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Filed under: Spy Photos , Hybrids/Alternative , Green , Paris Motor Show , Honda Click above for a high-res gallery of Honda's new hybrid. Honda's oft - discussed , yet never spied Prius-fighter has been caught by the merry minions at KGP. A parade of three cars were shot in the desert, including the prototype you see above, a facelifted Civic Hybrid and the new model's arch rival, the Toyota Prius. While the cloaked mule's shape could be easily mistaken as a Prius, the two-tier instrument cluster is a dead giveaway of the prototype's Honda origins. The nose is notably lower than its Toyota competition and although the hatch is an obvious rip on the Prius' aerodynamic rear, the fenders have a discernibly steeper angle, along with a trunk lid sporting a small spoiler. The unnamed hybrid from Honda will make its debut at the Paris Motor Show later this year, and will adopt many of the design cues found on the big H's hydrogen-powered FCX Clarity sedan. Gallery...
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Filed under: Hybrids/Alternative , SUVs , Trucks/Pickups , Hirings/Firings/Layoffs , Plants/Manufacturing , Crossovers/CUVs , Toyota Toyota's got some changes and rearranges underway with its North American facilities to better serve the demands of the market. The biggest news is that Prius production will be coming Stateside, which will help unkink the supply pipeline, if not also lower costs. A new facility in Blue Springs, Mississippi is being readied for the battery-pack-mobile, though the location was initially meant to turn out Highlanders. With consumer desires shifting with the rise of fuel prices, cranking out more Priuses is a higher priority, and beginning in fall 2009, the Highlander will shuffle off to Princeton, Indiana. With the Highlander elbowing its way into the Princeton plant, the vehicle currently produced there, the Tundra, will see its production move under a single roof in San Antonio, Texas. The big-truck moves are of little consequence when the plants are scheduled...
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Filed under: Hybrids/Alternative , Green , Chevrolet , GM Click above for a high-res gallery of the Chevrolet Volt concept. One of the many things General Motors boasted about when it unveiled the Volt concept at the Detroit Auto Show in 2007 was its 600-mile range. This was achieved partially by the battery pack, which could sustain a (theoretical) charge allowing the Volt to run for 40 miles without reverting to the gasoline engine/generator, as well as a 12-gallon fuel tank. According to Kicking Tires, GM has shrunk the size of the tank by an unknown quantity and the result is a reduction in range from 600 to 400 miles - or 360 miles without the aid of battery power. The General maintains that since most owners don't travel more than 40 miles in one day, it wasn't necessary to fit the Volt with a larger tank. That reduction in capacity will save some weight, but what will it cost in public perception? The hype surrounding GM's supposed savior and game-changer are based on...
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Filed under: Hybrids/Alternative , Government/Legal , Green California Governator and (soon-to-be) Telsa Roadster owner, Arnold Schwarzenegger, addressed the seething throngs of media types at Telsa's San Carlos, California facility. The topics of conversation centered on new incentives for Tesla to continue its production of vehicles in the Golden State, specifically the start-up's second vehicle, codenamed the Model S, which according to Tesla, get 225 miles on a single charge and cost $60,000. Tesla did not officially announce when the new model would go on sale, nor would it say where in California the "multi-use sport sedan" would be produced. The incentive for Tesla to remain in California, rather than move production of the sedan to New Mexico (discussed last year), is part of the CAEATFA program that was approved last Wednesday. The initiative exempts automakers from paying sales and use tax when they purchase manufacturing equipment to build electric vehicles...
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Filed under: Hybrids/Alternative , SUVs , Trucks/Pickups , Plants/Manufacturing , Chevrolet , GMC , HUMMER At the General Motors annual meeting in Delaware today, CEO Rick Wagoner will be publicly announcing the latest restructuring round for the beleaguered automaker. In response to plummeting sales of large trucks, GM will close down four more North American Assembly plants by 2010. The plants in Janesville, Wisconsin, Oshawa Ontario, Moraine, Ohio, and Toluca, Mexico are already running reduced production schedules and will cease operations entirely as products are discontinued or shifted to other plants. The Janesville plant builds medium trucks and SUVs while Moraine builds the old body on frame Trailblazer, GMC Envoy and Saab 9-7x SUVs. The other plants build full-size pickup trucks. The closures affect 10,000 employees at those plants. Those that aren't among the 19,000 who are taking buyouts will be offered transfers to other locations to fill spaces vacated by the departing...
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Filed under: Hybrids/Alternative , Ford , Police/Emergency Click above for a high-res gallery of the lifeguard Escapes The Los Angeles County Lifeguards (cue the Baywatch theme and visions of Pamela and the shirtless Hoff ) are getting new rides. A fleet of customized 4WD Ford Escape Hybrids is replacing the group's current pickup trucks , and the first ten (of a total 45) have been delivered. Changes made to the Escapes for lifeguard duty include the replacement of the center console with a radio rack and the removal of the 60% side of the 60/40 split rear seat. In its place is a storage unit for emergency equipment. The lifeguards' Escapes are also fitted with heavy-duty rubber mats and are literally topped off with a custom roof rack. All are finished in the signature yellow paint, which is further accented with special graphics and dark wheels. It's a pretty spiffy-looking package overall, and the hybrid part of the equation surely appeals to many in the Golden State. You...
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Filed under: Hybrids/Alternative , Sedans/Saloons , Government/Legal , Green As we recently reported , rumors have been swirling regarding Henrik Fisker's involvement with Tesla Motors and its upcoming electric sedan prototype known as the WhiteStar. As is often the case, there's apparently some truth to the scuttlebutt, as Tesla has filed a lawsuit claiming that Fisker Automotive is using stolen design ideas from Tesla sourced when Fisker Coachbuild was employed by the young EV automaker for the styling of its sedan. According to Tesla chairman Elon Musk, "We could not use the Fisker styling. The styling was substandard compared to what he unveiled for his product. He gave us an inferior work product, and it's obvious why." In the process of working for Tesla, the lawsuit contends that Henrik Fisker and a few of his associates stole design ideas and confidential information related to the design of hybrid and electric cars. Fisker has since announced his upcoming...
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Filed under: Concept Cars , Hybrids/Alternative , Sports/GTs , Geneva Motor Show , Euro , Green , Lotus Click above for a high-res gallery of the Lotus Exige 270E Tri-Fuel While assorted activists, politicians and random individuals carry on about the spectres of global warming, imported oil, CO 2 emissions and other issues that combine to create timetable-free doomsday scenarios, there are people working on potential solutions that do not involve us driving around four-wheeled Segway scooters. That's right: the "dreaded" internal combustion engine might yet provide the answer -- or at least an answer. And because Lotus is the entity searching for the answer in this particular case, the end result might not only be green -- it looks ridiculously fun, too. The car you see here is the Geneva-bound Lotus Exige 270E Tri-Fuel concept, the successor to 2006's Exige 265E , which made 265 horses running on E85. The 270E goes a step further. Not only can it run on gasoline or ethanol...
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Filed under: Concept Cars , Hybrids/Alternative , SUVs , Geneva Motor Show , Euro , Land Rover Click image for a hi-res gallery of the Black & Silver Land Rover LRX And here we thought it looked good in white . Land Rover is quick to remind that the LRX is "just a concept," but it's sending a pretty strong message in Geneva, where a second , black-and-silver LRX will join the original white truck that premiered in Detroit . And the new one is even hotter than the original, itself one of the best concepts of the last year. It's supposed to demonstrate how a (potential) production LRX could be personalized, and we would like to have one delivered to our personal garage approximately yesterday. The rakish shape now features a silver roof fitted with side rails and a removable carbon-composite panel. This beautifully contrasts the black primary finish, and aluminum-accented details do their part to further dress up the exterior. As a subtle reminder to onlookers that this...
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Filed under: Economy , Hybrids/Alternative , Geneva Motor Show , Euro , Green , Hatchbacks , Volkswagen Click image for a gallery of the Golf TDI Hybrid Auto Bild has decided to "help" Volkswagen introduce the VW Golf TDI Hybrid that the automaker will be unveiling in Geneva a few days from now. So, how does it look? Pretty impressive. The car mates a 75 PS (74 HP) 3-cylinder TDI, a 27 horsepower electric motor and a 7-speed DSG to average 69 mpg (3.4l/100km) in the European Cycle with carbon dioxide emissions of just 90 g/km. The electric motor is powered by a trunk-mounted NiMH battery. The Golf TDI Hybrid is indeed a full hybrid, so it can run on electric power, diesel power or a combination of the two. It also uses regenerative braking, a stop/start system, and one of those energy monitor videogame screens that gives you a graphical representation of the powertrain's activity. Visually, the car sports a new Vivid Blue finish and employs narrower grillework, a lowered suspension...
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Filed under: Detroit Auto Show , Coupes , Economy , Hybrids/Alternative , Sedans/Saloons , Sports/GTs , Trucks/Pickups , Dodge , Ford , Mitsubishi Click image for a look at the other model debuts by the NYT The Old Grey Lady has officially kicked off the Detroit Auto Show 24 hours early, and they brought some party favors for all their readers to boot. The New York Times' Automobiles section has a Detroit preview article (dated 1/13, incidentally) in its feature spot. No longer under wraps are the 2009 Dodge Ram, 2009 Ford F-150 Platinum, Mitsubishi Concept-RA, Ford Verve sedan concept, and the Fisker plug-in luxo-hybrid, as all are featured prominently in the piece's accompanying new vehicle gallery. The biggest fish in the tank are the two full-size trucks. While Chrysler inadvertently gave us a sneak preview of the Ram last month, Ford has kept the new F-150 well under wraps until now. The model pictured is the tip-top-of-the line F-150 Platinum, in case you were wondering. As...
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Filed under: Detroit Auto Show , Hybrids/Alternative , CES , Green , Tech , Crossovers/CUVs , Cadillac Click on the Cadillac Provoq concept for a high-res image gallery var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/autos/Cadillac_Provoq_Concept_debuts_at_CES_2008'; Following the introductions of the Chevrolet Volt and Opel Flextreme during 2007 auto show season, Cadillac is bringing forth a third design based on the E-Flex architecture. The Cadillac Provoq concept is intended to help give the brand an image of premium sustainability by updating the fuel cell E-Flex powertrain that was shown in a Chevy Volt at the Shanghai Motor Show last year . The Provoq is a luxury crossover design that's considerably larger than the Volt. With updated Cadillac styling cues on a 180-inch long CUV body, it's stretched 10 inches longer than a Volt to allow comfortable seating for five passengers. The Provoq is built around GM's fifth-generation fuel cell stack combined with a 9kWh lithium ion battery...
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Filed under: Hybrids/Alternative , Sedans/Saloons , Green , Porsche var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/autos/Porsche_releasing_four_door_hybrid'; Although Porsche has yet to fully reveal its "four-door GT" to the public, it's officially announced that the Panamera will have the option to come equipped with the same gas-electric hybrid powertrain that will find it's way into the Cayenne by the end of the decade. The parallel hybrid setup will include a battery pack fitted below the luggage compartment, along with an additional clutch and electric motor mated between the engine and transmission. Fuel consumption is expected to be reduced by around 30-percent, while still providing the same motivation you'd expect from a Porsche. Stuttgart plans to reveal the Panamera to the world in 2009, initially with traditional gasoline-powered mills, with the hybrid to go on sale later. Continue reading Confirmed! Porsche Panamera to come with hybrid flavor Permalink | Email...
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Filed under: Detroit Auto Show , Hybrids/Alternative , Green , Crossovers/CUVs , Saturn Click the Two-Mode Vue for a high-res gallery var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/autos/GM_introduces_Saturn_Vue_Two_Mode_hybrid'; In 2006, the Saturn Vue Green Line became General Motors' first production hybrid vehicle when it debuted with the company's mild hybrid system. In fall 2007, a updated BAS-equipped Green Line version based on the second-generation Vue went into production. GM has now added the second of three hybrid variants to the Vue lineup with the2009 Saturn Vue Green Line 2 Mode. The 2 Mode Vue is based on the same technology used in the award-winning Tahoe and Yukon full-size SUVs. The Vue has the first transverse mounted front-wheel drive application of the 2 Mode system. The 2 Mode transmission is paired up in the Vue with GM's 3.6L twin-cam V6 equipped with direct fuel injection. Like the big SUVs, the engine is equipped with a cylinder deactivation system that allows...
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Filed under: Concept Cars , Detroit Auto Show , Hybrids/Alternative , Trucks/Pickups , Toyota click above to view more images of the Toyota A-BAT Concept Perhaps in response to the criticism that Toyota has received over the past year from environmentalists for its ever larger and thirstier trucks, the Japanese automaker is switching direction with its 2008 Detroit concept - the A-BAT hybrid pickup concept. Toyota and Nissan pioneered the idea of modern compact pickup trucks in the U.S. market, but Toyota has largely left it behind over the past decade. The new A-BAT concept pickup is 27 inches shorter than an extended cab Tacoma and nine inches shorter than the regular cab model. In profile, the uni-body truck looks somewhat like a shorter Honda Ridgeline with rounder contours. The A-BAT is the first Toyota to have a mid-gate allowing cargo longer than the standard four-foot bed to extend into the cab. With the tailgate down, drivers can pack the proverbial 4x8 sheet of plywood. Power...
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