fuel-efficiency
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GM's US factories will switch to renewable energy five years ahead of schedule
GM has announced that it will be five years ahead of schedule on plans to use 100 percent renewable energy.
Ford, BMW and others sign binding emissions agreement with California
They've committed to building cars that outperform federal fuel efficiency standards.
EPA weakens annual fuel economy standard increase to 1.5 percent
While coverage of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic continues to dominate headlines, the Trump administration has quietly weakened the country's fuel economy standards. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced the Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient Vehicles Rule.
22 states join California to sue the Trump admin over emissions standards
A group of 22 states have joined California in suing the Trump administration, which revoked that state's right to set its own emissions standards. On Thursday, the Environmental Protection Agency and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced a plan for national vehicle emissions rules. The One National Program Rule would set federal standards on fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions, aligning with the administration's aim to scale back Obama-era targets.
EPA pushes national fuel economy standard in face off with California
The Trump administration has announced plans to create a national vehicle emissions standard. The new "One National Program Rule" would allow the federal government to set uniform fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions standards. The move, announced by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), is the latest in the Trump administration's feud with California.
DOJ launches probe of automakers that agreed to California emissions rules
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has launched an antitrust investigation into BMW, Ford, Honda and Volkswagen, the four automakers that came to a voluntary agreement with California to follow stricter fuel efficiency standards. After The Wall Street Journal broke the news, Ford and Honda confirmed they plan to cooperate with the investigation.
Ford, Honda and others agree to California's voluntary emission rules
The state of California and a quartet of auto manufacturers have agreed on a fuel efficiency deal in the wake of rollbacks at the federal level. Ford, BMW, Volkswagen and Honda have all signed up to a pledge to make their engines more efficient -- to the tune of 3.7 mpg -- every year until 2026. That's better than the rolled back standards as proposed by the EPA, but not as strict as those in the Clean Power Plan.
US issues final rules halting increase of fuel efficiency penalties
The Trump administration isn't deterred by legal attempts to preserve a once-planned increase in fuel efficiency penalties. The NHTSA has issued final rules freezing the fine at $5.50 for every tenth of a mile per gallon a new vehicle consumes above required standards, halting an Obama-era plan that would have gradually raised the penalty to $14. The NHTSA said it was just following Congress' desire to ensure the rate stayed at the statute's requirement.
EPA could lock in emissions rules before Trump takes office
The EPA and the Obama administration set lofty goals for lowering vehicle greenhouse gas emissions back in 2012. Under those terms, US automakers would have until 2025 to double fuel efficiency to 54.5 MPG which would lead to well over $1 trillion is fuel savings over the life of new cars. Of course, the plan would cost manufacturers $200 billion to meet that goal before the end of the 13-year term.
Ford C-MAX Hybrid rated for 47MPG across the board, C-MAX Energi hits 85MPH in EV mode
The wait for the Ford C-MAX Hybrid has been a long one, and we'll still be waiting until the fall before the driving public takes a set of keys. In the meantime, there's good news from the EPA for travelers wondering just how far that hybrid MPV will go on its combined power. It should be quite the distance: the now-confirmed fuel economy rating is an even 47MPG, whether it's for putting around the city or cruising the highway. Ford is more than eager to crow about the figures giving its $25,995 ride an edge over Toyota, whose slightly more expensive Prius V peaks at 44MPG on highway stretches and dips to 40MPG in urban areas. The early victory parade is continuing with the C-MAX Energi, too -- the plug-in hybrid variant can peak at a brisk 85MPH in pure EV driving, or more than 20MPH faster than either the regular Hybrid or a Prius plug-in. Toyota does have the slightly important advantage of having a vehicle on the market. Those who have yet to commit to a hybrid family hauler, though, will be glad to know their patience could earn them some extra efficiency or speed.
Inhabitat's Week in Green: worlds largest LEGO Christmas tree, turbine powered LEDs and a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green. This week Inhabitat got into the spirit of the holiday season as we reported that a French firm wants to transform the Eiffel Tower into a gigantic tree, we brought you the world's largest LEGO Christmas tree, and we watched GE flip the switch on the new National Christmas Tree, which is decked out with high-tech LED lights. We also spotted a seriously sweet Star Wars AT-AT walker made entirely from gingerbread, and we shined the spotlight on the amazing life-size light-up ice palaces that rise each year at the Harbin snow festival in China.
Inhabitat's Week in Green: holiday gift guide, 155 MPH biofuel truck and a solar-powered buckyball
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green. This week Inhabitat got set for the holiday season as we officially launched our Green Gift Guide, which is chock full of 21 categories and over 300 presents - including a great set of DIY projects you can make yourself and a round-up of our favorite gifts for gadget geeks. Speaking of high-tech gizmos, we also showcased several amazing examples of cutting-edge robotics as researchers developed a new breed of disaster detecting cyborg insects and Otherlab created a line of lightweight inflatable robots that can walk on water. Scientists also successfully completed the first round of trials on a new type of contact lens that could one day send emails directly to your eyes, and NASA announced that the new Mars Curiosity Science Laboratory will be powered by nuclear energy instead of solar.
Edison2's Very Light Car is now very electric, too
When we caught a glimpse of Edison2's Very Light Car earlier this year, we were told to expect an electric version of the X-Prize winning featherweight in the near future. Well, here it is. Known as the eVLC, this "supremely aerodynamic" concept car is powered by a 10-kWh battery pack and, believe it or not, can comfortably seat four passengers. The plug-in has yet to go through the EPA's official round of mileage testing, but Edison2 claims that the eVLC is far more fuel efficient than the Nissan Leaf and believes it could even receive the highest MPGe rating ever awarded. There's still no word on when this little critter could hit the market, but you can check out Autoblog Green's gallery (at the source link below) for a more extensive tour of what Edison2 calls the "inevitable future of the automobile."
Goodyear's self-inflating tires could improve gas mileage, leave Schrader valves unsatisfied
Reminiscent of Ghostbuster's Marshmallow Man, new Goodyear tires might just Stay-Puft on their own. The company is developing Air Maintenance Technology (AMT) tires with built-in pumps to keep themselves at the perfect pressure. The reason? Even slightly under-inflated tires can drop your mileage by 3.3 percent, costing you cash at the pump. For highway-hustling commercial trucks that's a whole lot of moola, leading the US Department of Energy's Office of Vehicle Technology to grant Goodyear $1.5 million towards self-plumping commercial tire development. For those of us who don't wear mesh hats, Goodyear is working on a consumer version in its Luxembourg lab. It's unclear exactly how they will work, but earlier implementations have a pipe that's compressed as the tire rolls, allowing air to enter the tire without bursting thanks to a pressure sensitive valve. With so much automated car technology now all we need is the kind that cleans out its own trunk and pumps its own gas. Check out the full PR after the break.
UK students' 1,980 MPG car scores first place in marathon race, by a 1,000 MPG margin
A car that looks like the one above and gets the "equivalent" of 1,980 miles to the gallon (and one gallon only) is certainly impressive enough on its own, but it's all the more so when you consider that it's driven by a 14-year-old and built by his classmates (with a little assistance, of course). This particular vehicle hails from Kingdown School in Wiltshire, England, and it won the recent Mallory Park Mileage Marathon by a margin of more than 1,000 MPG over its next closest competitor. Not surprisingly, however, the students are already looking to improve things for next years' race, and say they're planning on upgrading the engine for starters. No word if they're considering an X-Prize challenge after that.
Tesla Roadster 2.5 gets 119 MPGe rating from EPA, still as expensive as ever (updated)
Move over, Nissan, because there's a new MPGe king in town. Yesterday, the EPA anointed Tesla scored its Roadster 2.5 with an MPGe rating of 119, which would make it the most fuel-efficient car on the market. That places the plug-in ahead of both the Nissan Leaf (99 MPGe) and Chevy Volt (93 MPGe). According to the government-approved mock-up window sticker, Tesla's EV can last for up to 245 miles on a single, eight-hour charge, while getting the equivalent of 112 miles per gallon on the highway and 124 in the city. The original Roadster, meanwhile, received an MPGe score of 111 yesterday, with ratings of 105 on the open road and 116 in the city. Both models scored a perfect 10 for their greenhouse gas and smog emissions, though those ratings probably didn't factor in all the cash you'd have to burn to actually buy one. Update: We just heard from the EPA, which clarified that this is not their official rating for the Roadster 2.5. These numbers are Tesla's, and the window sticker itself is a mockup - not a legitimate sticker from the EPA. Still, if you'd like to see it, it's down after the break.
GM shows off Terrain SUV with noise cancellation, says silence equals fuel efficiency
GM claims its new Terrain has other SUVs beat when it comes to fuel efficiency, and they're citing active noise cancellation -- a concept near and dear to audiophiles everywhere -- as one of the driving factors that puts it 4MPG above the competition. Basically, the Terrain's enlisted a new one-touch "Eco mode" that allows its four-cylinder engine to run at a lower torque, decreasing engine speeds, and thus saving gas. The thing is, this increased fuel efficiency comes with a "low-end frequency boom," which is where the noise cancellation sets in: two microphones built in to the car's headliner detect the boom, prompting a frequency generator to pump counteracting sound waves through Terrain's speakers. Simply put, GM's just getting rid of an unpleasant hum. So a quieter car isn't necessarily a greener car, but we'll take a more fuel efficient SUV any day. If you're picking up what GM's laying down, check out the full PR after the jump.
Volkswagen's XL1 concept plug-in diesel hybrid has 260MPG fuel efficiency, questionable aesthetics
Steaming down the autobahn could be about to get a whole lot more efficient. Volkswagen has carted out its newly updated Super Efficient Vehicle concept, now dubbed the XL1, which -- after a great deal of fuzzy math, we're sure -- is rated at a 313MPG fuel efficiency and produces only 24g of CO2 per kilometer traveled. There's an electric motor and a TDI diesel engine making all the buzzing and roaring noises inside, while the overall body design is focused on making the car as light and as aerodynamic as possible. Volkswagen has achieved a 795kg curb weight by using carbon fiber, magnesium, ceramics, and aluminum to shave down any excess portliness from the XL1, while wind-tunnel testing and optimizations have resulted in a rather exemplary 0.186 drag coefficient. It's rare to see such attributes on anything outside the supercar realm, but then there's a reason why this PHEV is still only a concept. FOF. Update: Oh bother. Turns out Volkswagen's mileage claim is based on Imperial gallons, which are 1.2 times the size of the American stuff, meaning that the XL1 actually measures in at 260MPG when viewed through US glasses. Now do you see why the rest of the world has gone metric?
Regenerative shock absorbers developed by team at MIT
A team of undergrads at MIT -- led by Shakeel Avadhany and Zack Anderson -- has produced a prototype of a shock absorber for vehicles which can harness and generate electricity back into the vehicle. The team claims that their prototype increases a vehicle's fuel-efficiency by up to 10 percent by using a "hydraulic system that forces fluid through a turbine attached to a generator." There is an active electronic system for controlling and optimizing the damping for a smoother ride than regular old shocks. The team is actively seeking to develop and commercialize the product, and have already seen interest in the prototype from the United States military and also several manufacturers of trucks, which see the most benefit from the shocks... so look for these guys on Grave Digger any day now.
Nissan ECO pedal promises to push back against aggressive drivers
While Nissan hasn't quite cut drivers out of the equation all together (yet), it is making some considerable progress in controlling just how they drive, including preventing folks from driving drunk and, now with its new ECO pedal, preventing people from driving inefficiently. To do that, the pedal simply pushes back against the driver's foot when it detects wasteful acceleration, which Nissan says could improve fuel efficiency by as much as five to ten percent. Of course, the system can be switched off, and it likely won't be making an appearance in all Nissan vehicles right off the bat, although the company says it'll be showing up in at least some of them as early as next year.[Via Autoblog]
