Green Tech

Heightening speculation that BMW and Toyota are about to announce an expanded partnership involving fuel cell technology, the German automaker confirmed today that it is no longer talking with General Motors about a similar research arrangement, reported a Bloomberg article.

On Friday, BMW and Toyota will hold a press conference announcing the details of a closer working relationship. Last December the two companies penned an agreement that gave Toyota access to BMW's small diesel engines to sell in its European line up of vehicles, and in return, Toyota would help BMW play catch up in the hybrid market by more

Toyota and BMW are expected to announce this week a closer working relationship that expands upon the one they struck last year.

In December 2011, the two companies announced that they'll be collaborating on fuel-efficient and alternative power-train vehicles, with BMW supplying small diesels to Toyota to power its cars sold in Europe. In return, the Japanese car manufacturer would help BMW with the development of next-generation lithium ion batteries.

However, the working relationship won't end there. BMW and Toyota also plan to pool resources on fuel cell technology, according to unconfirmed reports first published in the Nikkei more

High price and limited driving range are just two of the obstacles keeping car buyers from making the switch to plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles en masse. But there could be another problem to contend with: the inability for prospective buyers to charge the cars at home.

Using findings from a 2009 Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS), the U.S. Energy Information Administration reports that only 49 percent of households with at least one car have access to parking within 20 feet of an electrical outlet. Residents of freestanding homes make up the majority of survey responders who say they more

You may not be one of the lucky ones picking up keys to a Tesla Model S this week, but at least you can watch how each of the electric sedans gets made.

Tesla uploaded to YouTube a "behind-the-scenes" video of the Model S assembly process in advance of the vehicle's delivery start date. The 2-minute video shows the electric sedan being built by uniformed plant workers at the company's Fremont, Calif., manufacturing facility.

Customer deliveries of the electric vehicle will begin on Friday, as will customer test-drives. So far, two are in the hands of customers. That more

News leaked out early today that Mitsubishi will debut its upcoming plug-in hybrid Outlander SUV at the 2012 Paris Motor Show.

Although there is no official news release or announcement from Mitsubishi, Edmunds InsideLine confirmed with a company spokesperson that the SUV is headed to the auto show next fall. It also confirmed that U.S. buyers will get the vehicle either in late 2013 or 2014.

The plug-in hybrid will be based on the 2013 Mitsubishi Outlander, and will have three driving modes, including all-electric, serial hybrid, and parallel hybrid. Based on the PX-Miev II Concept that debuted at more

Ricky Bobby said "If you ain't first, you're last", but the driver of Audi's No. 2 R18 e-tron quattro probably did not feel particularly crushed to come in second, behind Audi's No. 1 R18 e-tron quattro, at this weekend's 24 hours of Le Mans endurance race. Both cars not only used Audi diesel engines, which have dominated at previous Le Mans runnings, but also an electric boost system.

The wins not only prove the efficiency of these drive systems, which helped the drivers to victory through the need for fewer fueling stops, but also their more

The show's not over for Saab. An investment group agreed to buy the Swedish automotive manufacturer and plans to build electric cars for the Asian market, according to an article in the Detroit Free Press.

Saab's savior is a Chinese-Japanese investment group, whose key player is energy tycoon Kai Johan Jiang. Jiang founded the alternative energy supplier National Bio-Energy Group in China, and his other company, the National Modern Energy Holdings, owns 51 percent of National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB, the company set up to buy Saab, according to BusinessWeek. The remaining 49 percent of National Electric Vehicle more

How does a car manufacturer whose motto is "the ultimate driving machine" sell a front-wheel-drive car that takes 8 seconds to hit 60 mph and tops out at 93 mph? By shifting attention from under the hood to inside the cabin, focusing on the urban-electric lifestyle.

BMW opened its first dedicated BMW i Store in London this week. The BMW i3 isn't scheduled to enter production until 2013, but the company is taking advantage of the Summer Olympics to boost the new vehicle line's presence. The store serves as a showroom for its upcoming line of electric and more

More and more these days, we're picking up drink bottles and plastic utensils crafted from corn rather than regular plastic. So, how about products made from agricultural waste and food scraps? Glad you asked. The Biobased Kidshouse from Dutch consortium BE-Basic is made entirely from natural materials such as agri-waste, tree bark, and potato peels.

The panels are made from compressed straw. The roof is waterproofed with vegetable oils. The electric sockets are where the potato peel bioplastic comes in.