Sat.Mar 03, 2012 - Fri.Mar 09, 2012

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Average fuel economy of new vehicles sold in Feb up 18% from October 2007

Green Car Congress

The average sales-weighted fuel economy of new vehicles sold in the US in February was 23.7 mpg US (9.93 L/100km), according to data from the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI)—up 18% from the value in October 2007 (the first month of UMTRI monitoring). Click to enlarge. The Eco-Driving Index (EDI)—an index that estimates the average monthly emissions generated by an individual US driver—stood at 0.87 in December 2011 (an improvement of 13% from Oc

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Electric Cars Facebook Photo Contest!

Electric Cars are for Girls

Do you have a favorite photo of your electric car? (.or whatever other electric vehicle you happen to have!) Come on over to Facebook by Mar. 31 and enter it into the cover photo contest. Photo with the most likes gets to be April's Electric Cars are for Girls FB cover photo!

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Should Seuss’s Lorax Sell 2013 Mazda CX-5 Crossover To Kids?

Green Car Reports

Pester power, the advertising practice of using the nagging abilities of children to sell candy and toy is known and feared by most parents worldwide. But what happens when elementary school children are targeted by an automaker in order to pester their parents into taking a test drive? Enter Mazda, whose latest marketing campaign for the 2013.

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Arc 1 Conversion Journal 3/3/2012

DIY Electric Car

It has been about 5 months since I posted my first blog about converting my car to electricity. My professional life has kept me busy, but I still have made good progress on my conversion. Winter 2011-2012: Engine Bay and Under-car: The car is now completely gas-less. No engine, no fuel tank, no alternator, pumps, radiators, exhaust pipes, or muffler.

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How serious is Norway about climate change? So much that its streetlights self-dim

emissions global warming Norway climate change carbon dioxide youtube lighting

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Toyota introduces next-generation B-segment hybrid with 112 mpg US; CNG hybrid and plug-in variants

Green Car Congress

FT-Bh. Click to enlarge. Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) unveiled the FT-Bh (Future Toyota B-segment Hybrid), a lightweight, next-generation small gasoline-electric hybrid concept car at the 82nd Geneva International Motor Show. TMC, expecting hybrid vehicle use to become widespread in the second half of the 2010s, developed the FT-Bh as a B-segment, ultra fuel-efficient concept car under the theme of “ecomotion” (eco + emotion).

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Electric Cars Facebook Photo Contest!

Electric Cars are for Girls

Do you have a favorite photo of your electric car? (.or whatever other electric vehicle you happen to have!) Come on over to Facebook by Mar. 31 and enter it into the cover photo contest. Photo with the most likes gets to be April's Electric Cars are for Girls FB cover photo!

More Trending

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Renault Zoe becomes most affordable EV yet

Green Cars News

As expected the Renault Zoe made its production-ready debut but with a surprise twist-it will cost from just £13,650 after a £5,000 Plug-in Car Grant is deducted-making it the most affordable and practical electric car we’ve seen yet. Designed from the ground-up as an electric car, Renault filed more than 60 patents during its development, [.].

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New Honda Earth Dreams Technology 1.6L diesel in Civic to deliver CO2 emissions of 95 g/km

Green Car Congress

1.6-liter i-DTEC. Click to enlarge. Honda’s new 1.6-liter i-DTEC engine in the new Civic will deliver CO 2 emissions of 95 g/km, according to Honda Motor Europe’s President, Manabu Nishimae, in his presentation at the Geneva Motor Show. This is a 15-gram drop (13.6%) from the 110 g/km emissions of the enhanced 2.2L i-DTEC introduced in September 2011 at the Frankfurt show. ( Earlier post.).

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Plug in Prius

Electric Cars are for Girls

Waiting for Toyota to build you a plug in Prius? You don't have to wait! Canadian Andrew Bell had his Prius converted for about 4K, including all parts and labor.

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Ford F-750 Plug-In Hybrid Work Truck: Not Your Little Leaf, Sonny

Green Car Reports

Retail car buyers have to juggle a lot of factors in choosing a car, including image, family approval, and maybe-one-day-I'll-drive-across-the-country dreams. That may preclude a battery electric vehicle like a Nissan Leaf, with its 73-mile range. Commercial fleet buyers, on the other hand, look at two factors: lifetime operating cost, and whether.

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Faurecia and Accenture partner on products and services for connected and autonomous vehicles

Brief

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Celebs and their green cars

Green Cars News

There are plenty of celebs eager to show off their green credentials, so we thought we’d give you a rundown on some o f the film /TV/sport and other personalities who want to make sure their car gives gives off the right green message: Jonathan Ross and the G-Wiz One of the original EV celebs [.].

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Mitsubishi to launch plug-in hybrid version of new Outlander during FY2012

Green Car Congress

The new Outlander with be outfitted with a plug-in hybrid drivetrain during FY2012. Click to enlarge. Mitsubishi Motors (MMC) will launch a plug-in hybrid version of its new Outlander (introduced at the current Geneva Motor Show) during the course of FY2012 (1 April 2012 to 31 March 2013). The new PHEV Outlander will be a permanent 4WD electric vehicle, supplemented by a gasoline engine when needed.

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Gasoline Prices: Pinned to the Pump!

Electric Cars are for Girls

Gasoline prices affect EV drivers, too. A bit about oil addiction and how driving electric cars can free us from dependency.

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Mitsubishi Confirms 2013 Outlander Plug-in Hybrid: Geneva Motor Show

Green Car Reports

For some time now, it’s been no secret that Mitsubishi has been planning on bringing a plug-in hybrid SUV to market. Now we know it will arrive this year, in the form of the 2013 Mitsubishi Outlander Plug-in Hybrid, a car Mitsubishi first promised us back in 2009. The Outlander plug-in hybrid -- or P-HEV Mitsubishi calls it -- will be based.

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ExxonMobil announces 6th oil discovery offshore Guyana with Ranger-1; Guyana may move from non-producer to regional powerhouse

Oil

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Top ten Geneva Motor Show stars. The Green Piece.

Green Cars News

Tuesday 6 March, 2012. The Green Piece Column. The 82nd Geneva Motor Show opens today for two days of press previews (March 6 and 7, 2012) before opening to the rest of the auto industry and the general public for two weeks (March 8-18, 2012). As the doors open for the first big European motor [.].

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Envia Systems announcement may herald the first wave of DOE-supported commercial high energy density Li-ion cells with Si-C anodes

Green Car Congress

Elements in achieving the Envia 400 Wh/kg cell. Click to enlarge. Envia Systems’ recent announcement of achieving Li-ion pouch cells with a specific energy density of 400 Wh/kg ( earlier post ) may be the market opener for a number of similar systems developed with US Department of Energy (DOE) support using different silicon-carbon anode materials, combined with an advanced cathode material and an appropriate electrolyte.

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Plug in Prius 2

Electric Cars are for Girls

Waiting for Toyota to build you a plug in Prius? Canadian Andrew Bell had his Prius converted for about 4K, including all parts and labor. Part 2 of interview.

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Toyota Prius Hybrid Demand Rises As Gas Heads Toward $5/Gallon

Green Car Reports

As gas prices across the U.S. continue an upward march towards $5 per gallon, demand for Toyota Hybrids is now the highest it has been for nearly four years. On Thursday last week, Toyota reported that sales of all Prius brand hybrids -- including the new 2012 Toyota Prius V wagon -- were up 52 percent in February, driven in part by the.

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Volkswagen unveils ‘clever’ Polo BlueGT

Green Cars News

Unveiled today at the Geneva Motor Show is the Volkswagen Polo BlueGT, the first of a new wave of clever petrol powered VWs. The new production model features ACT cylinder deactivation which cleverly shuts down the second and third cylinders under light and medium loads. The BlueGT is the first production application of the new [.].

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New Hyundai i20 to offer new 1.1L, 3-cylinder diesel; 84 g/km CO2

Green Car Congress

Hyundai is staging the world premiers of the “All New i20” at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show. Among the four powertrain options available to buyers of the All New i20 will be the new 1.1-liter, 3-cylinder U-II diesel engine. When mated to Hyundai’s Blue Drive technologies, this derivative, which generates 74 hp (55 kW), emits 84 g/km of CO 2 —a figure lower than any other car with a conventional powertrain.

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US study of miners links heavy exposure to diesel exhaust to increased risk of lung cancer death; researchers suggest implications for urban areas with high exhaust concentrations

Green Car Congress

In a study of non-metal miners in the US, federal government scientists report that heavy exposure to diesel exhaust increased risk of death from lung cancer. The study was carried out by researchers from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, both parts of HHS.

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Nikkei: Toyota to begin making hybrid components in China to lower costs and boost sales

Green Car Congress

The Nikkei reports that Toyota Motor Corp. plans to produce hybrid components in China beginning next year. The company began producing the Prius in China at the end of last year, but components—such as batteries and motor—are shipped from Japan. Toyota aims to boost hybrid sales in China by bringing down costs through expanded local production.

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GE and Chesapeake Energy to partner on infrastructure to speed adoption of natural gas as transportation fuel; CNG, LNG and home refueling

Green Car Congress

GE and Chesapeake Energy Corporation have agreed to collaborate to develop infrastructure solutions that will help accelerate the adoption of natural gas as a transportation fuel. The two signed a memorandum of understanding on a multi-year product and services development partnership to develop and bring to market compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) transportation and natural gas home-fueling solutions.

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New Volkswagen Polo BlueGT with cylinder deactivation offers gasoline engine fuel economy of up to 52 mpg US

Green Car Congress

Polo BlueGT. Click to enlarge. Volkswagen introduced the new Polo BlueGT at the Geneva Motor Show. The technical highlight of the compact car is its cylinder deactivation system—introduced for the first time in a Volkswagen—known as active cylinder management or ACT. The system was realized with the new 1.4-liter gasoline-fueled TSI of the Polo BlueGT.

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MIT study finds shift to green energy sources could mean crunch in supply of key rare earth elements

Green Car Congress

Comparison of demand projections for REE (total summed). Credit: ACS, Alonso et al. Click to enlarge. A large-scale shift from coal-fired electric power plants and gasoline-fueled cars to wind turbines and electric vehicles could increase demand for two already-scarce rare earth elements (REE)—dysprosium and neodymium, available almost exclusively in China—by 600-2,600 percent over the next 25 years, according to a new study published in the ACS journal Environmental Science & Techno

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Mitsubishi Electric develops EV motor system with built-in silicon carbide inverter

Green Car Congress

New EV motor system with built-in silicon carbide inverter. Click to enlarge. Mitsubishi Electric Corporation has developed a prototype electric vehicle (EV) motor system with a built-in silicon carbide inverter. The EV motor system is the smallest of its kind, measuring just half the dimensions of Mitsubishi Electric’s existing motor system that uses an external inverter, and loss is below half that of silicon-based systems.

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GM sets February sales record in China; up 30.4% to 240,554 vehicles

Green Car Congress

General Motors and its joint ventures sold 240,554 cars and trucks in China in February, setting a record for the month. Sales rose 30.4% from February 2011 and were the third highest for any month in GM’s history in China. All three of GM’s primary manufacturing joint ventures set February records as well. Shanghai GM’s domestic sales rose 31.8% year on year to 103,097 units; SAIC-GM-Wuling’s sales in China increased 28.7% on an annual basis to 130,193 units, and FAW-GM’s sales in the domestic

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Volkswagen to reveal new diesel variant of Cross Coupé Concept PHEV; 131 mpg US

Green Car Congress

Volkswagen will bring to Geneva a new diesel-engined variant of its Cross Coupé Concept plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, first introduced with a gasoline engine at the Tokyo Motor Show in 2011 ( earlier post ). The new Cross Coupé Concept is powered by a combination of a turbodiesel direct-injection engine (TDI) and two electric motors; combined fuel consumption in the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) is 1.8 l/100 km (131 mpg US), equivalent to CO 2 emissions of 46 g/km.

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Audi Chairman says 5 key innovation areas will determine the future of mobility; e-tron master plan calls for 6-figure sales by 2020 with an e-tron in every segment

Green Car Congress

In his speech. to the Annual Press Conference 2012 in Ingolstadt, Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management of Audi AG, said that the company believes that five key innovation areas will determine the shape of future mobility: design; lightweight construction; connected vehicles; mobility services; and electric mobility. Design, said Stadler, “ is and will remain the number-one motivating factor for car buyers.

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A123 Systems secures three production contracts for 12V Li-ion Engine Start Battery; eyeing micro-hybrid market

Green Car Congress

A123 Systems has secured production contracts for the company’s 12V Engine Start Battery ( earlier post ) with three leading European automakers, including McLaren Automotive for the MP4-12C and a major German OEM that will use the battery in a 2013 model year passenger vehicle. A123’s Engine Start Battery is designed as a replacement for absorbent glass mat (AGM) and other lead acid batteries, providing a lighter-weight, longer-lasting solution for micro-hybrid functionality that enhances vehic

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Opel introduces e-bike concept “RAD e”

Green Car Congress

Opel is presenting an e-bike urban design concept at the Geneva Motor show. The RAD e is aimed primarily at urban people at a time when e-bikes are predicted to play an increasing role in future integrated urban transport concepts. The RAD e name takes its inspiration from “Rad”—the German word for bicycle and wheel. RAD e incorporates boomerang design cues that also appear in the Ampera and the RAK e experimental electric vehicle.

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Mercedes-Benz provides an update on the electric drivetrain of the SLS AMG E-CELL

Green Car Congress

New rendering of the electric drivetrain of the SLS AMG E-CELL showing modifications to packaging and layout of some components. Click to enlarge. The drivetrain of the battery-electric Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG E-CELL sports car has been in development since 2010 as a result of the cooperation between Mercedes-AMG and Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains in Brixworth. ( Earlier post.

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Toyota introduces the B-segment Yaris Hybrid at Geneva; anticipating 20% of Yaris model range sales in first year

Green Car Congress

Yaris Hybrid powertrain. Click to enlarge. The new Yaris Hybrid—the first full hybrid vehicle to go on sale in the European B-segment—made its world debut at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show. The new Yaris Hybrid, which is equipped with a version of the downsized hybrid powertrain featured in the Prius c/Aqua ( earlier post ), is a major step in the company’s full hybrid European roll-out strategy.

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President Obama announces $1B National Community Deployment Challenge to spur deployment of alternative-fuel vehicles; new purchasing incentives; new EV Everywhere research grand challenge

Green Car Congress

US President Barack Obama announced a new $1-billion National Community Deployment Challenge to spur deployment of advanced alternative fuel vehicles in communities around the country. The deployment Challenge is designed to catalyze up to 10 to 15 model communities to invest in the necessary infrastructure, remove the regulatory barriers, and create the local incentives to support deployment of advanced vehicles at critical mass.