ZAP Electric Cars Zip Around San Francisco

Steve Schneider, CEO of Zero Air Pollution (ZAP), sits in the protoype of a ZAP L.U.V. (Light Utility Vehicle) electric car. ZAP recently unveiled the new ZAP L.U.V. electric car that can travel up to 240 miles at speeds of 70 m.p.h. They sell for between $9,000.00 and $17,000.
The Ferrari Story

ZAP Electric Cars Zip Around San Francisco

Steve Schneider, CEO of Zero Air Pollution (ZAP), sits in the protoype of a ZAP L.U.V. (Light Utility Vehicle) electric car. ZAP recently unveiled the new ZAP L.U.V. electric car that can travel up to 240 miles at speeds of 70 m.p.h. They sell for between $9,000.00 and $17,000.
The Ferrari Story

Tesla Roadster the 100% electric car

Tesla roadster is one electric car that boasts of a 0-100 kmph in about 4 seconds-a figure many sports cars and supercars will struggle to match.The car will move on to a top speed of over 200 km/h and has a range of almost 400 kms.

At present price of electricity the average cost of fuel for this car comes to 2 cents per mile.

The car is priced at US$ 100,000 plus taxes(approximate).The next delivery of this car will start from Feb 2008.You can even customize your car.The website gives all the details about booking.

But why is it important to go electric with tesla cars:

Pollution control - Go Green

Reduce dependent on Oil

Special tax benefits

Cost saving on fuel

The tires and battery of tesla cars are recyclable.

Tesla Roadster the 100% electric car

Tesla roadster is one electric car that boasts of a 0-100 kmph in about 4 seconds-a figure many sports cars and supercars will struggle to match.The car will move on to a top speed of over 200 km/h and has a range of almost 400 kms.

At present price of electricity the average cost of fuel for this car comes to 2 cents per mile.

The car is priced at US$ 100,000 plus taxes(approximate).The next delivery of this car will start from Feb 2008.You can even customize your car.The website gives all the details about booking.

But why is it important to go electric with tesla cars:

Pollution control - Go Green

Reduce dependent on Oil

Special tax benefits

Cost saving on fuel

The tires and battery of tesla cars are recyclable.

Hybrid Cars - Safe on the Environment

Car manufacturers tout their efficiency. Consumer advocates dispute claims of 60-plus miles per gallon gas efficiency. Amidst the controversy, environmentalists still claim, in the absence of anything better - that hybrid vehicles are still better for the environment than their traditional gas-guzzling counterparts.
Hybrids, known for the way they combine both gas and electric power to offer a cleaner ride, have come under fire in recent months for their inability to reach gas mileage milestones set by the manufacturers. Critics say that most fail to live up to claims of getting more than 60 miles to a single gallon of gas. Advocates argue that recent studies confirm the same is true for efficiency ratings set on traditional engines, still making hybrids the better deal environmentally.
Touted as the gas-saver of the future when introduced in 1999, hybrids are known to use a fraction of the gas due to their ability to "share the burden", with their electric motors. Full hybrid vehicles allow the electric motor to work independently of the more traditional internal combustion engine, while driving at low speeds. This in turn saves gas, and stops harmful emissions from entering the atmosphere. During an idle stop, a full hybrid actually shuts itself off, letting the electric motor take over to eliminate unnecessary idling and emissions.
Toyota Prius - Toyota's hybrid car

Consumers should be aware, however, that the mild hybrids focus remains on traditional gas consumption, with the electric motor only assisting the gas engine at high speeds when more power is needed, thus making the mild hybrid much less environmental friendly than its full hybrid counterpart.

Great for in town drivers, the full hybrid allows slow speeding drivers to virtually use only the electric motor, thus saving even more gas, and eliminating harmful emissions into the environment.

Despite any controversy surrounding today's hybrid vehicles, consumers seem eager to do what they can to decrease the harmful effects of emissions on the environment and save a few bucks at the pumps.

The Yano Research Institute Ltd. estimates that by 2015, nearly 5.37 million hybrid vehicles will be on the global road, compared to less than one million last year.Manufacturers have jumped on the bandwagon, with Honda, Toyota, Ford, Lexus and Chevrolet, all offering their own hybrid varieties. Newer models sport higher-powered and faster models, even making hybrid SUV's and trucks available to the consumer.

Hybrid Cars - Safe on the Environment

Car manufacturers tout their efficiency. Consumer advocates dispute claims of 60-plus miles per gallon gas efficiency. Amidst the controversy, environmentalists still claim, in the absence of anything better - that hybrid vehicles are still better for the environment than their traditional gas-guzzling counterparts.
Hybrids, known for the way they combine both gas and electric power to offer a cleaner ride, have come under fire in recent months for their inability to reach gas mileage milestones set by the manufacturers. Critics say that most fail to live up to claims of getting more than 60 miles to a single gallon of gas. Advocates argue that recent studies confirm the same is true for efficiency ratings set on traditional engines, still making hybrids the better deal environmentally.
Touted as the gas-saver of the future when introduced in 1999, hybrids are known to use a fraction of the gas due to their ability to "share the burden", with their electric motors. Full hybrid vehicles allow the electric motor to work independently of the more traditional internal combustion engine, while driving at low speeds. This in turn saves gas, and stops harmful emissions from entering the atmosphere. During an idle stop, a full hybrid actually shuts itself off, letting the electric motor take over to eliminate unnecessary idling and emissions.
Toyota Prius - Toyota's hybrid car

Consumers should be aware, however, that the mild hybrids focus remains on traditional gas consumption, with the electric motor only assisting the gas engine at high speeds when more power is needed, thus making the mild hybrid much less environmental friendly than its full hybrid counterpart.

Great for in town drivers, the full hybrid allows slow speeding drivers to virtually use only the electric motor, thus saving even more gas, and eliminating harmful emissions into the environment.

Despite any controversy surrounding today's hybrid vehicles, consumers seem eager to do what they can to decrease the harmful effects of emissions on the environment and save a few bucks at the pumps.

The Yano Research Institute Ltd. estimates that by 2015, nearly 5.37 million hybrid vehicles will be on the global road, compared to less than one million last year.Manufacturers have jumped on the bandwagon, with Honda, Toyota, Ford, Lexus and Chevrolet, all offering their own hybrid varieties. Newer models sport higher-powered and faster models, even making hybrid SUV's and trucks available to the consumer.

Electric Cars at the American International Auto Show

They're going electric in the Motor City, Detroit -- well, maybe not just yet.

But it made for a nice "buzz" as the world auto industry gathered at one of its premier events, the North American International Auto Show, with gas-electric hybrids and even "plug-in" electric cars all the rage.

It was almost enough to make one think, in the age of global warming worries and $60 per barrel oil, that the gasoline combustion engine was on the way out.

Japanese auto giant Toyota Motor Corp, the leader in hybrids, said it expects to sell up to 300,000 of the environmentally friendly cars this year in the United States, up from 191,000 in 2006.

The models, mainly the wildly popular Prius but also now a few Camrys -- the top-selling car in America nine of the last 10 years --have only added to Toyota's luster with American consumers as the source of quality and innovation.

The reputation reached a new high at the end of 2006, with Toyota's U.S vehicle sales passing Chrysler for the first time and knocking it out of the long-time Big Three -- General Motors, Ford and DaimlerChrysler's Chrysler Group.

Toyota now expects to pass Ford in the U.S. sales this year and also General Motors in global sales, ending GM's reign of more than 80 years as the world's top carmaker.

But GM may not be dead yet -- if electric shock treatments have anything to do with it.

At the Detroit show, GM revived its once-failed idea of a mass-market electric car, unveiling a new "concept" car called the Volt designed to use little or no gasoline.

GM had killed an earlier model, the EV1, in 2003, drawing the ire of "greens" and brickbats in a 2006 film, "Who Killed the Electric Car?"

But on Sunday GM executives said the Chevrolet Volt will draw power exclusively from a next-generation battery pack recharged by a small onboard engine -- if the technology is ready in two or three years.

"We have a thoroughly studied concept," said Jon Lauckner, a GM vice president for product development.

"It will create a buzz," said Mike Jackson, Chief Executive of AutoNation Inc., the largest public auto dealership group. "A thing like Volt shocks people who say 'I really didn't expect this from General Motors.'"

Jackson said a product like Volt would also make consumers take a second look at other vehicles in GM's line-up.

GM product chief Bob Lutz said critics would have to revise their thinking about GM's commitment to environmental concerns and U.S. dependence on oil imports after seeing the Volt.

"An electric vehicle coming from General Motors, I am shocked, truly shocked," Lutz told reporters at the show.

"The GM electric vehicle is an inconvenient truth," Lutz quipped, an allusion to former U.S. Vice President Al Gore's crusading film against global warming.

"This is not a PR exercise or a pure show car," Lutz told reporters at the auto show. "This is a real program with real money behind it that is heading for production."

REALITY CHECK

Such optimism abounded at embattled GM on the first day of the show after a year when it survived daunting threats of bankruptcy, sliding market share, soaring costs and sharp outside pressure from a big-money shareholder.

GM got an extra boost on Sunday when it swept the 2007 North American Car and Truck of the Year awards on Sunday, with top honors going to the new Aura produced by its Saturn division and the redesigned Chevrolet Silverado pickup.

The Aura beat out the other two finalists for the car award, the Honda Fit and the Toyota Camry. The Silverado bested the Ford Edge and the Mazda CX-7.

The sweep represents the first time in the award's 14-year history that a single U.S. automaker has won both awards. Last year, Japan's Honda Motors won both.

But if hope springs eternal, reality awaits.

"Domestic manufacturers continue to close the quality gap, although consumer perception has lagged this process," bond rating agency Fitch said in its 2007 autos outlook last month.

"Outside of pickups, Ford, GM and Chrysler will continue to suffer from product mix imbalances as they remain overexposed to the mid-size and large SUV markets," Fitch said. "Demand in these segments continues to decline."

Source- ciol

Electric Cars at the American International Auto Show

They're going electric in the Motor City, Detroit -- well, maybe not just yet.

But it made for a nice "buzz" as the world auto industry gathered at one of its premier events, the North American International Auto Show, with gas-electric hybrids and even "plug-in" electric cars all the rage.

It was almost enough to make one think, in the age of global warming worries and $60 per barrel oil, that the gasoline combustion engine was on the way out.

Japanese auto giant Toyota Motor Corp, the leader in hybrids, said it expects to sell up to 300,000 of the environmentally friendly cars this year in the United States, up from 191,000 in 2006.

The models, mainly the wildly popular Prius but also now a few Camrys -- the top-selling car in America nine of the last 10 years --have only added to Toyota's luster with American consumers as the source of quality and innovation.

The reputation reached a new high at the end of 2006, with Toyota's U.S vehicle sales passing Chrysler for the first time and knocking it out of the long-time Big Three -- General Motors, Ford and DaimlerChrysler's Chrysler Group.

Toyota now expects to pass Ford in the U.S. sales this year and also General Motors in global sales, ending GM's reign of more than 80 years as the world's top carmaker.

But GM may not be dead yet -- if electric shock treatments have anything to do with it.

At the Detroit show, GM revived its once-failed idea of a mass-market electric car, unveiling a new "concept" car called the Volt designed to use little or no gasoline.

GM had killed an earlier model, the EV1, in 2003, drawing the ire of "greens" and brickbats in a 2006 film, "Who Killed the Electric Car?"

But on Sunday GM executives said the Chevrolet Volt will draw power exclusively from a next-generation battery pack recharged by a small onboard engine -- if the technology is ready in two or three years.

"We have a thoroughly studied concept," said Jon Lauckner, a GM vice president for product development.

"It will create a buzz," said Mike Jackson, Chief Executive of AutoNation Inc., the largest public auto dealership group. "A thing like Volt shocks people who say 'I really didn't expect this from General Motors.'"

Jackson said a product like Volt would also make consumers take a second look at other vehicles in GM's line-up.

GM product chief Bob Lutz said critics would have to revise their thinking about GM's commitment to environmental concerns and U.S. dependence on oil imports after seeing the Volt.

"An electric vehicle coming from General Motors, I am shocked, truly shocked," Lutz told reporters at the show.

"The GM electric vehicle is an inconvenient truth," Lutz quipped, an allusion to former U.S. Vice President Al Gore's crusading film against global warming.

"This is not a PR exercise or a pure show car," Lutz told reporters at the auto show. "This is a real program with real money behind it that is heading for production."

REALITY CHECK

Such optimism abounded at embattled GM on the first day of the show after a year when it survived daunting threats of bankruptcy, sliding market share, soaring costs and sharp outside pressure from a big-money shareholder.

GM got an extra boost on Sunday when it swept the 2007 North American Car and Truck of the Year awards on Sunday, with top honors going to the new Aura produced by its Saturn division and the redesigned Chevrolet Silverado pickup.

The Aura beat out the other two finalists for the car award, the Honda Fit and the Toyota Camry. The Silverado bested the Ford Edge and the Mazda CX-7.

The sweep represents the first time in the award's 14-year history that a single U.S. automaker has won both awards. Last year, Japan's Honda Motors won both.

But if hope springs eternal, reality awaits.

"Domestic manufacturers continue to close the quality gap, although consumer perception has lagged this process," bond rating agency Fitch said in its 2007 autos outlook last month.

"Outside of pickups, Ford, GM and Chrysler will continue to suffer from product mix imbalances as they remain overexposed to the mid-size and large SUV markets," Fitch said. "Demand in these segments continues to decline."

Source- ciol