Pay to pollute: Emissions charges take effect in London

Ubitricity electric-car charging cordOn Monday, drivers of older gas and diesel cars in Britain were hit with new fees if they want to drive those cars into the city center in London. The new emissions charge of 12.5 British pounds ($16.30), follows similar charges on older vehicles in Paris, although it so far applies only to the same 8-square-mile area as London’s central…
Source: Hybrid and Electric Car News and Reviews

2020 Kia Soul EV First Drive: 243 electric miles in the box

2020 Kia Soul EV first drive  -  South Korea  -  April 2019I’m snaking the 2020 Kia Soul EV around a bend in the Korean countryside, happy to push faster after weathering Seoul’s famous morning traffic earlier, but I can’t escape two recurring thoughts. The first is that, if anything, real-time range estimates are conservative, or at the very least, nearer to the real world than ever…
Source: Hybrid and Electric Car News and Reviews

Ford electric SUV could meet 300-mile target, and then some

Ford crossover EV teaser photoFord has been teasing—even promising—a new Mustang inspired high-performance electric SUV, perhaps called Mach E or Mach 1, that it says will have a 300-mile range. Now the company has announced that the model has earned a 370-mile range rating in the generous European WLTP driving cycle. DON’T MISS: 2021 Ford Mach E: What we know…
Source: Hybrid and Electric Car News and Reviews

VW ID Roomzz, Toyota hybrid patents, more grid storage from hydro: Today's Car News

Teaser for Infiniti Qs Inspiration concept debuting at 2019 Shanghai auto showToyota plans to open its hybrid patents through 2030. Volkswagen introduces the ID Roomzz for the Shanghai auto show. Pumped hydro could deliver more energy storage than batteries. And readers weigh in on what new niche electrics they’d like to see on VW’s new ID EV platform. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Toyota is following in Tesla’s…
Source: Hybrid and Electric Car News and Reviews

Toyota shores up against electric-car threat, by sharing hybrid tech

2019 Toyota PriusAs some of the industry appears to be leapfrogging directly past hybrid vehicles, in favor of battery electrics—GM with its canceled Volt, for example—Toyota is making no such move. This morning it’s announced that it will open up its banks of patents related to hybrid systems, royalty-free until 2030. That applies to nearly…
Source: Hybrid and Electric Car News and Reviews

Tesla Model 3 delays, Chevy Volt lessons, EPA emissions recalls: Today's Car News

Smart ForEase concept, 2018 Paris auto show We look back at 10 lessons learned over eight years of Chevrolet Volt production. Owners are reported delays in delivery of the Standard Range Tesla Model 3. The EPA plans to publicize more emissions recalls. And global warming threatens to eat the global seed corn saved for just such a disaster. All this and more on Green Car Reports. Buyers who…
Source: Hybrid and Electric Car News and Reviews

BMW plans 12 all-electric models by 2025

Prototype for BMW iNext electric SUV due in 2021At its annual shareholders meeting in Munich on Wednesday, BMW laid out plans to bring 12 new all-electric cars to market by 2025, including five in the next two years. Along with the company’s existing i3, the first five will include the Mini Electric, due on sale later this year, the iX3 SUV next year, and the i4 sedan and iNext SUV in 2021…
Source: Hybrid and Electric Car News and Reviews

VW sold twice as many diesels in 2018 as in 2017

Volkswagen turbodiesels await their fate near Pikes Peak International Raceway in Colorado SpringsVolkswagen is scrambling to convert its business to building electric cars from building internal combustion cars to building electrics. But it hasn’t put diesels behind it. According to a report by VW itself, orders for its diesel vehicles rose from 39 percent of its products in 2017 to 2018, and that goes double for private customers versus…
Source: Hybrid and Electric Car News and Reviews

Tesla Model 3 Standard Range vs. Nissan Leaf Plus: What you get for your money

2019 Tesla Model 3 and 2019 Nissan Leaf PlusUntil recently, there have been electric cars, and then there have been Teslas. Quite a few automakers were scrambling to build electric cars to meet increasing demand from California and other states, and to give them ZEV credits and give their Corporate Average Fuel Economy numbers a booster shot. Most were small hatchbacks, and had relatively…
Source: Hybrid and Electric Car News and Reviews

Tesla Model 3 Mid Range disappears from automaker's lineup

2017 Tesla Model 3The Tesla Model 3 Mid Range didn’t last long. Tesla quietly dropped the middle trim level over the weekend, which had offered buyers 264 miles of range. The company introduced the car last November in lieu of the entry-level Standard Range car—although Tesla opened that most affordable Model 3 up to orders late last month. At the time Tesla…
Source: Hybrid and Electric Car News and Reviews