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

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

The forthcoming mini car, named the Spark EV, will reportedly be modeled after the Chevrolet Beat EV concept, which was unveiled in India earlier this year.

While details are thus far scarce on the electrified Spark, Car and Driver reports that it will feature a nanophosphate lithium-ion battery from A123 Systems – for shorter charge times and increased battery usage – and probably have a range of 80 miles or so.

“The Spark EV offers customers living in urban areas who have predictable driving patterns or short commutes an all-electric option,” said Jim Federico, global vehicle chief engineer for electric vehicles at Chevrolet.

Federico added that the Spark EV was another “step in Chevrolet’s plan to provide customers with a variety of electrification solutions to address the lifestyle and transportation needs of people around the world.”

GM has not yet announced details such as quantities, price or in what markets it might be sold.

To see the Chevrolet Spark EV in action, check out the clip below:
via USA Today

Chevrolet Spark EV, All-Electric Minicar, to be Sold in 2013 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

Last year BMW set the motoring world on its ear when it introduced its electric concept cars, the i3 and the i8. Well, get ready for it to set the whole driving world on its ear when it actually launches the cars next year.

Of the two the i8 is the typical BMW luxury car with sleek curves and gorgeous styling, not the the i3 is any slouch in this area, that will come with a turbocharged 1.5-liter three-cylinder powerplant that will put out 220 horsepower and 221 lb-ft torque.

When combined with the electric motor you can expect to go from zero to 60 mph in under five seconds.

The three-pot works in tandem with a lithium-ion battery pack and front-mounted electric motor pulled from the i3 and driving the front wheels, allowing an electric-only range of up to 20 miles on a charge. Put both systems together and you’ve got a front-wheel-drive vehicle for maximum efficiency, a rear-driver for maximum fun and all-wheel drive for maximum grip. And if that isn’t enticing enough, the i8 has a perfect 50/50 weight distribution.

via Autoblog

Here’s a couple images of both the i3 and the i8.

BMW’s i8 no longer a concept, coming next year. Get ready to drool [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Walgreens announced on Thursday that they would begin offering electric vehicle charging stations at thousands of drugstore locations throughout the United States.

According to the company at least 800 stores will have charging stations by the end of 2011, with plans to expand that program to more of the firms 7,733 drugstores in the future.

The program will begin with stations installed in major cities that include: Denver, Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York and Washington, D.C.  After those locations stores in Florida, New Jersey, Tennessee, Washington and Oregon are expected to receive the green friendly charging spots.

The stations are expected to have high-speed direct current chargers which can add 30 miles of range in approximately 10 minutes or Level 2 chargers which add 25 miles for each hour of charge time.

The push for electric car charging stations comes as Nissan, Chevrolet and other car manufacturers try to offer electric only and hybrid cars for mass consumption such as the Nissan Leaf which only runs on electrical output.

Customers in the Chicago, Houston and the Dallas/Fort Worth areas may have already seen some of the Walgreen’s electric vehicle charging stations in action where they have already been installed and are being used by customers.

With Redbox units already sitting outside many locations Walgreens is giving customers more reasons than ever to pick up their RX’s from the nationwide drugstore chain.

Walgreens To Offer Electric Vehicle Charging Stations is a post from: The Inquisitr

Hyundai is one of the more ambition hydrogen developers of vehicles and now it’s being reported that ahead of a 2015 expected release date the company is giving away entire fleets of th SUV’s for testing purposes.

Unfortunately you can’t simply write Hyundai and ask for a fuel cell electric vehicle, rather they are being handed out to employees who work for the Norwegian, Swedish, Danish and Icelandic governments.

Hyundai is footing the entire bill for the project, which seems reasonable considering the amount of research data they will be able to gather from real world driving conditions.

Here’s the full press release Hyundai sent out about the project:

The Hyundai Motor Group signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with four Northern European countries to operate a test fleet of Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEV) in the European market, paving the way to showcase the company’s competitiveness in eco-friendly vehicles.

The initial agreement was signed yesterday in Seoul, attended by Mr. Woong-Chul Yang, President of the Hyundai Motor Group’s R&D Center, Mr. Lars Vargö, the Swedish Ambassador to South Korea, and other government and company officials.

“We look forward to demonstrating our advanced eco-friendly technology in Northern Europe, which has great hydrogen infrastructure,” said President Yang. “This agreement will be a stepping stone for the Hyundai Motor Group to lead the FCEV market in Europe.”

In Northern Europe, the supply of FCEVs and construction of refueling stations are carried out by an agency called `The Scandinavian Hydrogen Highway Partnership (SHHP),’ which works closely with related agencies in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Iceland.

FCEV is part of the Hyundai Motor Group’s multi-faceted approach to become most fuel-efficient and eco-friendly automaker in the world. Under Hyundai’s Blue Drive initiative, Hyundai has introduced a wide range of eco-friendly products and technologies, including hybrid vehicles and the BlueOn electric car.

Hyundai Is Giving Away Hydrogen SUV’s To Certain Governments is a post from: The Inquisitr

Car manufacturer Mitsubishi has announced plans to launch eight electric vehicles by 2015, despite the slow start for their Mitsubishi i MiEV.

The launch of the new vehicles, being called the “Environment Initiative Program 2015″ is part of the company’s broader reaching “Environmental Vision 2020″ program which calls for 20% of the company’s sales to come from pure electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles by the year 2020.

For the 2015 program, Mitsubishi is hoping that at least 5% of all vehicles sold will be of the electric and hybrid type.

Among launch plans is a new MiEV in 2011, two PHEVs in 2012, a new EV in 2013 and another new EV in 2014.

Mitsubishi Announces Plans For Eight Electric Vehicles By 2015 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Nissan unveiled its much anticipated electric car on Sunday, naming the new hatchback the rather uninspiring name of “Leaf.”

The Leaf runs 100 miles (161km) on a single charge, has zero-emissions of CO2 and other greenhouse gases and has a charging time is seven hours, although the company notes that a 30 minute quick charge can get the batteries to 80%.

Nissan will begin selling the Leaf in the United States, Japan and Europe at the end of 2010, with production to start at around 200,000 units a year.

Initial reviews on the Nissan Leaf note that the car doesn’t immediate look or act like other electric and hybrid vehicles on the market. Video footage of the Leaf in action as follows:

Nissan goes green, launches “Leaf” electric car is a post from: The Inquisitr

When we think of automobiles we think of things like engines, powertrains, exhaust systems and a myriad of miscellaneous items that go into making up an automobile.

But what if that was to change?

What if we didn’t need all those different parts to make up those vehicle we drive?

Well we may just find out sooner than anyone might think especially if a partnership between Michelin, coachbuilder Heuliez and Freench telecommunication giant Orange can bring to market a radical new drive platform called Active Wheel Drive.

The graphic above is one of their test model called Heuliez Will; which is built on top of the Opel Agila frame and including the Active Wheel design. Part of the whole process stress the designers and builders was to be able to convey a comfortable familiarity but once you realize that there is empty storage space in both front and back you know something different is up.

With the Active Wheel design Michelin has dramatically shifted what our concept of what makes up a car. No longer do we need an engine as we are use to, no longer is there a powertrain we are use to. In short everything but the shell and interior changes. Not to mention all that new cargo space that was taken up by the motor.

The first Active Wheel vehicles are on the street now and with a target price of $27 to $34 thousand this puts them in the same prices range as the upcoming Chevy Volt. Heuliez plans on making the first production models available by 2010 for professional drivers, municipalities and fleets with availability for you and me by 2011.

[hat tip to Treehugger]

A turning point in electric car design is a post from: The Inquisitr

Yes folks that is one hot looking sports car but what is even hotter is that it is hydrogen powered. Ya I know it’s only a concept from Honda but still doesn’t it just make you drool.

The FC Sport was unveiled last week at the L.A. Auto Show by Honda as part of their on-going research into hydrogen power for vehicles. The car was designed to show that the new green technologies can compete against any gas guzzler thrown at it. The ultimate goal for Honda with the FC Sport was to develop a lightweight vehicle with a low center of gravity and a high performance electric powertrain.

Now if you’ll excuse me I need to go find my drool towel.

[many props to Inhabitat for the pics]

Damn this is hot! is a post from: The Inquisitr