The 2015 BMW i8 looks as though it's actually moving closer to production. Even more shocking is the fact that it appears as though the i8 will keep the wild styling of the concept.
It might look like a downsized 6 Series from this angle, but the rear end has the same "wings" that gave the concept such an interesting profile. Other details are hard to make out, but it's clear that BMW is taking a much different path when it comes to the styling of its new "i" series of cars. Set to be on the road in 2014, it's still a long way from finished.
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Categories: BMW,Concept Vehicles,Coupes,Hybrids,Sports Cars
In what's shaping up to be a trend in the alternate-fuel startup world, Fisker has just announced layoffs of 26 employees from the brand's Delaware factory. Those let go were made up, in part, of employees set to help make Project Nina -- the company's second vehicle -- a reality.
"It's temporary," Roger Ormisher, Fisker Spokesman, said. "We're being prudent and sensible as a company."
Fisker, the recipient of $193 million in government funding, has delivered between 250 and 300 Fisker Karmas thus far and has managed to raise over $650 million in private-sector funding. The DoE isn't worried about their (our) investment, though, "Our loan guarantees have strict conditions in place to protect taxpayers...As Fisker works through those issues and incorporates lessons learned from the production of the Karma, the Department is working with Fisker to review a revised business plan and determine the best path forward so the company can meet its benchmarks, produce cars and employ workers here in America," said DOE spokesman Damien LaVera. Fisker has asked the DOE to revise its targets.
Fisker doesn't have the funding (read: uber-rich CEO) that Tesla does, will we ever see Project Nina?
Categories: Auto Industry,Fisker,Hybrids
At this year's Geneva Motor Show, Infiniti will be showing off an all-new range-extended sports car concept they've now named EMERG-E.
The press release is thin with information saying only, "The INFINITI EMERG-E will be the first car from the brand to have not only a range-extender drivetrain offering vivid performance with zero emissions capability but also one mounted in a mid-ship package for optimal handling."
The market for a mid-engined range-extended Infiniti seems small to me. I could be wrong, but let's just go ahead and assume that the EMERG-E will not make it out of the concept stage. We'll bring you more next month from Geneva.
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Categories: Geneva Motor Show,Hybrids,Infiniti,Sports Cars
Here's Chevy's Volt ad for the 2012 Super Bowl. This one features a group of aliens exploring the advanced technology of the Chevy Volt. (Perhaps wondering why a civilization couldn't stick to one power source?)
It's better that it should be and is one of the frontrunners this year.
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Categories: Chevrolet,Hybrids,Miscellaneous,Videos
...not, as you'd likely think, the Porsche Panamera Hybrid, but rather the 2012 Infiniti M35h. At least, that's what the people at Infiniti, backed up by "AMCI Certified Testing" have to say. But we knew this. They teamed with CAR magazine back in September to get Guinness-certified numbers. Let's take a closer look anyway shall we?
The 2012 Porsche Panamera Hybrid has a 3.0-liter supercharged V6 and a 75 amp, 288-volt NiMiH battery. The Porsche makes 380 horsepower @ 5500 rpm, 428 pound-feet of torque at only 1,000 rpm and has an 8-speed automatic transmission. To save weight and increase awesome, it is rear-wheel drive, the last time we tested one it weighed in at 4,492 pounds. Pricing starts at $95K.
In the other corner is the Infiniti M35h. It starts at $53,700, makes 360 horsepower thanks to a 3.5-liter V6 and a 346 volt lithium-ion battery and has a seven-speed automatic. Like the Porsche, it's rear-wheel drive. Last time we had it on the scales a 2012 M35h recorded a weight of 4,199 pounds.
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Categories: Hybrids,Infiniti,Porsche,Sedans
A recent study by Deloitte finds that 6 in 10 Millennials would prefer to buy a hybrid over any other type of vehicle.
Deloitte surveyed 1,500 drivers from Gens Y, X and Baby Boomers. 250 of these were Millennials -- people between the ages of 19 and 31 -- from China and 300 from Western Europe. According to Deloitte, Gen Y will buy one of four cars this year. "Gen Y consumers also view hybrid technology as proven and reliable.... Gen Y is familiar and comfortable with hybrid technology, but not so much with battery-only technology." said Craig Giffi of Deloitte. Only 2% of those responding said they would consider a pure EV.
But just being a hybrid isn't good enough. 59% said the most important part of a vehicle's interior is the in-dash technology with 75% preferring a touch-screen interface. 72% want in-dash apps. Continuing the depressing news, Millennials surveyed listed safety bundles -- collision warnings, blind spot detection, sleep alert-- as the second most desirable thing in a car.
As a millennial, I'm both horrified and completely unsurprised by the results of this survey. I still want a big motor with no traction control.
Categories: Auto Industry,Hybrids
A year ago, Toyota showed the Prius C concept at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show. Today at the 2012 Detroit Auto Show the company rolled out the production version of the 2012 Toyota Prius C.
Here's what you need to know: Starting price: $19,000. Fuel economy: 53 mpg city. Power: 99 horsepower.
Want more?
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Categories: Detroit Auto Show,Hatchbacks,Hybrids,Toyota
It may look like a regular XC60, but the Volvo XC60 Plug-In Hybrid Concept is more of a statement of intent than a production-ready car. The automaker is getting ready to sell a plug-in diesel-hybrid V60 in Europe (to go with the electric C30), but a plug-in hybrid for the U.S. is still 2-4 years out, Volvo's Geno Effler told Inside Line, and it wouldn't necessarily be XC60-based.
Keep in mind that the United States is absolutely not the company's biggest market -- it sold 67,240 vehicles here in 2011 compared to 449,225 worldwide. So exporting a niche hybrid model here is not a top priority.
What makes the XC60 concept interesting to us is that it purportedly uses a turbocharged and direct-injected, 2.0-liter inline four-cylinder -- part of a new family of D.I. gasoline and diesel engines that can be built on the same production line. The engine would reportedly make about 280 horsepower, and with another 70 hp from a rear-axle electric motor, combined output would be 350 hp. That heady horsepower figure, we're told, justifies the unexpected T8 badge on the back of this concept crossover; the S60 T6 R-Design makes just 325.
Juice for the rear electric motor comes from a 12kWh lithium-ion battery pack. For comparison, a Chevy Volt has a 16kWh battery pack, so we'd guess Volvo's claimed 35-mile electric driving range for the XC60 concept would be right at the upper limit.
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Categories: Concept Vehicles,Detroit Auto Show,Hybrids,Volvo
As expected, the Mercedes press conference here in Detroit was dominated by two things: the all-new 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL, and Mercedes' exceptional (but slightly worse than BMW) sales figures in 2011. Hiding in the shadows of the SL, though, was the new E400 Hybrid.
With an adjusted (window sticker) fuel economy estimate of 27 mpg combined, the E400 is the cornerstone of Mercedes' "hybrid offensive." Powering the E400 is a 302-horsepower direct-injection V6 supplemented by a 27 hp/184 pound-feet electric motor.
The E400 Hybrid's estimated fuel economy of 24/31/27 is only marginally higher than the 2012 E350, which returns 20/30/23. The E350 is powered by a 302-hp 3.5-liter V6 and has a base price of $49,800. Pricing has not been released on the E400.
The E400 goes on sale here in late summer and will debut in China and Japan shortly thereafter. Markets not getting the E400 will get the diesel/hybrid E300.
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Categories: Detroit Auto Show,Hybrids,Mercedes-Benz,Sedans
Today in Detroit, Volkswagen will be showing the 2013 Jetta Hybrid. The Jetta Hybrid will be the first hybrid to make use of a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. VW claims this transmission, at 163 pounds, weighs less than a traditional automatic while operating more efficiently. The DSG will drive the front wheels.
Making that power will be a 1.4-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine with a 20kW electric motor. Peak power is 170 horsepower.
Volkswagen claims that the entire hybridization process of the Jetta only added 221 pounds to the car, which has a curb weight of 3,310 pounds. Zero to 60 takes about 9 seconds.
Unlike some other hybrids, the Jetta can run in zero-emissions electric-only mode for a distance of up to 1.2 miles (with a top speed of 44 mph in E mode). Also unlike other hybrids, the Jetta Hybrid only uses the brakes for electrical regeneration. When the driver slows down, the engine disengages from the rest of the drivetrain and the brakes do all of the slowing. This engine decoupling happens without braking, too. When the driver releases the gas pedal at speeds of up to 84 mph, the engine simply disconnects itself and the car starts to coast. Those of us who like to use engine braking to maintain speed will have an adjustment period.
Visually the Jetta Hybrid is easy to spot thanks to the new front airdam, rear diffuser and integrated rear spoiler. These adjustments were made in the name of aerodynamics and it seems to have paid off, as it has a Cd 10 percent lower than the traditional Jetta. The hybrid version also rolls on 15s with all-season, low-rolling-resistance tires. VW did make one visual change just for the sake of change: The VW logo is on a blue background here.
The Jetta Hybrid will hit dealers in late 2012 and has a projected fuel economy rating of 45 mpg.
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Categories: Detroit Auto Show,Hybrids,Sedans,Volkswagen
This year's Detroit Auto Show will host the 'World Auto Show Premiere" of the 2012 BMW 3 Series Sedan. And while we're looking forward to seeing this one in the flesh, the bigger news here is that the Detroit Auto Show will also be the first official premiere of the 2012 BMW 3 Series Hybrid.
BMW calls it the 2012 BMW ActiveHybrid 3, but no matter what you call it, the new hybrid 3 gets BMW's 3.0-liter TwinPower turbo I6 and an electric motor and is capable of going 2.5 miles on electricity alone with an electric-only top speed of 37. Horsepower is 335, torque is 330. BMW estimates a 12.5 percent fuel savings compared with the gasoline version.
The new 3 series goes on sale here in February with the ActiveHybrid 3 going on sale in the fall.
Categories: BMW,Detroit Auto Show,Hybrids
Volvo released photos of the XC60 Plug-in Hybrid Concept it will be showing next week in Detroit. It will feature a 280-horsepower four-cylinder engine coupled to a 70-hp electric motor. Do the math and that adds up to 350 hp. It will operate in three driver-selected modes: Pure, Hybrid and Power. Volvo claims that Pure will have an estimated average range of 35 miles using electricity alone, while the "high-efficiency" Hybrid mode is good for "operational fuel economy of 50 mpg." That would certainly make it the most fuel-efficient SUV on the market. Volvo didn't describe Power, but we can assume it takes any sort of eco reigns off the powerplant. The concept's interior also has a very cool polar color scheme with blue leather and light grey trim. Pretty sure I'd want any XC60 like that.
A diesel-electric V60 Plug-in Hybrid is already slated to go on sale in Europe later this year, joining the Mercedes-Benz E300 Bluetec Hybrid as the only luxury-branded vehicles to offer a diesel hybrid.
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Categories: Hybrids,SUVs,Volvo
Toyota's on a tear today with the Detroit releases. First we saw official images of the LF-LC concept and now we've got this teaser video of the new Toyota NS4!
The NS4 concept is expected to be Toyota's showpiece for their next-gen plug-in hybrid technology and this video gives us...well, very little. It does give some flashes of the style and the interior features, but it's a pure concept so there's not much to actually learn from it at this point.
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Categories: Concept Vehicles,Detroit Auto Show,Hybrids,Toyota
"Conceived as a design exercise, the LF-LC is envisioned as offering Advanced Lexus Hybrid Drive to deliver both driving performance and fuel efficiency."
And that bit of information pulled from this morning's press release is all we know about the LF-LC hybrid that Lexus is bringing to Detroit this year. Once again, Road and Track forced Lexus' hand here by publishing a full article on the car's design. R&T doesn't have any more real information about the car, but they do have some (small) interior shots that are pretty slick.
So the question is: Should Lexus build a hybrid, 2+2 LFA?
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Categories: Concept Vehicles,Detroit Auto Show,Hybrids,Lexus
Toyota is following in the footsteps of big bro Lexus releasing a small teaser image of the concept they'll be bringing to the Detroit Auto Show next month. In it we see...a headlight. We can safely assume that this concept, if it has any production intention, will have the same plug-in hybrid drivetrain as the Toyota Plug-in Prius-- a 98-horsepower 1.8-liter I4 and an 80 hp electric motor. If it's a pure concept, the gloves are off and this could be some sort of radical AWD, double-engined design. We'll know soon enough, until then we focus on the design.
Toyota is also going to bring the production version of the Prius c to the Detroit show. But we already knew that.
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Categories: Concept Vehicles,Detroit Auto Show,Hybrids,Toyota
We may not have had enough time for a full test of the 2012 Fisker Karma in the short time we had it, but a suspension walkaround takes almost no time at all, especially now that we have our Rotary 2-post lift.
The Fisker is so new that Rotary doesn't yet have a lift point cheat sheet on it. The Karma's owner's manual was AWOL, too, so we went ahead and used subtle marks left behind by what we presume was Fisker's own shop equipment. Going slow in cases like this is key.
As a series plug-in hybrid, this unique machine is sometimes powered by electricity stored in a large lithium-ion battery running down the center of the car, between its four seats. Other times it's powered by a 2.0-liter direct-injected turbocharged four-cylinder engine and generator set that's mounted longways between the front wheels. In Sport mode both of these happen at once for extra ooomph.
In all cases the Karma is driven electrically by a pair of motor-generators that sit between the rear tires. There is no driveshaft; it's all done with wires.
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Categories: Electric Vehicles,Fisker,Hybrids,Sedans,Sports Cars,Suspension Walkarounds
This isn't a comparison test, not really. The 2012 Fisker Karma and 2012 Chevrolet Volt are not really the same kind of car.
Except, for the time being, at least, they're the only two plug-in hybrids on the market. And both have been rated by the EPA at levels somewhat below what their manufacturers were promising/hoping before the window stickers were printed.
Last week I piloted a 2012 Fisker Karma around the Orange County city fuel economy loop we invented awhile back to compare traditional hybrids. Once I saw those results I figured I had better take our 2011 Chevrolet Volt around the same course for a bit of perspective. A couple of days later I did just that.
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Categories: Chevrolet,Electric Vehicles,Fisker,Green Tech,Hybrids,Sports Cars
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Opel has confirmed to Automotive News that they are holding back sales of the Ampera while the company sets up "the process to deal with these highly charged batteries to make sure they are safe." Amperas are already sitting at dealerships in Germany, France, Switzerland, Belgium and Holland waiting to be delivered to customers.
The Ampera, like the Volt, is built in the Hamtramck plant outside of Detroit and features the same lithium-ion battery pack, built by South Korean firm LG Chem, which has caused GM so much concern lately.
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Categories: Chevrolet,Electric Vehicles,General Motors,Hybrids,Opel
When Fisker first started talking about the 2012 Fisker Karma and what it could do, the stuff they were saying was pretty incredible.
They said it'd be good for 50 miles of electric range, and once the battery wound down it would return 23 mpg city and 30 mpg highway (about 25 mpg combined) on the way to 250 miles of total range on a tank of gas. Conversely, in Sport mode, where the charged battery and gasoline engine/generator set work together for maximum effect, it could scoot to 60 mph in 6.3 seconds and top out at 125 mph.
No EV or plug-in hybrid (the Karma is the latter) discussed previously had ever put together such mutually exclusive performance numbers. Not too shabby for a series hybrid with no connection between the gas engine and the drive wheels except for power cables.
Meanwhile, every plug-in hybrid and EV range claim made to date has gone down in flames after the EPA conducted their own certification tests and printed up the window stickers. Chevrolet's initial claimed range of 50 miles for the Volt sagged to 35 miles when all was said and done. The Nissan Leaf's range came in at 73 miles instead of the claimed 100 miles.
Alas the same thing recently happened to the Fisker Karma. After the EPA got done its 50-mile electric range plummeted to 32 miles and it's gasoline fuel economy dropped to just 20 mpg combined.
Yeesh.
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Categories: Electric Vehicles,Fisker,Green Tech,Hybrids,Sedans,Sports Cars
You asked for it, you got it. Our very short stint in the 2012 Fisker Karma didn't allow time to produce a full video of the pedestrain warning sound it makes, but we did have time to shoot a short clip with something better than a camera phone.
Here I'm entering our shop in electric mode or, as Fisker calls it, stealth mode. The sound you're hearing is somewhat louder than it comes across outdoors in real life because I'm entering an enclosed space where it can reverberate off the concrete block walls.
Two speakers emit the noise: one under the front bumper (not inside the grille, but under and behind it) and another under the center of the rear bumper. Those two diamond-shaped rear bumper cutouts LOOK like they should be the speakers, and they're even labelled "hybrid Hz", but they're fakes.
To me the sound has elements of a P-51 Mustang squadron flyover, Tron lightcycle, 2001: A Space Odyssey monolith and that Droid phone commercial noise.
This only happens in EV mode at speeds under 25 mph. Volume and pitch rises and falls with speed to a subtle yet effectve extent, and it fades down, but not out, at idle. (Or whatever you call "idle" when an electric car or plug-in hybrid such as this stops at a red light.)
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Categories: Car Tech,Electric Vehicles,Fisker,Green Tech,Hybrids,Sedans,Sports Cars
