The independent and nonprofit Hybrid Owners of America organizes and advocates for the interests of the 500,000 Americans who are saving money on gas, reducing America's dependence on foreign oil, and cutting global warming pollution by driving hybrid cars and other gas/electric vehicles. http://www.hybridownersofamerica.org/ en-us Sun, 5 Feb 2012 04:14:51 -0500 As part of a mandate to reduce smog-forming pollutants by 75 percent and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent, the state will require that 1.4 million vehicles on state roads by 2025 be hybrid or electric vehicles. Stated another way, one in seven new cars sold in 2025 must be electric or otherwise zero emissions. The California regulations will, once again, have more far-reaching implications than just within the state as 10 other states, including New York and New Jersey, plan on adopting the standards. Phase-in of the rule will start in 2018 and the new regulations also include requirements for construction of hydrogen fueling stations for fuel-cell vehicles.  This is yet another tremendous step forward for the environment, automotive technology and the health of Americans thanks to the Golden State ... Will the plug-in Prius best the Chevy Volt on fuel economy?  According to Toyota, it will.  Although official numbers from the government are not yet available, Toyota says its plug-in Prius will get, "50 miles per gallon in combined city and highway driving running solely as a hybrid, and 95 mpg-equivalent when its lithium-ion battery pack is frequently charged," according to Bloomberg. The Volt is rated as getting 37 MPG after its initial charge wears out and 94 mpg-e when running on battery power alone.  The only place it looks like the Volt will do better than the plug-in Prius is on the miles it will run on electricity alone.  The plug-in Prius will go 15 miles on a charge versus the Volt's 30 miles ...]]> http://www.hybridownersofamerica.org/backpages/HOAblog.cfm#258 youth is wasted on the young but it seems to us that young drivers have the right idea when to comes to driving green vehicles.  In what sounds like excellent news for automakers working hard to produce more hybrid and electric vehicles, a recent survey from Deloitte shows that six out of ten Millennials - also know as Gen Y - would prefer to buy a hybrid over any other kind of car or truck.  The group, which consist of drivers currently aged 19 to 31, are also looking for technology like smartphone integration and touchscreen controls in their fuel efficient vehicles. Not only do Gen Y consumers know the value of fuel efficiency, they are willing to pay more for it. CBS Moneywatch reports that, "close to half (49%) of Gen Y customers are willing to pay an extra $300 for each mile per gallon of improvement they can get out of a hybrid, according to Deloitte." ... In what sounds like one of the most short-sighted moves ever, Kansas lawmakers are considering imposing a new fee on the power used by electric car and hybrid owners when they charge up their vehicles.  As our country makes gains towards lowering our emissions, why any lawmaker would consider a fee that would penalize consumers who are looking to do the right thing for the environment by driving vehicles that get both extremely low or no emissions and are highly fuel efficient is beyond us. Let's hope state legislators come to their senses and figure out another way to recoup possible lost gas tax revenue as cars move towards using less gas in the future ... ]]> http://www.hybridownersofamerica.org/backpages/HOAblog.cfm#257 The American Le Mans Series, International Motor Sports Association and Quimera, a company that works on sustainability projects, are working on developing a racing series around electric vehicles.  A good amount of technology developed for the racing world ends up in practical applications for passenger vehicles so it could be a boon for electric car technology.  Quimera already has its own electric racecar - the AEGT (All Electric GT) - ready to hit the track in some 2012 demo races  ...  Although we already have a clear picture which groups fall on either side of the debate about proposed fuel economy standards that would get the U.S. fleet of passenger vehicles to 54.5 MPG by 2025, it's heartening to see so many individuals and organizations are engaged on the issue.  As part of the public comment period on the proposed standards, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration held its first public hearing in Detroit Tuesday. When more than 90 people signed up to testify, they had to extend the length of the hearing so everyone had an opportunity to be heard. As they have previously, the auto dealers remained staunch in their opposition to the standards. The UAW, along with high-ranking environmentalists and U.S. Rep. John Dingell (D-MI), again came out in support of the new standards, noting that although consumers may have to pay $2,100 more on the initial purchase of their vehicles, they will save $4,000 over the life of that vehicle. Seven automakers also attended in support of the new standards. We just keep wondering how long the auto dealers will remain a lone wolf in their opposition to these achievable standards that will benefit consumers and the environment ...]]> http://www.hybridownersofamerica.org/backpages/HOAblog.cfm#256 panel at the nearby Automotive News World Congress showed that automakers and environmental groups -  who often have disparate views - agree that "the greatest improvements in fuel efficiency will come by adding new gas-saving technologies to the internal combustion engine. " So what role will electric and hybrid vehicles play? In an EV World interview, the Natural Resources Defense Council's Roland Hwang says "the U.S. fleet only needs to see 3% of its fleet electric cars, 15% standard hybrids, and the rest made up of smaller turbocharged internal combustion engines in order to meet its EPA fleet average." And what about diesels?  With diesel sales increasing 27 percent in 2011 and with at least six new diesel vehicles set to be released over the next few years, it's clear they will have a role, too  ...  A blast from the past bringing us into the future? A car last made in 1976 is being re-introduced at the Detroit auto show...and getting a lot of buzz.  The Dodge Dart, popular in the 1960's for its low cost - and tail fins - is going to test the Fiat-Chrysler relationship.  The car, going on sale this year for $15,995, will get 40 MPG  ...  And Volkswagen continues its push to make it to the top of world sales with a forward-thinking strategy on technology.  VW's U.S. sales increased 26 percent last year, at least in part due to the company leading the way on diesel. At the auto show in Detroit this week, Volkswagen introduced two high fuel economy hybrid/electric vehicles - a production-ready hybrid Jetta, which will get 45 MPG and go on sale later this year, and a concept electric 2-seater version of the Beetle, which will be called the E-Bugster ...]]> http://www.hybridownersofamerica.org/backpages/HOAblog.cfm#255 issued a recall of 8,000 Volts to re-engineer the battery coolant system and make structural enhancements to the car to protect the battery.  This is in response to the National Highway Safety Transportation Administration probe we reported on in early December after fires broke out in the Volt battery pack during crash testing  ...  As for Honda, it seems a former attorney has decided to take matters into her own hands regarding her complaints about the Civic Hybrid not meeting fuel economy estimates and has filed a suit in small claims court against the company, preventing Honda from bringing out its expert legal team.  She had opted out of a class action suit against the company originally brought in 2007 for the same reasons, where the original plaintiffs said they had only obtained 31 MPG in a mix of city and highway driving versus the EPA-certified 51 m.p.g. highway and 46 m.p.g. city ratings.  A proposed settlement offer in that class action suit was rejected in March 2010 and will be revisited again this coming March. Heather Peters of Los Angeles, who brought the case in small claims court, wants Honda to be required to pay the additional fuel costs she has incurred since the vehicle did not meet the standards the company advertised, the additional premium she paid for the hybrid when she purchased it, and the reduced resale value of the car, which she estimates would add up to about $10,000  ...  Also part of the bad news stories at the end of 2011, Fisker has recalled 239 of its 2012 Karma luxury plug-in hybrid cars due to a hose clamp being improperly installed, which could cause a coolant leak that could lead of a fire in the engine. The issue was discovered by workers at the assembly plant in Finland.  At least Fisker's recall is pre-emptive, as the company had not had any consumer complaints or warranty claims for the vehicle yet ... ]]> http://www.hybridownersofamerica.org/backpages/HOAblog.cfm#254