Tax money required for hybridization? Last year Jaguar received almost $800 million in government loans to keep the automaker alive. This year the EU has granted another $500 million to Jaguar to develop hybrid cars . Why? Does the world really need Jaguar, even a hybrid Jaguar?

The back end of the Lotus Evora 414E hybrid OK. I know that most following this blog don’t really care about luxury hybrids, such as Porsche’s latest Cayenne hybrid, or hybrid sports cars, such as the latest announced by Lotus. Nonetheless, I though the Lotus Evora 414E plug-in hybrid was worth …

Do 25,000 Volts change the auto game? For a long time I’ve been critical of the government’s plug-in tax credits. They are simply too focused on large battery vehicles. While some might counter ‘the bigger the battery the better’, the plethora of studies demonstrating the cost-ineffectiveness of such vehicles is simply undeniable. Inevitably, big battery plug-in hybrids, for instance, will not EVER be cost-effective using current battery technologies according …

In a class of its own? I’ve been very excited about the potential of Hyundai hybrid cars ever since Hyundai announced its lithium-polymer powered Hybrid Blue Drive at the 2008 LA Auto Show. According to many experts, Hyundai’s lithium-polymer technology might give Hyundai an edge in lithium battery production. And, now that the Hyundai Sonata hybrid is just months away from hitting US dealerships…

Based off of Blue Will architecture In addition to announcing that Hyundai is “accelerating” its efforts into hybrid cars , despite being late to the hybrid game, Hyundai also confirmed that it will begin offering plug-in hybrids in 2012. Hyundai’s first hybrid will be the Sonata hybrid later this year. Despite Hyundai’s late hybrid arrival, the automaker …

Proton’s range extended EV Outside of this picture and its plug-in hybrid architecture, little is known about this ‘city’ car from Italdesign Giugiaro and Proton that will debut at the Geneva Motor Show, yet I cannot but help find it very intriguing. “This is the outcome of several years of study: the solution allows interior spaciousness on a par with that of a segment D saloon despite maintaining the exterior dimensions of a …

If you can afford a $50,000 car, do you really need a $7500 tax credit? Watch the movies today and a Toyota Prius always seems to turn up. It’s the darling of Hollywood, but how long will this relationship last? This is Hollywood, where relationships are measured in weeks, not years. Besides, soon Hollywoodies can show their green cred by buying any number of more luxurious plug-in vehicles. …

Coming soon to a bridge near you? In just 15 years Washington State could experience a $3.8 billion state budget shortfall because of a decline in gas tax revenues due to hybrid and electric vehicle adoption according to a new report . That means $3.8 billion less to pay for highway projects and to maintain infrastructure, and that’s just one state. Many…

Can the Volt revolutionize the auto industry? I’ve followed hybrid cars , intently, for a long time, and 5 years ago I would have predicted much greater hybrid penetration than exists today. Thus, when Toyota launched the second generation Prius , I believed auto analysts, such as Anthony Pratt of JD Power, for instance, were crazy when they claimed hybrid market share would…

It’s not just about Voltecs? Hang around some of GM’s Chevy Volt team and you’ll be corrected every time you call the Volt a plug-in hybrid. While technically true, GM wants the Volt to be seen as an electric vehicle, a range extended electric vehicle. And there just might …

19 years to recoup Volt costs? Today, the Boston Consulting Group released a study on plug-in vehicles that suggests, as have many studies recently, that plug-in adoption will by stymied by cost-ineffectiveness for some time. To achieve critical mass, BCG cites the $250 kwh threshold that automakers claim will be required to make plug-in vehicles cost-effective. Unfortunately, the study finds that without a major breakthrough in lithium chemistry, …

A couple of Chevy Volt lithium-ion battery packs So, can lithium-ion batteries make plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles as common as your conventional gas-powered vehicle anytime soon? Probably not. In fact, lithium-ion batteries are just a bridge technology to real EV penetration according to Argonne Laboratories, a …