Electric vehicles are starting to catch on with automakers, especially since the millionth Prius rolled out in the U.S. The Nissan Leaf, aimed squarely at urban drivers who don’t need a lot of range, is showing promise and more electrics are aimed squarely at that market, especially with gas hitting $4 a gallon and threatening to cross the $5 barrier.

Including Audi’s e-tron, which has a big advantage…and a big disadvantage.

Continue Reading

Here’s something that could make EVs and plug-in hybrids a little more attractive to buyers: wireless charging whereby you simply park over top a charging plate and let the system do all the rest. Sure beats plugging in.

Delphi Automotive and WiTricity Corp announced plans to work together toward developing a wireless charging system. The system, which could presumably be integrated as an aftermarket add-on or directly by car manufacturers, uses a wireless resonator station in a garage or parking area and a wireless capture resonator on the underside of the vehicle. The two pieces work together to charge the battery via magnetic-field-based power transfer. According to the companies, the system would work about as fast as traditional hard-wired systems.

The two companies haven’t indicated when we might expect their system to hit the market. [via Autocar]

Car companies with plug-ins on the horizon, like Chevy and Nissan, are all to happy to point out how base pricing will be offset by the up to $7,500 worth of federal tax incentives available to plug-in buyers. Consumers in Lansing, Michigan, which will be among the first launch markets for the Volt, will enjoy a much deeper government incentive: up to $15,000.

The Lansing Board of Water and Light announced this week that it will match federal monies for plug-in buyers. So if you get the full $7,500, you’ll get $15,000 altogether. And LBWL’s portion is available as an on-the-spot payment rather than a tax credit. Not only that, but the agency will pay installation fees for charging equipment.

Continue Reading

Peugeot announced the EX1 concept today, which will debut at the Paris Motor Show later this month. The open-top concept looks kind of like the front end of a car stuck onto a superbike of some sort, an odd configuration that helps to give it some off-the-charts performance claims. Peugeot says that the car shows the ”exciting possibilities for electric power,” and indeed, a sub-3-second 0 to 62 mph time is an exciting possibility.

Continue Reading

Autocar had the chance to sit down with Nissan COO Toshiyuki Shiga and talk about the future of Nissan’s sports cars. Shiga indicated that Nissan is as committed to sporty models like the GT-R as it ever was, and even hinted that an electric sports car is on the way.

He told the magazine: “The GT-R is part of Nissan’s heritage. In fact, since Nissan started as a car company, it has been offering driving pleasure through sports cars. I can’t commit to any new products but, as far as we know, we are keeping this brand, these technologies, and trying to offer sporty cars. I am also thinking of electric vehicles as sporty cars.”

Continue Reading

Reports today are indicating that Audi will show a new e-tron convertible concept at the upcoming Paris Motor Show. The concept will be based on the R4 e-tron shown in January at the Detroit auto show, with the only change being the loss of its hat.

Continue Reading

The initial public stock offering went swimmingly for Tesla yesterday, bringing in a higher stock price than expected and resulting in $226 million for the California electric car maker. Tesla sold 13.3 million shares at $17 each–higher than the $14 to $16 that Tesla originally expected. After the sales, the company was valued at $1.33 billion.

Now that Tesla has some extra bills in its pocket, it will move to debut its Model S sedan. The IPO money will be put toward acquisitions and factories.

Tesla’s stock begins trading on NASDAQ today under the symbol TSLA. [via WCF]

Mercedes isn’t letting Audi have all the electric fun. The latter may have had a prototype to roll around Le Mans, but Mercedes took the opportunity to introduce its own electric performance car this week. And it comes in can’t-miss-it bright-banana yellow.

The E-Cell derives its juice from a lithium-ion polymer battery pack mounted behind the seats. Despite the switchover to electric, it still manages high-end performance numbers, putting out 526 hp and 649 lb-ft with a combination of four electric motors. It’s said to be capable of tackling 62 mph in 4 seconds. In other words, it doesn’t shave much capability off the gas SLS AMG and gets a whole lot cleaner.

Continue Reading

We’ve been patiently waiting to see the full production e-tron, and here’s a little payoff: Audi showed a yellow-bedazzled, charcoal-colored version of the car at the 24 Hours of Le Mans this past weekend. And boy did it look good.

More than pure show, the e-tron took to the track in the Le Mans vers le futur, an event designed specifically for electric cars.

Originally shown as a concept in Frankfurt, the all-electric e-tron features four wheel-mounted motors for a total of 313 horsepower and 3,319 lb-ft. All that power and twist provide a 4.8-second 0 to 62 mph and 125 mph top speed. [via MotorAuthority]

Continue Reading