Renault's Quirky Pure-Electric Twizy Goes on Sale in the UK

Renault has never been the one to shy away from eccentric creations (remember the Avantime?) but the new Twizy certainly takes quirkiness one-step further as it looks like the odd pairing of a golf kart with a motorcycle offering seating for two in a tandem layout while riding on four wheels.

Revealed as a concept for the first time at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show, Renault surprised us a year later with the presentation of the production model in Paris. Now, the Twizy is available in European showrooms including Britain where it went on sale today.

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GM Says Explosion at Tech Facility Injures Five, One Seriously, was Related to Prototype Battery Testing

The explosion that occurred on Wednesday morning at the General Motors Technical Center in Warren, near Detroit, and which we first told you about earlier today, resulted in the injury of five employees, one of which seriously, according to an official statement from the company.

"We are aware of five employees being evaluated on scene by medical personal and only one employee is being further treated," said GM.

A company official told the Detroit News that the employee who was seriously injured and hospitalized is expected to make a full recovery and that the injuries are non-life threatening.

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Ford Teams Up with Best Buy Canada to Offer Home Charging Station for EV and Plug-in Hybrid Owners

One of the main problems of owning an electric car or a plug-in hybrid is where and how to recharge its batteries. Ford of Canada promises to offer a simple solution to owners with a home charging station, which will be supplied and installed by Best Buy Canada.

The 240-volt home charging station is suitable for the all-new Focus Electric battery electric vehicle as well as Ford's upcoming plug-in hybrid models in Canada. Best Buy said it will supply the charging station and offer complete consultation and installation services through its Geek Squad and third-party licensed electrical contractors.

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Toyota Confirms UK Pricing and Specs of New Prius Plug-in Hybrid

The new plug-in hybrid version of the Toyota Prius will arrive in UK showrooms at a slightly higher price than what the Japanese automaker originally estimated.

Back in September of 2011, Toyota had said that the Prius Plug-in would cost less than £31,000 and under £26,000 if you include the £5,000 government subsidy. Today we learn that the final on-the-road price for the plug-in model is £32,895, which falls to £27,895 with the £5,000 Government grant available on new vehicle purchases through the Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV).

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Infiniti Crafts a Premium Family Car Concept out of the Leaf's Platform and EV Components [Video]

This is the Infiniti LE Concept that made its world debut today at the 2012 New York International Auto Show. The LE is a pure-electric, four-door family sedan mechanically related to the Leaf EV.

While this is the first time we see the concept in the flesh, Infiniti has been talking about the LE since the 2010 Paris Motor Show as it intends to put the car in production within the next two years.

"As a ‘production intent’ concept, most of what you see in the LE Concept will become a reality, including its zero emission powertrain, advanced telematics, cutting-edge design, advanced connected services and premium appointments," said Infiniti Americas Vice President Ben Poore.

As a more upmarket model than the Leaf, the larger LE features a more stylish exterior design full of waves and creases, while also sporting Infiniti's new signature double-arch grille and crescent-cut rear-pillar. The sedan model has a rather low coefficient of drag of 0.25.

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Watch the New BMW i8 Spyder Concept in Action

We've already had the chance to see the first images of BMW's i8 Spyder concept in advance of its world premiere at the Beijing Auto Show, where it will be presented alongside the new local market 3-Series LWB model, but if you'd like to watch the study on the move, we've just added three new videos that you can check out right past the break.

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First Photos of Infiniti's LE Pure-Electric Concept

The first images of Infiniti's LE Concept have made their appearance online, shortly after Nissan and Infiniti CEO Carlos Ghosn gave journalists a sneak peak of the electric-powered model at the brand's New York Auto Show stand.

Infiniti had revealed its intentions to launch a pure electric family car at the 2010 Paris Motor Show having released a second teaser image on the sidelines of last year's Frankfurt Motor Show.

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Fisker Officially Unveils New Audi A5 Rivaling Atlantic Plug-in Hybrid Sports Sedan [Pics & Video]

It's show time for the maker of the Karma hybrid, as Fisker officially presented its new Atlantic mid-size sports sedan at a special event on Tuesday night in advance of the car's world premiere at the New York Auto Show on Wednesday, April 4.

Revealed here as a design prototype, the Atlantic will be Fisker's first mainstream and mass produced vehicle. The company said the car is aimed at young families who want to drive "an impactful, high-end vehicle while making a positive statement about responsibilities".

The California-based automaker declined to get into specific details, but it is believed that the Atlantic will start from under $50,000, not including any federal green tax credits, which could reduce the price to a little over $40,000, or less than half the cost of the Karma.

Just like the Karma sedan, the Atlantic is a plug-in series hybrid that allows the driver to switch manually or automatically between electric and gasoline driving modes and sustain the charge of its lithium ion batteries on the move.

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Massachusetts Subaru Dealer Turns Tribeca into a Solar-Powered EV!

After successfully installing close to 400 solar panels on the roof of its dealership in Hannover, Massachusetts, Planet Subaru is once again pushing the envelope of lime-green innovation with the presentation of the Tribeca SPT 588QW DRX EV, powered exclusively by the sun.

The single solar panel is mounted on the Japanese crossover's roof feeding a Di-Lithium Crystal Transductor that serves as a capacitor and a very powerful electric motor that replaces the Tribeca's traditional boxer engine.

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BMW i8 Spyder Concept Shows the Way for a Production Model [45 Photos]

While we have yet to see a production model, BMW's newly formed "i" sub-brand continues to expand its range of concept cars with a third study for a roadster version of the i8 Coupe.

Given the close relationship with the coupe model, it's very likely that the i8 Spyder will receive the green light for production as well with a possible market launch to follow within the next two to three years. The i8 Spyder will make its world premiere at the Auto China Show 2012 in Beijing in late April.

While it shares its basic platform architecture and plug-in hybrid powertrain with the coupe, the Spyder is a strictly two seater model and has a slightly shorter wheelbase and overall length.

Other changes include the solid doors, which keep the 'butterfly' design swiveling upwards, the new colors and materials inside, and the redesigned rear-end that now features a transparent engine cover.

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Project Nina Named the Fisker Atlantic, uses a BMW Turbocharged Engine as a Range Extender

We just learned from a reliable source that the car we've come to know as the Project Nina and which will be revealed at next week's 2012 New York International Auto Show, will be named the Fisker Atlantic.

The Atlantic is a four-door plug-in hybrid that will sit under the Karma in Fisker's range with a price that will likely hover around the $50,000 (equal to €37,800) mark, or about half the cost of the larger Karma sedan.

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BMW i8 Spyder Concept Photos Leaked Ahead of Beijing Auto Show Debut

A Czech website has dropped the first photos of BMW's new i8 Spyder Concept. And since some of you may be wondering if they're real or not, we asked around and can confirm their authenticity as sources told us that the study will make its world premiere at the Auto China Show in Beijing at the end of April.

The open-top study is based on the production-intent i8 Coupe Concept that we've seen in several shows this past year.

Aside from the absence of the roof and the elimination of the rear seats, the Spyder also sports solid instead of transparent, rotating doors with different mirror housings and a restyled boot section.

The Spyder retains the i8 coupe's plug-in hybrid powertrain with a mid/rear mounted 1.5-liter turbocharged three-cylinder gasoline engine developing 220HP (164kW) and 300 Nm (221 lb.ft) connected to the rear wheels, and an electric motor driving the front wheels.

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Daimler and China's BYD Name Their New EV Brand Denza

It's been close to two years since Mercedes-Benz's parent company Daimler and China's BYD formed a new 50-50 joint venture under the name BDNT (BYD Daimler New Technology Co. Ltd) for the development and production of affordable electric vehicles for the Chinese market.

Today, the two companies came out with an official announcement saying that their China market brand will be named Denza and that we'll see the first concept car at the Auto China Show 2012 in Beijing this April, with first production planned in 2013.

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Obama’s EV Strategy and Energy Department Spending Questioned by House Panel

The Obama administration has put a lot of weight behind electric and alternative-fuel cars, offering tax incentives in order to increase their sales and reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.

According to a DetNews report, the chairman of the House Science Committee’s panel on energy and environment, Andy Harris, has sent a letter to Energy Secretary Steven Chu requesting information about Obama’s proposal to spend more than US$1 billion in tax incentives and related infrastructure.

In his letter, Harris questions the proposed increase of tax incentives by US$2,500 for buyers of “clean” vehicles. He says that, according to GM, the average Chevrolet Volt owner has an annual income of US$170,000.

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BMW Group and Toyota Begin Co-Development of Next Generation Lithium-Ion Batteries

Following an initial announcement back in December of 2011, the BMW Group and Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) are moving on to the next phase of their partnership inking the deal, which will see the two companies beginning a collaborative research in the field of next-generation lithium-ion battery cells.

"The research project being undertaken under the agreement is focusing on increasing the performance and capacity of lithium-ion battery cells through the use of new combinations of materials for cathodes, anodes and electrolytes," the two automakers said in a joint statement.

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Opel Ampera Wins 2012 Monte Carlo Rally for Electric and Alternative Propulsion Vehicles

In its debut appearance at the Monte Carlo Rally, the Chevrolet Volt's European twin, the Opel Ampera, picked up its first win in the electric and alternative propulsion category. From the seven Ampera models that competed in the rally, four finished in the top 10.

The French duo Bernard Darniche and Joseph Lambert finished first, while the Ampera teams with Charlotte Berton and Olivier Sussot ranked third, Jean-Claude Andruet and Patrick Lienne came in 7th and Hanns Werner Wirth and Daniel Riesen finished 8th.

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Volvo Shows More of its Pure-Electric C30 E Hatch

The all-new V40 may be hogging the spotlight these days, but there's another equally important model for Volvo's future, one which the company continues to develop. That's the C30 E, an all-electric version of the three-door hatchback that's currently offered for lease to select buyers across Europe.

To keep interest in the car (and the project) alive, Volvo has published another video of the C30 E undergoing further development in the northern regions of Finland. You can watch it right after the break.

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GM Replacing 120-volt Charging Cords on Most Chevy Volts, but Don't Call it a Recall

All owners of the 2011 Chevrolet Volt and some of the 2012 model will soon be notified by GM to replace their 120-volt charging cords with new ones after certain consumers complained about overheating problems.

GM spokesman Randal Fox told Reuters that he did not know the total number of the vehicles affected, but said it was fewer than the 11,000 or so Volts sold so far in the States. He also made a point to note that this was not a safety recall.

"It's just an effort to offer a more consistent charging experience. It's not a safety recall. It's more of a customer-satisfaction program," Fox said.

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GOP Budget Committee wants to Axe All “Green” Loan Programs and High-Speed Rail Funds

Five years ago, U.S. President at the time George W. Bush created the Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing Program. It was a legislation providing up to US$25 billion of low-cost government loans to automakers in order to restructure their facilities and develop fuel-efficient vehicles.

The same program continued under the Obama administration, which has made reducing greenhouse gas emissions and promoting the use of alternative energy sources one of its priorities.

However, after the bankruptcy of solar panel maker Solyndra, LLC which had received US$535 million in federal loans, the Energy Department has frozen all funding pending a review. This had a negative effect on upstart companies, such as Fisker Automotive, which relied heavily on these subsidies.

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Fisker Sketches New BMW-Powered Nina Sedan, Says More to Come at New York Auto Show

Despite the fact that Fisker received a huge blow after the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) froze the company's access to the federal loan it was awarded for engineering the Karma (US$169 million) and production of the midsize Project Nina sedan (US$359 million), the California based automaker continues to move on with its plans, or at least it claims to do so.

Today, Fisker sent out an invitation for the New York International Auto Show in which it included a sketchy teaser of what is assumed to be the new Project Nina sedan that will slot beneath the larger and far more expensive Karma.

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