Car industry Archives – The Green Optimistic

Apple Should Buy Tesla Motors, Financial Analysts Think

Danny Harper — Wed, 30 Oct 2013 20:39:34 +0000

Why limit yourself to one apex technology when you can have two? This is the thought of some influential financiers when considering acquisition opportunities for the most capitalized company in the world, Apple. A growing number of bankers and investors are searching for ways AAPL can put their huge cash reserves to work, and one […]

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Germany Convinces EU Ministers To Delay Limits On Vehicle Carbon Emissions

Mila Luleva — Thu, 17 Oct 2013 19:40:56 +0000

Limits on carbon dioxide emissions from cars in the EU will be introduced later than initially planned, as the German government convinced the European prime ministers to revise the deal made in July this year. Although the latest report by the European Environmental Agency highlights the fact that the levels of air pollutants in more […]

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Non-Hybrid Cars Could Be Banned in UK by 2040

Mila Luleva — Thu, 22 Aug 2013 12:27:27 +0000

How would you react if someone now told you that soon your Ferrari, which is carefully parked in the garage, will not be allowed on the road because of the amount of emissions it releases? If you live in the UK you might have to start considering this, as the Liberal Democrats proposed that only […]

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Tesla Motors – GM’s Newest Threat, According to Dan Akerson

Benji Jerew — Fri, 19 Jul 2013 14:21:31 +0000

Tesla Motors has been success after success, and this young company has started to attract the attention of long-established automakers, like General Motors, who have been around for over one hundred years. Despite this long history in the United States, General Motors hasn’t maintained any kind of lead in sales or innovation, especially since the […]

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How Hybrid Cars Became Such a Success

Ovidiu Sandru — Thu, 04 Jul 2013 09:28:26 +0000

Whilst the hybrid may seem a recent modern innovation, the concept of electrically charged automobiles is something that was toyed with well over 100 years ago. As the world felt the full force of the industrial revolution, the turn of the century saw the birth of the motor car. The Industrial Revolution As early as […]

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An Outlook on the Impact of U.S. Car Industry on Economy

Guest Contributor — Sat, 25 May 2013 06:59:51 +0000

The automobile industry has been instrumental in the improvement of GDP of the US economy. Some of the leading auto companies like Ford, General Motors and Chrysler had done a good business in the last year. Compared to the sales in 2011 the hike was over 13% and it is estimated that the domestic economic […]

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More Bad News for Fisker Automotive, Geely Backs Out of the Bidding

Benji Jerew — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 19:32:42 +0000

Here’s more bad news for Fisker Automotive since Henrik Fisker resigned: Chinese Zhejiang Geely Holding Company has backed out of the bidding to acquire the flailing automomaker. Typically, money for development comes from a few places, investors, loans, or profits being a few major sources. Fisker Automotive started out with $528 million in loans from […]

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Russia’s First Hybrid Car, Yo-Mobil, Delayed – Again

Benji Jerew — Sun, 17 Feb 2013 07:41:30 +0000

Yo-Avto, the maker of the Yo-Mobil hasn’t sold a single unit. Russia’s first hybrid vehicle, and those who have pre-ordered theirs, will have to wait. Here in the United States, mention hybrid and Prius immediately comes to mind. Actually, do this pretty much anywhere in the world, because Toyota Prius is the world’s best-selling hybrid vehicle, […]

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Edmunds.com Talks About Their Real-World EV Testing

Benji Jerew — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 21:15:23 +0000

We’ve been trained to look at the Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] sticker on any vehicle we’re considering buying. Important information there helps us make our purchasing decision, especially if fuel economy is important to us. The fuel economy numbers, both on the window sticker or on the EPA website, fueleconomy.gov, are for most, a fairly […]

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CODA Motors’ Debt Struggles

Benji Jerew — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 21:12:22 +0000

CODA Motors, much like other electric vehicle startups, started with a vision. Unfortunately, vision doesn’t always translate into a success, and CODA Motors’ debt struggles may be just the beginning. As with any new product, there is always the chance that the market isn’t ready for the product or for the particular approach. CODA Motors’ […]

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Toyota Leases Four Hydrogen Cars to NREL

Leigh Hutchens — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 11:16:03 +0000

Automobile manufacturer, Toyota, has recently given the US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) four fuel cell hybrid vehicles. The hybrids, advanced FCHV-adv models, are on loan by Toyota through a two-year Cooperative Research and Development Agreement. NREL plans to use the cars to advance its hydrogen fueling infrastructure, vehicle performance, and renewable […]

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Tesla Motors Meets Production Goals

Benji Jerew — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 17:27:09 +0000

I’ve been following Tesla Motors for a long time now, just about ten years since its inception in 2003. There haven’t really been too many set-backs, per se, just painstakingly slow progress. While there are still a bit over 10,000 customers still waiting for their Model S, perhaps the best way forward is calculated advancement […]

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Europe EV Market to Jump 500% by 2020, Pike Research Says

Benji Jerew — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 07:38:25 +0000

The electric vehicle [EV] market, of course, has started small, last year just 0.7% of the market in Europe. For example, just over 5,600 EVs were sold in France last year, or 1 in 6,200 new vehicles. Just for comparison, here in the US the ratio is more like 1:20,000. There are some tax incentives […]

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Startup Elio Motors to Buy GM Plant for Building 60 mpg Car

Leigh Hutchens — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 21:13:59 +0000

Elio Motors in Shreveport, Louisiana wants to by a former General Motors plant in order to manufacture and sell their low-cost, high MPH car. One green automaker, Bright Automotive, has already gone under in Shreveport while waiting for Federal funding. Bright Automotive had hoped to build a green, high MPG van, but could not hold […]

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Study Needs Updating – Pure Electric Vehicles Not Sparking Interest

Benji Jerew — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 19:44:22 +0000

In a study, conducted by the Indiana University School of Public and Environmental Affairs [SPEA], nearly 2,500 drivers across the country were interviewed regarding their attitude toward electrified vehicles, including parallel hybrid electric vehicles, pure electric vehicles, and series hybrid electric vehicles. The SPEA study, conducted in the Fall of 2011 and completed just this […]

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Fewer Rare Earth Metals Could Make Electric Motors Cheaper

Benji Jerew — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 17:54:37 +0000

The two main components of a hybrid or electric vehicle, the rechargeable battery and the electric motor, are also the most expensive. Part of the reason for the expense is, in order to make the motor as small and powerful as possible, rare earth metals are used in the process. Stronger magnets can be made […]

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Are CAFE Regulations Pushing Electric Vehicle Development?

Benji Jerew — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 07:42:57 +0000

Well, it wouldn’t be the first time that Corporate Average Fuel Economy [CAFE] regulations were the deciding factor in developing fuel efficient vehicles. Think back to 1996, the General Motors [GM] EV1, an electric vehicle, which replaced the GM Ultralight. The EV1 was CAFE fodder for certain, built only to make the grade, but ultimately […]

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General Motors Opens New R&D Facility in China

Benji Jerew — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 20:44:00 +0000

Advanced technology may be made up of new materials and processes, but the one thing that drives any advance in any field is talent. If a company wants to design the next new widget, better than all the rest, it can bring new talent to the company, or the company can go to the talent. […]

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How General Motors Plans for an Electrified Future

Benji Jerew — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 19:18:58 +0000

While pure electric vehicles [EV] are having somewhat of a difficult time hitting their market stride, electrified vehicles, hybrid electric vehicles [HEV] and plug-in HEVs [PHEV], are having no such problems. They aren’t excessively priced, and they offer fuel economy ratings up to 100 mpg-e, which is very attractive to the fuel-conscious consumer. General Motors […]

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In Spite of Lagging Economy, Plug-In Vehicles Top October Sales

Benji Jerew — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 00:59:44 +0000

Since 2007, the beginning of the recession in the US, automobile manufacturers have been facing ever decreasing sales numbers, consistently posting in the red from month to month, year to year. Electrified vehicle sales have been hurting as well, especially considering poor public opinion due to limited range, excessive charging times, and high up-front expense. […]

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Toyota Not Believing in Their EV Program Anymore

Benji Jerew — Sat, 29 Sep 2012 07:42:18 +0000

Who killed the electric car this time? Apparently Toyota doesn’t see the markets as currently supporting an extensive electric vehicle [EV] fleet. The 2012 Toyota RAV4 EV was only recently released to the buying public, and announcements had just been made regarding a subcompact EV based off the Scion iQ [Scion iQ EV / Toyota […]

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Toyota and BMW Expanding Green Car Venture

Ovidiu Sandru — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 19:22:00 +0000

Toyota and BMW are willing to expand their operations together, through to a renewed agreement aimed at bringing affordable and quality electric and hybrid cars on the market. Watch the article published on Cars and Trees, this blog’s brother discussing hybrid and electric cars. Toyota-BMW business tie to expand (via http://www.cars-and-trees.com) Global automakers Toyota and […]

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2012 Cars 14% More Efficient Than Only 4 Years Ago, Study Reveals

Ovidiu Sandru — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 18:39:12 +0000

A study by University of Michigan researchers reveals that the average fuel economy of a vehicle manufactured in 2012 has improved by a significant 14 percent compared to those fabricated in 2008. Therefore, the researchers found out that cars improved economy by 2.8 mpg, light trucks by 1.6, while full-sized vans saw the smallest increase […]

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Leaked Renault Electric Car Technology Scandal Fires COO Patrick Pelata

Ovidiu Sandru — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 20:01:52 +0000

Patrick Pelata, Renault's Chief Operating Officer, has offered his resignation from the company that stands at the forefront of mass-produced electric vehicles industry and that is in trouble lately because of some leaked electric vehicle technologies.

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Toyota May Temporarily Shut Down U.S. Assembly Lines Due to Japan Earthquake

Ovidiu Sandru — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 17:59:12 +0000

Japan's earthquake still has some effects on the global car industry. Toyota, for example, has issued a message to all of its U.S. subsidies so that they prepare for a possible temporary shutdown due to the impossibility of sending parts from Japan. The information had been released by Toyota spokesman Mike Goss.

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Capabilities for Automotive Research: Consortium Aimed At Finding Solutions For Future Cars

Ovidiu Sandru — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 19:15:12 +0000

An international 11-member consortium, named Capabilities for Automotive Research have just launched ten research projects aimed at developing the technology necessary for future electric/hybrid vehicles.

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Some Diesels Cleaner Than Electric Cars, Swiss Researchers Say

Ovidiu Sandru — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 10:15:00 +0000

European cars often get a fuel economy of about 42 mpg, with some newer models even getting 60 mpg or more. The technology adopted for electric cars, on the other hand, uses mainly lithium ion batteries, made of metals extracted from mountains by using complex chemical processes that not only generate CO2, but also pollute the environment and help to deforestation.

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New Hope for EVs: Bolivia Holding World's Richest Lithium Field

Cristi — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 08:20:04 +0000

As the automotive industry has oriented itself towards green energy usage, the need of a "supreme" alternative resource is obvious. And what is more obvious is the demand of Electric Vehicles. EVs need to store their energy in batteries: mainly Lithium-Ion batteries. As of this particular reason, Lithium seems to be one of the most searched resource.

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GM Cancels the 53mpg Hybrid Chevrolet and Proceeds to PHEVs

Cristi — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 19:53:04 +0000

Even though electric vehicles seem to be the future, some car manufacturers do not rush into changing to green, alternative energy sources. There is some incertitude when it comes to changing so fast from fossil fuels and some automakers just take their time to see what is best for the market.

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Pursuing Development of EVs Could Create Up to 1 Million Jobs by 2020

Ovidiu Sandru — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 20:26:01 +0000

The predictions are based on the widespread adoption of the recently release Electrification Roadmap that estimates battery powered EVs and Plug-in hybrids making up 25% of new vehicles sales in the U.S. by 2020.

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