Green Options

VW premiered its spanking new EV concept, the E-Up!, at the Frankfurt Auto Show yesterday, and gave the strongest hint yet that the car will be very close to the production model available from 2013.

The E-Up! boasts acceleration to 62 mph in a fairly zippy 11.3 seconds and tops out at 84 mph, whilst its 18 kWh integrated lithium-ion batteries will enable a range of over 80 miles (see picture gallery after the jump).

Exciting new pictures of a hotly anticipated Audi electric car concept have been leaked, a week before the ‘official’ unveiling at the Frankfurt Motorshow.

The car will apparently be called the ‘e-Tron,’ and as you can see from the pictures, will take a lot of its design cues from the R8, but with a different front grille, LED headlights, wheels and rear end. Inside, the cabin is also quite different, featuring a driver-biased center console with two screens; one for the rear view camera and one showing a navigation map (see picture gallery after the jump).

A few weeks ago I met Todd Mouw with Roush Manufacturing (many of you may know the company from its work in motorsports) who was displaying a Ford F250 converted to run on propane. I talked him into letting me take it for a spin through Ft. Worth, Texas.

From there, I convinced him to let me take a liquid propane injection (LPJ) F150, model year 2007, across the country (I’m technically on vacation). I know that propane is not a new technology -it’s been used as a fuel since the 1930s- but in America, it is rarely used in vehicles outside of fleets, but is gaining momentum and can now be used in applications such as lawn mowers.

Now here are the selling points from companies such as Roush that are producing LPJ vehicles:

• 97 percent of propane is produced in North America
• Reduces greenhouse gas emissions by up to 18 percent
• No loss of horsepower, torque or towing capacity
• Up to $5,000 federal tax credit available
• Tax credit of 50 cents per gallon (not always passed to the consumer)
• Significantly reduces operating costs

Editor’s Note: This article was written by Agnieszka Fryckowska, Meteorologist and Halley Winter Base Commander at Halley Station in Antarctica. This is the first of an ongoing series of posts written by the Halley Station team, which will give readers a window into life in Antarctica.

Introducing Halley Station (75°34’S 26°34’W), located on the 150m thick, continually moving, Brunt Ice Shelf in Antarctica.  Named after the Astronomer Edmond Halley, the current station (Halley V) is the fifth to be built.  It is the British Antarctic Survey’s most remote research station and has been operational since 1956 (established by the Royal Society for the International Geophysical Year, 1957-58).   Halley Station (also known as Base Z) has presented itself in many forms since those first buildings in 1956.

The extreme environment challenges even the most thought out buildings.  Blizzards and snow drifts eventually bury any structures left on the ground and the constant movement of the ice shelf compresses any structures under the surface, making these buildings eventually unsuitable for use.

We thought it might be fun to celebrate with some stunning photos of this planet we all live on!

Even if you’re not hitting up a local Earth Day event, you can still take today to celebrate. We hope these photos of the land and the critters who share it with us get you inspired!

On March 28, 2009, 3,922 cities in 88 countries around the world turned out or dimmed their lights in commemoration of Earth Hour. Organizers hoped for 1 billion participants to turn out their lights, sending a message to world leaders in anticipation of the Global Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen 2009 that there is global interest in addressing climate change. The event followed similar, smaller Earth Hour events in 2007 and 2008. Here, selected and compiled from the Earth Hour Media Library, are 12 around the world before and after photos of Earth Hour 2009, plus two freebies at the end.

Brisbane, Australia

During press interviews on Wednesday, Tesla spokeswoman Rachel Conrad repeated that the Model S was NOT vaporware, and hinted that a teaser shot might be on the way.

So, keeping good to her word, the official teaser pic is here - and while it doesn’t give away much, I have more than enough for some wild speculation. Thoughts and comments after the jump.

A zero emissions street legal Electric Motorcycle for light commuters and motorcycle enthusiast alike, the new GPR-S is an Electric Motorcycle with a 14.2 kilowatt electric drive system.

I work on Pennsylvania Ave. in Washington D.C., near the White House. Sometimes, when the weather is crisp and the sun is out, I like to step outside and take in the air for a moment. This morning was no different, except for one thing.

Fiat’s new concept buggy, the Bugster, with what I would call an Eco Green paint job, is going to be making its world debut at the Sao Paulo Motor show in Brazil between October 30th and November 10th.

In San Francisco last week I happened to bump into a Tesla Roadster outside SF Green. The pictures are below, but I also wanted to highlight something Daryl Siry, VP of sales marketing and service for Tesla Motors said during the event.

Daryl commented that yes, $100K is a lot to pay for an electric car (he also mentioned the new Whitestar sedan would be around $70k), but he reiterated how expensive the technology is for small companies.