vehicles

Get ready for a new kind of BMW. The German carmaker announced that it will develop a new line of fuel-efficient vehicles under the "i" sub-brand. BMW i will manufacture and market the yet-to-be-unveiled electric Megacity Vehicle, which will officially be called the i3. The i8, which is the Vision EfficientDynamics plug-in that debuted at the 2009 Frankfurt auto show, will also be produced by BMW i.

These future cars appear to be on opposite ends of the electric spectrum, with the i3 being a small commuter vehicle intended for densely populated cities and the i8 being something … Read more

Electric car maker Tesla Motors yesterday reported a wider quarterly net loss as higher expenses for research, development, sales, and marketing offset a 95 percent surge in revenue.

The company's net loss was $51.4 million, or 54 cents per share, for the fourth quarter ended December 31, compared with a net loss of $24.2 million, or $3.43 per share, in the same quarter a year earlier.

Last year's figures were based on a smaller number of shares outstanding. Tesla, based in Palo Alto, Calif., went public in June.

Excluding one-time items, the company reported a … Read more

BMW released the second chapter of its four-part documentary series, "Wherever You Want to Go," which focuses on the future of mobility, cities, and technology. "The future just isn't what it used to be" is a 6-minute, 42-second clip showing interviews with transportation and technology leaders such as Buzz Aldrin, Google's Marissa Mayer, and former Zipcar CEO Robin Chase to discuss the future of the automobile.

The experts all say the same thing: start thinking small.

Despite the advances of aeronautics in recent years that may make suborbital travel possible, the automobile hasn't … Read more

Nissan Motor, Japan's second-biggest automaker, said today that Leaf production will reach full capacity by March at its factory south of Tokyo.

The company has gradually ramped up output of the Leaf, its first mass-marketed zero-emission car, since it started building them in late October, completing about 3,000 units to date.

By March, the pace of production will rise to full capacity of about 4,000 Leafs a month at the Oppama factory, putting Nissan on track to hit a target of producing a total 10,000 units by the end of March, a Nissan official said.

"… Read more

Tesla Motors, manufacturer of the Roadster electric sports car and supplier of EV components, has released information about its upcoming Model S sedan's development cycle.

Tesla is breaking the S' preproduction testing into two phases, alpha and beta. Within each phase the automaker will be building multiple test mules as it attempts to home in on its targeted performance, range, and crash safety. Tesla also notes that the Alpha development phase has been in progress since last year, quoting its Vehicle Dynamicist Graham Sutherland when he states, "The first Alpha is amazingly agile for a car of its … Read more

These days you can't throw a stick at a car show without hitting an electric or electrified vehicle. The 2011 North American International Auto Show in Detroit was no exception.

Among the full-electric vehicles were the Ford Focus Electric and Honda Fit EV, but there were also examples from smaller companies, such as Venturi and Li-ion Motors. Toyota's Prius gained a plug-in model. Conventional hybrids were among the most numerous, counting among their ranks Toyota's new Prius V and C models, Audi's new A4 hybrid sedan, and Porsche's beastly 918 RSR concept.

We've gathered … Read more

The technology to shift U.S. transportation from oil to electricity is basically ready to go, but political and infrastructure issues could stymie growth beyond a niche set of drivers, according to a study done by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The report, put out today by the MIT Energy Initiative, said that the two main reasons for electrifying transportation are to lower greenhouse gas emissions and to reduce dependence on imported oil.

Conventional hybrids lower carbon dioxide emissions compared to gasoline engines by about 33 percent, it found. If a plug-in hybrid were charged by carbon-free electricity, such as … Read more

We've known for some time that Ford Motor Company has been developing a battery electric vehicle (BEV) variant of its Ford Focus. However, the mule previously showcased was based on the second-generation Focus chassis, which is now old-new following the unveiling of the third-generation Focus. Today, the automaker has released teaser photos of what appears to be a new Focus BEV concept and announced via its Ford Electric Vehicles Facebook fan page that it will have big news at the 2011 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

A set of photos posted on the automaker's Facebook wall … Read more

General Motors announced today it is part of a partnership to test fuel cell vehicles and hydrogen fueling infrastructure in Hawaii.

The Hawaii Hydrogen Initiative aims to bring 20 to 25 hydrogen fueling stations to Hawaii by 2015, according to an agreement with GM, Hawaiian utility The Gas Company (TGC), and other research and government agencies.

The project will seek to use existing natural gas pipelines to distribute hydrogen. TGC said that it has the capacity to produce enough hydrogen for 10,000 vehicles.

Hawaii is the most fossil fuel-dependent state in the U.S., according to the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative. … Read more