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January 2009
- Oregon Mulls Mileage, Not Gas, Tax
  
  Associated Press | Jan 3, 09 9:57 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Worried that the rise of fuel-efficient and hybrid cars will wipe out revenue for road repair, Oregon is considering taxing drivers by the mile instead of by the gallon, reports the AP. Lawmakers—aware that hiking gas tax is a political kiss of death—believe a mileage tax is the way of the future, though critics have voiced privacy concerns and fears that the tax will kill the financial incentive to buy efficient cars. More »
- Toyota Working on Mass-Market Solar Car
  
  Hybrid Cars News | Jan 2, 09 7:20 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Toyota is trying to leapfrog rivals by developing a mass-market solar-powered car on the sly. The futuristic vehicle will get power from solar cells in the rooftop, providing enough energy to power only its accessories initially, reports Hybrid Cars News. The company is thought to be years away from creating a fully solar-powered car, notes the Japanese daily Nikkei . More »
December 2008
- Jumbo Jet Flies on Veggie Oil
  
  BBC | Dec 31, 08 6:35 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - A Boeing 747 powered by a mixture of aviation fuel and vegetable oil flew on a two-hour test flight which is being hailed as a technological and ecological milestone. The Air New Zealand passenger jet was powered in part by oil from the jatropha plant, reports the BBC. More »
- Monthly Fee May Pave Way for Electric Car Boom
  
  Yale Environment 360 | Dec 24, 08 8:05 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - An Israeli entrepreneur bets you’ll be willing to pay to fuel up your car like you pay your monthly cell phone bill. If Shai Agassi is right, Jim Motavalli writes in Yale Environment 360, it could be the charge electric cars need to succeed. Partnering with nations, cities, and automakers, his Better Place is trying to establish infrastructure for an electric-powered automotive future. More »
- US Tech Firms Get Together on Car Battery
  
  Wall Street Journal | Dec 18, 08 7:52 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Fourteen US technology companies are joining forces to speed development of electric car batteries, asking for $1 billion in federal aid to help catch up with Asian firms that have a long lead, reports the Wall Street Journal. Electric vehicles are now considered so important to help wean the US from foreign oil that some are calling it a national security issue. More »
- Why Are We Bailing Out Car 1.0?
  
  New York Times | Dec 10, 08 12:30 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - In the modern global economy, Thomas Friedman has a simple rule: “ Whatever can be done, will be done ,” and if you’re not the one doing it, someone else is. Detroit’s automakers aren’t exploring new business models, so other companies are. When one of them clicks, this bailout “will be remembered as pouring billions into the CD business on the eve of the birth of the iPod.” More »
- No Euphemisms: Let's Nationalize GM
  
  Los Angeles Times | Dec 2, 08 8:18 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - As Detroit extends its tin cup to DC, the government is making a lengthy list of preconditions and checking it twice. Why not keep things simple and nationalize the struggling GM? Any government loan wouldn’t be big enough, and despite all the misplaced anger directed at the Big Three, they still churn out great cars, writes Dan Neil in the Los Angeles Times . It would be a sound investment that allows the government to pursue pet goals like greener vehicles. More »
November 2008
- Honked Off: Car Horns More Harm Than Good
  
  Slate | Nov 26, 08 8:00 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - The next time you honk your car’s horn, you might want to ask why you're doing it. Grabbing the horn by the bull for Slate, Dave Johns thinks you’re probably too close to do anything but tell your obstacle to get out of the way. That’s because drivers use their horns “as a tool for scolding rather than safety,” one expert says. More »
- How Cheap Gas Hurts Green Initiatives, Feds' Bottom Line
  
  Wall Street Journal | Nov 24, 08 9:15 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Americans are driving less and burning less fuel, but it could be too soon for conservation fans to celebrate. That dip, and global economic gloom, has sent oil and gas prices spiraling down, Joseph White writes in the Wall Street Journal , depriving the government of taxes it needs for transportation infrastructure—and perhaps sapping consumers’ motivation to buy more fuel-efficient vehicles. More »
- Neil Young: Detroit's Dinosaurs Can Go Electric
  
  Huffington Post | Nov 21, 08 8:27 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Motorists considering electric cars can hang on to their Cadillac dreams as well, writes Neil Young at the Huffington Post. Barack Obama's plan to get a million electric vehicles on American roads within a decade is possible—and the cars don't need to be tiny or even have new designs, writes the rock legend, pointing to his own converted 1959 Lincoln Continental as proof. More »
- Biofuels' Green Cred in Dispute
  
  Wall Street Journal | Nov 11, 08 12:16 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Biofuels, once hailed as a planet-saving alternative to gasoline, are now savaged as much the opposite, the Wall Street Journal reports, with critics charging the “ripple effect” on land use globally actually adds climate-harming carbon. The EPA has signaled plans to modify biofuel emissions measurements to reflect that, but interested lobbyists are already lining up to refute those findings. More »
October 2008
- Top Cars We Should Scrap
  
  US News & World Report | Oct 26, 08 4:59 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The possibility that one of Detroit's Big Three automakers is headed for the scrap heap left US News and World Report wondering which cars Americans could live without. Here are some top candidates: Jeep Commander: This boxy model gets 16 mpg and it shows: sales are down 55%. Dodge Durango: Even the hybrid version of this SUV hasn't stopped sales from falling an astonishing 54%. More »
- Gas Prices Are Down—and That's Bad
  
  New York Times | Oct 22, 08 11:31 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Gas prices are dropping at last, back down to an average of less than $3 a gallon for the first time in a year. That's good news for recession-fearing consumers, writes Thomas L. Friedman, but there's a downside: the push to drive less and make Detroit build more fuel-efficient cars is disappearing. The oil shock has been "a bad B-movie rerun of the 1980s," and we can't get addicted to oil again. More »
- Falling Gas Prices Could Put Electric Car Back in Neutral
  
  Washington Post | Oct 20, 08 10:01 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Car companies are revving up work on alternative energy vehicles, responding to higher oil prices that, well, don’t actually exist just now. New cars take about 5 years to roll out, meaning the auto industry can’t nimbly react to price changes: Oil, which cost $130 a barrel just 4 months ago, now hangs close to $70, creating fears that $2.50 gas will quash demand when the cars eventually roll off the line, the Washington Post reports. More »
September 2008
- Chrysler Goes Electric
  
  Wall Street Journal | Sep 23, 08 12:20 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Chrysler is hopping on Detroit's belated eco-friendly bandwagon, a source tells the Wall Street Journal, with a full stable of electric cars and trucks that it plans to market starting in late 2010. While most of the planned models are hybrids, at least one will be a fully electric car which will go 150-200 miles on a charge. More »
- Volt's Looks Kill Some GM Buzz
  
  CNNMoney | Sep 16, 08 1:58 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - GM offered its first official look today at the plug-in Chevrolet Volt, CNNMoney reports, the electric car slated to go on sale in 2010. Its tame appearance drew the ire of gearheads hoping it would look more like the futuristic concept version. "A lot of people are saying they're very disappointed and 'take me off the [waiting] list,' " said one blogger. More »
- GM Rolls Out Volt Tomorrow; Hopes for Game-Changer
  
  Wall Street Journal | Sep 15, 08 11:20 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - General Motors will unveil its new Chevy Volt tomorrow, hoping that the battery-operated car will reverse its long reputation as a gas-guzzling industry dinosaur and attract devotees of competitors' hybrids, reports the Wall Street Journal. GM hopes the Volt, a lithium-ion-powered car due to hit the market in 2010, can help the company regain some cred as an innovator. More »
- US Can't Have Ford's 65-MPG Car
  
  BusinessWeek | Sep 6, 08 1:34 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Ford may be best-known for its fuel-guzzling trucks and SUVs, but this November it’s releasing the Fiesta ECOnetic, a sporty subcompact that gets an astonishing 65 miles-per-gallon, BusinessWeek reports. There’s just one catch: It’s not being sold in the US. “We know it’s an awesome vehicle,” says Ford’s president. “But there are business reasons why we can’t sell it.” The biggie: It runs on diesel. More »
- Honda Insight May Be Cheapest Hybrid on Market
  
  Los Angeles Times | Sep 5, 08 1:34 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Honda is promising that its new hybrid, the much-anticipated Insight, will cost no more than a normal car when it hits dealerships next spring, meaning it will almost certainly undercut the Toyota Prius. The Insight is rumored to carry a roughly $18,500 price tag, the LA Times reports, making it the cheapest hybrid on the market and well below the $22,000 Prius. More »
- Boston Cabbies Torqued Ovah Hybrid Cah Mandate
  
  Wired | Sep 4, 08 1:35 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Boston’s cab drivers are furious over a new rule requiring all taxis to be hybrids by 2015, Wired reports. With rising gas prices already pressing the industry, cabbies are loathe to trade their $6,000 used Crown Vics for new $24,000 Priuses. Many also argue that the hybrids aren’t tough enough to do the job. But an unsympathetic city isn’t budging. More »