EV News and Hybrid Headlines

      
Toyota Now Offering HUGE Prius PHEV Discounts(March 11) - A Toyota, like many other manufacturers of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV), have been trying to get these new, efficient, and expensive vehicles off the ground. The Japanese manufacturer wants to sell as many as 13,000 Prius plug-in hybrids this year and is offering significant discounts to attain that target. Complete Story
     
Future of solar cars at Cambridge Showcase(March 11) - Clean technology and automotive devotees are being invited to join the Cambridge University Eco Racing team’s solar revolution by attending a special, free showcase on Wednesday night. CUER are a team of 60 students who design, build, and race solar powered vehicles. The team will be showcasing their new design for the World Solar Challenge – 3000km across the outback of Australia – and discussing some of the challenges of solar technology in transport. Complete Story
    
Tesla delays production of Model X electric car to the end of 2014(March 11) - In February 2012 when Tesla first showed off a prototype of its third electric car, a crossover SUV/minivan, the company told us it wanted to launch the car at the end of 2013, with volume sales starting in 2014. Now in its latest annual report Tesla said that it plans to start production of the Model X in late 2014.  Complete Story
   
Nissan COO to Head Electric Car Unit as Leaf Sales Trail Target(March 11) - Deliveries of Nissan’s flagship electric car in the U.S. failed to reach even half of the 20,000 units the Yokohama, Japan-based automaker had targeted last year. Lower-than- anticipated demand for zero-emission cars has been a blow to Nissan Chief Executive Officer Carlos Ghosn, who’s forecast that electric cars would become so popular that they’d account for at least 10 percent of global auto sales by the end of the decade. Complete Story
 
Formula E Electric-Car Series Announces 2014 Schedule(March 11) - A proposed eight-race schedule of events in major world cities was announced Friday for the FIA Formula E Championship, a series which will feature electric-powered racing cars. Cities on the calendar include London and Rome in Europe; Los Angeles and Miami in the United States; Beijing, China; Putrajaya, Malaysia; and Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro in South America. Complete Story
 

2014 Chevrolet Spark EV Electric Car: Now Europe Gets It Too(February 21) - You have to admire the Chevrolet Spark EV. It may have the same gawky upright stance as the gasoline model, and certainly costs a lot more, but its specification suggests GM has put a lot of efford into its electric offering. Complete Story
  
Don’t Quite Put The Last Nail In The Electric Car Coffin Yet(February 21) - Some skeptical journalists and policymakers are rushing to declare the entire electric vehicle sector a mistake or failure at the first sign of difficulties. Their rhetoric is cogent, writing lucid, and numbers seem compelling. At first glance, the fact that Americans bought just 71,000 plug-in hybrids or all-electric vehicles in the past two years might make the EV look like a failure. The emergence of EVs, however, needs to be viewed from the framework of technology adoption and diffusion, rather than raw numbers or road trips, to tell the true story. Complete Story
    
Electric Car Sales? Doing Better Than The Prius Was, Thank You(February 20) - Hybrid car's introduction can be judged a fair success. The Toyota Prius is California's top selling car, and Toyota has sold over 4 million hybrids since the first Prius rolled off the line little more than a decade ago. Think electric cars are selling poorly? In comparison, at the moment, they are--but look back to those early years of the Prius and the sales numbers tell a very different story. Complete Story
  
Racing Electric Cars Will Make Them Cool(February 19) - Racing has allowed expensive technologies to find its way into our daily lives. Racing helps mature and develop new technologies, electric car racing will have the same benefits. Complete Story
  

Electric Drag Bike - 0 to 60 in Under 1 second

 
These kits turn your Prius into an emergency generator(February 18) - Homeowners up and down the East Coast have bought a lot of hybrid converters, devices that turn their Toyota Prius into an emergency generator. In fact, ConVerdant Vehicles, LLC, which offers so-called Plug-Out Kits, sold out after Hurricane Sandy caused blackouts in upper Northeast, said owner Randy Bryan. Complete Story

Remove electric car range anxiety with the range extending ebuggy(February 14) - The German ebuggy is a slick idea. Affordable electric cars have one Achilles heel – range anxiety. Periodicals and television shows have galvanized the perception that you will run out of juice in the middle of a demilitarized zone or have to wait painfully long periods of time to charge up. Forget about long distance trips – they are the domain for those who can afford a Tesla S with the big battery package. What if you could tow a light rental trailer that plugged into your vehicle and gave you an additional 240 miles? Complete Story
  
Honda Fit EV Electric-Car Leasing Expands To Northeast(February 14) - Honda has confirmed the five East Coast locations in which its 2013 Honda Fit EV will be leased, joining the West Coast markets of California and Oregon. The electric Fit will be available at selected locations in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maryland, New York, and New Jersey later this month. The car has been on sale on the West Coast since July 2012. Complete Story   

2014 Chevrolet Spark EV Electric Car: Now Europe Gets It Too(February 13) - European pricing hasn't yet been announced, but in the U.S. the Spark EV will retail for under $32,500 before incentives. Those able to get the full $7,500 federal tax credit will spend under $25,000, while some owners will be able to make use of local incentives to make it even cheaper. Complete Story

Can the Dutch lead the way on electric cars?(February 14) - The Dutch are certainly working on it. The government is offering major tax incentives for electric car buyers, building a grid of charging stations not just in cities but along highways, and offering free parking and charging in Amsterdam. Combine that with the fact that gas costs about $8.50 a gallon and the country has a relatively limited geography (than, say, the United States) and you would expect the conditions to be ripe for an electric car boom. Complete Story
  
How does an electric car get 99 miles per gallon? MPGe ratings explained(February 10) - When the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf launched in 2010, the EPA thought it would be a good idea to update its ratings for non-liquid fuels. With more battery electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrids hitting the market every year, it’s an increasingly important task. Here’s how the EPA gives electric cars fuel economy ratings. Complete Story   
   
The Fiat 500e is an electric car with an attitude(February 8) - The Fiat 500e electric car is Chrysler's token entry for complying with California's zero-emissions mandate. In living with the 500e, it was clear that Chrysler engineers didn't just phone this one in; they actually sweated the details and came up with an EV that's fun and appealing. Complete Story
 
Goodbye, Prius? Japanese carmakers drop battery electric-car development(February 7) - Japan is backtracking on battery electric-car development, as even Nissan’s vice chairman, the so-called “father of the Prius,” announced plans to copy Toyota and pursue fuel-cell cars that convert hydrogen to electricity. Toyota Motor Co. — the world’s largest hybrid manufacturer, Reuters reports — recently announced a plan to drop pure electric-car development, also. Complete Story
   
   

                 What are the Tax Credits for Electric and Plugin Hybrids
 
Plug-in hybrid-electric vehicles
Plug-in hybrid-electric vehicles (PHEVs) purchased in or after 2010 may be eligible for a federal income tax credit of up to $7,500. The credit amount will vary based on the capacity of the battery used to fuel the vehicle. These are the models that qualify: Chevrolet Volt, Fisker Karma Sedan, Ford C-Max Energi, Ford Fusion Energi, Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid. Tax Table

Federal Tax Credit for Electric Vehicles
Electric vehicles (EVs) purchased in or after 2010 may be eligible for a federal income tax credit of up to $7,500. The credit amount will vary based on the capacity of the battery used to fuel the vehicle.This credit replaces an earlier credit for EVs purchased in 2009. Small neighborhood electric vehicles do not qualify for this credit. Tax Table
 

2013 Electric Cars in Production

Myers Motors

Chevy Volt

Nissan Leaf

Tesla Roadster

Tango

LiFe

 

Electric Cars, NEVs in production and future models

	AC Propulsion AC Propulsion builds the 2010 electric car called the eBox by converting a Scion xB 5-speed to electric power. The gasoline Scion xB costs less than $15,000 well-equipped (very reasonable considering the 2012 Scion tC starts at $19,305) and weighs less than 2400 pounds.
	American Electric Kurrent is a neighborhood vehicle (NV), which means it has four wheels and weighs less than 2500 lbs. It runs on the same standard electricity you use to operate your household appliances. Think of it as juice to go. Kurrent is not just a new car – it’s a whole new way to get where you’re going.Kurrent, when fully charged, will travel 35-40 miles at a constant speed of 25 miles per hour.
	Arcimoto Pulse The Arcimoto Pulse has 100% electric drivetrain, three-wheeled tandem design, multiple range options, multiple exterior and interior options including A/C, stereo, power locks/windows, GPS. Range 40-100 miles. Price: $17,000.
	Bigman Electric Vehicle "Bigman" is a five passenger zero-emissions electric vehicle traveling up to 25 miles per hour.  Its DC 48 Volt connected to a standard 110 outlet charger, requires a charging time of only 10 hours and zooms up to 75 miles between charges - a  proven test performance.
	BYD e6 Electric Car The pure-electric e6 features BYD's revolutionary battery technology - what we call the Fe battery. The range per charge is expected to be a remarkable 250 miles. Performance is surprisingly brisk, with 0-60mph acceleration in less than 8 seconds and a projected top speed of 100mph.
	Dynasty Electric Car Corporation Dynasty Electric Car Corporation designs, manufacturer and markets zero emission, electric Low Speed Vehicles (LSV's) for urban, recreational and light commercial markets such as planned and gated communities, destination resorts, industrial complexes and universities.
	Fisker Automotive  The Fisker Karma will offer consumers the ability to drive the car emission free for up to 50 miles a day, provided the car is charged every evening. It's feasible that if consumers follow this daily routine, they will only need to fuel the car but once a year. This means it will not only cut down on pollution and global warming, but on a consumer’s gasoline budget as well.
	Ford Electric Transit If an electric passenger car is good, an electric people mover is even better. Ford Motor Company on Monday announced plans to bring an all-electric version of the 2010 Transit Connect to the North American market in addition to its 2.0 liter gasoline-powered model. Discontinued
	Global Electric Motorcars From its seating for four to a variety of vehicle options. Add one of the three optional, interchangable carriers for exceptional functionality. The GEM e4 features a sunroof and six 12-V flooded electrolyte batteries for a range of up to 30 miles on a charge.
	Li-ion Motors What does 170 miles per hour on the road sound like? Again silence... as you press down on the pedal and accelerate to 60 mph in just over three seconds, pushing faster and faster until that boom you hear is actually your heart catching up. That's the power of the Inizio, the world's fastest all-electric supercar.
	Lightning Car Company The Lightning Car Company is developing of a range of 700 bhp Lightning electric cars, for the first time genuinely harnessing electric motive power and uniting it with class-leading sports car design, engineering and production.
	Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG E-Cell Power for the E-Cell will be provided by four electric motors – all located at the rear of the vehicle – that are capable of revving to 12,000rpm. Power for the setup totals 525 hp and 649 lb-ft of torque, zero-to-62 time of just 4 seconds.
	Micro-Vett Electric Vehicles With its mono-volume design, Porter Fontana grants the best results of versatility and driving controllability. For persons transport with 6 seats, Porter Fontana represents the best answer to present-day problems of city mobility thanks to its lowest cost of maintenance and the absence of gas and acoustic emissions.
	Miles Automotive Group Miles Electric Vehicles is a manufacturer and distributor of full electric vehicles manufactured in China to meet international car safety standards. MILES was recently given the "Electric Car Company of 2007" award by Good Clean Tech.
	Mini Cooper - Electric Mini E BMW is getting on the electric-car bandwagon with what may be the most stylish alternative-fuel vehicle to date, The Mini Cooper E plug-in is available in a limited rollout of 500 cars in New York, New Jersey, and California.
	Phoenix Motorcars Phoenix Motorcars announced that it was on the road to producing over 500 Phoenix Sport Utility Trucks featuring more compact packaging of the Altairnano Nanosafe battery than originally projected.With a peak power output of 200 kW and low manufacturing cost process.
	Reva The REVA is designed for city commuters across the globe, for an economical and pollution free driving experience. It is designed for low speed, congested, urban conditions. Being efficient and cost-effective, the REVA has the lowest running cost in the world!