Toyota on Monday began selling a new Prius model in Japan, the smallest Toyota hybrid released to date. Known as the Aqua compact hybrid in Japan the same vehicle will sell as the Prius C in the United States and is currently selling for a cost of 1.69 million Yen ($21,700).

Toyota hopes to sell 12,000 Aquas a month in Japan as they continue to expand their Prius lineup to meet increasing global demand for the company which is expected to reach 20 percent in 2012.

The vehicle is small by any standards measuring just 3.9 meters (12.8 feet) compared to the Prius which measures 4.48 meters in length, however the vehicle still has as much leg room as a Corolla but costs 22 percent less than the standard Prius.

According to the company the new vehicle can achieve 35 kilometers per liter (locally), compared to 30 kilometers per liter for the hybrid version of the Fit.

The company hopes that they can recuperate at least part of the Prius sales they’ve lost in Japan over the last six months after a March 11 earthquake and following tsunami cut out 51 percent of their sales volume. The U.S. market in the meantime has already increased by 49% in November 2011 compared to the same period of 2010.

The automobile manufacturer will also begin rolling out a wagon version of the Prius in May and will introduce a plug-in version which can run approximately 23 kilometers on it’s lithium-ion battery before switching to gasoline, the former will be available in Japan sometime in January 2012 and in the U.S. by March.

Here’s a teaser video for the new Toyota Prius C:

Would you be willing to buy a small Toyota hybrid vehicle if it meant better gas mileage and a cheaper sticker price?

New Prius Is The Smallest Toyota Hybrid On The Road is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Acura division at car manufacturer Honda is set to unveil a revised version of its former NSX supercar, a high-tech model that will be small and eco-friendly.

‘Small’ and ‘eco-friendly’ are not two words you’d use to describe the monstrous V10-powered Acura Advance Sports Car Concept (pictured above looking silver and mean) that appeared at major auto shows in 2007.

Cars to emerge from under Honda’s Acura division, the company’s luxury motors arm, have not always sold that well.

Honda bigwigs hope to change this, by giving Acura cars more of an identity. That’s not empty corporate speak, however: in the past, Acuras have been models adapted from existing Hondas sold in Europe or other markets. When the new NSX rolls out at the Detroit Auto Show in January, it will be its own design. And part of this will involve placing greater importance on affordability and sustainability, rather than features and horsepower alone. Jeff Conrad, Honda sales VP, says:

“That doesn’t mean we won’t create high-performance vehicles, but the way we do it will be unique to Acura.”

So what can we expect from the new NSX? A mid-engine two-seater, it’ll be a V6 gas-electric hybrid with multiple electric motors to improve the all-wheel-drive system. Said motors will be independently controlled by the car’s computer.

The revised NSX will succeed the $90,000 NSX original that was manufactured from 1990 to 2005, a 175-miles-per-hour beast. This new NSX is performing quite the U-turn in many aspects of its design – but can it keep the fans happy?

Honda Acura Division to Reveal New NSX Supercar is a post from: The Inquisitr

A new plug-in version of the popular Toyota Prius hybrid can be ordered from this week.

The latest Prius, a half gasoline-half electric hybrid, boasts extraordinarily efficient mileage (check it: 143 miles per gallon in Japan) and a quite reasonable price of 3.2 million yen ($41,000 – and that price tag is reduced to to 2.75 million yen ($35,200) once green vehicle subsidies are taken into account).

Toyota has fairly modest initial sales targets for its new plug-in baby – they want to sell 35,000 to 40,000 a year in Japan, and 60,000 globally. The arrives in its homeland in January. The company has said it will charge $32,000 in the U.S. and 37,000 euros in Europe respectively.

It’s selling the plug-in Prius, which seats five people despite its compact form, as “the premier next-generation ecological car that will follow the hybrid.” It sports a new lithium-ion battery that can be charged up from a simply household outlet, like an electric car. And it can recharge itself while driving like a gasoline-electric hybrid.

Such cars are widely expected to be the focus of the forthcoming Tokyo Motor Show, which will open its doors to the masses this weekend.

The Prius’ chances at market are boosted by the Japanese government backing subsidies for consumers who choose a green car.

While other governments offer similar perk, it’s true that plug-in cars like the Prius are especially suited to Japan – according to studies, Japanese drivers don’t travel more than 20 kilometers (12 miles) a day on average. How this would fare in the wide, open U.S. remains to be seen.

Plug-in Toyota Prius Now Available for Order is a post from: The Inquisitr

Jay Leno‘s extensive car collection includes Lamborghinis, Porsches, Audis and all sorts of other cars that many of us could only dream to own. But what does a man who owns such a collection use for his work commute? That would be the Chevrolet Volt, apparently.

Considering what Leno told the New York Times, we can’t say we blame him, either. Leno said that in the just under a year’s time since he started driving his Volt, he hasn’t had to fill up the tank a single time. In fact, he’s only used less than half of the 9.3 gallon tank.

“It’s my daily driver,” he said. “It really is. I commute in it to work every day. My commute, and all my other daily running around, totals less than 35 miles.”

Chevrolet claims that the Volt can run up to 40 miles on electric power alone before it has to start taking in gasoline. Considering that Leno’s commute to work is less than 35 miles, he rarely ever has to use any of the gasoline.

“You get 40 miles free, as they say,” Leno said. “Because of the way I drive it, it almost never kicks into gasoline mode.”

Source: NY Times (via Engadget)

[Image credit: Jay Leno's Garage]

Jay Leno has gone 11,000 miles in his Chevrolet Volt on one tank of gas is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Civic Natural Gas has just been named the 2012 green car of the year at the LA Auto Show.

Michael Accavitti, of American Honda Motor Company, said:

“The Civic Natural Gas is not only a great vehicle, it also demonstrates Honda’s commitment to provide a variety of alternatives to gasoline.”

According to the AFP, the Civic Natural Gas is the only factory built CNG-powered car currently produced in America. Inhabitat reports that Civic is the cleanest internal combustion car certified by the EPS. Honda re-purposed a 1.8-liter 4-cylinder gas engine to burn natural gas. The Civic Natural Gas gets 31 miles per gallon.

It went on sale in October with a starting price of $26,155. The editors of Green Car Journal picked the Civic Natural Gas over the Volkswagen Passat TDI, the Mitsubishi i, the Toyota Prius V and the Ford Focus Electric. The Mitsubishi and the Ford are both all electric vehicles. The Toyota Prius is a gas-electric hybrid and the Volkswagen runs on diesel.

John O’Dell, senior editor at Edmunds.com, said that this year’s finalist show that the green car industry is growing and consumers are getting more options when choosing an eco-friendly car.

“(The finalist show that) the industry is finally getting to the point where there’s some consumer choice in green offerings. When you look at those vehicles, they run the gamut of fuel types, price range and vehicle types.”

Last year, the 2011 Chevy Volt was awarded the Green Car of the Year Award.

What do you think of the Honda Civic Natural Gas? Do you drive a green car?

Civic Natural Gas Named Green Car of the Year is a post from: The Inquisitr

If you’re a fan of motorcycles and green technology you’re in luck, Volta Motorbikes this week announced their new Volta BCN motorcycle, an electric bike that will go on sale during the second quarter of 2012.

The all-electric motorcycle will come in three models; BCN Sport, BCN City, and BCN My Volta all of which will debut next month at the Milan based EICMA Motorshow.

Each of the models feature 35 horsepower and a range of 70 kilometers (45 miles) with customized features being made available via an online ordering tool.

Buyers can expected to pay just under $10,000 per bike and more details will be released in November.

While we have to wait a while to see the bikes here’s a teaser video provided by Volta:

Are you excited to check out the Volta BCN line when it debuts?

Volta Announces – BCN Electric Motorcycle Will Go On Sale In Q2 2012 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Natural gas is becoming an increasingly important piece of the alternative energy jigsaw – over the past decade, fom Texas to New York, a million Americans have signed leases that allow energy companies to drill on their land.

But suddenly bankers and real estate agents and excutives are sitting up and noticing a problem: the dumping of toxic wastewater on the leased land.

Indeed, dumping toxic water has become so common that banks are now thinking twice about granting mortgages on properties that have been leased for drilling. According to this post, eight local or national banks refuse to issue mortgages on such properties.

Those in the credit business are looking for ways around this. For example, one New York-based credit union now forces gas companies to promise to pay for any damage caused by drilling that causes the value of mortgaged properties to fall.

Meanwhile, bankers are agitated because drillers operate in ways that violate rules laid out in the terms of most mortgages. One such rule – though it is not common knowledge – states homeowners must gain permission from their mortgage banker before signing a lease.

Increasingly, it is the homeowner who will suffer. When selling a house with a gas drilling lease attached to it, the growing reluctance of banks to offer mortgages on such properties then reduces the number of buyers.

According to Cosimo Manzo, a vice president of First Heritage Financial, a mortgage services company in Philadelphia:

“It’s truly Pandora’s box. If local banks do not require that leases comport with mortgage rules, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may stop buying mortgages from these banks.”

The message to draw from this? Think twice when the gent in the ten-gallon hat comes a-knockin’ on your door with a fat lease.

Natural Gas Drilling Could Affect Mortgages is a post from: The Inquisitr

General Electric announced a fair big initiative today when it comes to solar energy starting with a new factory going into an existing building in Aurora, Colorado.

Besides bringing 355 estimated jobs to the area GE believes that the facility will be one of the largest existing solar panel factory in the country. The company is hoping that the first solar panels will come off the line in 2012 and be available commercially by 2013.

Estimates are that the facility will be able to produce enough solar panels per year to power some 80,000 homes and when the facility is complete it will represent an investment of some $600 million in their solar business.

In addition to the investment in Colorado the company is also looking to increase high tech jobs through their Renewable Energy Global Headquarters and their Global Research Center; both of which are located in New York State.

You can read the full press release at the Business Wire site.

From Colorado to New York solar energy is getting a big push from GE is a post from: The Inquisitr

It seems that electric vehicles have been sluggish to come to market, to say the least, with interest in the innovation substantial but no affordable options for environmentally conscious consumers to begin unshackling themselves from gas pumps. (For instance, Nissan’s Leaf costs between $35-40,000 and few are available nationwide.)

Sunsetting a technology used by everyone, everywhere is a difficult prospect, and a huge hurdle in getting electric cars to be more widely palatable. Plus, the lengthy time required for a proper charge means that using the technology could seem prohibitive- but that could change.

The good news is that this week Nissan announced that the company is developing a charging station for electric vehicles that can fully charge a car’s battery in just 10 minutes- down from the currently discouraging eight hours. According to Yahoo, new technology has made it so that the process can be truncated significantly:

Researchers at at Kansai University in Japan claim that the breakthrough in this charging method comes from swapping out the electrode utilizing carbon inside a capacitor to an electrode using tungsten oxide and vanadium oxide.

There is a downside, however- the technology is expected to be about a decade away from market, although the situation is improving. Nissan is “aggressively supporting” technology that will charge batteries to about 80% capacity in 30 minutes or so, and electric car charging stations are slowly but surely popping up in the US as more consumers consider the technology as an alternative to high gas bills. Car companies aren’t the only ones looking at making the technology more accessible to consumers- Walgreens is adding 800 electric car charging stations nationwide for customers to utilize.

Have you considered replacing your car with an electric vehicle?

Electric Vehicles Getting 10 Minute Chargers, But… is a post from: The Inquisitr

In a country that talks a lot about the need for clean power there sure is a lot of NIMBY attitude as well as extremely powerful lobbying against any serious move to utilizing clean power alternatives. So it is surprising to hear that there is one municipality in the country that uses only renewable energy, and even more surprising to hear that it is Austin, the capital of Texas.

We’re not just talking dribs and drabs here either as Austin can claim that 100% of it’s energy is coming from renewable sources. That’s all of its public buildings, it’s airport and the water treatment plants. All being powered using wind from West Texas.

In fact, the city’s publicly-owned utility, Austin Energy, has produced more renewable energy than any other power company in the country.

The utility first introduced its energy saving scheme back in 1982 and then a green building program in 1991, and its first wind program back in 1995 and even though Austin Energy’s customers sometimes pay 15 to 25% more for electricity under the Greenchoice program it seems to be a premium they are willing to pay.

For that though they also get a better sense of transparency over what the energy is costing over the duration of any contracts entered into by Austin Energy, as well as seeing their costs go down over the life of those contracts.

It also turns out that Austin isn’t alone when it comes to Texas cities and renewable energy programs. Both Houston and Dallas place in the EPA’s top 10 list of government clean power adopters.

via Fast Company

Texas capital shows how you do clean power adoption the right way is a post from: The Inquisitr

If there is one thing that you can definitely say about Richard Branson it is that he isn’t lacking of hyperbole when it comes to promoting his projects, and his newest announcement today was no exception.

Branson was in London to announce another of his continuing initiatives to lower the carbon footprint of his prize airline – Virgin Atlantic.

Calling it one of the most exciting developments of our lifetime, as well as being a major breakthrough on the ‘war on carbon’ Branson announced that in partnership with LanzaTech they are developing the world’s first low-carbon aviation fuel. It is believed that the new fuel will halve the airline’s current carbon footprint.

This new method calls for capturing the waste energy that typically escapes from heavy manufacturing plants via their huge smokestacks and through a recycling method turn that energy into aviation fuel.

Using this newly discovered method they believe that they can capture up to 65% of the waste energy from places like the world’s steel mills and after fermenting it as well as using a chemical conversion process they believe the results will be a usable jet fuel.

via Richard Branson

Richard Branson`s Virgin Atlantic announces low carbon fuel initiative [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Electric cars are the new cool toy for those that can afford it but one of the biggest problem facing general acceptance is that it takes up to four hours or more to recharge the car batteries.

It is this hurdle that Nissan looking to change with its new charging station which it says will recharge the Nissan Leaf to full capacity within 10 minutes.

Nissan has managed to pull this off by changing the components that go into a charging station. Where they were using carbon as the electrode that goes inside the capacitor they are now using tungsten oxide, as well as vanadium oxide to improve power.

This improvement should be good news for all electric vehicle manufacturers as Pike Research recently released a report that suggested that manufacturers could possibly expect some strong push back from consumers if they don’t find some way to improve the recharging time from the current four to eight hours.

via New York Daily News

Nissan to change the electric car recharger for the better is a post from: The Inquisitr

Scientists in Japan are preparing to tour the country using a poop powered bike that was literally built out of bike parts and a toilet seat where the driving sits.

The bio-gas powered bike known as Neo was developed by TOTO and is said to run on the “new coal” and will travel 600-miles during it’s Japanese tour.

Showing off their sense of humor the Japanese company will have the driver of the bike stop at a giant boulder that happens to be in the shape of a rear end.

In case the driver gets bored the poop powered bike also plays music and talk.

There’s still a few important questions to be answered, for example does the driver poop while driving or does he do it in private? It’s also still unclear what will happen once the bike runs out of poop power.

Poop Powered Bike To Tour Japan is a post from: The Inquisitr

Geothermal energy’s reputation took a blow today after it was revealed two taxpayer-backed clean energy companies are facing serious financial difficulties.

USA Today reports on the plight of Raser Technologies and Nevada Geothermal Power (NGP), both of which specialize in capturing heat from the earth and converting it to electricity.

Both firms received a total of $195 million in partial federal loan guarantees and grants that were intended to promote clean energy. Yet financial records unearthed by USA Today reveal that neither company has ever pulled a profit.

Raser Technologies already filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy this year, while NGP is facing a growing risk of closure. Both companies have agreements in place with utilities to buy the energy they produce, but Raser never produced more than 5 megawatts of power at its plant in Beaver County, Utah.

The case of Raser and NGP carries echoes of Solyndra, the now-bankrupt solar manufacturer that received a $535million federal loan in 2009 by the U.S. government.

The same program that doled out money to Solyndra granted a $98.5million loan guarantee to NGP. Two years ago, Republicans jumped at the chance to criticize the Obama administration over the Solyndra loan, and are unlikely to ignore the failure of Raser and NGP.

When questioned about the complete lack of profits for NGP, the company’s head of investor communications, Paul Mitchell, told USA Today:

“You have to drill. It’s not unexpected that you can get these lag periods where our productivity and our monetary targets lag behind as we develop the resource.”

A third company, U.S. Geothermal, is in similar dire straits, having received a $97 million Energy Department loan in February, yet not having generated a profit in the past four years.

Geothermal Energy Companies Failing to Make Profit is a post from: The Inquisitr

Green energy is a hot topic when it comes to renewable energy and of all the different methods to produce renewable energy geothermal is probably the least well known but the Geothermal Energy Association is looking to change that when in brings together 160 global businesses involved in the industry.

Billed as the Geothermal Energy Expo the convention is being held in San Diego and will provide a unique opportunity for companies to exhibit their projects, equipment, services as well as sharing the state of the art technology as it applies to the geothermal community.

Companies expected to take part include: Siemens, POWER Engineers, Ormat, NALCO, Geothermal Resource Group, Mitsubishi Power Systems and more.

“As our industry continues to proliferate among global markets, more advancements are being made.  The GEA Geothermal Energy Expo will highlight these new and important technical advancements, providing a robust forum for industry buyers and sellers,” said GEA Executive Director Karl Gawell. “We look forward to welcoming geothermal business leaders and exhibitors from around the world for a very hands on, dynamic event.”

via Renewable Energy World

As it stands right now geothermal power supplies approximately 10,715 Megawatts of electricity in 24 countries but the potential for the use of geothermal resources is much more than that. It is believed that with our current technology, and technology in development, that geothermal resources could supply more than 300,000 Megawatts of power and with fewer carbon emissions.

The expo is expected to draw over 3,000 attendees during October 24 and October 26.

The Geothermal Energy Expo to bring 160 energy companies together is a post from: The Inquisitr

Tesla debuted their new vehicle this week and the Palo Alto-based automaker revealed that the $87,400 vehicle is able to travel 300 miles on a single charge while reaching zero to 60 mph in 4.6 seconds with a topped out speed of 130 mph.

The company is also offers a Tesla Model S that comes in at $57,400 with a range of 160 miles while larger battery pack options can reach 230 and 320 miles respectively.

In original testing company CEO said Elon Musk claimed the vehicle would have a maximum range of 300 miles, but an ultra aerodynamic wheel design has allowed it to beat those numbers in EPA testing.

The new vehicle was developed thanks to $465 million in funding from the Department of Energy and will be built at a factory in Fremont, California.

The vehicle is a hatchback and features two rear-facing seats that can accommodate passengers up to 4ft 11 inches. Customers who purchase the highest end vehicle with a 4G enabled infotainment system will also receive a 17-inch display.

Throw in a fast charger system with one-hour charging periods and you have a vehicle that’s fairly practical and green.

If I had nearly $60,000 sitting around I would be on board. What do you think about the new Tesla Model S design and ultra-green features?

Tesla Model S Debuts With 320 Mile Charge Radius, One Hour Recharge Time is a post from: The Inquisitr

For those of you not familiar with the term ‘smart windows’ it is the term used to describe a type of window that uses glass that can darken or lighten according to outside temperatures. Up until now that usually involved the use of toxic substances which resulted in glass windows that were very expensive and didn’t work all that well.

Now we have a new breed of these windows from a team of researchers in South Korea who say that they have overcome those problems and doesn’t use toxic elements.

Scientists Ho Sun Lim, Jeong Ho Cho, Jooyong Kim and Chang Hwan Lee utilized a polyelectrolyte copolymer, ions reacting with counterions (ions that have a charge opposite to that of other given ions, resulting in electrical neutrality), and solvents such as methanol. The result was dimmable glass that was inexpensive and less toxic to manufacture, while offering robust performance. It is also said to change tint quickly, going from being opaque to almost completely clear within seconds.

via GizMag

Still no mention of price so I imagine they are still going to be on the expensive side.

A new breed of ‘smart windows’ are less expensive and toxic is a post from: The Inquisitr

Fresh food is a rare commodity in some areas of American cities. Even Walmart has recognized this and is looking to open smaller stores in areas not normally use to having small supermarkets anymore and bring fresh produce to area where it is easy to get a McDonald’s hamburger than it is a head of lettuce.

Enter Stockbox Grocers.

The company is a Seattle start up that want to take old shipping containers and convert them into mini-stores selling a range of fresh food, meat and dairy products. These mini-stores are intended to be set up in parking lots around these food deserts within every major city. They have already opened up their first prototype two weeks ago in the Delridge area of Seattle and plan on two permanent sites in early 2012, and with more to follow.

Carrie Ferrence, Stockbox’s cofounder, says the response so far has been promising. “The community has been really supportive of having access to good food. There is a level of education we need to do. But in the short period we’ve been in Delridge, we’ve been blown away by the level of engagement people have around food, and this as a food option.”

Stockbox picked Delridge because car-less residents currently have a 45-minute bus ride to the nearest decent grocery store.

“It’s mostly gas stations and convenience stores. There aren’t even many restaurants. While there are stores within a couple of miles, there are no direct bus lines. It’s difficult to get out of the community, and get somewhere with greater access,” Ferrence says.

via Fast Company

The company founders are graduates of Bainbridge Graduate Institute and the Institute’s MBA program which fosters “sustainable business” entrepreneurs. Carrie Ferrence and her partner Jacqueline Gjurgevich came up with the idea during their second year and have raised $50,000, including  $20,000 via Kickstarter.

Recycled shipping containers to bring fresh food to America’s food deserts is a post from: The Inquisitr

Toyota on Friday finally unveiled their long awaited Prius plug-in hybrid. Production model PHV was rolled out at the Green Drive Expo and the company announced that the vehicle will be ready for sale in March 2012.

The plug-in vehicle comes with a price tag of $32,000 for the base model and will offer two different trim versions with touchscreen audio / navigation display and the company’s Entune in-car entertainment system which comes standard, although the heads up display will be reserved only for higher end versions of the vehicle.

The car delivers up to 87 MPGe when placed in combined drive mode and 49MPG when switched to hybrid mode.

According to Toyota the vehicle is powered by new 4.4kWh Li-ion batteries which can pull a full charge in three hours when plugged into a 120v source or charge in just 2 hours when a 240v connection is made available.

Speaking about the specifics of the launch Toyota officials revealed:

“The Prius Plug-in Hybrid will be on sale in 14 launch states beginning this October through Toyota’s Online Order System at www.toyota.com. Vehicle deliveries begin in Spring 2012. The launch states include California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Maine, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia. A national rollout is planned for 2013.”

Buyers will also be eligible for the full federal tax credit of $2,500 when they pick up the plug-in vehicle, slightly lowering their overall out of pocket expenses.

Do you plan to run out and pick up the plug-in hybrid when it’s made available?

Toyota Unveils Prius Plug-in Model, Gives March 2012 Release Date, $32,000 Price Tag is a post from: The Inquisitr

It might look a little funky but I guess not so much if you compare it to a Dyson machine and besides who of your neighbors could brag about having the world’s most efficient vacuum cleaner that uses 43% less energy than any of its competitors; or rather would be competitors.

Called the Stem, this vacuum cleaner prototype is from Cambridge Consultants and as well as using less energy it offers a 27% environmental impact reduction when compared to other vacuum cleaners.

So how did Cambridge cut down on energy and material use? First, the company surveyed the current vacuum market and thought about ways to improve upon often-used technology. The Stem automatically changes power usage depending on what it is doing. When the vacuum is sitting idle for a moment, power usage also declines.

The vacuum cleaner offers the same size, weight, and performance as standard models–but Cambridge rejiggered the layout of internal parts to increase efficiency and airflow.

via Fast Company

I never realized that vacuuming was such an important area of energy efficiency but hey if you are gong to go down that hallway you might as well have something that looks cool.

Introducing the world’s most efficient vacuum cleaner – suck on this Dyson. is a post from: The Inquisitr