Honda insight 1.3 IMA SE Hybrid: "So here goes. It’s terrible. Biblically terrible. Possibly the worst new car money can buy. It’s the first car I’ve ever considered crashing into a tree, on purpose, so I didn’t have to drive it any more."
posted by Antidisestablishmentarianist on May 20, 2009 - 180 comments

BYD AUTO is launching the F3DM: China's first mass-produced plug-in hybrid electric vehicle. [more inside]
posted by chuckdarwin on Dec 13, 2008 - 20 comments

Official: GM reveals the production Chevy Volt 2011.
posted by stbalbach on Sep 21, 2008 - 131 comments

Bicycles are the most efficient mode of transportation; walking is a distant second, followed by crowded vans and motorcycles, with everything else being relatively equal. This may change soon. WSJ online jokingly tests a new plug-in electric bike versus a standard racing model.
posted by Brian B. on Jul 19, 2008 - 82 comments

Researchers at Newcastle University have created a human-cow hybrid embryo. [more inside]
posted by WalterMitty on Apr 1, 2008 - 59 comments

"Al Gore III - whose father is a leading advocate of policies to fight global warming - was driving his environmentally friendly car at about 100 miles per hour on a freeway south of Los Angeles when he was pulled over by an Orange County sheriff's deputy..."
posted by 445supermag on Jul 4, 2007 - 110 comments

SUV sales are up. In spite of higher gas prices and concern about global warming, Americans still want bigger cars. It might not be enough to save the Hummer H2, though.
posted by 1f2frfbf on May 24, 2007 - 136 comments

Enertia is producing "innovative new homes of remarkable strength, economy, and beauty, brought to life by an elegant new architecture and the discovery of a new source of pollution-free energy." The design took first prize in the Modern Marvels/Invent Now competition (previously). In an interview, the inventor, Michael Sykes, says "he was inspired by the way the earth’s own atmosphere keeps the planet at a relatively constant comfortable temperature despite the frigidity of space." He also notes that his wife calls herself a "homemaker," natch.
posted by pithy comment on May 17, 2007 - 17 comments

Hybrid solar lighting is here. Happier employees and spendier mall shoppers are on the horizon. HSL basics. Direct savings comes from reduced electrical demand during peak hours, reduced cooling costs of conventional lighting, and eliminating the heat and maintenance costs of skylights. Call for the price.
posted by Brian B. on Mar 9, 2007 - 34 comments

The Chevy Volt, GM's new plug-in hybrid electric car. For a customer driving about 40 miles a day or about 15,000 miles a year, compared to a 30 mpg car, the Volt would save about 500 gallons of gasoline per year. If the car is charged every night, the driver should be able to achieve that mileage using virtually no gasoline. That same example would also save 4.4 metric tonnes of CO2 every year from each car. All it needs for mass production is a supplier for its untested lithium ion battery concept.
posted by Brian B. on Jan 7, 2007 - 68 comments

Your new pet. A new species? Dogs and cats are old news.
posted by SilverTail on Nov 17, 2006 - 78 comments

Two Formula One builders are teaming up to build what will no doubt be the fastest hybrid on the planet. I was saving for a Prius, but I think I'll hold out for this one!
posted by jacob hauser on Aug 30, 2006 - 29 comments

Water Power (embedded video). Inventor creates a hydrogen-powered vehicle that can run completely on water, or rather HHO. This is perhaps nothing new (or is it?), but fasinating nonetheless. Warning: annoying local news reportage.
posted by zardoz on May 16, 2006 - 43 comments

A new study suggests that, over the course of its lifetime, a Hummer H3 has a lower energy cost per mile than all currently offered hybrid vehicles.
posted by driveler on Apr 19, 2006 - 91 comments

Dear Valued Hybrid Customer... I can't tell if this is a joke or something. As rhetoric, it's well done. As a reasoned argument it falls apart if you actually know anything at all about hybrids.
posted by Ken McE on Dec 2, 2005 - 86 comments

With gas prices rising, SUV sales (16-20 mpg city) have been declining. What are some alternatives for urban commuters? Prius (56 mpg) and other hybrid vehicles. SmartCar (50 mpg city; available in Canada, but not the US) and other microcars. Electric motor scooters and bicycles. Electric cars like the General Motors EV1 seem to be stalled, although people are working on a battery-powered SmartCar. What about hydrogen vehicles? In the medium term, MIT's Laboratory for Energy and the Environment doesn't think they'll outperform hybrids (full report). A comparison of fuel-cell and battery electric vehicles gets into some of the details of how they work.
posted by russilwvong on Oct 11, 2005 - 83 comments

Hybrid supercar. The West Philadelphia High School Electric Vehicle Team has built a 300 hp hybrid car which gets 50 mpg on bio-diesel, accelerates from 0 to 60 in less than 4 seconds and looks sweet. That is a pretty nice high school project.
posted by caddis on Aug 19, 2005 - 34 comments

GreenCar.com Useful info on hybrid technology, electric vehicles, hydrogen and biodiesel. Features include Carroll Shelby on alternative fuel, Dr. Gerhard Schmidt (Vice President Ford motor co.), Ray Bradbury on Women Drivers.
posted by Lanark on May 15, 2005 - 7 comments

It's not Yahoo, it's not Google... it's Yagoohoogle! Quickly prove or disprove your favorite search engine conspiracy theories!
posted by AlexReynolds on Apr 6, 2005 - 17 comments

Hybrid cars. Car owners in the north Virginia area are apparently stocking up on hybrid cars - so much so that they are clogging up the carpool lanes they're allowed to use under state law. I can't believe they're doing it just to get a better lane, considering the purchase price on the vehicles.
posted by Leege on Jan 7, 2005 - 65 comments

Purple carrots are to be sold by a UK supermarket. But it's orange carrots that are the gimmick. Most wild carrots are purple or white. Orange carrots were created by patriotic 16th Century Dutch farmers from a mutant variety, to match their national colour.
posted by TheophileEscargot on Sep 19, 2003 - 17 comments

Ford will sell hybrid Escape at a loss. In order to get technology out to the public, and get feedback from customers, Ford is going to release it's hybrid version of the Escape SUV, and take a loss with it.

With today's economy, who knows what that will mean in the end for an already struggling Ford.
posted by wondergirl on Mar 6, 2003 - 51 comments

I stumbled upon the EV world today, a site dedicated to electric car news. They have some good articles, like this one on Nissan's new electric station wagon, and of course they have the requisite Ed Begley Jr. photo on their main page.
posted by mathowie on Dec 16, 1999 - 0 comments