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Archive for the ‘green cars’ Category

The debut of the second-gen, 2018 Nissan Leaf is just a couple short months away, so it should come as no surprise that Nissan is teasing its resident EV as much as it can. So far, we’ve seen a shot of the headlight, the grille, and a video that shows how the brand’s new ProPilot, semi-autonomous driving system works. And, based on spy shots we’ve seen, the next-gen leaf is going to be quite attractive in comparison to the current model. Now, Nissan has released yet another teaser, and dropped another bombshell on us – it’s known as E-Pedal, and it’s set to revolutionize your driving experience… or make you hate the future of driving even more.

Designed as a single-pedal system, the e-pedal automatically controls braking and acceleration based on foot position. So, when accelerating, it acts just like your normal, everyday accelerator pedal, but what it does beyond that is something else. See, when you begin to lift your foot off, the car will automatically begin to slow down, which one would assume has a greater braking effect than the usual coasting you get in most cars. If you take your foot completely off of the pedal in operation, the car will automatically stop itself, with the big selling point being that it will even stop and hold on a hill, all based on the input of your foot on a single pedal. You have to admit that it sounds pretty promising, and it’s another step toward fully autonomous cars, but will people actually make use of it and trust it? Well, that remains to be seen. Keep reading to see a short video and to learn more about the upcoming 2018 Nissan Leaf.

Out in the Nevada desert, near the city of Sparks, Tesla is busy building something called Gigafactory 1. Occupying some 24 million square feet and soaking up roughly $5 billion in investments, this mammoth facility is destined to create the lithium-ion power cells used to motivate Tesla’s various EV models. It is, without a doubt, a truly massive undertaking, tasked with mass-producing the components needed to transform the way the world consumes its energy. But Tesla isn’t one to rest on its laurels, and the latest news is that there are now a few more Gigafactories coming down the pipeline.

Tesla CEO and possible inter-dimensional renegade, Elon Musk, confirmed as much recently at the National Governors Association, according to a recent report from our friends over at elektrek. Details on the exact where and when these factories will be built are still forthcoming, but you can rest assured the states will be clamoring to get those Tesla manufacturing jobs within their borders. Further gigafactory construction is expected overseas, including in Europe and Asia. In addition to churning out batteries, the new factories are also expected to have a hand in creating the Tesla powertrains and final vehicle construction.

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It’s a trick very few start-up automakers have learned, let alone mastered. Promising to build evolutionary cars is one thing (we’ve see it time and time and again in the business), but having a solid foundation of financing in place is another thing entirely. Ambitious companies often fail simply because they don’t have the money to see projects through. Though it would be unfair to put Lucid Motors in that category, its goal of launching the Air electric car just became a little more difficult after getting the cold shoulder from Ford on a potential takeover.

To be fair, Lucid is far from being in dire straits as talks with Ford have not completely gone to waste, according to Bloomberg. The Michigan-based automotive giant simply isn’t looking to make a deal at this point in time, especially when new CEO Jim Hackett is still in the middle of a 100-day review of the automaker’s own plans and priorities moving forward. The timing, apparently, isn’t just right at the moment, although a source close to the talks also told Bloomberg that Ford isn’t shutting the door completely on Lucid’s proposal. Ford does have big plans to be a major player in the electric car industry and having Lucid under its wing could help get the Blue Oval there. For now, Lucid still doesn’t have the money in place to move forward with its own plans for the Air electric sedan. How long this hold-out lasts will likely determine the fate of the company.

Continue after the jump to read the full story.

Swedish automaker Volvo has just announced that every car it launches from 2019 onward will have an electric motor, in a move to gradually phase out and replace internal combustion engines with more efficient and environmentally friendly drivetrains. While this doesn’t mean that Volvo will give up on gasoline and diesel engines altogether, it will make it the first premium carmaker that puts an electric motor in each and every vehicle in its lineup. And on top of turning its current cars into hybrids, Volvo also plans to launch five all-electric vehicles between 2019 and 2021. Not many details are available, but Volvo says three will be Volvo models, while to will be high-performance Polestar versions.

The firm added that these five cars will be supplemented by a range of gasoline and diesel plug-in hybrid and mild hybrid options on all models, which confirms that the EVs will be built on the current scalable platforms, meaning they will carry familiar nameplates. Expect a hatchback, a sedan, and a crossover to be the first to gain all-electric drivetrains. “This is about the customer,” said Håkan Samuelsson, Volvo president and chief executive. “People increasingly demand electrified cars and we want to respond to our customers’ current and future needs. You can now pick and choose whichever electrified Volvo you wish.”

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When BMW first showed off the i-brand concepts, we had no idea we would see production models so fast. In what seemed like just a few seconds in the grand scheme of things, we were looking at production models of the BMW i3 and BMW i8. With the i8 Spyder Concept debuting in 2012, and the production version of the i8 hitting dealers for the 2015 model year, Bimmer fans everywhere have been itching for a production version of the i8 Spyder. So much, in fact, that the rumor mill has been working overtime and there have even been a few false sightings of the unicorn. But, either hell has frozen over or pigs have sprouted wings (or, maybe it’s both) because someone finally caught an official i8 Spyder prototype cruising in the middle of nowhere. They aren’t the best photos we’ve ever received, but the top is clearly down, and it appears to be every bit legitimate thanks to that “hybrid test vehicle” sticker prominently displayed on the rear fascia.

And, while we’ve all been waiting somewhat impatiently for the i8 Spyder, the fact that we’re finally seeing a prototype isn’t all that surprising. Just a few months ago, BMW CEO Harald Krueger not only confirmed the car was in the works, but that it had a production target of 2018! That means that we should see it in production form sometime toward the end of 2017. It’s doubtful that this is the i8 Spyder’s first venture onto public roads, so props to BMW for managing to keep it out of the public eye for so long. But, with that said, let’s talk a little more about what we can see from these few spy shots in my speculative review below.

Updated 07/03/2017: The new i8 Spyder is actually coming! BMW dropped the first teaser video for it!

Click past the jump to read in detail about the 2018 BMW i8 Spyder

Aston Martin’s plan to build a seven-model range is well-documented, and one of those models has just been given the go-ahead for production. Look out, because the Aston Martin RapidE is finally headed to production. The all-electric sports sedan was first unveiled in concept form back in 2015. From the start, the company had plans to move it past prototype phase and turn it into an actual production model. Two years later, and we finally have a definite timetable from the British automaker.

The full details are still unclear at this point, but from what’s been revealed, it’s looking like we’re two years away from seeing a production version of the all-electric grand tourer. A 2019 timetable has been set for the launch. The RapidE will be developed jointly between Aston Martin and Williams Advanced Engineering. This development is notable because the original plan for the RapidE was for it to be a partnership between the British automaker and Chinese company LeEco. The latter, however, has been mired in financial problems brought about by its ambitious start-up, Faraday Future. With LeEco no longer in the picture, Aston went back to its original partner Williams, which actually had a hand in developing the 2015 concept. Regardless of who it is, what’s important is the RapidE is finally happening. Now we get to see what Aston Martin’s electric car future is going to look like.

Continue after the jump to read the full story.

The Nissan Leaf came to be in 2010 as the company’s first mass-produced, all-electric passenger car. Built on a bespoke platform based on the familiar Nissan B architecture it uses a synchronous electric motor and a range of battery packs that deliver up to 107 miles per charge. Although it has proven quite popular in several markets around the world, the current Leaf is getting a bit long in the tooth now that GM has launched the Chevrolet Bolt and Opel Ampera-e, while Tesla is getting ready to roll out the Model 3. But, Nissan is looking to catch up with the competition with a redesigned model that will break cover by the end of 2017.

Likely to make its public debut at the 2017 Los Angeles Auto Show, the second-generation Leaf was already spotted testing on public roads several times. But more recently, Nissan has started using thinner camouflage, which reveals most of the hatchback’s new design. And, by the looks of things, the new Leaf will be sportier and will share more features with the rest of the Nissan lineup. Word has it Nissan is also introducing a new drivetrain that will give the Leaf more juice. The current 107-mile range isn’t going to cut it against the Chevy Bolt, so it’s safe to assume that Nissan is aiming for at least 200 miles. Until more data becomes available, check out my speculative review for more information.

Continue reading to find out more about the upcoming Nissan Leaf.

Between failed attempts to troll Tesla, and the range anxiety associated with electric cars, the Nissan Leaf really doesn’t receive the credit it deserves. I mean, don’t get me wrong; it is kind of ugly and looks like the bug-eyed bastard child that would result from a Lotus banging an early Honda Civic hatchback, but that’s ok. In the end, the Nissan Leaf has become the world’s best-selling, highway-capable electric car, with more than a quarter-million examples sold in the time it’s been on the market. So, despite all the negativity it gets, it really is an iconic car. And, that icon is about to go through a generational shift that will bring it up to speed and ready to compete with cars like the Tesla Model 3 and Chevy Bolt. As of now, we have almost no idea of what it will look like outside of a teaser image of the headlight that Nissan released a few months ago, but Nissan has just announced that it will be one of the first models to get its new ProPilot driver-assist feature.

Details are scant as of this writing, and Nissan has yet to even announce a rough timeframe for the next-gen Leaf’s arrival, but if you want an idea of how the ProPilot system works, you can look back to the Piloted Drive 1.0 Concept from 2015, which pretty much handled autonomous driving in heavy highway traffic. That’s pretty much what the next-gen Leaf will be able to accomplish as well. It should function similarly to that of Tesla’s AutoPilot, GM’s SuperCruise, and Audi’s traffic-jam assist feature. The question is whether or not you’ll feel like you’re being driven by a “skilled driver” as Nissan described it when debuting that aforementioned concept. Well, let’s take a look at the short video Nissan released and see what it has to say today.

Last week, we took a look at our top picks for the best five hybrid sports, listing off some truly awe-inspiring gas/electric combos that proved hybridization wasn’t something to be feared by the common auto enthusiast. But while adding a big battery pack and a few electric motors might seem like a pretty sizable modification to the traditional sports car formula, there’s an even-greater change lurking just over the horizon – the pure-electric powertrain. That’s right, gasoline need not apply in this crowd, and yet, the speed potential is still enough to melt your face. This is our list of the top five all-electric performance cars.

There are plenty of benefits that electric power offers over internal combustion, especially when it comes to the business of going fast. For starters, the torque curve for an electric motor is totally flat, with maximum twist created the instant you touch the long pedal to the right. There’s also zero power loss at high altitude, a characteristic that’s particularly useful at hill climb events like Pikes Peak. What’s more, with enough motors and a little electronic wizardry, you can get away with some pretty kick ass torque vectoring dynamics. Of course, it’s not all roses – for example, the all-electric appliance noise will never beat the sound of exploding dino juice. Regardless, all-electric performance is still quite impressive. Here are five examples that prove it.

Continue reading to learn more about TopSpeed’s Top 5 All-Electric Performance Cars.

We here at TopSpeed don’t shy away from exploring the weirder and wilder side of performance vehicles. In fact, we relish in it. Any chance we come across to break away from convention and blow your mind is worth it, especially if it gets the unruly mobs up in arms. And that’s exactly the sort of reaction we’re expecting with this – a performance-oriented Toyota Prius TRD. Here’s the formula – ditch the eco tires, slap on some real rubber, boost the engine, stiffen the suspension, add the proper cabin gear, and voila – the perfect solution to a dearth of jimmy rustlin’.

But here’s the thing – we’re actually totally serious. This isn’t some April Fool’s joke. We legitimately think there’s a real case to made for a performance Prius. Don’t believe us? Then read on. We dare you.

Continue reading to learn more about the Toyota Prius TRD.

Between low gas prices, national carbon reduction pledges, and fluctuating regulations, it’s not exactly certain where the market for environmentally friendly transportation will head next. But that’s not bothering Honda, which just announced it will expand its Clarity lineup to include new plug-in hybrid and all-electric variants, essentially providing all avenues of attack when it comes to green options for consumers.

You probably recognize the Clarity nameplate as Honda’s hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, the four-door sedan offered up in December of last year as an answer to the Toyota Mirai. The move to include a hybrid and an EV, in addition to the hydrogen Clarity, coincides with Honda’s stated intentions of reducing carbon emissions over the long term.

“The Honda Clarity is aimed at accelerating the deployment of advanced electrified powertrain technology and bringing electrified vehicles further into the mainstream,” said senior vice president of American Honda Motor Co., Inc., Jeff Conrad.

Honda has previously indicated that it wants 2 out of every 3 vehicles sold to be electrified by the year 2030. That’s a mighty ambitious goal, but an expanded Clarity lineup is a big step towards making it a reality.

Read on for more details, as well as a few of the specs on the newly unveiled Clarity hybrid and EV.

Continue reading for the full story.

Acura first presented the third-generation MDX in production form at the 2013 New York Auto Show, and it went into production just a month later in Lincoln, Alabama. Offered with a 3.5-liter V-6 that makes use of variable cylinder management, and as a FWD vehicle in the U.S. for the first time, the MDX was ready to continue its battle in an overpopulated segment. But, to stay at the top of the food chain, the MDX has to remain as relevant and fresh as possible, which is why Acura gave it a fairly intensive facelift for the 2017 model year. As such, it’s more aggressive than ever and features Acura’s new Precision Grille on the outside while the interior took some minor changes to offer better refinement and space. Now, Acura is bringing an updated MDX Sport Hybrid to the market, and it offers a significant improvement in power over the range-topping, non-hybrid MDX.

To put it simply, the new MDX Hybrid uses the same three-motor setup that is found in the RLX Sport Hybrid and the Acura NSX and pushes the output for this new range-topper over the top with an extra 30 ponies and 40 percent better fuel economy in the city. That’s a pretty big deal for those of you who are concerned with fuel usage, and for those who want just a little extra oomph. The MDX Sport Hybrid is set to hit dealers starting in early April, so let’s take a closer look at it and see what it brings to the table before it gets there.

Continue reading to learn more about the Acura MDX Sport Hybrid.

A couple of years ago, Bentley surprised us all by showing off the 2015 Bentley EXP 10 Speed 6 Concept, a delicious-looking coupe with a bold design and more character than a Stephen King Novel. Then, just a couple of years later, Bentley found itself in the same place, only this time with the 2017 EXP 12 Speed 6e Concept. It had the bold styling of the first concept, but this time it was said to have an electrified drivetrain and unlimited headroom. The business case has been made, and the masses have shown lots of interest in such a model, but the Volkswagen Group could keep the Bentley two-seater from ever seeing production.

See, since Bentley is a part of the dirty VAG (pun intended,) it has to be careful when it comes to intergroup competition, and with the Audi R8 being a big model for Audi, VAG may not approve of the EXP in production form. In an interview with Motoring, Uday Senapati – the Head of Technical Operations at Mulliner – said, “From within Bentley, definitely yes [there’s momentum]. But we’re part of a big group, and it has to work with the rest of the group… Because we are a portfolio of brands, we can’t be overtly competing against each other.” When asked if a direct competitor to the R8 was off limits, he responded with, “Exactly. So if we can create a niche segment for it, then yes [we can do it].”

So, with that said, Bentley can’t just go the usual route with the two-seater if it’s ever to see production, but that doesn’t mean all is lost. Keep reading to find out.

Electric cars have technically been around since 1837 when a chemist named Robert Davidson built an electric car that was powered by galvanic cells. But, the first highway-legal electric vehicle didn’t hit the market until 2008. Since then, interest in electric vehicles has increased slowly but steadily, and in 2017 there are at least 25 PEVs now available on the market. This includes models like the Tesla Model S and X, Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid, Mercedes C350E, and the Volvo XC90 90 T8 PHEV, among others.

So, what is a PEV, really? A PEV is a subset of electric vehicles that includes all-electric or battery electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs), and electric vehicle conversions of hybrid electric vehicles and conventional internal combustion engine vehicles. But, are PEVs actually taking a hold in the automotive market or are they set to see a decline as they did in the early 1900s? Well, we’ve put together an infographic to detail our relationship with PEVs here in the United States and just how well they sold in 2016 in comparison to 2015. So, let’s take a look at the infographic in detail and talk a little more about it.

Continue reading for the full story.

Electric cars have technically been around since 1837 when a chemist named Robert Davidson built an electric car that was powered by galvanic cells. But, the first highway-legal electric vehicle didn’t hit the market until 2008. Since then, interest in electric vehicles has increased slowly but steadily, and in 2017 there are at least 25 PEVs now available on the market. This includes models like the Tesla Model S and X, Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid, Mercedes C350E, and the Volvo XC90 90 T8 PHEV, among others.

So, what is a PEV, really? A PEV is a subset of electric vehicles that includes all-electric or battery electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs), and electric vehicle conversions of hybrid electric vehicles and conventional internal combustion engine vehicles. But, are PEVs actually taking a hold in the automotive market or are they set to see a decline as they did in the early 1900s? Well, we’ve put together an infographic to detail the electric vehicle market statistics here in the United States for the year 2016, including market growth, most popular models, and the number of sales by state. So, let’s take a look at the infographic in detail and talk a little more about it.

Continue reading for the full story.

When BMW first showed off the i-brand concepts, we had no idea we would see production models so fast. In what seemed like just a few seconds in the grand scheme of things, we were looking at production models of the BMW i3 and BMW i8. With the i8 Spyder Concept debuting in 2012, and the production version of the i8 hitting dealers for the 2015 model year, Bimmer fans everywhere have been itching for a production version of the i8 Spyder. So much, in fact, that the rumor mill has been working overtime and there have even been a few false sightings of the unicorn. But, either hell has frozen over or pigs have sprouted wings (or, maybe it’s both) because someone finally caught an official i8 Spyder prototype cruising in the middle of nowhere. They aren’t the best photos we’ve ever received, but the top is clearly down, and it appears to be every bit legitimate thanks to that “hybrid test vehicle” sticker prominently displayed on the rear fascia.

And, while we’ve all been waiting somewhat impatiently for the i8 Spyder, the fact that we’re finally seeing a prototype isn’t all that surprising. Just a few months ago, BMW CEO Harald Krueger not only confirmed the car was in the works, but that it had a production target of 2018! That means that we should see it in production form sometime toward the end of 2017. It’s doubtful that this is the i8 Spyder’s first venture onto public roads, so props to BMW for managing to keep it out of the public eye for so long. But, with that said, let’s talk a little more about what we can see from these few spy shots in my speculative review below.

Updated 02/28/2017: Our spy photographers caught the upcoming i8 Spyder during winter testing in Sweden.

Click past the jump to read in detail about the 2018 BMW i8 Spyder

First showcased at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show in concept form, the innovative NanoFlowcell Quantino might go into production in the future. According to the London-based company, NanoFlowcell is in talks with a “large manufacturer that is not German” about moving the Quantino from concept to production form. The Quantino could be rebranded and become reality in “four to five years’ time,” the company’s technology boss, Nunzio La Vecchia, told Autocar.

It’s not yet clear which automaker will help Nanoflowcell and how much the company will spend to bring the car onto public roads, but the Quantino’s arrival could change the way we look at green cars. That’s because the technology behind it is not only revolutionary, but it could also make electric cars seem dated.

Specifically, the Quantino takes its power from a ion exchange between a positively charged liquid and a negatively charged one. The liquids, which consist of water and an undisclosed mix of organic and inorganic salts, are kept in separate on-board tanks and pumped into a semi-permeable membrane. Working like a typical fuel cell membrane, it keeps the liquids separate while allowing ions within them to cross and create electricity.

The system produces 48 volts and drives four 25kW electric motors that give the Quantino an output of around 106 horsepower and 148 pound-feet of torque. The car can travel for 620 miles with both tanks full, while top speed is estimated at 124 mph. The refueling process is similar to that of an internal combustion engine car, but it needs two different fluids instead of one. Much of the car’s running gear and components come from a BMW 2 Series, but this could change as the vehicle moves closer to production.

Continue reading for the full story.

Elon Musk’s Twitter account has been a go-to source for breaking news recently, and the Tesla CEO once again took less than 140 characters to announce (somewhat indirectly) that the Model 3’s first year of production has sold out. The company’s founder revealed the enlightening information while responding to an article shared by Fortune Magazine saying that new rounds of reservations for the Model 3 aren’t expected to be reopened for another two years.

The news marks the first time that Musk or anybody from Tesla has commented about the Model 3’s production status since May when the automaker confirmed that it had received more than 370,000 reservations for the entry-level model. Tesla has been quiet on that front since, but with Musk’s tweet, we at least get a good idea on the timetable for reservations on the car to re-open.

Tesla is still targeting a mid-2017 date to begin production of the car with a goal of getting the first wave of models delivered later in the year. At its current rate, the automaker is still in the process of ramping up its production capacity to accommodate all the Model 3 orders that have arrived. It’s only expected to deliver around 80,000 units in 2016, which is a big improvement from the 50,000 units it delivered in 2015. That number is expected to go up again in 2017 onwards as the company gears up to start production of the Model 3. The goal, according to Fortune, is to have manufacturing capabilities to produce around 500,000 models, many of which are likely going to be the Model 3.

In the meantime, those who have made the $1,000 refundable deposit on the car will have to continue to wait for their names to be called and those looking to join the long queue for the Model 3 will have to wait a little while longer to get in line.

Continue after the jump to read the full story.

Volkswagen made its plans loud and clear when it introduced the ID Concept at the 2016 Paris Motor Show. The prototype marked a turning point in the German automaker’s future as it signalled the start of its pursuit towards electrification and autonomous vehicle. Specific details about this future have not yet been revealed, but the company has already said that a production version of the ID concept will hit the streets in 2020, becoming the first of many EV models that VW plans to release.

On that note, recent patent filings released by the Intellectual Property Organization and unearthed by Autocar have given us a glimpse of possible new models that could be included in Volkswagen’s EV family. One of these models appears to be a low-slung sports coupe that features gull-wing doors and an active set of aerodynamic features, including an extendable rear fin at the roof of the car. Separately, the inquiring minds over at VWVortex have also discovered other vehicles that have been identified in the same patent filing, two of which appear to be vehicles of the public commuter variety, including one that literally looks like an oversized oven toaster with hidden wheels.

While the patents do reveal some striking designs, none of them have been confirmed for production capacity like the ID Concept. Given Volkswagen’s timetable for the production version of the ID, it’s very unlikely that we’ll see any of these patents come to life soon, even in concept form. For what they’re worth, they may not even amount to anything, but at the very least, they point us to the electric and autonomous driving future that Volkswagen is planning to go to.

Continue after the jump to read the full story.

German logistics giant Deutsche Post (known as DHL across Europe) is about to become a major threat to mainstream automakers after it has quietly designed and built its own electric delivery van. Dubbed StreetScooter and made with help from 80 suppliers, including Bosch and Hella, DHL’s electric hauler will replace the company’s fleet of conventional Volkswagen Caddy vans. DHL, which is also using Renault Kagoo Z.E. EVs, operates around 1,000 StreetScooters and plans to build 5,000 units a year in order to replace the 30,000 gas- and diesel-powered vans in its current fleet.

DHL’s new strategy is already creating great concern among automakers, especially Volkswagen, which will see its contract for the Caddy vans cancelled. Volkswagen CEO Matthias Mueller went as far as to say that the company is “annoyed beyond measure” about DHL building the StreetScooter on its own.

“I, of course, ask myself why Post did not talk to our VW Commercial vehicles division about doing something similar. Let’s see if we can still get a foot in the door there,” he said according to Reuters. However, Mueller did not mention the fact that DHL has been refused by several automakers because it wanted a limited number of cars. In other words, Volkswagen would have been happy to provide DHL with an electric van, but only as the logistics company ordered more than just a few thousands per year. Obviously, developing a limited-run Caddy EV wouldn’t have worked for the company that wants to retain its place at the top of the automotive industry sales-wise.

But DHL didn’t waste time trying to convince mainstream automakers to build its a delivery van. Instead, it acquired StreetScooter GmbH in 2014. A former start-up that became a consortium of about 80 companies in the automotive industry and related sectors, StreetScooter was established in 2010 and had already produced its first vans in 2013. The brilliant part of building the StreetScooter is that, because it is working with a network of 80 suppliers, DHL has very little engineering costs to cover.

The electric van uses a 40-horsepower motor that runs for up to 75 miles on a single charge, reaches an electronically limited top speed of 50 mph, and has a payload of 1,400 pounds. A heavier duty, 2,200-pound version is also in the works. The van has been designed to be used 10 hours a day and six days a week over a 16-year service life. DHL says that switching to the electric van will reduce maintenance costs by 50 percent and cut repair costs by as much as 80 percent. These figures have already brought the StreetScooter in the attention of other delivery companies and word has it DHL might sell it to others as soon as it replaces every conventional vehicle in its fleet.

Now this is what really bothers Volkswagen and the like.

Continue reading for the full story.