A gallon of gasoline weighs just over 6 pounds. When burned, the carbon in it combines with oxygen from the air to produce nearly 20 pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2). By switching from a gas guzzler to a hybrid, you can literally save the earth a couple of tons of greenhouse gases.
Just when you thought the story about Hummers being more energy-efficient than Priuses had bitten the dust, it bounces back to life. CNW Marketing, the source of the story, just released an update of their analysis. Check out our response from last year.
There are now more than one million hybrid gas-electric vehicles on American roads. Many will celebrate reaching the milestone of one million hybrids zipping around on power from their rechargeable batteries—and burning a lot less petroleum. But some environmentally motivated car buyers are concerned about trading one problem for another.
The list of detrimental health effects from vehicle air pollution sounds like a little shop of horrors.
The U.S. State Department has released an environmental assessment declaring “limited adverse environmental impacts” associated with a proposed extension of the Keystone oil sands pipeline—which would transport as much as 900,000 barrels of oil per day from Alberta, Canada, to United States Gulf Coast.
Yesterday it was reported that GM-owned Opel/Vauxhall is looking for someone to share development costs for more gasoline-electric cars.
This makes the second American-owned company looking to partner with a potential competitor learned about this week.
A few days ago we reported that Ford and Toyota have teamed up to build hybrid powertrains for light duty trucks.
One specific looming incentive for the U.S Ford-Toyota deal is pending CAFE rules that by 2025 will mandate a “54.5 mpg” standard (equal to around 40 mpg on the window sticker).
In Opel’s case, the motivation to partner is essentially the same as it is between Ford and
Toyota, but on a different continent, and considering different legislated mandates.
As the latest addition to its “fleet study in electric mobility,” Volkswagen has revealed its Golf Twin Drive plug-in station wagon prototype ahead of production schedule. The fleet mobility study is intended to run until July 2012 and 20 Twin Drive prototypes in various configurations will be put into real world testing in anticipation of a 2013 retail launch.
All-electric range for the prototype is said to be about 35 miles, and the car is essentially an updated version of a Twin Drive hatchback VW unveiled in 2008.
Gasoline-power motivation comes from a direct-injected 1.4 liter providing a respectable 114 horsepower (85 kW). When the gasoline engine is working in tandem with the electric traction motor, power output is a combined 161 horsepower.
Experimental electric vehicle conversions last year by General Motors in Korea, Germany and as of last week in India, have some wondering when the company will create a pure battery electric to compete against the likes of the Nissan LEAF and pending Ford Focus EV. On Thursday June 23, GM began displaying and testing an all-electric version of its Chevrolet Beat minicar in New Delhi. The Beat Electric is not proposed for sale anytime soon, but India was chosen as a demanding environment – as well as growing market – to demonstrate the car. It is powered by a 300-cell, 20-kWh, liquid-cooled, lithium-ion battery similar to what is in the Chevrolet Volt, but larger for the smaller, but non-range-extended car.
Worldwide gasoline prices range from less than $1 per gallon to more than $10 depending upon where you buy, thanks to subsidies, price controls, geography and other factors. But what's the true price of gasoline? In a new video, the Center for Investigative Journalism attempts to answer that question, placing the total as high as $15 per gallon.
Ford announced yesterday it would raise its annual U.S. production capacity for “electrified” vehicles – hybrids and plug-in hybrids – from 35,000 to over 100,000 by 2013. While the Focus EV is due later this year, the spotlight was also on four other hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Central among these will be Ford’s five-passenger C-Max Hybrid and C-Max Energi plug-in hybrid which for the first time were announced that they would be offered in North America. A seven-passenger ICE version slated for the U.S. however will not be offered.
