Green Tech
Tesla’s Roadster Sport Zips the Light Fantastic
To drive the Tesla Roadster Sport is to learn the meaning of range anxiety. The souped-up version of Tesla’s Roadster does not want for range: Apply a feather touch on the accelerator and you’ll get some 236 miles on a charge. That’s by far the best of the electric cars on the road or on [...]
Honda electric scooter EV-neo coming to Japan
This is the electric scooter, or e-scooter, from Honda known as the EV-neo. This is a vehicle that is more green than grass. The main selling point is it allows the user to recharge the battery from ordinary household power outlets. That is good enough for about 30 km on the road, for a single [...]
Hyundai’s new Sonata gets by without a V-6
Debuting at the 2009 Los Angeles Auto Show, the 2011 Hyundai Sonata is the first vehicle to feature Hyundai’s “Fluidic Sculpture” design language–”Fluidic Sculpture” obviously being market-speak for bulbous and swoopy. The Sonata will debut with a 2.4-liter gasoline direct injection engine and a pair of six-speed transmissions, one automatic and one manual. However by [...]
2011 Toyota Sienna packs two monitors in one
The Sienna’s Dual View display seems a bit wide for single source viewing, but dual source may be okay. (Credit: Toyota) 2011 Toyota Sienna This week the 2011 Toyota Sienna debuted at the LA Auto Show and while the minivan’s new Venza-esque aesthetic, 3.5 and 2.7-liter powertrains, and available all-wheel drive are, well, kind of [...]
California gives green light for space-based solar
California regulators on Thursday approved an ambitious project to beam solar energy from space starting in 2016. Under a power purchase agreement approved by the California Public Utilities Commission, utility Pacific Gas & Electric will purchase electricity from technology provider Solaren if it successfully deploys its space-based solar collectors, which would be the first of [...]
Panasonic to invest $1 billion in green tech
Panasonic plans to invest $1 billion by 2012 to develop green technologies for the home that would include energy-monitoring systems, marking a major shift in the company’s focus. Panasonic President Fumio Ohtsubo said in an interview with the Bloomberg news service this week that growing consumer interest in more efficient products has led Panasonic to [...]
2011 Saab 9-5: The last hurrah?
Saab’s new model doesn’t look very happy at the Los Angeles Auto Show. A week before the Los Angeles Auto Show, GM’s deal to sell Saab to Koenigsegg fell through, making the Swedish carmaker’s future uncertain. But the company’s plans for a future that might never come are evident in the 2011 9-5 sedan. This [...]
Chevrolet Cruze, mass-market potential has four doors
The 2011 Chevrolet Cruze is finally coming Stateside and during a private event held earlier this evening ahead of the LA Auto Show, General Motors – 20 minutes after announcing the departure of Fritz Henderson as CEO – unveiled the U.S.-spec version of its Cobalt replacement and Toyota Corolla competitor. Sharing much of the 2011 [...]
Renault and Key Driving Competences to expand ecodriving training
Renault Environment is partnering with a Belgian driver training company to expand the availability of a program targeted at teaching ecodriving. Renault Environment is actually a wholly owned subsidiary of the automaker that focuses on helping other green businesses expand their reach. Key Driving Competences (KDC) SA has been providing its ecodriving program since 2005 [...]
Ford Focus Econetic gets eco-overhaul to reach 62 mpg (U.S.)
2011 Ford Focus Econetic – Click above for high-res image gallery While Americans get their first official taste of the U.S.-market Ford Fiesta, Europeans can feast their eyes on an even-more frugal Focus Econetic model that will go on sale early next year. With start-stop, regenerative brakes and an Eco Mode system, the new Focus [...]