The nation’s first all-electric car-sharing program debuted earlier this week in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, with manufacturer Electrovaya hoping urban residents seeking to go green and curious tourists will take the concept for a spin. Electrovaya Inc. is offering its Maya 300 for rent at the Maryland Science Center. The car can go up to 120 miles on one charge of its lithium-ion battery system, and it gets its juice from a regular 110-volt outlet.

This is a great step in the right direction. There are many car-sharing programs out there in this country right now, and they all seem to work best in large metropolitan areas. We have one in San Francisco that is very successful, because it doesn’t make sense for a lot of people to own a car in this city. Think about it—you can save on payments, insurance, fuel and repairs.

But, now Electrovaya is offering the city of Baltimore the best of both worlds—a GREEN car-sharing program. You can’t buy the kind of positive press they will receive for this brilliant marketing move. I had never heard of Electrovaya before today and now I am blogging about them (and you’re reading about them) so you can see what I mean.

Mitsubishi representatives officially announced that the i MiEV electric vehicle - already a hit in test drives and closely involved in joint programs with power companies across the world - will be coming to the U.S. This move has been hinted at for a long while, but now we know for certain that the electric jellybean, based on the “i” minicar, is coming.

Official details are scarce, but company representatives told us ahead of schedule that the car would be available here sometime “before 2012.” The problem isn’t the technology (a left-hand drive model should go on sale in Europe in 2011 after the right-hand model hits Japan this summer and the UK, maybe in 2010), but guaranteeing a supply of lithium. If GS Yuasa can’t produce the batteries, Read the rest of this entry �

Here’s a bit of a surprise, Bentley, long seen as a car of excess has begun to look at things in a little more frugal manner. Coming to market along with the next gen Continental model will be new powertrains and more than just that, weight reduction will also be part of the program.

Franz-Josef Paefgen Bentley CEO mentioned at this years the Geneva Motor Show that an all-new powertrain would appear in Bentleys by 2012. He did not give specifics, but the rumors flew that it would be a diesel, since Bentley is part of the Volkswagen group. A diesel would be an obvious choice with its high torque being a good match for the big British luxury machines. All of the current Continental variants are powered by very impressive twin-turbo W12s with VW DNA.

If Bentley forgoes the diesel route, another option theorized would be a plug-in electric vehicle. Since Bentleys already cost you an arm and a leg, they could more easily absorb the cost of batteries and hybrid hardware. The hybrid system being developed by VW and Porsche, and most probably headed for SUVs, is modular enough that it could be adapted to other vehicles. Adding plug-in capability would be technically easy, and could allow the Continental to operate silently at lower speeds on electricity.

Now about that diet. The new Continental SuperSports that bowed in Geneva actually started as a weight reduction project, and THEN flex-fuel capability was added to the engine. The next gen Continental is expected to drop about 400 lbs through increased aluminum and high strength steel. Good, these cars were pretty hefty to begin with.

Source: AutoBlogGreen

Not all the car news is coming out of Geneva these days, there’s big, if low-key news that came out from the auto show in Melbourne Australia. Much has been made about just what GM would do with its highly anticipated Volt hybrid besides selling it in North America. There were rumors of an Opel variant for the Euro market, but other than that, it was a big question mark.

But now GM makes the obvious, yet great move of rebadging the thing as a Holden, a raises the possibility of selling them in the Australian market. The Holden Volt shown at the Melbourne Auto Show is right-hand drive but other than that and the badges, it does not differ in any way from its Chevy counterpart. The Volt, in either GM or Holden form, can travel up to 64 kilometers on electricity before using petrol or producing exhaust pipe emissions, will be launched in Australia in 2012. When compared to similar sized petrol-powered vehicles, the Volt will save Australian motorists up to 1892 liters of fuel a year.

GM Holden Chairman and Managing Director Mark Reuss said, “We think Volt has the potential to change the game in Australian motoring. Since we announced our plans to introduce Volt to Australia, we have been overwhelmed by public interest in the car and the technology that makes it work. At Holden, we believe Volt will play an incredibly important role in our efforts to make motoring better for the environment.”

Source: CarScoop

What a concept! Instead of cars polluting the air, now they can run on it! Say hello to the AirPod. This could be the greatest invention since hot pockets! A car that runs on compressed air is being unveiled this week at the Geneva Motor Show and creating an understandably major buzz.

I started hearing about this technology more than a year ago. I told some of my friends about it and they asked me what I was drinking. A car running on air is not something the average person finds plausible, but now it’s no longer just a theory. It’s a reality and quite possibly our biggest chance to say adios to fossil fuels forever.

You’ll still need to plug this car in to charge it, unless you live near an air fueling station. Once these vehicles become popular, I am sure that these stations will crop up faster than Starbucks locations. The gas companies must be scared to death of this car. At least hybrids require some gasoline. All these need is the air we breathe (and some electricity). The price is also highly attractive—only $7,500!

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By Edsel Rollin

ZAP, headquartered in Santa Rosa, Calif., has been on the leading edge of all-electric transportation for a long time now, with some amazing electric vehicles on the market and in development. They make electric sedans, trucks; even scooters and ATVs. Two veteran automotive executives, H. Dennis Kammerer and Rodger L. Cornish, recently noted that electric car pioneer ZAP is already building all-electric models, and the US government should offer support to companies who are already building plug-in transportation.

I sat down with representatives from ZAP last year at the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Annual Exposition, held in San Francisco, and I could tell from the way they talked about their vehicles that they’re extremely passionate about making vehicles that are emission-free and planet friendly. The company has come a long way in a short time.

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Last Sunday as part of the opening festivities for the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit, Toyota unveiled their new FT-EV concept car, scheduled for release in 2012.

I like the idea behind it (“green and lean”) but couldn’t Toyota come up with a design that doesn’t look like something out of “Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”? I keep expecting a Oompa Loompa to pop out from under the hood of this thing. If Scooby Doo and Shaggy lost their van, they would probably drive something like this, if the Great Dane could fit in it. No gear head worth his weight in engine grease would be seen dead driving this thing. It looks like grandma’s golf cart and even she might find it a little too cutesy.

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By Derek Mau

Amidst the hustle and bustle of the city’s buzzing hive of urban workers, a quiet ceremony was taking place in front of Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) San Francisco offices. A handful of reporters, the occasional curiosity seeker walking by, and a few employees on break were around to witness the delivery of Mitsubishi Motors (MMC) all-electric vehicle, the i MiEV (Mitsubishi Innovative Electric Vehicle), to PG&E for some extensive testing over the next few years.

The i MiEV is an all-electric powered vehicle based on the Mitsubishi i sold in Japan.The original i is a sub-compact car that has the size and dimensions of a “light car” (classified in Japan as “keijidousha” class) with an engine displacement of up to 660cc. The car looks tiny on the outside but is fairly spacious on the inside. Looking somewhat like a jellybean on wheels, it’s a tad over 133 inches from end to end. With the car’s 15-inch wheels pushed all the way out to the corners, the overhangs are zero. As a result, it has a 100-inch wheelbase and a very stable ride. For the sake of comparison, the 5-door VW Rabbit’s wheelbase is 101.5 inches. This translates into a surprising amount of interior passenger room — much more than you’d expect from such a small car.

(Video and photos if the Mitsubishi i MiEV below the jump)

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By Adrienne Gruben

BMW unveiled the MINI E yesterday at the Los Angeles Auto Show’s press day, realizing BMW’s long hope of an electric car on the road. You remember BMW’s electric concept car pacing the 1972 Olympic Marathon runners. Ok I don’t either, but a German born American won that year. Was this his “KITT” from Knight Rider? The Germans love Knight Rider.

BMW CEO Dr. Norbert Reithofer spoke with actual glee about the 500 Mini E’s becoming available for an $850/mo, 1 year lease to Southern Californians and New Yorkers by year’s end. And like on American Idol, the audience will control the outcome. Reithofer asked the crowd, “What kind of infrastructure do we need? The important feedback will help us in preparing for production.” And he means it. “This is not just a car to roll out from one event to another. The MINI E belongs on the road.”

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Electric cars from Mitsubishi are getting a test run in the United States.

The automaker has signed a deal with two California utility companies, Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) and Southern California Edison (SCE), to begin testing the i MiEV, an electric car based on the “i” mini cars Mitsubishi sells in Japan. Tests will start late this year.

According to Tohru Hashimoto, Corporate General Manager of the i MiEV Business Promotion Office of Mitsubishi Motors Corporation, “The small, four-passenger Mitsubishi i MiEVs will enter into SCE and PG&E’s prototype testing and evaluation programs. This collaboration with two of the nation’s leading utility supporters of electric vehicles will provide us technical feedback on i MiEV vehicle and battery performance, as well as vehicle connection and integration into the electrical system.”

Extensive testing with the i MiEV has been occurring over the past two years with seven major utility companies in Japan. The success of these programs quickened the pace and prompted Mitsubishi Motors to begin selling the electric vehicle in the Japan market in summer of 2009.

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The very first Plug-In Conference was held in San Jose, Calif. (7/22/2008 - 7/24/2008), to showcase the latest technological advances, market research, and policy initiatives shaping the future of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). The three day conference brings together automotive manufacturers, component suppliers, electric utilities, government agencies, universities, and the environmental community to address the most current technical research surrounding PHEVs, the impact of current policies and regulation, and clean-tech entrepreneurs’ ideas to enhance and expand the PHEV market.

PHEVs offer one of the most promising near-term strategies for substantially reducing transportation-related greenhouse emissions and our dependency upon fossil fuels for transportation purposes. PHEVs are hybrids with a much larger battery pack that can be plugged into a 120-volt outlet allowing them to travel greater distances solely on electric power.

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