Toyota Motor Corporation, of Japan, has launched the HS250h sedan – the car maker’s first dedicated hybrid model, under the premium Lexus brand.  Toyota, the biggest automobile manufacturer in the world, says it has got orders worth 6 months of targeted sales in Japan.

The launch of the HS250h sedan is seen as part of Toyota’s latest efforts to bring fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles into the mainstream as governments worldwide are making rules on emissions and fuel economy stricter, along with offering consumers incentives to buy cars that pollute less.

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General Motors (GM) is set to launch a plug-in sport-utility vehicle (SUV) in 2011 notwithstanding having recently canceled its Saturn brand.

Tom Stephens, Vice Chairman of General Motors, said in an interview that that the company also could consider launching an all-electric small car for crowded cities. This plan will, according to Stephens, mark GM’s return to a technology that it had abandoned in 2003.

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GM will soon loose all its subsidiaries-Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC to a government backed company and in the process will shed its debts, dealerships, other brands and its former labor obligation.

What once belonged to General Motors would now compete with it in the open auto market. This is the curse of bankruptcy, and had GM not opted for it, even this ‘privilege’ wouldn’t have been available. Moving on from here, GM has a lot to achieve in order to gain firm footing, but the road ahead is tough and the once largest automobile manufacturer in the world, needs a lot of inspiration to reinvent itself.

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Ford Motor Company expects to electrify around 10% to 25% of its vehicles in one way or the other by 2020.  According to Nancy Gioia, director of hybrid vehicle programs of Ford Motor Company, the first step towards achieving the company’s vehicle-electrification goal is “to convince drivers that plugging-in makes sense.”

Ford Mustangs ... waiting to be electrified

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General Motors Corporation says it will do the “heavy lifting” to help achieve the grand goal set by United States President Barack Obama of having 1 million plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles on the US roads by 2015.  Major US-based makers of automobiles, including General Motors, have been planning an array of electric-drive vehicles aimed at meeting higher fuel-economy standards and also an expected rise in the demand for more fuel-efficient vehicles.

Chevy Volt

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Here comes a new, lightweight, hydrogen-powered car that can attain speeds of up to 50 mph. The Riversimple Urban Car is a British two-seater that can travel a distance of up to 240 miles without re-fueling. The car, which only weighs 772 lbs and is expected to offer a 300 mpg autonomy, could be produced as early as 2013, according to a company’s spokesman.

Two-seater Riversimple Urban Car

The Riversimple Urban Car, unveiled at Somerset House in London, was developed over the last three years. It is the outcome of joint research by the River Simple development team founded by engineer Hugo Spowers, Oxford University, Cranfield University in Bedfordshire, and Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies.

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With the economy declining as it is, Toyota’s belief that it would be able to sell 25,000 Lexus Hybrids within the first twelve months is appreciable. The Lexus HS250 has yet to go on sale (later this summer) and Toyota has some real good reasons to back their belief.

2010 Toyota Lexus HS 250h hybrid

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I remember the gas wars when I was a kid. I once filled up my ‘60 VW bug (I bought it used) for less than $2.00. Gas was 24.9¢. That’s right, less than a quarter a gallon. Yeah, yeah. I’m old.

The point is, when there are price wars, the consumer wins.

Toyota and Honda are going to go at it with their hybrid cars. Remember those three reasons why Honda’s New Insight Will Beat Out Toyota’s New Prius? We may have been right, eh? Honda introduced its hybrid Insight last month and it has already received 18,000 orders, more than three times its monthly sales target.

Toyota is countering by preparing to lower the price of its Prius and roll out a new hybrid less than Y2 million (Insight costs Y1.89million). But their new hybrid with an engine smaller than 1.5 litre, isn’t expected out until 2011.

In the end, however, the consumer is going to win this war.

Via: AFP

Jaguar Land Rover’s plans to build a green Range Rover will get a vital boost from the British government who decided to allot a funding of £27 million.

The prestigious green project will receive the funding as a part of the government’s plan to promote eco-friendly automobiles that lead the nation towards a greener future. This is in addition to the already granted £2.3bn that is a part of the automotive assistance program meant to support the ailing car industry in the difficult times.

Based on the Land Rover’s LRX Concept car that has been unveiled a year ago at the Detroit Auto Show, the green car of the future will be the most energy-efficient and clean Range Rover ever. Being projected as the ultimate culmination of style, performance and planet-friendly technology, the ‘green’ Range Rover is a prestigious £400 million venture where the government is willing to share just over 5% of total costs.

“Despite the current economic challenges we remain committed to investing for the future” said Phil Popham, Land Rover’s managing director.

Investment in a greener future and cleaner roads is what this is all about and considering the current global financial crisis, this is great news for automobile industry in general and Jaguar in particular.

Source: Guardian

Nissan Motor Co. announced on Monday that it is planning to mass-produce automotive lithium ion batteries in Portugal come 2012. About the same time, Nissan intends to manufacture electric vehicles globally at full clip.

Nissan has signed an agreement with the Portuguese government to construct a plant. Nissan will be the first Japanese automotive firm to produce next-generation batteries overseas.

They will supply lithium ion batteries for electric vehicles for its own cars and its French partner, Renault SA. Nissan will start rolling out electric vehicles next year in Japan and the U.S. global mass production will begin in 2012.

Terms are still being hammered out. In the meantime, there are lots of Portugese studying Japanese hoping for a job. And, Nissan is making progress toward cutting emissions in its cars.

Source (sub req)