Toyota has added ‘Prime’ to the branding of its second generation plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) to emphasize it’s the most technologically advanced, best-equipped Prius ever. Prime is the first Toyota hybrid to feature a dual-mode generator drive system that enables the Hybrid Synergy Drive’s electric motor and generator to both provide power for maximum […]
The Lexus RX 450h is a completely revised model this year featuring slightly larger dimensions, updated styling, and the signature Lexus spindle grille. A sportier F Sport model is also available for those who want to move even farther upscale on the SUV ladder. This SUV’s hybrid system uses a 3.5-liter Atkinson cycle V-6 with […]
Positioned below the Honda CR-V in size and price, Honda’s new HR-V compact crossover aims to attract buyers with its coupe-like styling, SUV functionality, and of course the quality and dependability of a Honda. The HR-V is based on the Honda Fit platform although it’s substantially larger than the Fit, measuring in 9.1 inches longer, 2.8 […]
The Toyota RAV4 that emerged an all-new generation SUV in 2013 features a stylish refresh this year with a bolder front fascia, restyled bumpers, and sharper rocker panels. That’s not the big news for 2016, though, because the RAV4 now features an important new addition – the first-ever hybrid powertrain in the RAV4. While an […]
As the auto industry rushes headlong into autonomous vehicles and technologies there are some important learning curves ahead. Google admitted as much when one of its self-driving cars was involved in a mild fender-bender with a bus…not necessarily the fault of the self-driving Google car, but no doubt caused by reacting to an unfolding situation […]
The new-for-the-U.S. midsize Mercedes-Benz Metris aims at filling business needs requiring something a bit smaller than the automaker’s popular Sprinter yet larger than a compact van. It's based on the Mercedes-Benz Vito model that’s been available in Europe and now mildly revised for American buyers. The Metris is definitely not a luxury vehicle, at least by […]
When Audi introduced its all-new A3 generation in the U.S. in 2014, only the sedan was offered with the promise that the popular Sportback version would be coming. That follow-up is the A3 e-tron, the exclusive A3 Sportback choice here in the 2016 model year. This exclusivity makes this $37,900 A3 e-tron all the more […]
The Ram ProMaster City, a new model on U.S. highways made possible by the international depth of Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles, is distinguished in many ways. This was underscored at the 2015 San Antonio Auto Show with its win of Green Car Journal’s 2016 Commercial Green Car of the Year™ award. The model bested finalists that included […]
The Los Angeles Auto Show is the setting for Green Car Journal’s highly-anticipated Green Car of the Year® award each year, as it has been since its first appearance in car-centric Southern California 11 years ago. This year, following a video intro by celebrity juror Jay Leno and with all five award finalist vehicles flanking […]
Even the best fuel saving technology can be negated by poor driving habits. Thus, many of the latest vehicles come with features that help you drive ‘smarter’ to save fuel. The simplest provide feedback through computer displays showing instantaneous and average mpg, range to empty, and more. More sophisticated displays may also graphically indicate efficient […]
VW and Audi are returning their Green Car of the Year® awards in the wake of Volkswagen Group’s admission that it deliberately deceived government authorities about emissions from the Audi A3 TDI and VW Jetta TDI. Concurrently, Green Car Journal has rescinded these Green Car of the Year® awards honoring the 2009 VW Jetta TDI […]
There are many outspoken and polarizing proponents of the various fuels and technologies at play today. This has been the case for several decades now and isn’t likely to disappear anytime soon. Many electric car enthusiasts do not see a future for internal combustion or even hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. Hydrogen proponents point out that fuel […]
History shows that electric cars have come and gone…and they’re coming again. It’s been a long road for battery-powered vehicles but we’re heading in the right direction. Here’s a look at where we are today, and how we got here.
Ford aims to have one of the largest automotive research teams in Silicon Valley with the establishment of its Research and Innovation Center Palo Alto, California. The center’s focus is to accelerate development of technologies and experiments in connectivity, mobility, autonomous vehicles, customer experience, and big data…in other words, the touchstones that may well define […]
Now here’s something you don’t see every day: A pretty cool rendition of how to blend eco transport, human hybrid power, solar charging, and cool factor into an eye-catching mode of sustainable transportation. Durham, North Carolina-based Organic Transit offers the ELF, an egg-shaped production vehicle designed for urban mobility with scant environmental impact. The three-wheeled vehicle […]
The Swiss think tank and mobility lab Rinspeed is noted for its quirky and innovative takes on future mobility. Its latest effort, the trans-urban SUV Budii concept, does not disappoint. Based on BMW’s electric i3, riding on 19-inch Bobert alloys and clothed in bright anthracite paint with a terrain-mapping laser scanner atop its roof, Budii […]
Chevrolet introduced the Cruze Turbo Diesel in 2014, the first diesel sedan from an American nameplate since the less-than-stellar diesel cars Detroit offered in the late 1970s and early 1980s. It’s a world of difference. Actually, GM brought the European Cruze 2.0-liter turbodiesel to the Cruze powertrain lineup here, a well-proved engine that accounts for […]
Many believe hydrogen to have the greatest potential of all alternative fuels, not only for vehicles but as a primary energy source for all aspects of life. Used in fuel cells to electrochemically create electricity for powering a vehicle’s electric motors, hydrogen produces no emissions other than water vapor and heat. There are no CO2 […]