I’ve been in California less than a month and I’ve already seen more “green” cars then I’d seen in a year back in the New York metro area. The Toyota Prius for example – these suckers are EVERYWHERE. Then there are the gaggles of Tesla Roadsters, Chevrolet Volts and Nissan Leafs that roam the freeways. It’s strange, but I’ve got to admit it feels pretty good to see these cars on the road. Back in NY it was almost part of the culture NOT to be green as most New Yorkers I know simply didn’t take recycling seriously. Here in the Bay area though, it’s part of everyday life. From riding your bicycle to work, to having three different garbage cans for your waste materials, going green is definitely the thing to do around here. Now while it’s doubtful I’ll be getting rid of my 8-mpg muscle cars anytime soon, I’m actually considering buying something a bit more economical for a third car. Who knows, maybe these Californian’s are actually onto something…

Infiniti's M35h runs at Britain's Santa Pod Raceway. Image: Infiniti

Mention the phrase “hybrid car” to most enthusiasts, and their eyes glaze over before they nod off to sleep. By definition, hybrid cars contain two propulsion systems, which makes them heavy and overly complex. Worse, most are built simply to get you from point “A” to point “B” using as little fuel as possible, so typical hybrids are slow, lumbering beasts with the acceleration of moped and the handling of an economy car, Carrying a load of bricks on the hood.

Infiniti wants to dispel that myth, so to commemorate the European launch of its M35h hybrid sedan, the automaker brought the car to Britain’s Santa Pod Raceway. There, officials from the Guinness Book of World Records certified the M35h as the “world’s fastest accelerating full hybrid.”

How fast was it? Fast enough to run from 0 to 62 miles per hour in 5.5 seconds, on its way to an average quarter mile time of 13.9 seconds, at just over 100 miles per hour. That’s not too shabby, especially when you consider that the M35h gets rated at 27 mpg city and 32 mpg highway; in fact, the M35h is quicker than Infiniti’s other six-cylinder M Series sedan, the 3.7-liter M37.

The M35h uses a high-torque electric motor in conjunction with its V-6 engine, so the combined power output is 350 horsepower. Electric motors make maximum torque at zero RPM, while internal combustion engines do not. Marrying the two, if done properly, ensures the best possible performance across all engine speeds. Even though hybrids are heavier than their gasoline-only counterparts, batteries and controller units can be positioned to offset the weight of the engine and transmission.

No one has built a no-compromise, all out hybrid sports car to date, but the Infiniti M35h is a step in the right direction. In fact, the Infiniti may be the first hybrid I’m looking forward to driving, because I’m pretty sure I can improve on that 13.9 time.

Source: Infiniti

If you’re counting down the days until the release of Ken Block’s Gymkhana Four, you’ve only got four more days to go. Gymkhana Four, starring Ken Block and his Hybrid Function Hoon Vehicle (HFHV), will hit You Tube on Tuesday, August 16. We hope it’s not a DC shoes sales pitch, thinly disguised as a hip-hop video, but the trailer below seems to indicate that it’s the real deal.

Besides sounding and looking cool, Block’s HFHV features a technology known as anti-lag, Used on race cars (but especially pro-rally cars), anti-lag synchronizes ignition timing, fuel injection and exhaust valve opening to keep the turbo spooled up, even when the throttle is lifted. The net result is improved performance, but at the expense of burning fuel in the exhaust system as well as in the combustion chamber.

Bad for the environment? Yes, it sure is. Fun to watch? Hell yes. Enjoy the video below, and here’s hoping that the fourth installment of Block’s Gymkhana series is worthy of the name.

Source: MotorAuthority

Image: Ford Motor Company

Want to buy a diesel-powered compact sedan or station wagon in the U.S.? You’ve got some options today, including the VW TDI models, Audi’s A3 TDI and (soon) the Chevy Cruze diesel. If you’re holding your breath waiting for Ford to release a diesel powered Fiesta, Focus or Fusion, we can offer this sage advice: don’t. Ford has no immediate plans to bring diesel into the United States, despite offering turbodiesel engines nearly everywhere else in the world. In fact, the new Ranger pickup is a good example of a global, diesel powered vehicle that we’re not getting on this side of the pond.

Why the lack of love for those with a passion for oil-burners in the US of A? Ford’s Dan Kapp, director of powertrain research, sums it up with one word: cost. Diesel engines typically add 10 to 15 percent to a vehicles cost, and in the U.S., diesel fuel is usually priced on par with premium unleaded. Even diesel’s superior fuel economy can’t always produce a payback that justifies the higher price of admission. Diesel engines are typically less stressed than their gasoline-burning counterparts, but selling an engine that will last 200,000 miles versus one that may only go 100,000 miles isn’t an easy prospect.

There’s another reason that Ford won’t admit to: certifying a diesel engine for use in the United States is expensive, since we currently have the strictest diesel passenger car emission standards in the world. If you can’t charge a significantly higher price for a diesel engine option in the U.S., going though the motions of having it certified is a losing proposition.

To be fair, Ford doesn’t need diesels in the U.S., because they’re doing just fine with their small-displacement EcoBoost engines. I’d be really surprised to see Ford change their position on diesels, even when the Euro 6 emission standards take hold in 2014. If you want an oil burner, don’t look to ford for answers any time soon.

Source: Wards Auto, via Left Lane News

Image: Jane M. Sawyer

Compromise means that no one walks away from the table happy, but no one walks away really pissed off, either. Such is the case with the newly agreed upon CAFE standards for 2025: no one’s really happy with them, but no one found them overly objectionable, either. The EPA, and the Obama administration, had initially pushed for a standard of 62 mpg before agreeing to back off to 56.2 mpg. Although it’s really splitting hairs, the administration and the automakers agreed on a target of 54.5 mpg.

So what does that really mean? It’s hard to say, since automakers will get credit for things like using environmentally-friendly air conditioning systems and building electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles. Larger trucks are excluded from consideration, and the plan has a “review step” in 2020, so if technology hasn’t yet caught up with legislation, implementation could be further delayed.

It’s also worth noting that a CAFE-mandated fuel economy of 54.5 mpg isn’t the same as an EPA fuel economy label of 54.5 mpg. I’ve yet to see any tangible math converting the two values, but I know this: it’s not as bad as critics think it is.

The good news is that even the California Air Resources Board agreed to the new standard. Until the measure was passed, there was some reason for concern that California would shoot down the new standard as not rigid enough, which would have required automakers to build cars just for California (or, alternatively, not offer their products for sale in the Golden State). All sides seem happy for now, but let’s see how things shape up as we begin transitioning into significantly more restrictive fuel economy requirements in 2017.

Source: Autoblog

Man… it looks like just about everyone is jumping on the electric bandwagon. First it was cars, then motorcycles and now boats. I suppose it was inevitable that boaters would follow suit, however it seems like the cost of admission is unbelievably high. This is the EPIC 232se Electric Sport Boat, a boat that’s designed specifically for wake boarding. It’s sleek, fast and can hold a charge for up to 10 hours, however it also cost a whopping a $150,000 which is a lot of scratch for a 23-foot tow vehicle. Granted the EPIC 232se is filled to the gills with the latest and greatest in electric vehicle technology, but $150,000 just seems like and exorbitant amount of money to pay for a boat that does little more than tow you around a lake at speed.

A few days back, the Associated Press broke a story about Chevrolet introducing a 50 mile-per-gallon, diesel-powered Cruze. In case you haven’t been following recent car sales numbers, the Cruze has been the best selling compact car in the U.S. for the past few months, and there’s good reason for that. It’s stylish, it’s comfortable and it’s priced right; in short, it’s the kind of car that Saturn should have been cranking out all along. You can get a Cruze with several engine options in America, and you can even buy it with a turbodiesel in other parts of the world (Australia, for example).

You can’t buy an oil-burner here, thanks to U.S. standards for diesel emissions. At the moment, ours are the strictest regulations in the world, and the Euros won’t catch up until the Euro 6 standard is implemented in September of 2014. Some automakers (Volkswagen / Audi, for example) already build engines that comply with Euro 6 and can be sold globally. Most do not, since it costs a significant amount of money to design, test and certify a new engine. You’ve heard automakers say “Americans don’t like diesels” for years, and that’s only partially true. A more accurate statement is that “Americans won’t buy enough diesels to make a new engine program financially advantageous. Yet.”

That changes after September 2014, when the world is again on a level playing field for diesel exhaust emissions. GM will need to certify their 2.0 liter turbodiesel for Euro 6 by then, so a Cruze turbodiesel becomes a very real possibility in later 2013 or early 2014. Look for small turbodiesels from other manufacturers as well, and don’t be surprised when diesel engines begin turning up in some unlikely places. VW’s Miata-fighting roadster, currently under development, is said to come with a TDI motor.

Source: Detroit News

When you think of automakers who give the single-digit salute to environmentalists everywhere, who comes to mind? Clearly Hummer is the obvious choice, but they’re out of business. Who’s next on your list – Ferrari? Lamborghini? Bentley or Rolls-Royce? If you’re Greenpeace, the automaker in your crosshairs is Volkswagen, who Greenpeace accuses of overstating their environmental record and resisting attempts to make cars like the Golf more fuel efficient (um, Golf TDI, anyone?).

Volkswagen, portrayed as the evil Empire in the VW ad spoof below, has also opposed tougher EU emission standards, which require emission cuts of some 30% by 2020. Worse, VW isn’t forcing people to buy their most fuel efficient models, allowing the uncaring consumer the freedom of choice to pick their own VW models, thus destroying the planet in the process. In fact, Greenpeace reports that only 6 percent of VW’s global sales were of its most fuel efficient models, so Greenpeace is giving VW a dose of their own medicine in the commercial below.

We’ll give Greenpeace some leeway here, since the Volkswagen Group does include automakers such as Lamborghini, Bentley and Bugatti, but let’s remember how successful (and environmentally friendly) VW’s TDI clean diesel models are. It was VW who built the 260 mpg XL 1 concept, rumored to be built in limited numbers beginning in 2012, and their soon to be launched Passat TDi will deliver 43 mpg on the highway. That’s good enough to be green in my book.

Source: Auto Spies

A gas powered computer? Want. Badly.

If you give me a choice between gas and electric, nine chances out of ten I’m going to choose gas. I’ve got a gas-powered lawn mower, a gas-powered string trimmer and a gas-powered backpack blower to clean my yard. I’m currently haunting pawn shops for a killer deal on a gas-powered chainsaw, because we’re headed into another hurricane season and have dodged a bullet for far too long. My power washer and my air compressor are both electric, which is a concession to practicality more than anything else, and if I could find the right deal on a two stroke blender, I’d buy it in a heartbeat. Thus, Nissan’s sentiment in the ad below is lost on me, and I’m far too jaded to believe that generation of electricity has no environmental impact. Watch the video and judge for yourself.

As for the whole Leaf versus Volt debate, you can’t argue with one fact: the Leaf has a limited and varied range on a single battery charge, as does the Volt. When the batteries are depleted on the Leaf, you’re stuck until you can replenish them, and that’s not a quick process compared to refueling. A Volt, on the other hand, can be driven from coast to coast, stopping only for refueling, just like a real car. I’m not in the market for an EV (extended range or otherwise), but I know this: there’s only one practical EV solution for my needs today and in the foreseeable future, and the Leaf isn’t it.

If you’re into motorcycles then you’ll remember that about ten years ago we began to see a shift in the types of bikes found in urban environments. Harley Davidson’s and hipster Ducati’s were all the rage, until that is, someone got smart and decided that enduros were actually the better way to go for bouncing over city potholes. Bikes like Honda’s XR650L and Kawaski’s KLR650 were now ditching their off-road tires in favor of nice street wheels clad with sticky rubber. The long travel suspension and upright riding positions made these the perfect machines for blitzing through tight city streets and bouncing over potholes. Now it seems that a California bike company called Zero Motorcycles has introduced a bike called the Zero S. It’s a bitchin’ looking enduro, but one that comes with a catch (and a cord). You see this sucker is electric.

It’s got a lightweight aluminum frame, trick suspension and one big-ass honkin’ battery. Weight wise the Zero S only comes in at about 300 lbs. which is pretty standard for enduros. Performance wise the bike is just “OK”. With a top end of about 70 mph it’s not going to break any speed records, however it is virtually maintenance free and only takes about 2.5 hrs. to recharge the battery pack to 100%. If there is a downside it has to be the Zero S’s range as it’s only about 50 miles. This is great if you’re just tooling around town, but anything more than that means frequent 2.5 hr. stops. I think the bike is definitely a start in the right direction, but like anything that has to do with technology, we’re pretty sure that version 2.0 isn’t that far off and will be better in all respects.

Source: Gizmag.com