Hasta La Gadget!

General Motors is extending its extended-range electric car line across the Atlantic Ocean with the planned introduction of the Opel Ampera at the Geneva Auto Show in March. Opel is GM’s European subsidiary and and the Ampera shares the same drivetrain as the Chevrolet Volt as well as with the Cadillac Converj (see Electric Cars Take Center Stage at Detroit Auto Show) that was introduced at Detroit’s North American International Auto Show this month. The five-door, four-seat Ampera will run for up to 60 km (36 miles) on electric power and then switch to an internal combustion engine for as long as the gas tank or your bladder holds out. The lithium ion batteries will charge on 230-volt electric power; in the U.S. there are options for 120 volt charging (slow but 120 VAC is probably already in your garage) or 230 volts (only in the garage if you’ve got an electric dryer).

Hot on the heels of Ford declaring that all its cars will soon have start/stop capability, Mazda has announced that it will also offer start/stop and a dual clutch gearbox for the new 2010 Mazda3 sedan, at least in Europe, according to AutoblogGreen.

For the uninitiated, start/stop systems essentially kill the engine when the car is idling at a stoplight, and then seamlessly kick it back in as soon as the driver begins to depress the accelerator. Mazda has a proprietary version of this system that relies on direct injection to function, instead of putting additional wear on the regular starter in the car.

Mazda said that the system will be available as an option on both the 1.6 and 2.0-liter blocks. Since the automaker sells the 2.0-liter version here, along with a higher-output 2.3-liter four cylinder, it’s natural to presume that the technology will make its way over here in short order.

Brand new, fresh off the line Tesla Roadsters look almost like toys, especially to their brand new owners. But these Teslas really are toys — Hot Wheels to be exact. So if you can’t shoot for the real thing (and at over $100,000 who can blame you), you can have a scaled down version for just a few bucks.

While the real Tesla Motors is in trouble again, having raised the price of its Roadster by at least $6,700 and screwed some 400 buyers out of their deposits, these tiny replicas should sell just fine. And speaking of replicas, Autoblog Green has it on good authority that the toys are quite convincing, seeing as the Hot Wheels maker “Mattel reportedly had access to electronic files of the Roadster from Tesla.” Tesla Hot Wheels are available in Metallic Aqua, Metallic Watermelon, and Metalflake Silver. The fourth, Metallic Grey model is said to come out on Valentines Day.

In a troubling sign, Tesla Motors has effectively raised the price of its all-electric Roadster sports car by at least $6,700, Autopia reports, a move that the company says is necessary for survival.

The increased pricing affects not only new customers, but specifically the 400 who have already placed a deposit on 2008 Roadsters that haven’t been delivered. Those customers must now pay thousands extra for features they thought were included in the original deal, according to the report, even though some had already placed deposits of up to $50,000. The biggest change is that the “high-power connector,” which recharges the car’s lithium-ion battery in as little as three hours, is no longer included. Now Tesla wants an extra $3,000 for it. Without the high-power connector, it takes up to 37 hours to charge the car. Other options, such as Bluetooth, navigation, and metallic paint all have higher prices as well.

“That’s ill-advised,” said Eric Noble, president of the auto-industry consulting firm The Car Lab, in the article. “Your first buyers are your emissaries. Treat them wrong and all the advertising in the world won’t cure it. It’s just bad marketing.” Aaron Bragman, an IHS Global Insight analyst, said in the report that hitting customers up for more money after they’ve put down deposits is highly unusual. “They’re probably a lot closer to the edge than they want you to think.”

It’s just as hard picking the 10 best green cars from Detroit’s North American International Auto Show as it is picking the 10 best cars overall, but for different reasons. It’s hard to keep the 10-best-greenies list down to 10; it’s almost as hard to get the 10-best other cars list up to 10. Toyota and Lexus could fill out much of the green cars list on their own, with the 2010 Prius and its astounding 50 mpg fuel economy; the HS 250h, a Prius by Lexus (“don’t call it a Lexus Prius,” the Lexus people moan); and Toyota’s battery-only concept car, the TF-EV. Here’s my top 10 green cars from Detroit’s 2009 auto show, rated by likely impact, including the odds of actually coming to production.

1. Toyota Prius Hybrid

Toyota filed for more than 1,000 patents with the third-generation Prius arriving late this spring. It’s roomier inside with a revised roofline, yet the shape is unmistakably Prius. Most of the drivetrain parts are smaller, lighter, and more efficient. Combine that with very low wind resistance and you get 50 mpg combined city/highway mileage. A replacement was long overdue since the current model dates to 2004.