Gas 2.0

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Toyota Recalls 650,000 Prius Over Coolant Concerns Posted: 30 Nov 2010 12:57 PM PST Ever since the whole "unintended acceleration" fiasco, automakers have been voluntarily recalling a record number of cars this year. Toyota, trying to nip a coolant problem with the Prius, has recalled 650,000 of the hybrids worldwide. Of those 650,000 recalled Prius, 378,000 were sold in the U.S. and the affected model years are 2004-2007. The problem seems to stem from the water pump, which pumps coolant and water through the radiator and into the engine block, absorbing heat and keeping the engine cool. Alas, the water pump on the affected cars can cause air bubbles to occur in the flow, disrupting the circulation and increasing the possibility of engine and hybrid system overheating. No injuries or accidents have occurred from the problem, and even if the engine were to blow because of the water pump, it is unlikely to cause any kind of accident as the car will simply go into "limp" mode. Toyota will of course fix the water pump for free. Seems like a bit of an over reaction, though I'm curious, have any of you Prius owners experienced any sort of over-heating problem? Source: Reuters Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to Hemis. You can follow his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout.

Iceland Wants 1,000 Amp Electric-SUVs Posted: 30 Nov 2010 08:17 AM PST Northern Lights, an Icelandic utility conversion company, is talking with AMP about buying 1,000 of their electric conversion cars based on the Chevy Equinox, Saturn Vue, and Pontiac Solstice convertible. I know what you're thinking. A convertible in Iceland? Well no, this is more about the Equinox and Vue. You see, apparently one-third of the Icelandic light-vehicle market is made up of SUV's (which sounds like America circa 2000). Northern Lights wants to buy some of these conversions for its own fleet, as well as selling them on the local market later on. If the deal goes through (they’ve so far written a letter of intent) Northern Lights will buy 1,000 of AMP's converted Chevy's over the next five years in a deal that totals between $45 million and $50 million. The AMP Equinox can reportedly go up to 150 miles on a single electric charge and is set to cost between $45,000 and $50,000 each when they go on sale early next year. It's an important deal for the fledgling EV conversion company, and I hope to see them tackle some other GM vehicles too. All-electric Camaro anyone? Source: Green Car Advisor Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to Hemis. You can follow his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout.

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Gas 2.0

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• Each Chevy Volt Cost $40,000 to Build
• Renault Aims for 150-mile All-Electric Range by 2015
• Toyota Happy with Hybrids…For Now

Each Chevy Volt Cost $40,000 to Build Posted: 29 Nov 2010 06:08 PM PST The  accolades for its Chevy Volt, those accolades don't come cheap. The Chevy Volt reportedly cost a whooping $40,000 each to build, not including development costs. That price makes the $41,000 MSRP seem downright reasonable. GM makes just $1,000 on each Volt sold. That isn't a lot, considering that GM can make upwards of $15,000 on the sale of an upscale Suburban such as the Cadillac Escalade or GMC Denali. On the same token, GM also lost around $1,000 on every Chevy Cavaleir they sold, and they sold a lot of those. GM will make about $1,000 on every Volt sold. At that rate, it will take GM a long, long time to recoup the $1 billion some-odd dollars they spent developing the Volt. These revelations come from Steve Rattner, who in his book "Overhaul" walks us through the auto bailouts that dominated last year. While I am surprised that GM, one of the world's largest automakers, couldn't build the Volt for cheaper, I guess it kind of justifies the Volt's high cost. What say you though, in light of these revelations, is it really still worth the $41,000? Source: GM Volt Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to Hemis. You can follow his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout.

Renault Aims for 150-mile All-Electric Range by 2015 Posted: 29 Nov 2010 11:47 AM PST Batteries are the only Achilles' heel in the otherwise impressive armor of achievement in electric cars, limited to just 100 miles to a charge. Yet Renault thinks by 2015, they will have increased their range to 150 miles. First off, I hope everybody had a happy Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and now Cyber Monday (if you celebrate such holidays). I know I had a great time off, but I’m happy to be back writing about the cars I love. Major manufacturers are experimenting with all kinds of different batteries, from lithium-ion to varities of nickel and more. I'm no chemist or engineer, but I do know that while a lot of people are interested in electric cars, paying full price for a car that gets a lot less range than a regular gas engine is a big problem for many people. Renault realizes this too. Their all-electric Zoe hits markets next year with a 100 mile range, which is on par with the other major contenders. By 2015 though, they think they can bump the range up to 150 miles. Renault (and by extension their ally Nissan) are working on different kinds of batteries, including zinc-air and silver-zinc varieties. They hope that by 2025, battery pack range will have increased to 300 miles. That isn't far behind what many small cars manage now. Imagine 300 miles between charges. Who wouldn't be happy about that? Source: AutoCar Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to Hemis. You can follow his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout.

Toyota Happy with Hybrids…For Now Posted: 29 Nov 2010 11:45 AM PST The Toyota Prius made the word "hybrid" a household name, and it has given Toyota a huge lead in the hybrid car market. Toyota will stick with hybrids as other automakers play with electric cars. Mistake, or good game plan? You really can't blame Toyota for wanting to stick with a winning strategy. The Prius is the best selling hybrid in the world. Also, Toyota did play around with electric cars, selling a 100-mile electric Rav4 for five years (from 1998 to 2003). They sold just under 1,500 of those in five years. Very sad, but not unexpected when you don't market the damn car. While Toyota did bring the electric Rav4 back (with the help of Tesla), Toyota doesn't expect to sell them. Instead, they predict they will sell almost a million hybrids a year by 2015, 10% of their total sales. In addition to traditional hybrids like the Prius, Toyota is also working on a plug-in hybrid that will operate like the Volt, with a small all-electric range and an extended gas-powered range. Toyota apparently feels electric cars will remain a niche market in the coming years, and they could be right. Even with their partnership with Tesla though, is Toyota running the risk of falling behind other automakers? Nissan and GM are both putting their own version of the electric car on the road in the coming months. Ford has an electric Focus coming next year. Everybody is getting in on the electric car game it seems, except Toyota (and Chrysler). Is Toyota going to end up as the next GM, stuck in its old ways because the old ways work? Let us hope not. Source: Technology Review Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to Hemis. You can follow his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout.

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Chevy Volt Gets Combined EPA Rating of 60 MPG Posted: 24 Nov 2010 01:05 PM PST The EPA strikes again! After the Nissan Leaf a 99 mpg-e rating but only 73 miles of range, the EPA has slapped the Chevy Volt with a 37 mpg rating and a 93 mpg-equivalent rating. Combined, it gets 60 mpg. Somebody over at GM must have given the head of the EPA a call after Nissan released the Leaf's 99 mpg-e rating. I wasn't too happy about it either. Well now we have the Volt's numbers and try to follow along with me here. So the EPA says that, running on gas only, the Volt gets 37 mpg. Not a great figure but not too shabby. The EPA says the Volt can go 344 miles once the electricity is used up. But is that highway, city, both, or regardless? The sticker doesn't say. In addition to the 37 mpg rating, the EPA also gave the Volt a 93 mpg-e rating, almost as good as the Leaf…which doesn't use any gas at all. This figure combines gas and electric driving, so combined, the Volt has a 60 mpg rating, and a 35 mile all-electric rating (which is the most reasonable part of the whole damn blunder). I get what the EPA tried to do here, and I'm sure many of you readers do too. They are working within the confines of an old system. Maybe you even think it makes sense. Then again, if you're reading this blog, you have some kind of interest in these vehicles. But imagine the poor schlub stumbling on to a dealership lot and coming across all these numbers, or trying to decipher this stuff online. There is so much old, outdated information out there on both of these cars (GM’s 230 MPG fiasco for example) and instead of clearing the air, I feel like the EPA just added more uncertainty. Maybe they should have just waited for the new rating system instead. Source: GM Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to Hemis. You can follow his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout.

Spy Shots of Ford Focus Electric Posted: 24 Nov 2010 08:57 AM PST Sometime in late 2011, Ford is supposed to start delivering electrified versions of its new Focus to dealerships. While Ford hasn't given us any "official" pictures of the Focus Electric, these appear to be spyshots of the upcoming electric car. Upon looking at these photos, your initial reaction is sure to be "So what? Looks like a new Focus to me." Ahh, but the devil is in the details. While carmakers generally dress their cars up in camouflage to obscure design details, Ford long ago released lots of pictures of its 2012 Focus, and its hot-hatch cousin the Focus ST. So what is so special about this Focus? Well for one, the lack of an exhaust pipe is a very clear indicator that what we are dealing with isn't powered by petrol. Also notice that the location of the fuel-filler door has been obscured on both sides by camouflage. Probably because that is where the charging plug will be instead. The Focus Electric should have a range of about 100 miles when it comes out in late 2011. Of course it will have plenty of competition from the likes of the Chevy Volt and Nissan Leaf, but I have faith that Ford will hold its own. Source: Road & Track Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to Hemis. You can follow his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout.

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