The expect an increase in demand in these vehicles and are interested in securing themselves for the future. This has led to a mad race in research and development. A company that manufactures a cheap, affordable, powerful and easy to use electric automobile will capture the market in a jiffy. Why? Well, electricity can be generated with the help of the sun. Theoretically speaking, a person with solar panels on the roof will be in a position to recharge the battery and run the automobile.

This means that the cost of running the automobile will come down to zero. On the other hand, this option is never available as far as traditional fuels are concerned. Of course, as companies invest more and more in research and government of hybrid vehicles, they automatically have to stop focusing on gasoline engines. This means that the entire world will, sooner or later, shift over to electric powered automobile is.

This is a vicious cycle and it has started. As more and more money is spent on research and development of hybrid automobiles, companies will become less interested in giving up the research. The chances of the breakthrough in the green automobile sector is consistently rising and the auto companies are the ones pushing for it.

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With the fuel prices going up, the search for a cheaper way to power our vehicles is becoming more and more important, today even the red diesel prices are just too high and the regular petrol is unbearably expensive. Hybrids are not just a fashion statement but a necessity, a necessity which will eventually diminish the need to burn hard fuels in order to travel from point A to point B. Unfortunately VW, one of the biggest brands in the business, is still lagging behind companies like Honda and Toyota. It is true that most of their new vehicles offer superb fuel efficiency and low CO2 figures but this is just not enough.

However, during the 2011 Tokyo auto show the Germans revealed something really special. A prototype vehicle that is something of a mixture between cross-over and a four door couple. Cross-couple is 4.34 metres long, 1.86m wide and 2.63m tall. The whole thing weighs around 1.7 tons and has a rather uneven weight distribution – 58/42 with slightly heavier front axle. The 20 inch rims look really cool and the wide 265/45 R20 tyres sure give the vehicle extra stability and traction.

The most unique thing about this automobile is that it actually has not one, not two, but three engines. Two of them are electric and the third one is petrol. The gas engine delivers 150bhp and along with the 55bhp electric motor turns the front wheels. The other electric motor is actually quite powerful – 115bhp and all that power is transferred to the rear axle. The combined horse power is 265, which is extremely respectable considering the fact that the car has phenomenal fuel efficiency – 87MPG. With all three engines the Cross-Couple can accelerate from 0 to 60mph for less than 7 seconds. The top speed is 124mph, which we think is more than enough. The vehicle can cover a distance of around 30 miles on electricity alone. The electricity comes from specially designed lithium-ion batteries. The batteries are charged up when the petrol engine is turning and also from the kinetic energy released when you apply the brakes. The interior of the car is really nice. There are four individual seats with integrated head rests. The cargo area offers 380litre of space with the rear seats up and 1230litres with the seats down.

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The new Plug-in Hybrid has seating for five adults and based on the manufacturers estimates will be able to do a combines driving of 87miles per gallon equivalent (mpge) and when its in the pure hybrid mode 49mpg. At speeds of up to 62mph when in EV mode this new Prius will run for close to 15 miles.

Now this new Hybrid will make it 3 model in the Toyota eco focused range and with the Prius c set to debut in 2012 the range will get even wider.

Now with the Prius Plug-in offering owner quick home charging by way of your regular AC outlet. In fact according to Toyota the Plug-in should take about 3 hours to fully charge using a 120 V outlet and about 1.5 hours if you use a 240V outlet. There is a charging port inlet to be found on the rear fender on the right that will connect the 120v charging cable.

The new Prius has been improved, like a new human resource software, with new features. It has a lithium ion battery pack that was newly developed and it takes the place of the NiMH batteries that were on the previous Prius models.

Toyota has also included their new multimedia system called Entune, charge management apps, and the ability to control the A/C system remotely.

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Who says that hybrid and green automobiles have to be small, impractical and rather useless outside the city? Well, even though nowadays they put a hybrid badge on all kinds of cars, including huge SUVs, so far the industry was lacking a truly green automobile which actually can be used as a family car. Well, until know, fans we give you the Toyota Prius +. Naturally the plus stands for something extra. In this case the biggest difference is the extra space and of course, the seven seats. The car is nearly five meters long and 1775 mm wide. It will be powered by a similar hybrid system that we now can find in the latest generation Prius, but rumors say that it will have more power, and most importantly, more torque. The CO2 emissions however will be lower than 100 g/km. The NiMH batteries are hidden well, and they don’t take any interior space. From the outside the car looks like almost every hybrid, you can most certainly tell that it is the big brother of the world’s best known hybrid. It has a very aerodynamic design and we definitely like it. The interior is very nicely put together. The middle row seats can be folded and since they are on rails you can slide them forward or backwards. The third row can also disappear so you can basically end up with a huge cargo space. Therefore this car will actually be practical enough for those solar pv installers who usually come to your house with one of those huge diesel trucks and kinda ruin the whole image of green energy providers. Anyway, the car is not for sale yet, it will make its debut during the Frankfurt automotive show and it will hit the local dealers by the end of March 2012.

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It is one of the most popular cars for the past 15 years, the Honda Civic’s value, comfort and efficiency has continued to remain consistent. The new clean-burning natural gas Civic sedan, known as the Civic GX, is no exception.

The GX sports the classic Civic sedan looks with its 16-inch steel rims, and the car also has a keyless entry and cruise control.

The interior is well-appointed with useful features such as a folding rear seatback for increased flexibility, sliding armrest, and full power accessories. Interior controls are well-designed and easy to use, made of materials appropriate for the car class. The GX has comfortable seats, and the rear floor is completely flat, allowing the middle rear passenger more legroom.

Under the hood, compressed natural gas fuels the GX’s engine which is 1.8-liters. The engine’s horsepower is about 113. The GX’s internal-combustion engine could be the cleanest being mass-produced.

However, it only has a 200 mile cruising range. This limitation can be alleviated with the installation in your garage of a refueling machine. The GX, like all Civics, have excellent fuel efficiency. The GX can get 25 mpg in the city, 36 mpg on the highway and 28 mpg combined so no need to think about diesel Cornwall here.

The GX is also outfitted with good safety features, including active front head restraints, side airbags for the front-seat, side curtain airbags, as well as antilock brakes. Yes all the trimming you would expect is included helping to making this the vehicle of the future.

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But the cynic remains, and he says, “About time!”

Let’s be serious. Hybrids are a sad excuse for technological advancement. They’re a fun thing to promote as “eco-friendly,” but what does it really cost to make them run? When a hybrid is getting gas mileage similar to a TDI diesel, something is wrong in the world. Are we really stuck in a rut this badly? It’s akin to, say, running your business’personnel management software off of a typewriter. Embarrassing.

How much time have we had to advance technology, and how much of it have we spent with our heads in the sand? Is it a lack of demand from the public? Is it a lack of will or inventiveness on behalf of the auto industry? Is it pressure, political and otherwise, from the oil companies? What’s going on that could keep our progress so stunted for so long?

But to return to the optimism . . . a quick perusal of the Nissan Leaf site is newly invigorating. Is anyone else excited about this thing? It seems like it’s the real deal. Now, if only those charging stations would pop up around Chicago . . .

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But the cynic remains, and he says, “About time!”

Let’s be serious. Hybrids are a sad excuse for technological advancement. They’re a fun thing to promote as “eco-friendly,” but what does it really cost to make them run? When a hybrid is getting gas mileage similar to a TDI diesel, something is wrong in the world. Are we really stuck in a rut this badly? It’s akin to, say, running your business'personnel management software off of a typewriter. Embarrassing.

How much time have we had to advance technology, and how much of it have we spent with our heads in the sand? Is it a lack of demand from the public? Is it a lack of will or inventiveness on behalf of the auto industry? Is it pressure, political and otherwise, from the oil companies? What’s going on that could keep our progress so stunted for so long?

But to return to the optimism . . . a quick perusal of the Nissan Leaf site is newly invigorating. Is anyone else excited about this thing? It seems like it’s the real deal. Now, if only those charging stations would pop up around Chicago . . .

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Even though this big Lexus limousine is a not exactly what you would normally call an eco-friendly hybrid it is still a hybrid and being one, it deserves our attention. So let’s focus on the powertrain then. This huge limousine is powered by one big petrol V8 engine and two powerful electric motors. The big battery is a must in such configurations. The combined power of all three motors is 438bhp. This allows the relatively heavy car to accelerate from 0 to 60mph for less than 5.5 seconds. Even though this is still a big car with powerful V8 it has been certified with the Super Ultra Low Emission Vehicle II or SULEV II, mainly due to the fact that it emits 70% less CO2 that its main rivals. The interior of the car is absolutely perfect. It has acres of space and unbeatable comfort levels. The leather seats are so comfortable and the leather used so soft that you can easily find yourself drowsing at the back. There are also some fine crafted wood and chrome elements. The Lexus LS600h L is equipped with many features such as the sliding and massage seats, entertainment unit at the front and at the back, Bluetooth hands free calling and many, many more. The navigation system is new. It has an improved graphics and better speech recognition function. There is also an usb and aux inputs, so you can plug in and sync your iPod with ease. Of course such car comes with all the latest safety technologies: ABS, ESP, EBS, Vehicle Stability Control, EBD and many more. This automatically makes it even more stable and much safer on the road than the latest 4X4 cars like the Porsche Cayenne or the BMW X5.

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The green revolution has arrived and it is making an impact. From the all-electric Leaf car, to Ford Motors Ecoboost F150, to the thousands of cars those automobile manufacturers are touting as the solution to our energy crisis.

The public themselves want to get greener cars. Over 60% of those polled say that they support higher emissions and fuel efficiency standards. No longer are people wanting to have a motorcycle delivery to save on fuel costs, they want green cars.

In the United States President Barack Obama is setting the fuel efficiency standards for autos that will come out between 2017 and 2025. Obama already had committed himself to cutting the American dependence on oil by a third by the year 2025.

To make sure that trucks and car continue to take bold steps to become environmentally friendly we have to do more. It is possible to achieve fuel efficiency that reaches 60 miles per gallon by the year 2017. Pushing for this standard will drive automakers into reaching for new technology and electric cars.

For years auto companies had tried to block standards saying that they could not do any better. It has been shown that this is a lie and their ads today are proof that they can. There is so much innovation out there in the marketplace when it comes to fuel efficiency and greener cars. There just needs to be some form of motivation to get these companies on the right track.

These days'people understand that investing into technology will save us money in the long run.

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It seems strange to read about a designer better known for his work in Formula 1 to be designing hybrid cars. However that is exactly what Gordon Murray and his company have been doing for the past seventeen months.

The T.27 minicar is a far cry from the more streamlined and super quick vehicles Murray designed for McLaren and Brabham. It looks like something out of Noddy;s toyland leading many pundits to wonder who would be willing to drive it without feeling stupid. Murray dismisses such fears as irrational basically because when the ‘Smart Car'was first released similar concerns were raised then. Now you’re hard pushed to not see at least two or three Smart Cars a day when driving in the city. The T.27 is similar and cleaner.

A recent article published by the BBC may give Gordon Murray cause for concern over safety aspects of his new design, but he is confident that the T.27 has bypassed all the problems Toyota have faced with their recent recalls. The T.27 is small but still has many features useful for the daily commute into London. As a global internet roaming service is essential for many travellers driving these days, Murray has taken this into account and incorporated easy to use plug in systems for phone users in the T.27. Even the most cynical critic would be hard pushed to criticise the new car for anything other then perhaps the style. Basically if you hate Smart Cars there will be nothing to be impressed about with the T.27. If you like energy efficiency though, you can’t get much better.

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