Hummer H3 Plugin Hybrid Gets 100 MPG, Kicks Prius Butt

While we wait to see if General Motors will go banko come June 1, Raser Technologies is hoping to change our minds about one of GM’s most iconic offerings: the Humvee.

During the upcoming 2009 SAE World Congress (Detroit, April 20 - 24) the company plans to unveil a Hummer H3 Range-Extended Electric Vehicle (ReEV) prototype. The vehicle is designed, first and foremost, as a purely electric vehicle with a drive train similar to the Voltec system in the Chevrolet Volt.

“We are resurrecting the Hummer,” David West, vice president of marketing for Raser Technologies said, adding that “It’s like a Volt on steroids.”

Read the rest of this entry »

OriginOil Announces Algae Processing Breakthrough

OriginOil

Today, Los Angeles based OriginOil announced what they’re calling a breakthrough in algae processing, leading to a simpler and more efficient mechanism for producing algae-based biofuels.

Read the rest of this entry »

Car Companies Standardize Plug for Electric Vehicles

Just a few hours after General Motors called for a standardized EV plug, one has been created!

Caroline Reichert, a spokeswoman for the Germany energy company RWE, said leading automotive and energy companies have reached an agreement for a standardized plug for electric cars. Some of the automakers include in that agreement are Volkswagen, BMW, Ford, General Motors, Fiat, Toyota and Mitsubishi.
Read the rest of this entry »

9 Electric Cars 100 Years Old or More

1891 Morrison

morrison electric

Made by William Morrison in 1891, some say the Morrison was the first electric vehicle in America. It had a four horsepower engine , and could carry 6-12 passengers. Top speed was about 20 mph. The batteries needed to be recharged every 50 miles.

It has been said the car was actually completed in 1887 and was driven in a Des Moines parade in 1888. If that is true, the Morrison was first built 122 years ago, and it was built in America, where today they are almost no electric cars on the roads.

Read the rest of this entry »

Leftover Grease Powers University Bus and Research

This shuttle bus at the University of Rochester will be powered by dining hall grease

At most college dining halls, they’ll fry just about anything.

Wings, mozzarella sticks, fries and onion rings. Old shoe leather (wait, maybe that’s just a memory of how things tasted at my college dining hall.) All that frying leaves a lot of leftover grease and oil.

At the University of Rochester, a group of students used that oil as the foundation for a business plan that has produced both a biodiesel powered shuttle bus and a new building for biofuel experimentation. The project will hit a milestone on Earth Day, when university President Joel Seligman will help send the shuttle bus off on its first trips around campus, including a tour of the new building.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Podcar: A Cross Between a Taxi and a Personal Bus

Masdar City, located within Abu Dhabi, is introducing personal rapid transit “podcars“.

Basically, a cross between the convenience of grabbing a cab and a public bus; the podcars will be a component of Masdar City’s public transportation system.

As part of Masdar City’s car-free design; these podcars will be part of a network of electric taxis without drivers (!). The first of these podcars (also known as personal rapid transit - PRT) are set to debut this year.

Read the rest of this entry »

Mission One Electric Motorcycle Races to Prove Itself on the International Stage

Back in February, Gas2.0 editor Nick Chambers introduced readers to the Mission One, built by San Francisco startup Mission Motors. The Mission One debuted at this year’s TED conference in San Diego, and is the brainchild of Mission Motors founder Forrest North.

Billed as the world’s fastest production electric motorcycle, the Mission One will have an opportunity to prove its mettle on the Isle of Man this June when professsional rider Tom Montano will pilot the bike at TTGXP, the world’s first emission-free Grand Prix.

Read the rest of this entry »

Holy Honda Mod, Batman! Hawk 3-Wheeler looks like Batmobile Meets Rocket

There are quite a few three-wheelers these days: Aptera, Myers Motors and ZAP! Motors. And while those companies seem to be blocked from government funding, it isn’t stopping designers like 22-year-old Alex Hodge from New Zealand from churning out kickass mods like the Hawk.

The Hawk concept is part fighter jet, part sports car, and looks like it’s balls-out fun! The concept is built around the 999cc Honda RC51 V-twin engine has 10,000 rpm, 120 hp and a top speed of 144 mph. Read the rest of this entry »

The Chinese BYD F3DM, First Mass Produced Electric Car, Fails with Consumers

There is a lot of talk within the Electric Vehicle community about the Chevy Volt, but sometimes the headlines can overpower news of other EVs, like the BYD F3DM.

The BYD F3DM is one such case. Made and sold in China, it’s been called a Volt copycat, but it doesn’t seem to have the same following as its American counterpart.

News has recently come out that the BYD makes its own proprietary LiFePO4 battery and can sell the car for a US equivalent of $22,000. Warren Buffett has invested in the company and the potential exists to eventually sell the car in the US.

Read the rest of this entry »

GM Ditches Volt for Geo Metro Hybrid? [video]

Okay, probably not. But the mod is interesting nonetheless. What do you think?

Get Adobe Flash player

Source [AutoBlog Green]