Plug-in and conventional hybrid news

ABB has launched the Terra Smart Connect (SC), a breakthrough product that will significantly improve the business case for installing electric-vehicle fast chargers in the UK and throughout Europe. The more »

The Vauxhall Ampera will now be available with a fast-charge kit that reduces its full charging time by around two hours, thanks to a new agreement made between Vauxhall and British Gas. Vauxhall will of more »

Nissan and Gateshead College are to develop a Zero Emission Centre of Excellence (ZECE) in the North East of England. The new centre will act as a business incubator for the electric vehicle industry, cr more »

Changes to company car taxation announced in Budget 2012 present a serious challenge to the UK electric vehicle (EV) market. With fleet purchases accounting for the vast majority of the UK's first 1,000 more »

Follow Budget 2012 today with Next Green Car as the Chancellor announces future levels of fuel duty and company car tax rates. As the Chancellor George Osborne aims to protect and stimulate the economy, more »

The Prime Minister has announced government plans to 'semi-privatise' sections of the country's major road network, with the aim to encourage investment and to improve the infrastructure. Yesterdays pro more »

Citroen and Peugeot UK have both announced changes to their electric vehicle sales programs, including lowering the on-the-road prices of Peugeot's iOn and Citroen's C-ZERO to just £21,216, after the Go more »

Now in its third year, the e-miglia electric vehicle rally 2012 will tour through four Alpine countries, a total of around 800 km of zero-emission driving. What started as a big adventure for the partici more »

Andy Eastlake has been appointed as the new MD of the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership (LowCVP) – the organisation established to support the Government's Climate Change Strategy by delivering greenhouse more »

Appearing in a new short film about electric cars, Dr Ben Lane of Next Green Car provides an overview of their benefits, and outlines how electric technology may evolve in the future. The short documenta more »

ACFO, a leading fleet organisation, is calling on the Chancellor to review the planned company car benefit-in-kind tax changes in the 2012 Budget on March 21. As we reported in February, as a result of t more »

The World Electric Vehicle Summit, taking place this June in Copenhagen, will aim to harnesses critical cross-value chain partnerships to drive the global electric vehicles industry forward. The agenda w more »

The Vauxhall Ampera and Chevrolet Volt have won the 'Car of the Year' award, with the highest score of 47 points coming from the Car of the Year's UK jurors. The panel of judges, made up of 59 leading au more »

Order books are now open for the revolutionary Chevrolet Volt in the UK, and it has been confirmed that only one trim level will be available but it will be packed with features. Furthermore, Chevrolet h more »

A range of electric, hybrid and low carbon conventional cars will be available for test driving at 'Company Cars in Action' – a two day event to be held at Millbrook Proving Ground on June 26-27th. more »

The official CO2 emissions and fuel economy figures have been released for Toyota's new Plug-in Prius, confirming it as the most economic Toyota to ever reach British roads. The car will emit 49 g/km of more »

Toyota have released official figures for their Yaris Hybrid model – it will emit just 79 gCO2/km whilst returning a combined fuel economy of 80.7 mpg. First deliveries will be on July 1st with a starti more »

A new electric vehicle charging system, called ELVIIS, could mean that soon electric vehicle owners will be able to charge their vehicles up from anywhere, and see the cost appear on their own electricity bil more »

SCI hyMod is a highly innovative modular hybrid concept envisioned by a Romanian team of designers and engineers. hyMod proposes a modular structure that allows the user to select a drive-train depending on w more »

After confirmation of the Government's Plug-in Van Grant yesterday, several manufacturers released specific details of their eligible models. Among the first to qualify are the Mercedes-Benz Vito E-CELL, the more »

The first seven vans eligible for the Government's new Plug-in Van Grant have been announced by Transport Secretary Justine Greening and Business Minister Mark Prisk today. Van buyers will be able to rec more »

The first generation Renault Zoe will be launched in October this year, however a second edition due in 2014 is expected to have a range more than twice that of the first generation, of around 220 miles. more »

The low carbon motor show EcoVelocity, is set to be even bigger and better this year, after news that the event has joined forces with the organisers of Grand Designs Live and the shows will run side by side more »

Peugeot's new ultra-green 208 supermini, which boasts three diesels and one petrol engine under the magic 99 g/km mark and goes on sale in June, makes its UK fleet debut at the EV & Low CO2 Fleet Show at more »

Vauxhall's are a particularly popular choice for police cars in the UK – it appears that this is likely to continue, with police interest in the range-extended electric Ampera. Vauxhall has won a c more »

To support London 2012's vision is to be the sustainable Olympic and Paralympic Games, the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG) has commissioned ChargePoint Services Ltd (CPS) to supply an more »

Charge your Car (CYC), the North East's Plugged-in-Places programme, has launched a scheme that will allow all electric vehicle drivers, even those who are not CYC members, to charge their vehicles while trav more »

Major car manufacturers who have pioneered the development and production of electric vehicles, including Renault, Nissan, Peugeot and Citroen, will be backing the one-day EV & Low CO2 Fleet Show event at more »

One month ahead of UK showroom launch, Renault has delivered its first Fluence Z.E. saloons to London's largest eco-friendly car services, greentomatocars and Climatecars. Each company are receiving two more »

Major fleet operators have been honoured for their green-friendly credentials at a special awards ceremony in Edinburgh. The ECOSTARS Edinburgh launch gave recognition to fleet operators who have achieve more »

A British-built Auris Hybrid, from Toyota's Burnaston factory in Derbyshire, has taken Toyota to a new sales landmark – their 400,000th hybrid sold in Europe was delivered yesterday (26th January). more »

Chevrolet UK has been contacted by 2,500 people "who said they want to talk to us about the Volt," managing director Mark Terry said, adding that he expects there to be more customers than cars, certainly for more »

2012 to 2015 is expected to be the most crucial period for the electric vehicle charging infrastructure market to advance, according to Growth Partnership Company Frost & Sullivan. Central and local more »

Fleet World magazine and the British Vehicle Rental & Leasing Association are to hold a free one-day event to encourage the uptake of electric and low carbon vehicles, especially into fleets. The EV more »

Transport Minister Norman Baker opened the UK's first DC rapid electric vehicle charger at Midlands printing company RCS this morning. Delivered to RCS in Retford, Nottinghamshire, by power and automatio more »

Van buyers will be able to receive 20% – up to £8,000 – off the cost of a plug-in electric van, Transport Minister Norman Baker and Business Minister Mark Prisk announced today. This is more »

Following the successful launch of the UK's first eco motor show EcoVelocity in 2011, the show's organisers, IGME, have announced details for year two. The show will move from its inaugural launch locati more »

The North American International Auto Show 2012 (NAIAS) kicked off its press and industry previews this week, with the public show running from 14th until 22nd January. Renowned for being one of the larg more »

Vauxhall has opened its order books for the revolutionary Ampera E-REV, and announced full specs and pricing – the first Amperas will arrive in showrooms on May 1st 2012. Details of its 23-strong A more »

Electric vehicle charging manufacturers, POD Point, are celebrating 100,000 miles of electric motoring in the UK thanks to their network of charge points, fuelled by a growing public demand for electric vehic more »

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has reported on 2011's new car sales trends, announcing that the average CO2 of new cars has fallen to a record low and sales of alternatively fuelled veh more »

At the 2012 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Volvo will unveil an innovative petrol plug-in hybrid, to follow their V60 diesel plug-in hybrid model confirmed for later this year. The Vo more »

Mitsubishi Motors in the UK has announced that all its franchised dealers are to become fully functioning Mitsubishi Electric Vehicle Centres starting from January 2012. By the end of March 2012, the app more »

Next Green Car looks ahead to the greenest and most innovative cars due for launch in 2012. In 2012, purchase incentives for plug-in electric vehicles continue to be available, including the Plug-in Car more »

Ecotricity, leading green electricity provider, has installed a network of electric vehicle charging stations in motorway service stations, making it possible to travel between major cities without running ou more »

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has won a prestigious award for his efforts in promoting electric vehicles. The world's largest network of professional motor industry communicators, MIPAA Limited, p more »

The Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid is the world's first diesel plug-in hybrid and is Volvo's most technically advanced model ever – an electric, hybrid and performance car all rolled into one. The indica more »

The future looks bright for North East England's low carbon vehicle industry, thanks to the development of a new company set up to oversee the growth of the sector. Gateshead College has established a ne more »

Toyota has named British Gas as its preferred supplier of electric vehicle charging points, ahead of introducing the new Prius Plug-in Hybrid to the UK market in 2012. British Gas will be offering Toyota more »

Elektromotive, the Brighton-based electric vehicle charging point manufacturer, is urging the Government to continue offering the Plug-In Car Grant to buyers of electric vehicles into the next parliamentary s more »

Chargemaster's installation of their POLAR electric vehicle recharging network is now well under way – set to be one of the largest networks in the world with 4,000 public points supplemented by hundred more »

Jaguar Land Rover has won SMMT's 2011 Award for Automotive Innovation for its prototype Range_e – the world's first luxury Plug-in Hybrid Electric 4X4 with integrated V6 diesel engine. The system, more »

In response to new data sets and the imminent launch of new technology plug-in hybrids, we have updated our fuel and technology database, and redesigned the way we present our Green Car Rating information. more »

SEAT is working on its first electric car, which will be designed and manufactured in Spain. The firm is unveiling the prototype Altea XL Electric Ecomotive, a totally electrically-driven zero-emissions car, more »

Qualcomm Incorporated, world leader in 3G and next generation mobile technologies, has announced the first Wireless Electric Vehicle Charging (WEVC) trial for London, in what is a UK and industry-leading init more »

Nissan is accelerating plans for a European-wide Quick Charge network for electric vehicles by giving away 400 new quick charging stations free of charge. These new points will boost existing networks an more »

Only a third of councils surveyed by the RAC Foundation say they have installed public charging points for electric vehicles, and the promotion of green vehicles varies significantly between local authorities more »

Imagine: You're in a dealership selecting a new car and you sit down with the salesperson to talk through the benefits of clean diesels and hybrids. It's really important, you remind them, that you get the sp more »

North East England has welcomed the announcement of a £6.2 million boost to the low carbon vehicle economy of the region, through the Government's Regional Growth Fund. At the core of the bid is a more »

In 2010, Kia was one of seven manufacturers to sign an agreement to make hydrogen fuel-cell (FCEV) vehicles commercially available by the middle of this decade. Being able to make its own electricity on more »

In 2009, Kia introduced the EcoDynamics programme to their model range – the sub-brand highlights Kia's commitment to manufacture good value, practical cars with reduced environmental impact. EcoDy more »

The EU's legally binding CO2 targets, whereby all new cars sold in Europe in 2015 should emit no more than 130 g/km on average, means that manufacturers are concentrating on tailpipe CO2 reduction. The target more »

More than 60 cars are confirmed for the RAC's Future Car Challenge from Brighton to London on Saturday 5 November 2011 – one of which will be driven by Next Green Car. Recent additions include two more »

While studies suggest that that 80% of all EV charging will either be done at home or at the workplace, the lack of publicly available fast charging points continues to deter car buyers from considering the e more »

Other than 'range anxiety', probably the next largest drawback of today's electric vehicles is the amount of time it takes to charge up the batteries – even a DC rapid charger takes 30 minutes to delive more »

A car dealership and fleet management company has become the first business in the UK to train its workers in a potentially life-saving new electric vehicle (EV) qualification. Vic Young Group, in South more »

Little Chef, the iconic chain of road-side restaurants, is to roll out electric vehicle (EV) charging points across the UK, in what is the largest deployment of charging points by any restaurant chain worldwi more »

Last week, European automobile manufacturers defined a comprehensive set of recommendations to standardise the charging of electric vehicles – a joint industry proposal that will enable the use of one p more »

The new Plug-in Prius will cost less than £31,000 when sales start in the first half of 2012. This headline figure does not take into account Government funding through the Ultra-Low Carbon Vehicle more »

Nissan has teamed up with leading utility and electrical vehicle supply equipment companies to speed development of cheaper, smaller, quick chargers for electric vehicles. The primary intention is to red more »

Statistics released by nationwide electric vehicle charging specialist POD Point have revealed that the IKEA store in Wembley, North London, is their most popular Source London charger. Drivers took adva more »

One of the world's newest car companies, Fisker, will introduce its first models in the UK soon through a dealership in London – but it plans to expand when right hand drive versions arrive from 2014. more »

Held at the Rockingham Motor Speedway in Northamptonshire on 7th-8th September, POD Point revealed three new developments in their revolutionary POD Point technology. These included their first communica more »

The UK motor show dedicated to electric and ultra-low carbon vehicles is now well under way, after having been officially opened by Boris Johnson on Thursday. Next Green Car visited the iconic Battersea Power more »

The Mayor Boris Johnson has announced a network of new charge points will support the Olympic and Paralympic electric vehicle fleet – points that, after the Games, will boost the growing Source London e more »

Dr Ben Lane of Next Green Car will today be taking questions live on all issues related to the environmental impact of electric cars. The third of six Q&A sessions are part of 'Electric Vision', a web-b more »

London is to play host to the eco-motor show, EcoVelocity – a green motoring festival packed with the very latest no compromise, hi-tech and ultra low carbon vehicles. The 4-day event runs from Thu more »

Ford has announced that they will unveil a new concept car at the Frankfurt Motor Show later this month – the Ford Evos Concept will be a plug-in hybrid with a lithium-ion battery unit. The Evos wi more »

Elektromotive is to provide five of its innovative Elektrobay electric vehicle (EV) charging stations for GreenFleet Scotland taking place today. As 'Recharging Technology Partner', Elektromotive will be more »

Siemens have joined forces with Volvo and intend to advance the technical development of electric cars through extensive strategic cooperation. In terms of electric vehicles, Volvo will start small-scale more »

Euro NCAP are continuing to test plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles for crash safety, and have revealed that the Vauxhall Ampera achieved the top score of five stars. A further nine models were also te more »

With the production of electrified vehicles gearing up all over the world, Pike Research have predicted that global cumulative sales will reach 5.2 million units by 2017. Carmakers are rapidly launching more »

Electric vehicle charge point provider, POD Point, have been heavily involved in the recent launch of Source East – the government's initiative to boost the provision of EV charge points in the region. more »

Vauxhall is set to unveil two new cars at this year's Frankfurt Show, in addition to the surprise debut of an experimental car that will emphasise the company's passion for driver-focused vehicles. The A more »

Toyota will debut the production version of the Prius Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) at the Frankfurt Motor Show on 15th September. The Prius Plug-in Hybrid represents the latest development of T more »

Following its debut at this year's Geneva Motor Show, Land Rover is using the RAC Future Car Challenge as the first opportunity to showcase three of its Range_e concept models in the UK. The RAC Future more »

Following the recent Top Gear feature which highlighted the lack of charging infrastructure in Lincoln, Nissan is to fund the installation of the city's first public electric vehicle charging points. In more »

Electric car owners in the North East are taking advantage of two recently installed rapid chargers – one at the Metrocentre shopping centre and one at Dalton Park outlet store. The 50kw rapid char more »

Next Green Car today announces the winners of the Next Green Car Awards 2011, the most scientifically-based Green Car Awards in the UK. Awards are given for eight vehicle classes and a new 'Next Genera more »

ChargePoint Services has announced a partnership with green energy supplier Ecotricity to install the world's first national network of EV charge points powered solely by natural energy resources. The fr more »

Interim findings from Toyota and EDF Energy's demonstration of the Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) in London give encouraging, real-world data that show the technology can deliver greatly improved fuel more »

The UK's first privately funded nationwide electric vehicle charging infrastructure will be launched in September, with 4,000 points to be installed in 100 towns and cities by the end of 2012. The networ more »

Today, the East of England's electric vehicle charging network, Source East, goes live as part of the Government's Plugged-in-Places scheme. Chargemaster Plc are proud to be a supporting partner to Sourc more »

In the two months since its launch, Next Green Car have added a further 282 electric car charging points to Zap-Map, the UK’s most comprehensive EV charging points map, resulting in a total of 1,034 po more »

Vauxhall/Opel and Europcar have announced an agreement to introduce the Vauxhall Ampera as a rental car throughout Europe. With the market introduction of the electric Ampera by the end of 2011, Vauxhal more »

Whether or not the electric car succeeds in becoming the mainstream vehicle technology of the twenty-first century, electrification has already left its mark on power-train design. With early innovation more »

A new network of charge points and Pod Centres is to be launched across Greater Manchester this autumn, through a scheme called Manchester Electric. Manchester Electric Car Company (MECC) together with i more »

The UK price for the Chevrolet Volt has been confirmed as being £28,545, including the Government's £5,000 Plug-In Car grant. The Volt will be in Chevrolet showrooms by Spring 2012 – it more »

The Government's vision for a nationwide recharging infrastructure, in support of the electric vehicle revolution, has been announced by the Transport Secretary, Philip Hammond. A report has been publish more »

Two thirds of motorists (65.7%) say they would be more likely to buy an electric vehicle (EV) if charging posts were more readily available at roadsides and in car parks across the UK. With the second ro more »

A group of students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed a new battery design that solves many of the problems inherent in Lithium or Nickel based cells. The new breakthrough more »

GreenFleet held their annual Arrive 'N' Drive event yesterday at Rockingham Motor Speedway; the event provided an extensive demonstration of low and zero emission cars and commercial vehicles for visitors to more »

London's first city-wide electric charging point network, Source London, has now been switched on, making it easier for electric vehicle owners in the city to plug in whilst on the move. By 2013, the sch more »

Next Green Car has launched Zap-Map, a new map showing electric car charging points across the UK. With 752 points already mapped, Next Green Car's Zap-Map is the most comprehensive map of electric car c more »

The Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid combines advanced technology with luxury design – its first official road test is to take place at the 11th Michelin Challenge Bibendum in Berlin this month. All in all more »

Axeon, Europe's largest independent lithium-ion battery supplier, has been awarded funding from the EU to dramatically reduce the weight, volume and cost of batteries. With battery electric and hybrid ve more »

The Greener Vehicle Discount, introduced on 4th January this year, qualifies a Euro 5 car, whose CO2 emissions are less than or equal to 100 g/km, for a 100% discount from the London Congestion Charge. S more »

Despite the reduction in fuel duty announced in the Budget, fuel costs are still rising and currently represent record levels once again. Consequently, many are saying that there has never been a better more »

BMW have confirmed the hiring of Frank Weber, former top engineer at General Motors; his new position gives Weber effective management of all electric drive issues at BMW. Interestingly, Weber was the le more »

A recent report from Pike Research has forecasted that annual sales of plug-in vehicles, including both battery electric and plug-in hybrids, will surpass 1 million units by 2015. Although the technology more »

Elektromotive is to install the first public-access rapid charging points for electric cars, with the aim to reduce 'range anxiety' for the first EV users. This infrastructure work is part of the Office more »

Jaguar's jet-powered C-X75 hybrid sports car wins the Louis Vuitton Classic Concept Award. First unveiled at the 2010 Paris Motor Show, the C-X75 is a ground-breaking range-extended electric vehicle that more »

BMW have confirmed two models to be launched in 2013 under the new sub-brand 'BMW i' following product development relating to sustainable mobility solutions. The new BMW i brand will penetrate the elect more »

Volvo will be unveiling the world's first diesel plug-in hybrid at the Geneva Motor Show next month – a virtually production-ready Volvo V60 with carbon dioxide emissions below 50g/km. Due for lau more »

This year's GreenFleet Arrive 'N' Drive event will take place on May 26th 2011 – a must-go-to event for all fleet managers aiming to reduce fuel costs and emissions. The Show, which is held at the more »

The new Volkswagen XL1 Super Efficient Vehicle (SEV) has been unveiled at the Qatar Motor Show. Pioneering construction techniques, an advanced plug-in hybrid drivetrain and innovative packaging all pl more »

A new survey has revealed that the number of people that would consider a plug-in hybrid or battery electric car as their next vehicle purchase has risen five-fold in just six months. In the most recent more »

General Motors predicts that the UK will be Europe's largest market for sales of their range extended Ampera model in 2012 – possibly providing a significantly boost to jobs in the industry. GM's p more »

While the London Congestion Charge today increases by £2/day for most motorists, the Greener Vehicle Discount is also introduced for the lowest emission cars. As of this morning, the Alternative Fu more »

From today, the Plug-in Car Grant worth up to £5,000 is available for the purchase of selected electric vehicles in the UK. The vehicles that qualify for the Plug-in Car Grant include nine electri more »

Next Green Car looks ahead to the greenest and most innovative cars due for launch in 2011. New incentives for plug-in electric vehicles, including the Plug-in Car Grant, will kick-off in January 2011, more »

Vauxhall has announced that it's revolutionary Ampera Extended-Range Electric Vehicle (E-REV) will cost under £30k when it hits UK showrooms in early 2012. As one of the nine vehicles seen featured more »