The electric Volkswagen Golf, which goes by the name of Blue-e-Motion, is already undergoing many tests in Germany, the largest in Berlin. It won’t be available to the general public before late next year, but here’s a new test outside of Germany. Continue reading
Last May, Renault delivered a fleet of 15 electric Kangoo ZE (Zero Emission) to the German city of Hamburg, which was experimenting with electric mobility. Continue reading
To most Europeans, with climate change less and less of a doubt (2011 has been the warmest year on record), and gasoline being ever more expensive, it’s a shock that hundreds of thousands of Americans will buy a V8-powered gas-guzzler SUV this year. And most will drive them daily, regardless of the 15 mpg fuel economy (or worse), and the accordingly huge CO2 emissions.
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Diesel is the leading engine by far in Europe, and Renault knows it well. When unveiling the mid-life facelift of its best-selling Megane model, it didn’t forget to bring a new diesel. A 1.6 liter unit, it was introduced last year in the larger Scenic model. At 130 hp, this is the most powerful engine of its size. Fuel economy will be excellent, as it comes standard with a Stop & Start system, and a smart alternator which Continue reading
Electric cars should get a half-percent market share in 3 countries
The three leading countries for electric mobility should be France, Japan and the United States. In absolute terms though, sales will remain weak. Buying a new technology is an issue for many drivers (is it safe? Will it last?), and so is pricing. There may be Continue reading
Since 1997, the Öko Trend institute publishes a list of the greenest cars available on the German market. Many others do something similar in every country of the world, but the Öko Trend institute might have the most rigorous methodology. Thousands of factors are taken into account, such as fuel economy and toxic emissions. Those are the most obvious ones, but there’s also Continue reading
2011 has been a rough year for some of us, but it has been good for premium brands. Audi recruited 3,500 new employees in 2011. The manufacturer had never hired so many people in one single year. That expansion will keep on going next year, with Audi planning to hire 1,200 new people in 2012. To get along, Audi has budgeted a 13 billion euros ($16.87 billion) investment for upgrading Continue reading
Something big happened in 1997. The first car with a common rail fuel injection system was sold. It was a diesel Alfa Romeo 156, and a Mercedes followed a few months later. Americans hadn’t seen it, but success was immediate in Europe, and beyond all the most optimistic forecasts. Direct fuel injection via a high pressure common rail made diesels more powerful, smoother to run, more Continue reading
An electric Kia Picanto has been shown at a few shows around the world, but it was a concept. The world is still waiting for a production electric car from Kia, and it will have to keep on waiting. Even after today’s announcement about the Ray. The Ray is a production model that is not exported. It’s a city car for South Koreans, with a 1.0-liter gas engine, which was launched barely Continue reading
Peugeot signed a deal with Mitsubishi 2 years ago. That enables the French brand to sell a slightly modified Mitsubishi i-MiEV under its own brand name in Europe. Without any surprise, the Peugeot brand’s doing better than the Japanese brand (save in the UK), thanks to its much larger sales network and more popular name. It even managed to do something nobody had ever Continue reading