electric vehicle highway range? Sam Abuelsamid
Wayne Gerdes explains hypermiling before the Ford Fusion 1,000 mile challenge Recently we got a question from a reader regarding the benefit of using the common hypermiling technique of "pulse and ...
Greenlings: Why don't we use solar to power our electric cars? Jeremy Korzeniewski
Venturi Astrolab concept - Click above for high-res image gallery For years, we've been watching as solar-powered race cars travel at relatively high rates of speed for hours on end – as ...
Tesla lawsuit, first read: learning more about the fight between Martin Eberhard and Elon Musk Sebastian Blanco
Elon Musk There are 146 pages in the complaint filed by Tesla Motors co-founder Martin Eberhard against the company and current CEO Elon Musk (download the PDF here and read more background on the ...
What is the difference between biodiesel and SVO? Sebastian Blanco
if you're used to filling up your car with standard gasoline, the difference between biodiesel and straight vegetable oil (SVO, but it also has other names) might be a clear as mud. Here's a cheat ...
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First Drive: hydrogen-powered Kia Borrego FCEV and Nissal X-Trail FCV 23 days ago on AutoblogGreen
Kia Borrego FCEV - Click above for high-res image gallery It's hard to learn much about a car in 10 minutes, but when that's all you've got, you study quick. During the Hydrogen + Fuel Cells 2009 conference in Vancouver, British Columbia last week, we got to spend a few minutes in both the ...
Meet a MINI E that will only use solar power 24 days ago on AutoblogGreen
MINI E - Click above for image gallery The all-electric MINI Es are starting to be delivered, and AutoblogGreen reader David VM. will do something a little extra with his new ride: power it completely by solar power. David has started up a new blog called MINI E 19 (his car is #19) and the ...
General Motors opens new Global Battery Test lab in Warren, Michigan 24 days ago on AutoblogGreen
Bill Wallace showing off the Volt cell and battery pack - Click above for high-res image gallery On Monday, General Motors officially inaugurated the new Global Battery Systems test lab that was announced at the Detroit Auto Show in January. The lab, which GM claims is the largest such facility ...
Trying out the new Insight in Spain at the EcoDesafío Honda Insight 25 days ago on AutoblogGreen
Click on image above to see a full gallery of the EcoDesafio Honda Insight in Barcelona The first generation the Honda Insight wasn't offered for sale in most European markets, including Spain. The Honda Civic hybrid is available here, but hasn't seen too many sales, in part because diesel is ...
HP2G acrimoniously drops out of Auto X Prize 28 days ago on AutoblogGreen
January was a simpler time for the relationship between Doug Pelmear/Horse Power Sales (makers of the HP2G engine that was in the Mustang we saw in Detroit a few months ago) and the Automotive X Prize. Back then, the two were happy neighbors in the NAIAS basement (the smelly, smelly basement). No ...
Patent comparison: Ford Fusion hybrid = 119, EV1 = 23 29 days ago on AutoblogGreen
2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid - Click above for a high-res image gallery When we saw the Ford announcement that the new Fusion Hybrid is "the most patented car in history," we wondered how it stacked up against a truly revolutionary car like the EV1. Turns out, whatever patents were used to get that ...
At Witz' End - Range Anxiety Q&A II 29 days ago on AutoblogGreen
I really stepped in it last time by stating that GM never owned patent rights to Ovonic's NiMH batteries and never sold them to an oil company, and that no one sued Toyota. I believed those statements to be true at the time, but several of you straightened me out. However, since that complex issue ...
Vancouver 2009: California Fuel Cell Partnership member describes the long drive 29 days ago on AutoblogGreen
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles arrive at the Vancouver Convention Center - click for a full gallery As the hoopla surrounding the arrival of the hydrogen fuel cell caravan began to die down at the Vancouver Convention Center yesterday, we ran into Roy Kim from the California Fuel Cell Partnership. ...
Vancouver 2009: Hydrogen Road Trip vehicles finish 1,700-mile trip 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
The Hydrogen Road Tour came to a successful conclusion here in Vancouver today after crossing through three states and two countries and making stops in 28 cities since starting in Chula Vista, California nine days ago. The Premier of British Columbia, the Honourable Gordon Campbell (pictured) said ...
Hydrogen Road Tour: How can H2 cars can go 1,700 miles? Use a tanker truck 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
The Hydrogen Road Tour is scheduled to roll into the Hydrogen + Fuel Cells 2009 here in Vancouver tomorrow after 1,700 miles and nine days on the road. But, with the range of even the best hydrogen vehicles in the hundreds of miles and H2 stations not exactly around every corner, we were curious ...
Vancouver 2009: Hydrogen Fuel Cells automotive panel hearts hydrogen, praises EVs 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
It's unusual to hear many good things about hydrogen vehicles at a conference dedicated to plug-in vehicles. The reverse cannot be said of the pro-hydrogen folks. At the Hydrogen + Fuel Cells 2009 conference here in Vancouver, BC this week, the main message of yesterday's panel discussion on ...
Vancouver 2009: GMC Sierra 1500 hydrogen truck 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
GMC Sierra 1500 hydrogen truck - Click above for a high-res image gallery One of the few vehicles on display at the Hydrogen + Fuel Cells 2009 conference here in Vancouver is a modified GMC Sierra 1500 pickup truck. The modifications involved swapping out the gas tank for three 150-liter ...
Vancouver 2009: learning about the Vancouver Fuel Cell Vehicle Program 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
Hydrogen cars in Vancouver - click above for a high-res gallery Vancouver is hosting the Hydrogen + Fuel Cells 2009 conference this week, and that give us a chance to learn a bit more about the city's ongoing hydrogen fuel cell vehicle tests. The Vancouver Fuel Cell Vehicle Program is a ...
Spark EV headed for "vindication"? 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
How not to endear yourself to the media: send in messages that say, "It is so easy to jump on the bandwagon when you don't know the facts. Shame on you all." This is how Michael Papp is trying to reintroduce himself to the alternative vehicle world. Papp made headlines about a year ago when he was ...
Vancouver 2009: "The main threat to hydrogen cars" are EVs and plug-in hybrids 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
Morgan LifeCar - Click above for a high-res gallery By far the most interesting title for a presentation here at the Hydrogen + Fuel Cells 2009 conference in Vancouver, British Columbia was the following: "Threats to the introduction of fuel cell vehicles and how to deal with them." I mean, how ...
Sign of the times: Ethanol almost 40 cents cheaper than gas 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
Driving around mid-Michigan over the weekend, I couldn't help but notice how much gas prices have jumped in the last few weeks. According to AAA, the national average price for a gallon of regular gas has jumped up 50 cents in the past month to $2.50. Well, this is a good time to have a flex-fuel ...
Dirigo three-wheeler now up to 99 mpg, wood panels look good 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
Dirigo - Click above for an image gallery One of the cars participating in the One Gallon Challenge is the Dirigo three wheeler. Built by Bill Buchholz, the Dirigo is right now tantalizingly close to the 100 mpg goal of the One Gallon Challenge (and the Automotive X Prize, of course). Buchholz ...
Ask AutoblogGreen: Do electric vehicles need front air intakes? 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
A reader posed us an interesting question the other day about air intakes and grilles. Specifically: do electric vehicles need them at all and why do many internal combustion vehicles have such large examples. For conventional vehicles, an intake of some kind is necessary in order to dissipate the ...
Green car info for people who are new to green cars - introducing Greenlings 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
For the past few months, we've been running a weekly series on AutoblogGreen called Greenlings. Now that the archive has been built up a bit, it's time to formally introduce the series to you, explain what it's about and invite you to help us out. The idea behind Greenlings is to step aside from ...
Paul Pearson continuing legal fight over electric vehicle conversions 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
Lola EV - click above for a high-res gallery Last week, Paul Pearson went back to court. It was the fifth time he's been in front of a judge because of a police sting last December over the electric car conversions he was doing in his garage (details here). In short, the situation is wholly ...
Spotted in the wild: Fiat 500 on the street in Michigan 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
click above for a high res gallery of the Fiat 500 on the street in Birmingham By now, we all know that if Chrysler is to have a future as an automaker, it is going to need some modern small cars. The plan is to fill that void with products that have their origins at Chrysler's new Italian ...
How can I live without a car? 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
Overall, the trend for the upcoming years will be more and more cars, maybe up to 3.5 billion around the world (there are about 800 million on the roads today). Cars like the ultra-cheap Tata Nano are opening the door for more and more people to own their own car, and a lot of people are eager to ...
Driving the Dodge Circuit, now with video 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
Dodge Circuit EV concept - Click above for a high-res gallery A few weeks ago, we got a chance to step into the Dodge Circuit for a quick spin through downtown Detroit. We shot some video of that drive and now you can see the car in action (from the inside, mostly) and hear John Myers, who works ...
Fisker, EnerDel battery deal could result in EnerDel-powered Karmas by June 2010 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
Fisker Karma - Click above for a high-res gallery When we heard about the potential battery deal announced this morning between Fisker Automotive and EnerDel, we had a few questions about the potential partnership. All EnerDel's press release said was that the two companies has signed a letter ...
Reader question: Why not electrify the highways? 1 month ago on AutoblogGreen
From the AutoblogGreen inbox: I just have a question: Why is nobody talking about loading electric cars while driving? It's readily available for buses in cities via overhead lines, is readily available for my toy car race track with a wire in the street? Just put such system on highways, and all ...
At Witz' End - Range Anxiety Q&A 2 months ago on AutoblogGreen
There was a lot of feedback (50 comments at last count) to my column on EV range anxiety, some thoughtful and intelligent, some not. The few who accuse me of being anti-electric vehicles, which I definitely am not, were not. Neither were the two (same guys each time) touting the idiotic conspiracy ...
Rendered speculation: Chevrolet Sky-Volt? 2 months ago on AutoblogGreen
One of the many unfortunate casualties of the financial apocalypse that is General Motors 2009 is loss of the Kappa platform. Kappa, for those who don't recall, is the small rear wheel drive platform that sits under the Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky. With both of those brands being discontinued ...
Tesla Model S in NYC: Party like it's zero-emissions night 2 months ago on AutoblogGreen
Partying with the Tesla Model S - Click above for a high-res gallery If there's one thing that goes incredibly well with expensive prototype vehicles, it's scratches from high heels. You also get this when some waif-y models (or could-be models) snag a drink and everyone's enjoying themselves. ...
Phoenix Motorcars: "We have not abandoned the alternative fuels transportation space." 2 months ago on AutoblogGreen
Phoenix SUT - Click above for a high-res gallery Phoenix Motorcars has responded to our request for information about the bankruptcy filing news we heard about earlier this week.This email is written in response to questions we have received from Autoblog Green relating to our recent ...
SAE 2009: Is mobility sustainable? Not the way we're running it today 2 months ago on AutoblogGreen
One of the more approachable topics discussed at the SAE World Congress this week (as opposed to, say, "CAE Simulation/Test Correlation and Optimization in Automotive Engineering." Not that there's anything wrong with that) was a talk by Philip Gott, director of automotive consulting at IHS Global ...
SAE 2009: Yazaki's booth proudly displays J1772 connector 2 months ago on AutoblogGreen
J1772 connector - click above for more At the SAE World Congress last week, one of the more important technical discussions revolved around a new connector standard for plug-in vehicles called J1772. As we mentioned in our write-up of the progress made at the event, the Yazaki company was ...
