Renault-Nissan boss believes EV evolution will be slow

Renault-Nissan CEO, Carlos Ghosn, says he expects the spread of electric vehicles around the world to be a gradual one, predicting internal combustion and hybrid units will continue to dominate for decades.

Ghosn, speaking in New York today, said he believed all-electric vehicles would make up just 10 per cent of the sales by 2020.
“[Electric cars] [...]

EV infrastructure gets a kick-start in the UK

The British Government is ramping up its push for electric vehicle infrastructure by today offering £30 million (AUD$54.4 million) grants to prospective pioneering cities.

The Plugged-In Places initiative will support the development of 3-6 electric car cities which will involve installing charging points in streets, car parks and in commercial, retail and leisure facilities.
In total the [...]

Smart ForTwo US car2go program begins in Austin, Texas

The City of Austin in Texas today started a car sharing scheme that will next year be expanded to service every one of its residents.

The “car2go” project has commenced with more than 13,000 workers signing up for memberships allowing them to share 200 Smart ForTwo vehicles in and around the city.
Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell said [...]

Fiat eco:Drive honoured in UK green award ceremony

It’s that time of the year when motoring awards come thick and fast and Fiat is the latest to join the party.

Yesterday CarAdvice reported that Mazda won an award for its “i-stop” start/stop engine technology, and now Fiat has been honoured for another environmentally friendly innovation: the eco:Drive.
Fiat’s eco:Drive is a standard system that uses [...]

Prius could outsell Camry says US Toyota boss

US President of Toyota Motor Sales, Mr Jim Lentz, has said during an interview this week that he believes the company’s Prius hybrid model could beat long-time favourite Camry sedan as the company’s best selling product in the United States.

“I think long-term, Prius as a nameplate could even outsell Camry as a nameplate, into this [...]

Beijing Auto joins China’s EV race

Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corporation (BAIC), has shown off its first self developed electric car, joining other Chinese rivals expecting a demand for clean energy cars.

BAIC is a partner of Daimler and was an unsuccessful bidder for General Motors’s Opel brand. The electric vehicle known as BE701 is able to travel a distance of 200km [...]

Toyota Prius hybrid family on the way

As first reported by CarAdvice more than 12 months ago, Toyota is set to create a Prius hybrid family when it introduces a crossover or wagon model in around 12 months time, according to a report in Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper.

The new car could be the first high-volume vehicle to use a lithium-ion battery, which [...]

Volvo C30 DRIVe & Facebook launch virtual round world contest

Volvo is launching an innovative online contest challenging people to virtually drive a Volvo C30 DRIVe around the world in 80 days, using only their Facebook friends. Volvo Cars will donate 15,000 Euros (AUD$24,000) in the winning team’s name to a carbon offset project promoted by “myclimate”.

The purpose of the contest is to drive the [...]

Toyota Camry Hybrid to save 1100 litres of fuel per year

The upcoming Australian made Toyota Camry Hybrid will save approximately 1100 litres of fuel in a year of city driving compared to locally made six-cylinder rivals.

Corporate manager of product planning, Mr Peter Evans, said Hybrid Camry’s fuel consumption and emissions would rival small and compact cars. 

The fuel savings during 20,000km of city driving will [...]

Ford’s EcoBoost engine sales exceed expectations in US

Ford’s four-cylinder EcoBoost engine is attracting younger and more affluent buyers to the brand, according to Ford US.

The 2.0-litre direct-injection turbocharged unit is currently available on the Taurus SHO and the Flex, as well as Lincoln’s MKS and MKT.
The 205kW/379Nm EcoBoost will make its way into the Falcon in early 2011, and Ford Australia President [...]

Peugeot HYbrid3 Evolution revealed

Peugeot has unveiled its latest three-wheeled concept vehicle featuring hybrid technology likely to find its way into production cars.

The HYbrid3 Evolution, on display at the International Cycle and Motorbike Show in Milan, began life at last year’s Paris Motor Show and has since lost its roof to appear more bike-like.
The “concept scooter”, as Peugeot calls [...]

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