At the Washington Auto Show today, Chevrolet introduced a sticker.

Okay, the new Ecologic environmental labels that will be coming to all new Chevy vehicles – starting with the 2013 Sonic – is a lot more than an adhesive piece of paper. Last year, the EPA revamped its mileage stickers, and GM has realized that people like more information about the environmental impact of the vehicle they may be buying. GM North America President Mark Reuss said at the show today that, “Customers want companies to be honest and transparent about their environmental efforts and sustainability goals, and rightly so.” This is why the information on the labels will be verified by the independent organization Two Tomorrows. The label campaign will be backed up with a website that includes “more information on the audit process and environmental features for each vehicle with an Ecologic label.”

What’s on the labels? Information about the car from its time “before,” “on” and “after” the road. This means that environmentally friendly steps that GM uses in the manufacturing process (before), steps taken to improve fuel economy (on) and information on how much of the vehicle can be recycled at the end of its life (after). You can see a detailed example of the Sonic sticker by enlarging (clicking on) the picture above. Since Ecologic is going to be on all Chevy models, we’ll admit we’re interested to see how GM finds the eco side of the Camaro ZL1.

Continue reading Chevrolet introduces new Ecologic window sticker, coming first to Sonic

Chevrolet introduces new Ecologic window sticker, coming first to Sonic originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 26 Jan 2012 17:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Toyota sold more Prius V hybrid wagons in the U.S. during the model’s first 10 weeks of availability than General Motors sold of its Chevrolet Volt extended-range plug-in hybrid all last year, Bloomberg News reported, citing Toyota spokeswoman Carly Schaffner.

Toyota sold about 8,400 of the hybrid wagons since late October. That’s roughly 700 more than the number of Volts sold in 2011, even though a GM spokesman told Bloomberg that comparing sales of the Prius V to the Volt was “ridiculous” because of the different drivetrain technologies. Plus, the Prius V’s base price is about $13,000 less than the Volt’s $39,145 pricetag, though most Volt buyers can get a $7,500 tax credit.

Toyota’s looking to boost U.S. sales of the Prius, by far the world’s most popular line of hybrids, by about 60 percent this year to 220,000 vehicles with the flagship sedan – now called the Liftback – as well as with the Prius V and the C compact and plug-in versions that are set to debut later this year. U.S. Prius sales dropped 3.2 percent – to about 136,500 vehicles – last year, in large part to supply issues stemming from the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan last March. Want to know what it’s like behind the wheel? Check out our first-drive impressions of the Prius V here.

Toyota sells 8,400 Prius V wagons in U.S. during first 10 weeks originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nissan has been working on its self-healing clearcoat technology called Scratch Shield for more than seven years. While it’s been applied to the company’s cars for four years now, it’s first non-automotive application is here: an iPhone case.

Called the Nissan Scratch Shield iPhone case, it appears aimed at the doubly-retentive types who not only don’t like their phone getting scratched, but also don’t even like their cases to show any wear. The healing finish is applied to an ABS-plastic case, so that the case protects the smartphone and the Scratch Shield protects the case. Nissan claims another benefit is that the glossy finish is easier to grip.

It’s in beta-trial now, but if real-world testing brings accolades it could go on sale later this year – hopefully with some more subtle choices of branding.

Continue reading Nissan creates first self-healing iPhone case

Nissan creates first self-healing iPhone case originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 18:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Renault SA will debut South Korea’s first mass-produced battery-electric vehicle when it starts selling an all-electric version of its SM3 to the public in 2013, the Korea Herald reported, citing an interview with Francois Provost, CEO of the company’s Renault Samsung division in South Korea.

Renault Samsung, which recently said it would start a test-vehicle project with 500 EVs this year, will equip the SM3 with a lithium-ion battery that will give the car a single-charge range of about 100 miles and can be switched out for another battery in 90 seconds, the newspaper said. The car, along with Kia’s Ray EV also set to debut in South Korea in 2013, qualifies for a tax break of about $3,600. The all-electric SM3 will be priced at about 60 million won, or about $52,000.

Renault, which along with sister company Nissan is said to have invested as much as $5 billion developing battery-electric vehicles worldwide, is banking on a jump in demand in the Asia Pacific region for battery-electric vehicles. Globally, cumulative plug-in vehicle sales, including battery-electric and plug-in hybrid-electric vehicles, will surge to 5.2 million in 2017 from 114,000 in 2011, according to green-technology research firm Pike Research. Asia-Pacific will account for about 617,000 electric-drive vehicles sold in 2017, almost double North America’s total, according to Pike Research Senior Analyst Dave Hurst.

Throughout the first half of the year, Renault Samsung will import Renault Fluence ZE battery-electric vehicles from France, and will supply the cars to government officials in South Korea, the Korea Herald said.

Renault will launch South Korea’s first mass-produced EV in 2013 originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Fri, 06 Jan 2012 13:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Think “supercar” and only a handful of countries are likely to come to mind. And most of them are in Europe: Italy, Great Britain, Germany… even Sweden and France have pitched in here and there with such notables as Koenigsegg and Bugatti. Consider examples like the Dodge Viper, Ford GT and Corvette ZR1 and you can deal America in on the action, and with vehicles like the Acura NSX, Nissan GT-R and Lexus LFA, Japan has lent its hand, too. But India?

The populous subcontinent may not be the first that comes to mind, but DC Design is eager to change that. The company has popped onto the scene here and there with its Rolls-Royce coachbuilds and dolled-up Tata Nanos, but is now preparing to step up to the big leagues with the vehicle you see teased here.

Set to be unveiled at the upcoming Delhi Auto Expo (which is not, to our chagrin, a display of pastrami delivery trucks), DC’s first independent project is set to be powered by a forced-induction V6 engine sourced from Honda, delivering about 400 horsepower. Considering the low target weight of less than 3,500 pounds, that could prove more than enough. 30 lakh rupees (about $56,000) is the target price, with production capped at 3,000 units per year.

DC Design previews India’s first supercar originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 03 Jan 2012 09:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov’s Yo-auto will sell the first Russian-made hybrid-electric vehicles by the end of 2012, as Prokhorov previously estimated, and won’t be delayed by his decision to run against Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in next year’s presidential elections.

The Russian newspaper RIA Novosti, citing Russian television station Rossiya 24, reports that Prokhorov, the co-owner of Yo-Auto, said the company will try to sell the hybrid, called the Yo-mobile, for less than $10,000 in order to offer the Russian public a reasonably-priced, highly fuel-efficient car. The company will produce as many as 45,000 Yo-mobile vehicles a year from its factory near St. Petersburg, and will double production once the second stage of the factory is completed.

Prokhorov’s Onexim Group, along with Russia-based truckmaker Yarovit, is investing about $200 million in a car-making plant that’s received public support from Putin. This past April, Putin took a prototype of the hybrid on a three-mile test drive to the home of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. Prokhorov acquired the NBA’s New Jersey Nets last year.

Prokhorov’s Yo-auto will sell Russia’s first hybrids by end of 2012 originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sat, 31 Dec 2011 08:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Kia has unveiled the automaker’s very first production electric vehicle. The Kia Ray EV will offer buyers a range of around 86 miles depending on driving conditions and will include a fast-charge option that should top off the cells in around 25 minutes. Otherwise, expect the 16.4-kWh lithium-ion battery pack to take around six hours to charge on a 220-volt circuit. A 50-kW electric motor provides power to the front wheels, which is good enough to get the EV to 62 miles per hour in 15.9 seconds. That may seems slow by most standards, but its worth noting that the internal combustion Ray with its 1.0-liter gas engine makes due with significantly less torque.

Kia says that Ray EV boasts 123 pound-feet of torque, which is 77 percent more than the 1.0-liter machine. The boxy EV also uses a new type of regenerative braking system in which the electric motor generates boost for the hydraulic brake assist – just like on an internal combustion vehicle. The automaker says that the result is a linear brake that still manages to recuperate energy that would otherwise be lost during deceleration. As wonky brake feel is one of our chief sticking points with all EVs, this comes as welcome news.

Kia will manufacture 2,500 Ray EVs for government agency use in Korea, so don’t expect to be able to get your hands on one anytime soon. Click past the jump for the full press release.

Continue reading New Kia Ray is Korea’s first production EV

New Kia Ray is Korea’s first production EV originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 22 Dec 2011 11:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The end of the Nissan Juke-R build has come and gone. The vehicle is done. Only a lucky few were there when the 485-horsepower twin-turbo V6 borrowed from a Nissan GT-R cleared its throat for the first time. The thrills and high-fives, that wave of adrenaline that buoys dog-tired men, and the long minutes of standing around and grinning at your project as it burbles away is a private moment that only the builders can fully appreciate.

Respecting the space of the Juke-R build team doesn’t mean we don’t want to examine this evil little mutant closely. Nissan UK knows this, and has thrown us all a bone with 11 new pictures and three videos of the Juke-R, one with audio of the revving engine. The ultimate payoff will be the figures from performance testing, which we expect to see soon.

Using an online performance-stat calculator, we first plugged the stats of a normal Juke, deciding to go with the heaviest curb weight of 3,200 lbs, and the numbers it spat back, 7.6 seconds from zero to 60 mph and a 15.93-second quarter mile, dovetail pretty well with what car magazines have gotten, though the glossy print guys are a bit faster.

Taking that same 3,200 lb weight (though we don’t know whether the Juke-R is lighter or heavier than a standard Juke) and going for 485 hp returns a predicted 3.6 second 0-60 run and a quarter mile that gets scorched in 11.44 seconds with a 124 mph trap speed. We could live with that. We’ve added the new images to our gallery, and you can check out the videos posted after the jump.

Continue reading Nissan Juke-R clears its throat for the first time

Nissan Juke-R clears its throat for the first time originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 19 Nov 2011 19:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The unveiling of the Nissan Juke-R prototype has been as slow and painstaking as the car’s actual build. First we received initial details, a rendering and video of the project under way. Over the course of the following few weeks, Nissan continued keeping us on our toes with a series of videos showing the project coming together. Now that the vehicle has finally reached completion, the Japanese automaker has released a solitary image of the finished product.

Those unfamiliar ought to be impressed: Nissan took the drivetrain from its top-of-the-line GT-R – including its advanced all-wheel-drive system, twin-clutch transmission and 3.8-liter twin-turbo 480-horsepower V6 – and shoehorned it into one of its smallest vehicles, the Juke crossover. Of course, it wasn’t as simple as all that, as the Juke had to be completely gutted down to its frame and rebuilt from the ground up to accommodate an engine more than twice the size of what it was designed for.

In the end, Nissan will build two of these prototypes: one in right-hand drive (for its own roads back in Japan and those where it was built in England) and one in left-hand drive (for the rest of the civilized world). The release of this solitary photo follows a surprise unveiling in front of members of the press at a demo event in Spain.

Continue reading Nissan releases first photo of completed Juke-R

Nissan releases first photo of completed Juke-R originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 09:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Holden has resurrected the company’s ground-breaking 1969 Hurricane Concept with a complete restoration. The low-slung, mid-engine coupe served as a showcase for technology that wouldn’t find its way into production vehicles for almost three decades, including a turn-by-turn navigation system, automatic climate control and a rear-view camera. At the time, engineers relied on genuine ingenuity to load the Hurricane with equal parts performance and technology. The navigation system relied on magnets embedded in the road surface to illuminate a series of arrows on the dash while the rear-view camera borrowed from closed-circuit TV.

A group of dedicated Holden workers took it upon themselves to put the Hurricane back in working order using as many original parts as possible. That includes the experimental four-barrel 253ci V8 mounted mid-ship. Holden eventually used the design as the platform for its small-displacement V8 effort, which began later in ‘69, though as GM points out, the V8s wouldn’t receive the four-barrel treatment until much later in the ’70s.

Holden has been working to restore the Hurricane since 2006, and now that it’s finished, the concept will be on display at the Motorclassica Car Show in Melbourne from October 21-23. Follow the jump for a quick video on the car as well as the press release.

Continue reading Holden restores its first ever concept car, the 1969 Hurricane [w/video]

Holden restores its first ever concept car, the 1969 Hurricane [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 19 Oct 2011 10:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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