I laughed when I read the Audi A8, W12 Quattro review. I read those kinds of articles because among other things I get paid to drive cars and write reviews about them. SeeLand Rover LR3 HSE, 2008.

That’s not what makes me laugh. The Audi review made me laugh out loud actually. I mean how many times do you get to read gas-guzzler and solar-powered in the same sentence. The$120,000 base sticker price Audi A8 has tons of extras running up the price to $140,565. (FWIW, the most expensive car I have driven was aJaguar Super V8, 2008). The Audi has a solar-powered sunroof ($790). I suppose it’s been added to help ease the guilty of having a 6.0 liter engine, 12 valves, a 450 horsepower engine AND, this is the kicker, having to pay $1,700 in extra for a tax. It gets a whopping 13mpg in the city (estimate) and 19 mpg (estimate) on the highway.

Seriously, who would have thought you could use solar-powered and gas-guzzler in the same sentence, on the same machine?

What kind of car do you drive?

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe for updates to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting and please do come back!

John McCain wants to save fuel and reduce emissions. (Don’t we all?)  If elected he is willing to earmark $300 million to encourage innovation on a new car battery. I wonder if he couldn’t just buy the technology from Toyota for about half that price. That $300 million is equal to everyone in the United States ponying up $1. McCain wants to do better than Toyota’s hybrid technology.

McCain says the battery should have the “size, capacity, cost and power to leapfrog the commercially available plug-in hybrids or electric cars.  My administration will issue a Clean Car Challenge to the automakers of America, in the form of a single and substantial tax credit based on the reduction of carbon emissions. For every automaker who can sell a zero-emissions car, we will commit a 5,000 dollar tax credit for each and every customer who buys that car.“

A $5000 tax credit? Will that go for anyone buying the Honda FCX Clarity? McCain says that if the US can do Thomas Edison, the Wright brothers, Apollo moon landings, silicon chips and the Internet, then surely we can do a zero emission battery.

“For all the troubles and dangers our energy vulnerability presents, we know that we can overcome them, because we have overcome far worse problems and met far greater goals.”

So, what do you think? Does America have what it takes?

Mazda Motor Corp has a hydrogen-powered minivan coming to Japan for lease beginning next March.  The minivan will have hydrogen-combustion and an electric motor. Mazda is the Japanese affiliate of Ford Motor Co. The company received permission from Japan’s transport ministry to test the Mazda Premacy Hydrogen RE Hybrid. The Premacy is known as the Mazda5 overseas.

The minivan has a generator-powered electric motor and a rotary engine. (And, the Mazda goes ummm…). Emissions are water vapor only. Lease costs will be Y420K ($3800)/month! I think, I’ll take a his and hers.

BMW AG is Germany’s attempt to develop a fuel-cell system. Electricity is generated through a chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen. Honda’s Clarity will be available for lease in the US next month. Both cars have zero-emissions.

While Toyota works to improve its hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle, the company is also working to make the new 2009 Prius, how shall I put this, a whole lot less ugly, sharp and futuristic-looking.

In that, Toyota is making the car of the future, and will make it available in the U.S., Japan, Korea from next April. Even better news - Toyota is planning to make the price more ‘competitive.’ And why would they do that? People will pay out the gazoo for them here in Silicon Valley.

It’s a car that appreciates in value. With gas prices continuing to climb (we pay $4.29 4.53 for the very cheap stuff here in SV) we can expect this car’s value to continue to go up as well. Leave it to Toyota and other Japanese car makers to lead the way in fuel-efficient vehicles.

Good googie moogie! A car that gets 300 mpg.

Image by boomerharley11

The Aptera Typ-1 Concept Car is a three-wheeled vehicle. The two front wheels are used for steering and the rear wheel is connected to an electric motor. The Typ-1 will consume 60-80 Watt·hours/km at 55 mph (90 km/h), making it a low energy vehicle.

The Typ-1 has a drag coefficient of 0.11, compared with 0.19 for the record-holding EV1.

It has recessed windshield wipers, low rolling resistance tires, and cameras in place of side mirrors. And, did we say it goes 300 miles on a gallon of gas?

Here is a pictures gallery (thanks to jalopnik)

And the video …

Toyota Motor Corp is so far out in front of the pack when it comes to fuel-efficiency, that objects in the mirror really are smaller than they appear.

The company has set the standard for hybrid cars and the use of lithium-ion batteries but it’s not enough because they have a plan to launch a plug-in hybrid car with lithium-ion batteries within the next two years, which will far “outpeform” current lithium-ion batteries. The next-generation battery will be ready for commercial use by 2030.

A new research team created by Toyota will start with 50 engineers and double in size in about two years. Full scale production of lithium-ion batteries will start up next year and go full hybrid steam ahead by 2010.

Toyota is working in cahoots with Matsushita Electric Industrial Co, which makes Panasonic brand products. Remember that 13,000-hour light bulb? And, who said Japan cannot be a leader on the world stage?

Image by aminorjourney

The Norwegians are on to something. Think Global is the company and Think City is their electric car that can go 110 miles without a recharge. Apart from meeting all US and European safety standards, the two-seater also packs very good performances and tops at 65mph.

Assembled in Southern California, Think City will be sold for less than $25K and the company “could be selling as many as 50,000 units in two or three years.”

Think Chief Executive Jan-Olaf Willums said test vehicles will be brought to the U.S. in coming months. He also said that a convertible Think City model, is in development. Can you imagine wind blowing through your hair at 65mph, without harming the environment?

Now if they could just come up with a better name…

Here’s a quick pictures gallery if you still need to be convinced !!! (thanks to mr.frego)

See also -

The “Microjoule” does 7,148 mpg - beat that!

DTE Energy left some 135,000 customers without power/service this morning.

That’s good business for the local retail stores.

That’s bad business for the local retail stores.

Home Depot, OSH, Frank & Johnny’s Hardware see a rush on generators when the power goes out.

But, a 90-day no questions asked policy at the biggies like Home Depot, sees customers returning the items after power comes back.

I know of a lot of international students who made annual treks to Wal-Mart to buy and return items because of that companies easy return policy.

So, who pays for these abuses?

Can you say “Honest you and me?”

Have you ever abused a company’s return policy?

source

photo by vr2006

With 1.8 million cars counting for 75-percent of the air pollution, Madrid is one of Spain’s most polluted cities. Recently the City Hall announced that their official vehicles will “turn green” by 2011 using clean fuels like bio-diesel, ethanol, natural gas or even running on electricity. Madrid also joined the BEST (BioEthanol for Sustainable Transport) European project to promote the use of ethanol in cars and is going to make agreements with taxi companies to offer them road tax discounts if they will turn green, too.

Such decisions could make people realize that something has to be done if we want a cleaner air. We can start with our cars.

via AutoBlogGreen

Bertrand Delanoe, the actual Paris mayor said that if re-elected he will build the “Autolib” which is a self-service electric and/or hybrid-electric car system, that will include 300 free re-charging stations in different parts of the city and 2,000 cars (electric and hybrid). This car-sharing system may be a solution that would reduce car congestion and may solve some of the parking issues in the city, but Parisian taxi drivers don’t see it in pink.

Norwegian company THINK, is considering a bid on the project with their “City” and “Ox” models, the modern urban car that have zero local emissions, that can travel up to 200 kilometers on a fully charged battery and reaches 100 km/h.

Just for that project and Bertrand Delanoe will probably get a lot of votes, but from saying to making it the real thing, there’s a long way.

via Wikio