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Honda recalls 36,656 Civic Hybrids in the US

March 9, 2011 at 11:02 am By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Honda, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News

More on the recall front. Honda has issued a recall for the Civic Hybrid in North America over problems with the vehicle’s power voltage converter.

The recall affects 36,656 units from the model year 2006-2007. The company says that the affected cars’ voltage converter, which relays power from the integrated motor assist (IMA) system to electrical components, could possibly fail. If it does, the headlights may go off and the engine might stall and not restart.

The recall will involve dealers replacing the voltage converter at no cost to the customer. Honda also submitted a similar recall report to the Transport Ministry in Japan for the Civic Hybrid sold domestically.

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Toyota Prius wagon to be launched in Japan in April

March 9, 2011 at 10:41 am By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News, Toyota

Toyota has unveiled its production Prius wagon, which is set to be launched in Japan towards the end of April. The announcement of the domestic market introduction follows closely on the premiere of the Prius+ seven-seater in Geneva last week.

The wagon, which is powered by the same 2ZR-FXE 1.8 litre block and 3JM motor as found on the third-gen ZVW30 Prius, will come in five- and seven-seater versions. The as yet-unnamed version is decidedly larger than the current Prius, essentially 160mm longer, 90mm taller and 30mm wider than the latter. This gives the five-seater version better legroom as well as improved cargo space over the ZVW30.

As for the seven-seater, it will be the first Prius to utilise a lithium-ion battery, as opposed to the NiMH used in the Prius, with the battery positioned between the driver and second row passenger seats to allow for three rows of seating to be deployed.

Toyota hasn’t revealed details about the production car, but the Nikkei daily has reported that the versions will be priced close to the current Prius; the NiMH-equipped five-seater is expected to go for 2.35 million yen, while the seven-seater should be around three million yen. The current Prius is priced at 2.05 million yen in Japan.

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Land Rover unveils the Range_e plug-in diesel hybrid

March 1, 2011 at 2:26 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News, Land Rover

It’s called the Range_e, and the advanced plug-in hybrid diesel offering is Land Rover’s debutant at the Geneva Motor Show.

The Range_e is based on the Range Rover Sport and uses the current 242 hp 3.0 litre TDV6 diesel engine, working with an eight-speed ZF automatic transmission and a 69 kW electric motor. The combined maximum output is 335 hp and the vehicle has a 193 kph top speed. Land Rover says that the SUV can achieve 85 mpg, or 3.36 litres per 100 km, and 1,112 km will be possible on a full tank of fuel.

Using a parallel hybrid system, with a 14.2kW/h lithium-ion battery that can be recharged from an external 240V power source, Range_e can be driven on electric power alone for around 32km. A full recharge from a standard domestic power supply can be accomplished in around four hours.

The Range_e comes with the same full 4WD capability as the standard Range Rover Sport, with high and low range in the transmission, front and rear differentials and a mechanical locking centre differential. Dependent on the driver demand, the system decides the most efficient method to deliver the power required, whether this is by electric, diesel or both. The Range_e also features regenerative braking.

Land Rover expects the development version’s powertrain to become available in future production models, following the scheduled launch of its diesel-electric hybrid in 2013. Thus far, fleet trials with five Range_e vehicles have covered more than 19,000 km since last December.

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Porsche Panamera S Hybrid to debut in Geneva

February 16, 2011 at 6:08 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News, Porsche


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Hybrid here, hybrid there, hybrid everywhere, it seems. The next one to bat is from Porsche – the Panamera S Hybrid will make its world premiere at the Geneva Motor Show before making its entry into the market in June.

Makes sense actually, especially if you already have a system running in another product in the lineup. In this case, the Panamera S Hybrid gets the same system found in the Cayenne S Hybrid – a 3.0 litre V6 compressor engine delivering 333 hp supported by a 47 hp electric motor, which also operates both as a generator and a starter.

There’s a NiMh battery in the mix, and the range in purely electric mode is approximately 2km, with speeds of up to 85 kph, depending on the driving situation. The transmission is the familiar eight-speed Tiptronic S box.


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Performance figures include a 0-100 kph time of 6.0 secs and a top speed of 270 kph, and despite the GT having a combined output of 380 hp, Porsche says that – shod with optional Michelin low rolling resistance rubbers – the car can manage a best case consumption of just 6.8 l/100 km based on the NEDC cycle.

Standard kit will include adaptive air suspension including the adaptive shock-absorber system with PASM, with Servotronic also on. The car will also feature an innovative display concept that provides the driver with all the relevant information about the vehicle’s specific hybrid driving status.

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Porsche Boxster E – rocking down the electric avenue

February 16, 2011 at 1:12 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News, Porsche


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Porsche has begun the rollout of the first of three electric-powered Boxsters it has slated for field testing on German roads – essentially, the trio of Boxster E cars will be mobile laboratories that will provide practical, user-derived feedback and information on EVs, the company says.

Depending on the configuration, the Boxster E can be powered by a 29 kWh battery working with two electric motors, offering 180 kW output in total; there are no details on performance figures, but Porsche says the E is comparable to a Boxster S in terms of performance levels.

The company adds that the Boxster platform offers the ideal basis for the electric drive system’s practice-oriented testing, allowing the new components, electric motor, battery and high voltage components to be easily and safely accommodated. As yet, no announcement has been made as to whether the car is planned for serial production.

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Nissan ESFLOW – sports car body for LEAF EV technology

February 10, 2011 at 10:39 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News, Nissan

This is the Nissan ESFLOW concept car, which marries sports car looks and performance with zero emissions EV technology from the Nissan LEAF, the reigning European Car of the Year. Fear that we’ll all be driving golf karts in the future? Nissan says that the ESFLOW “shows that driving can still be as much fun tomorrow as it is today”.

This Geneva bound two-seater concept has a shape that isn’t too far away from a 370Z, is rear wheel drive and does 0-100 km/h in less than five seconds. There are two electric motors placed above the axis of the rear wheels in a mid-ship position, one powering each rear wheel. Torque to each wheel is controlled for optimum handling and efficiency.

Range is over 240 km on one charge and power comes from the same laminated lithium-ion battery packs used in the LEAF, but are located along the axis of the front and rear wheels in the ESFLOW. This centralises the mass of the car, and thus its rotation point, which is close to the driver’s hips.

The swoopy composite body covers an aluminium chassis with its own roll cage. Roll bars are incorporated in to the structure behind the seats to take the entire load of the car in the event of a roll over, so there are no thick A-pillars here. Nissan says the unobstructed view is akin to a fighter pilot’s.

The colour scheme chosen for the ESFLOW is inspired by glaciers, “highly reflective solidified liquid with blue tints in its shadows”. There’s more blue in the headlights, Nissan emblem and wheel inserts.

Hi res images after the jump.
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Cutting back on green subsidies topples the Prius

February 9, 2011 at 12:50 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Honda, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News, Toyota

Well, it had to end at some point. Figures of Japanese car sales released late last week saw the Toyota Prius being toppled from the monthly No 1 spot as Japan’s best-selling car, a position it had held for 20 straight months.

Its replacement? Honda’s Fit compact hatch, which climbed back on to the top spot for the first time in close to two years. The Fit – or Jazz as we know it – moved 14,873 units in January, with nearly half of them the hybrid version of the car, ahead of the 13,711 managed by the Prius.

The ending of government-backed subsidies for green cars in September last year undoubtedly played a key role in pushing the Prius off the top spot. Its domestic pricing starts at US$25,000. Comparatively, the Fit was affected less by this incentive removal – it’s the cheapest hybrid in Japan at US$19,000.

Still, the Prius remains the world’s top-selling hybrid, and domestically, Toyota moved 315,669 of it in 2010, a jump of 51% from the year before.

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Citroën E-3POD Antistatic: in between bike and car

February 8, 2011 at 2:22 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Citroën, Concept Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News


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This here is Heikki Juvonen’s E-3POD Antistatic, a single-seat concept that bagged the top prize in a Citroën sponsored project in the UK called the Double Challenge.

The project, jointly sponsored by French aerodynamic simulation software company EXA, required Royal College of Art MA second-year students to design a compelling ultra-compact model that could establish a unique Citroën e-vehicle aesthetic for the future.


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Juvonen’s design was chosen as the best overall design by representatives from Citroën’s Style Centre and Electric Vehicle Development Team, and as his prize receives a six month employment contract to work at the prestigious PSA Design Centre in Paris.

His single-seat creation is a bold and engaging take on an urban three- wheel electric vehicle. The distinctive, aerodynamic styling features two smaller wheels at the front with the driver sitting inside a larger third wheel with an innovative hub-less design.


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Designed for urban commuting, the ultra-light, micro segment, single-seater is not meant to replace cars, but rather an addition to the family transportation fleet, positioned between bikes and cars.

The short length of the vehicle makes it agile in urban environments; at higher speeds, the E-3POD tilts slightly to provide solid grip and an emphasised stance, giving cornering a more responsive feel.


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The distinctive look of the electric design language was applied to distinguish the product from being associated to cars and for the avoidance of comparison in terms of operational range or refuelling/recharging time.

The E-3POD has a simplified, lightweight construction, with an emphasis on aerodynamics to minimise the required battery size. The lowered weight is emphasised in design elements such as the rear wheel, which works as a supportive structural element, the shared suspension for both front wheels, and the use of scratch resistant plastic for the canopy. The silent electric engines also make sound insulation redundant, allowing for lighter material selection.

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Toyota Yaris HSD Concept – B-segment hybrid for Geneva

February 7, 2011 at 1:11 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News, Toyota

Toyota looks like its aiming for a serious push down the hybrid path into Europe’s largest market sector, the B-segment, and will show the precursor to things in the form of the Yaris HSD Concept, which makes its world debut in Geneva next month.

The Japanese automaker hasn’t divulged any details about the upcoming hatch, aside from a teaser shot of its nose and stating that it will have hybrid-specific styling cues and new, forward-looking design elements. It adds that that the car anticipates the company’s hybrid intentions for the segment and represents the next step in its full hybrid roll-out strategy for the continent. More to come in Geneva, then.

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Around the world in 125 days – fuel cell out to prove a point

January 31, 2011 at 12:12 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News, Mercedes Benz

Three Mercedes-Benz B-Class fuel cell vehicles have begun an epic 125-day circumnavigation of the world. The cars will travel 30,000 km across four continents and through 14 countries and will finish their world tour back in Stuttgart, where they started.

The F-CELL World Drive, as it’s called, is aimed at confirming the technical maturity of fuel cell technology, as well as its suitability for everyday use as a safe and reliable means of transport over long distances and in the widest variety of road and weather conditions.

The tour will initially head south via Paris, Barcelona and Madrid into Lisbon, continuing the journey by plane to the US east coast. From Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the route heads across North America along the Gulf of Mexico towards Los Angeles before heading up to vancouver, Canada, a distance of 7,500 km.

Next is a 5,000 km trip across Australia, beginning from Sydney towards Perth, with stopovers in Melbourne and Adelaide. The last transfer between continents takes the cars into Shanghai, and from Beijing, the cars will cover more than 10,000 km towards Moscow, before heading into Northern Europe. The cars will travel via Finland to Stockholm, then Oslo in Norway before making the journey back, via Denmark, to Germany, arriving in Stuttgart at the beginning of June.

The circumnavigation drive will also draw attention to a significant challenge, which is with the infrastructure needed for the provision of hydrogen. Mercedes says that this type of electric mobility can only be implemented on a comprehensive scale when it is backed by a network of hydrogen filling stations designed to meet demand. As such, the company is looking at motivating the advancement of filling station networks through joint development.

Now, getting more people and countries in on the act would naturally bring the cost of fuel cell technology and vehicles down, fitting in with the prediction reported earlier. Of course, based on the route taken by the world drive, you can see which countries are integral to those plans in the immediate term, and which are not.

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