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GM provides update on Volt vehicle and battery development

General Motors offered an update this afternoon on the current status of the testing and development of the lithium ion batteries for the Chevy Volt. Chief Engineer Andrew Farah and battery engineering group manager Bill Wallace provided a run down on the work done so far. Since work started in earnest on the production program in early 2007, GM has gone from two initial battery development partners (LG Chem/CPI and A123 Systems/Continental) to selecting LG Chem to supply cells. GM also decided to design and build the battery pack in-house ... Read more →

First Drive: 2010 BMW X6 ActiveHybrid is technologically impressive... but to what end? Sebastian Blanco

BMW's pitch on how great the X6 ActiveHybrid is goes like this: it's the world's most powerful hybrid vehicle, fuel consumption is reduced about 20 percent compared to a similar vehicle without a ...

At Witz' End: Notes from "The Business of Plugging In" Gary Witzenburg

EV business may be booming soon I dropped by the Center for Automotive Research's (CAR) "The Business of Plugging In" conference in Detroit recently and came away with a collection of quotes ...

Editorial: Henderson's fuel cell 10X cost comments are out of context Sam Abuelsamid

The other day we reported on an interview with General Motors CEO Fritz Henderson published in the Washington Post. While most of the discussion focused on the bailout and bankruptcy, from the ...

Greenlings: How does weight affect a vehicle's efficiency? Sebastian Blanco

Over the last few decades, the average weight of a vehicle sold in the U.S. climbed steadily after we got over the oil embargoes of the 1970s. Today, though, auto companies are putting a lot of ...

Quick Spin: Myers Motors NmG - redefining fast and small for the future 25 days ago on Autoblog Green

digg_url = 'http://digg.com/autos/Myers_Motors_NmG_Redefining_Fast_Small_Car_For_The_Future'; It's ironic that the NmG we got to take for a spin during the Business of Plugging In conference in Detroit last week might be the last one-seater that Myers Motors ever makes. The company is getting ...

Quick Spin: GGT Cozmo NEV - rickety things come in pricey packages 26 days ago on Autoblog Green

GreenGo Tek is a boastful little electric vehicle company. A press release issued by GGT over the summer to announce the new Cozmo neighborhood electric vehicle stated that, because the company also does EV conversions: "GGT is the only company in the world with the technology and ...

Quick Spin: newly upgraded Bright IDEA delivers 29 days ago on Autoblog Green

The concepts that went into the Bright IDEA – a lightweight plug-in hybrid that serves a specific and large population – look great on paper. The vehicle itself, though, has never really looked all that good in the pictures we've seen. This week, during the Business of Plugging In ...

Why can't Americans have good, small diesels? 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

The question is often asked, "Why is it that drivers in Europe can get all of these amazing high-mileage cars that get 50, 60 or even 70 mpg but we have to celebrate when we get half of that?" There are plenty of reasons, but one of the main ones is the remarkable compression ignition engine, ...

Coskata's new Lighthouse cellulosic ethanol plant, in depth 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

Coskata's newly-opened semi-commercial flex ethanol facility in Madison, Pennsylvania is as small as it can possibly be. Co-located at a Westinghouse facility that also in some fashion uses nuclear energy, the Lighthouse project, as it's called, is running 24/7 to turn wood chips into ethanol. ...

Does a corn-ethanol vehicle beat the Tesla Roadster in lifetime CO2 emissions? 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

What does it take for a car to "beat" the Tesla Roadster? With a 0-60 time that blows away almost anything else on four wheels, there aren't many vehicles that are faster. With an all-electric drivetrain, the car sits at the absolute pinnacle (along with every other EV) for lowest tailpipe ...

AltCar 2009: Dan Neil, "Some Inconvenient Questions," and GM hints it could sell Chevy Volt gliders 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

On top of the test drives (Wheego Whip), test rides (Coda Sedan) and a visit to the unlimited energy booth, a highlight of the AltCar Expo last weekend was getting to hear the LA Times' premiere auto scribe Dan Neil moderate two sessions called "Some Inconvenient Questions." Neil was lucky to ...

First Drive: 2010 Tesla Roadster Sport improves on original, keeps quirks 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

To get from zero to 60 mph in the original Tesla Roadster takes an official 3.9 seconds. The brand new 2010 Roadster Sport beats that with a wonderful 3.7 seconds. Those two-tenths of a second don't look like much on paper, but they make a difference on the road. Perhaps just knowing about the ...

AltCar 2009: EF9's "unlimited clean energy" turbine could go into cars, if it works 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

Mark Tanner, who does R&D for EF9 Energy Systems, was pretty wiped out by the time we got to speak with him at the end of AltCar 2009 in Santa Monica last weekend. It's understandable. He'd been explaining how his system for "unlimited clean energy" was supposed to work to hundreds of ...

Will we ever replace the standard rear- and side-view mirror? 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

Recently, we received the following question from a reader: Rear view mirrors inevitably create blind spots. They add untold fuel costs by resisting airflow past the automobile at speed. Since the first back-up camera and display technology came on the scene they have been obsolete. What is ...

Top Ten "green" cars that met their fate during Cash for Clunkers 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

One rule that all clunked cars needed to adhere to was a maximum rating of 18 MPG from the federal government, right? What wasn't required was that the clunked car be considered dirty. After all, it's pretty clear that CNG vehicles burn clean, but that didn't stop 232 of them from meeting their ...

How can we "refuel" electric vehicles today and tomorrow? 2 months ago on Autoblog Green

Among the many claimed advantages of electric vehicles are the ability to "refuel" your vehicles at home, never visiting a gas station again. In principle, the only thing you need to "fuel" an EV is a working plug. However, in life, few things ever turn out to be as simple as they might appear ...

REPORT: Chevy Volt to start at $32,000 after tax credit? 2 months ago on Autoblog Green

While we know a good bit of information about GM's upcoming range-extended electric automobile, one major question lurks high above the rest: how much with the Chevy Volt cost? Well, that's a tough nut to crack. There will be a sticker price plastered on the car's window when it finally goes on ...

What are the promises and pitfalls of carbon fiber? 2 months ago on Autoblog Green

For the last century or so, cars and trucks have predominantly been formed from one material in particular: steel. It's not hard to see why – steel is relatively inexpensive, highly abundant and easy to form into somewhat complex shapes that can be repaired with mostly basic tools. ...

Bright Automotive has an IDEA to put 150,000 PHEVs on the road by 2015 2 months ago on Autoblog Green

Bright Automotive unveiled the Bright IDEA plug-in hybrid van at the end of April in Washington, D.C. The van that was on display that day is still the only IDEA in existence, but Bright has big dreams to get their through-the-road hybrid system into a lot of vehicles, even before the IDEA goes ...

Why choose a fuel cell or an internal combustion engine when using hydrogen? 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

Over the past decade, most of the world's major automakers have expended a lot research dollars and engineering resources on developing vehicles that burn hydrogen. While advocates like the idea of using hydrogen as an energy carrier because it's the most abundant element in the known universe ...

Review: 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid - What a difference 60 degrees makes 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

Recently, we had our third opportunity to drive the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid. Actually, the last go around was with a Mercury Milan Hybrid, but aside from a different nose and fanny, it is the same car. Even though we did a full review of the Milan, we asked Ford for another go around because of ...

At Witz' End - A sneak peak at the "new GM's" critically important product future 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

It was probably mid-1980, soon after the federal government agreed to guarantee massive loans to financially struggling Chrysler Corp., when then-Chrysler Chairman Lee Iacocca invited groups of auto media and analysts to its styling center for an off-the-record preview of what was coming two, three, ...

REPORT: GM working on four mode hybrid system 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

Our friend Mike Levine over at PickupTrucks.com spent some time talking to General Motors' John Turzewski about the future of the company's hybrid trucks last week and came away with some interesting information. As we know, the key to GM's two-mode hybrid system is a pair of planetary gear ...

At Witz' End: Turning over a new (Nissan) LEAF 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

Had lunch the other day with Nissan North America Product Planning Vice President Larry Dominique. He is the point man for communicating Nissan's green-vehicle vision, beginning with its soon-to-come LEAF battery electric car. A few minutes earlier, he had presented exactly that to a large roomful ...

POLL: LEAF, Volt or neither? Which do you prefer? 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

We got a note the other day from Lyle Dennis over at GM-Volt about a poll he's running among his readers following this week's announcement of the Nissan LEAF. Lyle wanted to judge the readers preference among the two electrically-driven cars. As a site that's been dedicated to all things Volt ...

VIDEO: Before you weld a Volt, you have to stamp out the bodies 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

The other day we pointed you at a video produced by General Motors that is part of a series on the building of the pre-production Chevy Volt prototypes. That video showed the IVER (integration vehicle engineering release) bodies being assembled, welded and painted in the body shop at the ...

2010 Nissan Leaf electric car: In person, in depth -- and U.S. bound [*UPDATED w/vids & live photos] 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

It would be easy to paint Nissan as late to the burgeoning U.S. green party, as the company essentially only counts the Altima Hybrid to sell among its alt-fuel offerings – and that sedan utilizes technology borrowed from Toyota, and it's only sold in a few states in small volumes. While ...

REPORT: House approves $2 billion more for Cash for Clunkers, Senate votes next week 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

The U.S. House of Representatives voted 316 to 109 today in favor of H.R. 3435, a bill that will infuse the Car Allowance Rebate System, or Cash for Clunkers program, with an extra $2 billion. Word came late Thursday evening that the program, which offers consumers a rebate of $3,500 - $4,500 ...

Jesse James: loves H2, says all electric car fans "are Dungeons and Dragons freaks" 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

Last month, adrenaline junkie Jesse James attempted to set a new land speed record in his hydrogen-powered vehicle, sort of a purpose-built H2-rocket. Things didn't go as smooth as James hoped, but he's still a huge fan of hydrogen cars. As part of the promotion for his show Jesse James is a Dead ...

What's up with natural gas vehicles? 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

One thing we try to do with our weekly series of Greenlings articles is answer reader questions about the green car industry (if you've got a burning need to know something, please let us know). Considering today's news that the Honda Civic GX is now available for sale in Utah, we thought we'd ...

REPORT: Honda Insight sales withering in face of competition from Toyota Prius 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

Honda's Insight hybrid is failing to live up to sales expectations here in the important U.S. market. While Honda claims the Insight was never meant to be a direct competitor to the Toyota Prius, the truth is that the two cars are very much rivals in the eyes of many new car shoppers (and some ...

EEStor information overload (not a typo) in leaked interview with CEO Dick Weir 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

For about six hours recently, a leaked (we assume it was leaked) audiotape of someone speaking with EEStor CEO Dick Weir was available on Yahoo! video. Before the video was yanked, enterprising electric car fans managed to record the audio and have made it available around the net. What's ...

smart USA president Dave Schembri on clunkers, upcoming electric smarts 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

In the first year that smart fortwo's were available in the U.S., the company sold about 30,000 units. After that first heady period, though, sales dropped off dramatically. In June 2009, the company sold just 1,116 fortwos and in May the number was 1,169, for an annual rate of just over ...

Where are the most important MPG increases, at the upper or lower end? 4 months ago on Autoblog Green

Imagine, if you will, taking a sheet of paper and cutting it in half. Now take one of those halves and cut it in half again. Now keep repeating the process. As you keep cutting, the difference in the size of the subsequent pieces gets progressively smaller. This simple example is a demonstration ...

Ford announces 2.0l ecoboost and dual clutch gearbox for 2010 4 months ago on Autoblog Green

At Ford's 2010 model year preview – hey, they're more efficient! – in Dearborn, Michigan this morning, Barb Samardzich, VP of global powertrain development announced the next stage of the company's EcoBoost strategy for North America. The new 2.0-liter EcoBoost four cylinder will ...

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