Hasta La Gadget!

The Fit is a well regarded car here at Engadget HQ, models finding their ways into the garages and parking lots of three separate staffers, all of whom are now saying things like “ooooh” and “shiny” while looking at the lovely blue model Honda brought along to show off at the Los Angeles Auto Show. It’s just a concept at this point, delivering the current standard 100 miles of range while managing a 90mph top speed, more or less matching the Nissan Leaf we recently sampled and inspiring us all to call our electricians for quotes on quick-charger installs. Sadly we have plenty of time to save up for those, with the Fit EV not hitting production until sometime in 2012, and Honda not making any promises about US availability. To that we say “boo.”

Update: Scratch that, Honda has confirmed 2012 US availability for the Fit. Full press release is below! “Whoo!”

Continue reading Honda shows off Fit EV concept at LA Auto Show, we hope to see it again

Honda shows off Fit EV concept at LA Auto Show, we hope to see it again originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 19 Nov 2010 12:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mitsubishi promised it’d bring the i MiEV over to the US before 2012 and now it’s rehashed that pledge with a slightly more detailed roadmap and an indicative price point to boot. Maurice Durand, the company’s communications manager for North America, is quoted as saying the newly renamed i will cost “around $30,000” when it launches, which is expected to happen in fall 2011. Sales expectations are a very modest 20,000 units by 2015, but apparently the idea is for Mitsu to just get its foot in the US electric vehicle market before introducing more powerful and versatile people carriers. The i is pitched as primarily a commuter’s vehicle, though it has been enlarged slightly to accommodate US safety regulations and “larger frame people.” Be honest, Maurice, you mean larger waistline, not frame.

Mitsubishi i is the new name of the i MiEV for American market, coming next fall for $30,000 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 19 Nov 2010 06:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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London Mayor Boris Johnson has announced a plan to create a city-wide electric vehicle network dubbed Source London. It calls for 1,300 public-use charging stations to be installed by the end of 2013 – assuming the Mayan’s weren’t right about 2012. Any driver who registered for the network and paid an estimated annual membership fee of £100 (roughly $160 at the current exchange rate) could juice their EVs across all of the stations. For perspective, keep in mind that the city already has 250-plus stations with 16,729 electric vehicles and hybrids registered, of which only 2,100 draw power by being plugged in. That implies if the plan is completed, drivers would technically have better odds of finding a charging station than a gas pump in the city. Combined with Johnson’s schemes to provide cell coverage in the tube and city-wide WiFi, it’s also yet another example of how jolly old London is prepping for the future in between bites of scones and episodes of Top Gear. To learn more about the project, make sure to check out the source link below.

Source London: network of 1,300 charging stations coming by end of 2013 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Nov 2010 21:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Okay, we’re no Snake Plissken, but let’s just say that DC has become something of an interesting town lately, with mock-left and faux-right wing pundits holding giant rallies, political candidates being accused of witchcraft, and various other signs of the apocalypse happening every day. We were glad to make it out with both eyes and we were glad to be doing so in the car of the future that’s finally a part of the present: Chevrolet’s $41,000 Volt. It’s actually (honestly) in proper production now, being delivered to select dealers soon, one of those production models given to us to drive from our great nation’s capital to the cultural capital of the world: New York City. We easily managed it on a single tank of gas, but what kind of mileage did we get? You’ll just have to read on to find out.

Continue reading Chevy Volt preview: escape from DC in today’s car of tomorrow

Chevy Volt preview: escape from DC in today’s car of tomorrow originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 05 Nov 2010 12:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week’s most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us — it’s the Week in Green.

This week Inhabitat saw several incredible feats of green architecture reach for the stars as Richard Branson unveiled the world’s first commercial spaceport and a lunar solar power tower won the Moon Capital International Design Challenge. We were also impressed by Snøhetta’s design for a massive möbius strip-shaped particle accelerator and we caught the groundbreaking of what will be one of the world’s most efficient solar skyscrapers in Korea.

Ultra-efficient autos blazed a trail this week as an electric audi shattered a world EV distance record by traveling 372 miles on a single charge. We also caught a glimpse of the future of green transportation as major auto manufacturers unveiled a set of incredible eco concept cars, and we caught wind of a plan to bring these insane traffic-straddling buses to the United States.

In other news, we learned that iPhones and other communication devices may have potentially deadly side effects for kids, and we showcased several innovative designs for safer cycling – an inflatable airbag collar that automatically pops up to prevent injuries and a crash helmet that makes a stink when it cracks.

Finally, to celebrate Halloween we rounded up a ghastly array of ghoulish green designs – from a skeletal x-ray lamp to a skin-crawling camera made from a human skull to a company that will press your mortal remains into a vinyl record. Happy Halloween!

Inhabitat’s Week in Green: reach for the stars, safer kids and sexier cars originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 31 Oct 2010 20:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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