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Tesla Motors has nothing but undeniable design hits in its two-vehicle portfolio. We know this is true because there has been very little written about how bad the Roadster and the Model S look. We're about to see if the company can make it three in a row when the wraps come off the Model X at a special event February 9 in Los Angeles. Getting our first visuals of that crossover will certainly be interesting, but it's really just a part of what Tesla is calling "The Year Of The Model S." The Model S, after all, heralds a new Tesla brand, so the Model X needs to "have the same design cues" while also expanding Tesla's lineup.

A lot of people would love a minivan but can't bring themselves to buy one, so they drive an SUV.

Those are the words of Tesla's vice president of communications, Ricardo Reyes, who told AutoblogGreen during the Detroit Auto Show that the Model X will be a true seven-seater that combines "the functionality of a minivan with a cool SUV/crossover package. A lot of people would love a minivan but can't bring themselves to buy one, so they drive an SUV." Tesla wants to offer an alternative to the traditional SUV bodystyle just as it offers an alternative electric powertrain. The move into utility vehicle territory, also marks the end of an era of sorts. The car that brought electric vehicles roaring back to life – Tesla's iconic Roadster – is about to go the way of the dodo.

Right now, Tesla's Fremont factory (the former NUMMI plant) is still building beta versions of the Model S as it gets ready for the first production versions. Because of this, Tesla is confident that Model S deliveries will start in the U.S. this summer as scheduled, and that means that Tesla will sell the last Roadsters here soon. Reyes told AutoblogGreen in an email:

From the beginning, the Roadster was conceived as a limited production vehicle. Our original agreement with Lotus was for a glider run of 2,400 vehicles. Due to continued demand, we increased production into 2012 for a total run of 2,500. We decided to continue offering Roadsters in the markets outside the United States where Model S deliveries start later. Model S deliveries are on schedule to begin in the United States in mid-2012. They will follow in Europe about six months later.

To date, the Roadster sold well over 2,000 units around the world, with "approximately half" sold in the U.S., but the car is about so much more than giving a few thousand wealthy people a thrilling, emissions-free car.

Volkswagen has unveiled the new production model five-door Up! after patent drawings of the vehicle made their way to the web. The newest member to the Volkswagen small-car line is expected to land on dealer lots in Germany by early March, with availability opening up to the rest of Europe by summer. The vehicle will launch with the exact same engines and external dimensions as its three-door brethren. That means buyers will be able to opt for either a 60-horsepower, 1.0-liter three-cylinder engine or a 75 horsepower version of the same powerplant. Even so, Volkswagen anticipates roughly half of Up! buyers will opt for the new five-door bodystyle.

The five-door Up! does serve up a few stylistic changes over its three-door counterpart beyond the addition of two extra doors. For starters, the rear hatch is solid glass and the hatchback's side profile line is now basically straight from front to rear. In the three-door version, that line kicks up slightly as it heads toward the rear of the vehicle. Buyers can expect to pay $13,295 (including Europe's notorious taxes) at current conversion rates, which is a little over $600 more than the three-door hatch. Hit the jump for the full press release.

How many ways can a car be delayed? For the Fisker Karma, the answer is: a lot. Following all sorts of problems in getting the luxury plug-in hybrid to market (to say nothing of the price increases and the two insta-recalls), Fisker's latest problem is, apparently, having finished vehicles that are stuck at the border just waiting to come into the U.S. (The Karma is built at the Valmet factory in Finland.)

According to Automotive News (via USA Today), the ongoing problems are causing potential buyers to take their $5,000 deposits back. USA Today writes, "Some 1,500 of the Finnish-built Karmas are stuck at sea, stuck in customs or otherwise stuck." That is not a good situation.

So, how does that 60-new-Karmas-a-day number look now? More importantly, if the Karma goes bad, will the company's next project – the already-controversial Nina for which the feds loaned Fisker over $500 million – be dead before it really starts?

*UPDATE: Roger Ormisher, Fisker's senior director, global corporate communications & PR, let us know that: "This information is not correct. We had a brief stop sale last week for software upgrades on the cars. This was cancelled on Wednesday evening and we are in the process of shipping cars to dealers and registering them again. There are no cars 'stuck at sea.' Rechtin's story in AN was based on an interview conducted more than 3 weeks ago – USA picked this up and in our view misrepresented the facts." We apologize.

Chevrolet dealers in some U.S. markets are turning away Chevrolet Volts that General Motors is allocating to them, indicating that consumers remain concerned that the extended-range plug-in vehicles pose an additional safety risk relative to convention cars, are too expensive or are otherwise not as desired as GM thinks, Automotive News (subs. req.) reported.

New York City-area Chevy dealerships took just 31 of the 104 Volts allocated to them last month, while one Northern California dealer turned away all six Volts offered to him, according to the publication. Another East Coast dealer reported a "huge dropoff" in Volt interest. Overall, dealer orders for Volts have declined, Automotive News said, citing GM spokesman Rob Peterson.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said late last week that it finished its two-month investigation into the crash test that resulted in a fire three weeks after the fact last summer, and concluded that neither the Volt nor other electric vehicles pose more of a fire risk than conventional vehicles.

Earlier this month, USA Today reported that GM has prepared an advertising campaign that would be launched in the event of more negative reports about Chevrolet Volt or a negative outcome of the Congressional hearing that takes place tomorrow. Last month, GM sold 1,529 Volts, a record high, and sold 7,671 Volts for all of 2011. GM had previously set a goal of 10,000 Volt sales for 2011.

We have good news for you if you're missing the Tesla Roadster already. German manufacturer PG has unveiled the company's new Elektrus, a Lotus-based sports EV with some very wild styling. While the company has made a name for itself producing carbon-fiber electric bicycles, the Elektrus is its first crack at the automotive market. The Randall Boggs-inspired coupe uses a Lotus Elise chassis with bodywork comprised of carbon fiber and composite, though the company is keeping powertrain details to itself for the time being. We do know the vehicle's battery pack will afford Elektrus buyers a claimed range of around 215 miles and the whole package is said to weigh under 2,000 pounds.

The company also says the cells can be topped off in around eight hours from of a standard household outlet. With around 270 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque, the Elektrus should be very quick on its feet. PG claims the vehicle can dash to 62 mph in under three seconds on its way to a top speed of 155 mph. Look for the vehicle to land with a gasp-inducing price tag of $367,700 at current conversion rates (including VAT) when it hits the market in Germany. Hit the jump for the press release.

It isn't every day that BMW offers an electric vehicle, but the ActiveE is just that. The German luxury car maker is now accepting applications for 700 ActiveE "Electronauts" in the test markets of Boston, Hartford, New York, Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego and San Francisco.

The hand-raisers will need to complete a charging station consultation with BMW Partner AeroVironment to make sure the house of the perspective lessee can handle a charger. The meeting will also serve as a teaching session to make sure the user understands the charging and maintenance of an electric vehicle.

Once the perspective lessee meets those criteria, they will be given the opportunity to lease the
4,000-pound, electrified 1 Series Coupe for 24 months at $499 per month, plus $2,250 down. Hit the jump to look over the BMW press release, and head over to BMWActivateTheFuture.com if you're interested in learning more about the ActiveE.

And now, a little bit of news for that huge contingent of people known as Bentley-driving tree huggers.

The ultra-luxury automaker is looking at how Volkswagen is making hybrid powertrains and may add a plug-in hybrid option to future models, UK-based Autocar reported, citing an interview with Bentley engineering chief Rolf Frech.

Bentley is more apt to look at new powertrains now that former Porsche executive Wolfgang Durhemier is running the company, Autocar said. Frech noted that, in addition to boosting fuel economy, electric-drive powertrains are appropriate for Bentley because of the high torque that electric motors provide.

There'd sure be plenty of room for fuel-economy improvements when it comes to a potential electric-drive powertrain in a Bentley. Last February, the nonprofit American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) put together its annual list of "greenest" and "meanest" U.S. production vehicles when it came to environmental impact. Bentley managed to get two cars onto the list – the Bentley Mulsanne and the Bentley Continental GTC. Both V8-powered cars got an EPA-rated 13 miles per gallon combined. The only "meaner" non-SUV or non-truck on the ACEEE list was the Bugatti's 16-cylinder Veyron.

This electric DeLorean is just a prototype, but our sister publication Translogic got to take it for a spin and found that a 260-horsepower electric motor finally makes the DMC-12 the sports car everyone has always wanted it to be. While we get to see plenty of footage of the car lapping Houston Motorsports Park, this episode also includes an interview with DeLorean Motor Company CEO Stephen Wynne.

While we don't want to give too much away, Wynne discusses future plans for the Texas-based DeLorean restorer and remanufacturer, which include bringing the electric DeLorean to market. Wynne tells Translogic that the car is expected to sell for between $95,000-$100,000. The car is said to have a 100-mile range, which would make it roughly equivalent to the Nissan Leaf, but with far more performance – not to mention its iconic time machine looks.

With all the negative publicity some pundits have heaped upon electric vehicles as of late, we wonder if perhaps this is the car to change their minds about EVs? See Translogic's full experience with the electric DeLorean in the video after the jump.

The UK government has extended its tax credit for electric-vehicle buyers to 2015 and will now include electric vans in the generous incentive.

UK electric-vehicle buyers will receive a credit for as much as 25 percent of the value of their new vehicle, up to 5,000 British pounds, or just under $7,800 U.S. at today's exchange rates, Autoblog's sister publication in the UK reported. Purchasers of electric commercial vehicles may receive a credit worth as much as 20 percent of the vehicle's cost, up to 8,000 pounds ($12,500).

With the credit, the price of a Nissan Leaf is reduced about 14 percent, to 25,990 pounds ($40,500), while the price of a Renault Kangoo Z.E. is dropped an even 20 percent to 16,990 pounds ($26,500). Among the other electric-drive vehicles set to debut in the UK this year are the Chevrolet Volt and the Nissan eNV200 van.

The UK's tax credit for EVs is slightly more generous than the flat $7,500 incentive offered by the U.S. federal government, though many U.S. states offer additional tax credits to EV buyers.

Coda Holdings, parent company of the Los Angeles-based electric-vehicle maker Coda Automotive, is launching a division specializing in energy storage as the company looks to cash in on what many believe will be a rapidly growing market for secondary use of electric-vehicle batteries.

The new company, aptly named Coda Energy, will specialize in designing battery systems that may be used for on-site power supply as well as a backup power source in the event of a grid outage. Coda has an existing business partnership with its car-battery supplier, Lishen, which also makes lithium-ion batteries for companies such as Apple and Samsung.

Coda, which sells the battery-electric five-seater Coda Sedan, is looking to take advantage of an energy-storage market that it says will jump by a factor of 100 over the next decade and will generate $122 billion in revenue during that time. The company, which opened its Los Angeles headquarters in November, said last September that it raised $147 million in its fourth round of financing to bring its total to more than $300 million since the company's 2009 founding. Coda sells its 150-mile-range Sedan for $39,900 and said earlier this month that it would offer a version with a slightly shorter single-charge range for $2,650 less.

Proponents of electric vehicles are keeping an eye on the secondary-battery market because much of an EV's cost and residual value is tied to how much its battery costs to produce and how much it can be sold for when it can no longer be used in the car.

Coda is not the only EV maker looking into the so-called secondary battery market. Nissan last week reached an agreement with ABB, the world's biggest maker of power-transmission equipment, to test used lithium-ion electric-vehicle batteries, such as those in the Nissan Leaf battery-electric vehicle, for possible energy storage uses for utility companies and community power sources. The partnership is looking to develop a 50 kilowatt-hour battery-storage prototype that would be able to power 15 homes for two hours. GM is also looking at ways to re-use Chevrolet Volt batteries.

Torrance, CA is going to the front of the line. Honda has delivered its first Fit EV to the city government Friday as part of an EV demonstration program that will include an unspecified number of the little electric vehicles in tests before the consumer launch in limited markets (read: California and Oregon) happens this summer. Torrance will also get a Honda plug-in hybrid in the future.

From the sound of Honda's language, it appears that Torrance – as well as Google Inc. and Stanford University, the other test partners – will only get one Fit EV. Honda's press release (available after the jump) says:

Each program participant will provide Honda with real-world feedback on the Fit EV. Individually, each participant will use the Fit EV to further initiatives such as research into human behavior and various usages like personal, fleet and car-sharing.

However many Fits are tested, what's more important is how real-world drivers will be able to make use of this car when it becomes available. With an expected lease price of $399 and a range of 123 miles in the city (76 miles city/highway combined) from a 20-kWh lithium-ion battery, the Fit does offer up some good numbers. Throw in a three-hour recharge time (from a 240V, Level 2 charger) and you've got a potential winner. In limited markets, anyway. Get more details on the Fit EV here.

Infiniti has started throwing stones at the Porsche Panamera S Hybrid. The Japanese luxury brand aims to pit its M Hybrid against the electrified German five-door in a fight for the title of the world's fastest-accelerating production full hybrid. How's that for a mouthful? The Porsche Panamera S Hybrid dishes out 380 horsepower and is good for a 0-60 mph time of around 5.7 seconds, all while returning up to 30 mpg highway. Of course, you'll be asked to pay for the privilege of ownership. The Panamera S Hybrid commands an MSRP of $95,000.

The Infiniti M Hybrid, meanwhile, is good for 360 horsepower from a 3.5-liter V6 engine and a potent electric motor. Infiniti hasn't outright said how quickly the M Hybrid can do the 0-60 mph dash, but we can say from experience that the vehicle is no pushover. All told, the M Hybrid can deliver up to 32 mpg highway, but is it quicker than the Porsche?

We'll find out soon. Hit the jump to see the teaser for yourself.

China consumers bought twice as many battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) last year as they did hybrids, the China Automotive Review reported, citing the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM).

Automakers sold 5,655 BEVs and 2,713 hybrids in 2011, according to CAAM statistics. Last year was the first year CAAM broke out statistics for advanced-powertrain vehicle sales and production.

China is expected to overtake the U.S. and other parts of the world in these sorts of vehicle sales as government plans that encourage zero-emissions vehicles go into effect during the next few years and companies like BYD expand BEV production. Overall, Asia-Pacific will account for about 617,000 electric-drive vehicles sold in 2017, almost double North America's total, green-technology research firm Pike Research estimated last year. China passenger vehicle sales totaled 14.5 million units last year, up 5.2 percent from a year earlier, according to CAAM.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's official word on the Chevrolet Volt fire incident is out, and it's all good. Following a two-month investigation into the crash test that resulted in a fire three weeks after the fact last summer, NHTSA says it "does not believe that Chevy Volts or other electric vehicles pose a greater risk of fire than gasoline-powered vehicles." Going further, NHTSA said the the Volt is safe to drive because, "no discernible defect trend exists and that the vehicle modifications recently developed by General Motors reduce the potential for battery intrusion resulting from side impacts." This sure sounds like good news, but we'll almost certainly hear about the political ramifications at some point.

For its part, GM says that NHTSA's decision to close the investigation and the resulting stance that plug-ins are safe, "is consistent with the results of our internal testing and assessment." GM also said that it remains "proud of the technological innovation the Volt represents." See the full statements from both the NHTSA and GM after the break.