The new Volkswagen Scirocco is one of those cool cars America will never get (yes, I know we had it once, but the new one is sooooo much cooler). VW’s hot little hatchback has the looks and power to make most American small cars cringe in fear. Even cooler? They are working on a version that runs on carbon-neutral bio compressed natural gas.
Try saying that five times fast!
A group of University of Kansas students have rigged up a 1974 Volkswagen Super Beetle to run on a mix of biodiesel and battery power.
The team, calling themselves the Ecohawks, claim the quirky hybrid is capable of getting 50 MPG from a series of 10 lead-acid batteries and a biodiesel generator.
Performance-wise, although quite cool looking in a retro kind of way, the car isn’t exactly what you’d call a speedster, topping out as it does at a leisurely 30 mph.
That doesn’t seem to bother team-leader Prof. Chris Depcik though, who told reporters, “We have driven it around and reached approximately 30 mph, but this was more of a proof-of-concept drive without pushing the boundaries. We are currently getting the vehicle into road-ready shape to be driven safely in order to determine these values.” (More pics after the jump).
I’ve been happy with all the recent efforts by European auto manufacturers to bring fuel-efficient diesels back to the States. From Volkswagen to Mercedes, diesels seem to be the new attempt at pleasing the US “green” crowd with classy, low-emissions fuel-sippers.
Reading that last sentence over, it seems funny to call them a “new attempt” because these high mileage diesels have been available to Europeans for a LONG time — but that’s another story.
So, while it’s debatable whether a gasoline-powered Prius at 40 mpg is more “green” than a diesel-powered Jetta at 40 mpg — it all has to do with how much of each type of fuel comes out of one barrel of oil — It’s a fact that having these new clean diesels as an option is certainly something the US has been lacking for a long time. And I appreciate having that option, I really do.
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).
While seeing Chinese cars on display at the Detroit Auto Show has become somewhat common these past few years, there is one place they were hardly expected: Costco!
Yes, the big-box discount store Costco could be selling the Chinese-designed and Mexican-built vehicles says one auto exec. The CEO of GS Motors — Kathleen Ligocki — told the Hybrid Cars website that she thinks the US will follow in Mexico’s footsteps. GS Motors sold 4,000 China-made vehicles in Mexico last year at…Costco and Wal-Mart.
My first thought: If they are sold at Costco, will they come individually wrapped and in a pack of ten?
You may be asking yourself ‘What, exactly, is a ‘hydraulic-biodiesel hybrid’? Since there isn’t a great deal of information available on the Lightning Hybrids’ website or ABG, I decided to give the company a phone call.
Bentley has released official pictures of the ethanol-powered GT we previewed a few weeks ago. This new car is the first flex-fuel vehicle in the company’s history, and Bentley is calling the 621 bhp bruiser the “Continental Supersports”. Bentley claims the GT’s owners will be able to accelerate from 0-60 mph in 3.7 seconds on their way to a top speed of 204 mph.
Last week, Toshiba and Volkswagen unveiled a partnership for developing next-gen electric car batteries.
Mostly known for laptop computers here in the States, Toshiba is the General Electric of Japan. They build everything from consumer electronics to nuclear power plant components.
Last week we covered news about Volkswagen’s new BlueMotion brand of fuel-efficient vehicles — but that’s not the only “green” news coming out of Wolfsburg these days: VW subsidiary Škoda just released word that its highly anticipated GreenLine sedans are now available for purchase throughout Europe.
Škoda is trying to carve a niche for itself with large sedans that are green and luxurious — starting with the company’s flagship SuperB sedan. Škoda first showed the VW Passat-based sedan at last year’s Geneva Motor Show. Like the Passat, the Škoda makes use of a 1.9 liter turbo direct-injection clean diesel that delivers 105 hp and over 180 lb-ft of torque at low rpm, making for quick acceleration off the line and serious biofuel capability.
Find out more — and read Škoda’s official press release — after the jump.
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