In 1997, Prius went on sale in Japan as the world’s first mass-produced, gas-electric, hybrid vehicle. In 2000, Prius came to America, where it now has the highest owner loyalty in the industry. It’s also the world’s best-selling hybrid with more than one million sold in 44 countries. Prius has proven that hybrid technology is viable, durable, and one of the best ways to preserve our environment and maximize our natural resources. As a result hybrid technology is now a mainstream option being adopted by automakers and people everywhere.
The features and performance of the new midsize Prius that you’ll see in a few moments are superior to anything we have ever built. And along with building a better car, we will make it available in more places. We plan to sell this new Prius in eighty countries worldwide, nearly twice as many as today. Depending on market conditions, our global sales objective will be about 400,000 units per year by 2010. That will put Prius near the top of our best-selling vehicles around the world along with Camry and Corolla.
In this four-minute video you’ll see Chrysler’s new electric sports car - the Dodge Circuit EV - from every angle.
If, like us, you were thinking this is a Lotus Europa then you’re right. The Circuit EV is based on this British sports car. In fact, it appears to us more like a Lotus Europa with Dodge grille and badging than any thing else.
The 200 kW (268 hp) car has power generated by a lithium-ion battery to an electric-drive motor. The car gets to 60mph in under five seconds, and has a top speed of 120 mph. Range of the car is expected to be between 150 and 200 miles (240-322 km). Recharge can take place in any household plug.
Here are the first photos of the Fisker Karma, a new four-door hybrid sports sedan, which we acquired ahead of the car’s debut on the Detroit Auto Show. Fisker will present the car at the Auto Show at 1:10pm Detroit time.
It is definitely a very beautiful machine. But that’s no surprise, considering the team behind Fisker designed the Aston Martin DB9 and V8 Vantage, as well as the BMW Z8 Roadster.
The sports car can travel up to 50 miles on battery power alone. This electric motor gets the Karma from 0-60mph in under six seconds, and reaches a top speed of 125 mph.
The Karma is planned for a 15,000 production run, with the first 99 being signed and numbered by CEO Henrik Fisker. That first set of cars will also have the same trim and color as the vehicle on display today at the Auto Show.
The new Fisker Karma has a base price of $80,000, and goes on sale today at their stand in Detroit. Delivery will begin at the end of this year.
We have found a nice first drive report of the 2010 Lexus RX on Autoblog. Don’t miss it.
The 2010 Lexus RX brings more of the same, beginning with a reworked exterior that adopts the L-finesse design theme and grows in several dimensions. The rolling jellybean aesthetic of the outgoing model is ditched in favor of sharp creases and broad shoulders that give the RX a more hunkered-down appearance while still remaining innocuous.
The standard RX350 in front-wheel-drive spec packs on almost 500 pounds over its predecessor, while the AWD version deals with an additional 400 pounds of mass. The RX450h doesn’t fair much better, with the FWD version motivating an additional 460 pounds and the AWD model carrying an extra 445 pounds. Despite the added weight, and helped in part by revised drivetrains and a coefficient of drag of 0.33, fuel efficiency is up across the range, with the RX350 returning 18/25 city/highway in FWD trim and 18/24 with AWD, while the RX450h FWD gets 28/27 and the AWD variant achieves 28/26.
The grille, headlamps and tail-lamps are far more dynamic, and tie in nicely to the tweaked C-pillar, swage lines and subtle roof-mounted spoiler that completely conceals the rear window wiper and houses the AM/FM antenna. The RX450h features a smattering of blue tinting on the front and rear emblems, headlights, tail-lights and “hybrid” logos to set it apart from its standard sibling. Base models are fitted with halogen headlamps and 18-inch wheels, while HIDs, 19-inch rolling stock and a “sport” package that features revised dampers, stiffer bushings and a recalibrated electronic power steering rack are optional.
Panasonic is announcing their HD-PLC system, first revealed at CES in 2004, will have new features. Next to allowing you to talk to each other over a house’s electrical lines, the PLC system will now be able to communicate with the electric car charging in your garage. This would supposedly have a security function, as Panasonic claims owners can view video from an in-car camera to make sure their EV is charging safe and sound.
The HD-PLC magazine also says that by connecting the in-vehicle camera to the indoor intercom system you could prevent someone from breaking into or vandalizing your car. We have our questions about how that could work, but it will all be shown at the HD-PLC Alliance exhibit booth during the 2009 Consumer Electronic Show (CES).
In addition, though unofficially, The Earth Times suggests the networking system would allow you to transfer music and other data from your home computer to the in-car system while charging.
- click picture for more 2009 Honda Insight brochure photos -
Despite Honda’s attempts to keep information secret until the car’s world premiere at the Detroit Auto Show later this month, a set of scans from the official Japanese market model (JDM) brochure have been leaked out. While Honda has officially released a 3/4 front shot of the production version in December, the brochure pictures show all angles including the more conservatively styled rear-end (compared to the concept).
The brochure also reveals images of the Japanese-market Insight Modulo, a sportier version of the hybrid featuring a body kit, auxiliary lighting and larger alloys. According to the scans, the Insight will be available in three trim levels in Japan, G, L and LS.
The brochure was first uploaded on the Honda enthusiast site ‘Temple of Vtec’.
We’ll have more (verified) information once the car comes to Detroit. One thing we do know is that the Insight will go on sale worldwide in the spring of 2009 with U.S. prices said to start from around $18,000 to $19,000.
Next to the already announced unveiling of the production version Karma plug-in hybrid sedan, Fisker now plans to also debut a new concept car at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show. The Sunset will officially be called Fisker Karma S and is very similar to the Karma.
Fisker says the concept has similar architecture and will use the Karma’s Q-DRIVE powertrain. This system offers a 50 mile range on a single charge to its Lithium-Ion battery pack, and produces up to 408 bhp from the two electric motors. More details will follow about the Karma S at the company’s press conference on January 12, 2009.
The German car magazine Autobild has reported that Mercedes-Benz is looking to replace its V12 engine by a new twin-turbo V8 engine. The M295 V12 was the replacement of one of Mercedes’ most powerful engines: the M275, which has powered the super-saloons S600 and S65 AMG.
Three months ago, BMW also announced production of the V8 engines would be stopped, in order to focus on smaller and more efficient engines. This has been a development of the past few years, in which car makers are moving towards being as ’green’ as possible. Mercedes’ new V8 turbo will be available with four different power levels, and it’s expected that the engine will be used in several of their models.
VW hooked up with the world’s leading sail maker, North Sails, to help design this special edition Touareg whose aim was to reduce consumption at no expense of performance.
The VW Touareg North Sails special edition touts a 9 percent increase in fuel economy. This is accomplished by apparently doing some tweaking of the transmission to axle transfer points. Still, getting the colossal Touareg to come in under 10 liter/100 km for the diesel version is an impressive accomplishment (VW claims 9.2 l for the 2.5 TDI 6-speed manual and 9.3 l/100 km for the V6 TDI automatic).
Audi offers a TDI version of the TT, and Porsche is considering the idea of a four-cylinder Boxster. Now Mercedes-Benz has joined the club by reporting it’s preparing to offer a diesel engine option in the next-generation SLK.
The unit in question will be the same 2.2-liter “BlueEfficiency” 4-cylinder twin-turbo diesel currently offered in the C250 sedan, where it returns a claimed 54.3 mpg while spewing out just 138g/km of carbon dioxide. Although to previous generations the idea of a diesel convertible remains an anathema, the advance of particulate filter and common rail injnection technologies now common among the most advanced diesel engines make them a viable, earth-friendly option for open-air motoring.
