Fiat offers a few powertrain choices for the 500 that improve the small car's fuel efficiency, like a two-cylinder small displacement engine and the all-electric plug-in option (well, in concept form, at least). A better diesel option will be coming soon with the addition of a new 1.3-liter 16-valve MultiJet diesel engine that improves fuel economy to 60 miles per gallon (U.S.).

Considered a MultiJet II, the new engine offers start-stop technology for lowered emissions (104 grams of CO2 per kilometer instead of 110) and a variable geometry turbocharger for more brake horsepower (95 bhp at 4,000 rpm, up from 75 in the outgoing MultiJet engine). The new engine will propel the 500 all the way to 112 miles per hour (the earlier MultiJet could only manage 103 mph) and drops the 0-60 time by almost two full seconds to 10.7 seconds.

[Source: Fiat]

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The Nissan Leaf is making a promotional tour around the U.S. and was in Massachusetts yesterday. The people of the commonwealth must have liked what they saw, because the Renault-Nissan Alliance announced a new zero-emission vehicle partnership with the state government from the Museum of Science in Boston.

The state and the alliance will work together, in a vague way, to ready a recharging infrastructure for electric cars. How vague? This vague:

As part of the agreement, Nissan and the State of Massachusetts will develop plans to promote a charging infrastructure for electric cars that encourages home and workplace charging, as well as a public charging infrastructure. The partners will work to coordinate the establishment of policies and help streamline charging infrastructure deployment. Nissan also has agreed to make available a supply of electric vehicles statewide.

Yeah, we're not quite sure what that says, either, but we assume more details will be forthcoming. The Leaf will be available in select markets later this year.

[Source: Nissan North America]

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We've now officially heard it from the horse's Nissan's mouth. Today at a pre-Chicago Auto Show event, Nissan confirmed what we've been hearing for the last month: the funky Juke will jive its way to America this fall. The small crossover was presaged by the Qazana concept, and the production version promises to share a number of that vehicle's unique styling features.

We'll get our first official glimpse of the new Juke at the Geneva Motor Show next month, and that debut will be followed up later in the month when the Juke gets its North American introduction at the New York Auto Show. Nissan says the Juke will offer "a sporty crossover alternative to traditional small hatchback vehicles," which we can only assume to be competing models such as the Kia Soul and Scion xB. We hope that the Juke will also try to outdo those vehicles in fuel economy, but Nissan hasn't said word one about the Juke's miles per gallon possibilities.

The Japanese automaker also tells us that the car's center console was inspired by a motorcycle tank. We never knew we wanted a gas tank-shaped center console until now, but Nissan officially has our interest piqued with that little tidbit. We'll see if the actual implementation is as intriguing as it sounds soon enough; in the meantime, click past the break for the official press release.

[Source: Nissan]

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After two concepts and an insufferable amount of teasing, the 2011 Audi A1 has officially arrived with its sights set squarely on the Mini Cooper.

Inspired by the Metroproject Quattro from 2007, the all-new A1 is a faithful recreation of its conceptual predecessor, complete with a squat stance, short overhangs and four customizable colors for the roof arches. With a profile reminiscent of a stretched and squashed TT, the A1 spans 155.5 inches long, 68.5 inches wide and 56 inches tall, with a 97.2-inch wheelbase. Ten exterior colors are available, along with front and rear LEDs and Xenon headlamps.

Audi's focus on the interior begins and ends with customization, with available LED lighting, black, grey, beige or "wasabi" green contrasting materials, colored air vents and an optional MMI system with a 6.5-inch screen, 10-speaker, 465-watt Bose audio system, 20 gig harddrive and Bluetooth connectivity. Although backseat passengers were apparently an afterthought, the A1 boasts 9.43 cubic feet of storage space in the rear, with 32.49 cubic feet of space available when the rear seats are folded flat.

Motivation will be provided by a choice of either two gasoline or diesel powerplants, with the 1.6-liter TDIs churning out either 90 horsepower and 169 pound feet of torque or 105 ponies and 184 lb-ft of twist. The gasoline mills will be available in either 1.2- or 1.4-liter TFSI variants, with the former putting out 86 hp and 118 lb-ft of torque and the latter delivering 122 hp and 147 lb-ft through either a five- or six-speed manual. An optional seven-speed S tronic (dual clutch) transmission is available, and both gasoline engines deliver an average of 46 mpg. For the time being, the A1 is only available with front-wheel drive.

The 2,303-pound hatch will go on sale in Europe later this year after it's official unveiling at the Geneva Motor Show, with prices starting at around 16,000 euro. Two trims – Attraction or Ambition – are available, with an S Line accessories package and 18-inch wheels coming at launch. All the details can be had in the press release after the jump, but still no word yet on U.S. availability.

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Opel Chief Executive Officer Nick Reilly has unloaded a sweeping new business plan that includes plenty of interesting little tidbits for green car aficionados. Of course we already know about the 2011 Opel/Vauxhall Ampera, the European version of the 2011 Chevrolet Volt, but Reilly says that there will be another extended-range electric vehicle in addition to the Ampera.

Perhaps even more interesting is word that the automaker is also working on "introducing pure battery-electric vehicles in smaller-size segments." We've heard rumors that Opel will show off a city car at the next Paris Motor Show later this year, possibly similar to the Trixx concept from 2004 (see above). Might an electric version be in the offing? We'll see.

We also have to wonder if a small Opel electric vehicle could potentially come across the pond to the States, presumably as a Chevrolet or Buick. Finally, Opel promises to "[expand] LPG and CNG applications, start/stop technology and right-sizing of engines," which we can only assume means engine downsizing. Read the complete business plan press release after the break.

[Source: Opel]

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It seems that Ferrari head Amedeo Felisa has plenty to talk about when it comes to the future of his legendary brand, and that includes alternatives to traditional fuel sources. Speaking to Autocar in the UK, Felisa had this to say in regards to the hybridized 599 that the automaker has been testing for quite some time:

The technology is not ready. The suppliers are not ready. Everything is underdeveloped. There is a lot of work to so. It is not for tomorrow. We haven't decided when [it will be introduced]. It will be around 2015, but not before five years.

While it is going to take some time, Ferrari will indeed push forward with hybrid technology, which is said to improve the fuel efficiency of its traditionally highly thirsty V8 and V12 engines by 25 percent. That's great, but couldn't Ferrari do even better by going full electric? Not so much. Felisa explains that the Italian supercar manufacturer has no plans to introduce electric cars, saying:

If you look at global warming, the right solution is not full electric. It's more a marketing solution than a real one, sound is just as important as design and performance for Ferrari. We will not make engine sounds with speakers.

We can agree that electric cars shouldn't need fake engine sounds, but we're not so sure that EVs don't have a future in the high performance realm. Still, fuel efficiency is of real concern for Ferrari, to the point that the company would reportedly consider adding V6 engines to its lineup of pricey exotics. A new, fuel efficient Dino with a hybrid V6 setup sounds just dandy, no?



[Source: Autocar]

Now that the initial excitement over the new Trexa electric vehicle (EV) platform has subsided somewhat, the start-up has decided to issue information that is typically a bit more sobering, the price. In this case however, the six digits just might create much ado anew. How does $15,999 grab you? Yeah, us too.

For that price, new EV companies could spring forth like so many daisies, each with their own innovative ideas about what kind of vehicle to mount atop the scalable skateboard. Conceptual configurations might get constructed in weeks instead of months. EV and hydrogen advocates may finally make lasting friendships. But before we get too far ahead of ourselves we should say what that price includes. A car don't roll if it ain't got no wheels. Luckily the base Trexa comes with a full set of hoops and, along with them, everything else you need to have a self-powered prototype. We're talking a motor, 7 kWh battery module with built-in management system, a charger, a choice of wheelbase lengths (up to 96 inches) and a vehicle developer's kit (VDK) that gives you CAD (computer assisted design) models as well as some other hardware bits.

But what if you wanted the whole twin-motor four-wheel-drive, 28 kWh, 6 kW charger super-deluxe kit and kaboodle? What then? Price tag apocalypse? According to our highly-placed sources, the company thinks it can offer a package all-kitted out for under $32,000. The mind boggles. We can only hope these newcomers can keep up with expectations and (hopefully) demand. Official press release after the break.



[Source: Trexa]

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In 2009, Ford UK dealers collected 23,000 ruined bumpers from cars that had been in accidents. Why would they do this? In order to do a bit of recycling. Some of the material from those bumpers is now back in action, having been turned into bumpers – and other plastic parts – used in new Ford models like the Ka. Those 23,000 bumpers translate into 70 tons of landfill (giving each bumper an average weight of 6.8 pounds, since 70 long tons, used in the UK, are equivalent to 156,800 U.S. pounds).

The dealers aren't doing this solely because it helps the environment. They used to have to pay to have the bumpers hauled away in the trash. Now, because of the Ford Motor Company-sponsored bumper collection bins, they get to save that money. Ford's announcement about the program today gives the example that one dealer, Ford Ringways, saved around £15,000 last year.



[Source: Ford]

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Car sharing company Zipcar has responded to the Toyota Prius recall by shutting down rentals of that particular model until the "brake concerns have been addressed appropriately by Toyota." How many Priuses are there in Zipcar's fleet? All told, Zipcar has around 6,500 cars, and less than one percent of them are Priuses. Earlier, Zipcar stopped rentals of 2009 and 2010 Toyota Matrix models because of a safety recall.

In other car sharing news, Frost & Sullivan has calculated that, in America between 2007 and 2009, membership in car sharing organizations jumped up 117 percent. The future looks even better for car sharing groups, with total membership reaching 4.4 million in North America and 5.5 million in Europe by 2016.

What are the reasons for the increase? Frost & Sullivan estimated that each vehicle in a car sharing fleet "replaced 15 personally owned vehicles in 2009 and carsharing members drove 31% less than when they owned a personal vehicle." This means CO2 emissions were reduced by 482,170 tons. The analysts predict that a person who "drives 12,000 miles a year at an average driving speed of 30 miles per hour can save $1,834 by shifting to a carsharing service." City commuters, take note.

[Source: Frost & Sullivan via Treehugger, Boston.com]

Better Place has been signing deals to install its battery swapping and electric vehicle recharging station network around the world, for example, in Denmark, Tokyo and Canada. Not everyone is a fan of Better Place's methods, but now people in the company's home turf of Israel can get a closer look at what the deal is with the opening of the company's first electric vehicle (EV) demonstration center in Israel. To make the point totally clear that plug-in vehicles are a way to get off oil, the center is built inside a refurbished oil tank (pictured above). The center includes a 1.5 kilometer (one mile) test driving track for visitors to drive an EV on. The center opens February 14th.

As part of the center's opening, Better Place announced that it has so far signed up 92 corporate fleet owners and a new partnership with Dor Alon, one of Israel's leading gas station operators, to install battery switch stations. There was a number included in the Better Place release that we hadn't seen before: the company's new partners "have agreed to convert a portion of over 45,000 internal combustion engine cars to electric vehicles from Renault when commercially available in 2011." 45,000 conversions? Hmmm.

[Source: Better Place]

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