The second-generation Mirai may be the most luxurious Toyota ever. The Toyota Mirai is a fuel-cell vehicle, an outlier in the electric vehicle field. Introduced in 2015, the Mirai utilizes hydrogen to replenish its fuel cells to make electricity. Thus, its availability is limited to places that can support it, … Read more
Phase one of four for Lucid’s manufacturing plant. We all know that 2020 will go down as the year when everything changed. Most notably, a pandemic raged across the world, taking lives and shutting down economies. Many of the best-laid plans of individuals and businesses came to a screeching halt … Read more
Lucid Motors isn’t a household name, but if this Newark, California-based mobility company has its way, that’ll soon change. And soon cannot come quickly enough for the company, founded in 2007, as it plans to debut its first model at the New York International Auto Show in April 2020. Long … Read more
Our choice of select California auto museums. No visit to California is complete without taking in the various automotive museums that dot the state. The Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles and the San Diego Automotive Museum are two of the well-known collections of classic and exotic cars in California, … Read more
VW’s beloved bus is coming back. One of the most iconic vans in automotive history is the Volkswagen Bus or Volkswagen Type 2, introduced in 1950 and popularized in the 1960s. Long before the minivan craze began in 1983, Volkswagen claimed the market all to itself. We’ve seen various Volkswagen … Read more
Honda’s next-generation fuel cell Clarity will launch by the end of the year in California. The five-passenger sedan will retail for about $60,000 and its targeted monthly lease cost should come in under $500. Honda announced its plans for the fuel cell vehicle at the Washington Auto Show last week … Read more
From the rumor files. Computer and consumer electronics authority Apple Inc. has its eyes intently focused on the automotive industry. And not just through its Apple CarPlay initiative, what works with the telematics systems found in select new cars. Automobile by Apple: iCar? No, Apple wants to manufacture the car … Read more
Do you leave your car keys in the ignition? If so, why? How easy is it to steal a car? Very easy — that is, if you leave the keys in the ignition. Common sense tells us that leaving keys where thieves can find them is an invitation to the … Read more
Fuel cell vehicles may change the way we drive, offering zero emissions leading to cleaner air. Toyota’s entry will become available in California late this year and may help lead us into a new era of hydrogen infrastructure development and utilization. Hydrogen-powered vehicles are the next big thing, at least … Read more
Report offers support for an emerging infrastructure. A new study from the Institute of Transportation Studies at the University of California, Davis, sees tremendous promise in hydrogen vehicles. The study says that fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) may be just a few years, not decades behind conventional electric vehicles, as … Read more
Toyota moves deep into the heart of Texas. Toyota: From California to Texas Toyota already has a strong presence in Texas including in San Antonio where its truck plant produces its full-size Tundra and smaller Tacoma pickup trucks. Toyota’s presence in the Lone Star State is about to boom with … Read more
GM Chairman and CEO Dan Akerson spoke at the IHS CERAWeek 2013 energy conference this month, where he called upon President Obama to establish a new national energy policy driven in large part by consumer demand for more fuel efficient vehicles. Akerson reiterated the auto industry’s key role in that … Read more
An electrified Fiat takes to the California road this year. Yet another electric vehicle will hit the market this year and this one is a battery-electric Fiat. This month, Fiat introduced the Fiat 500e, a model that offers an EPA rating of 108 MPGe and a travel range of 87 … Read more
EV maker seeks to eliminate range-anxiety completely. The problems with electric vehicles go beyond high prices and basically boil down to two significant issues: restricted range and long charging intervals. For commuters, an electric vehicle is an ideal option, but for everyone else EVs can be a major inconvenience. If … Read more
Chevrolet’s designers were inspired by motorcycles when they developed the Sonic. One evidence of that is the car’s instrument cluster; another is its round headlamps and tail lamps. Don’t even mention the word “Aveo” around Chevrolet’s brand managers. That word is anathema, representing a car that never lived up to … Read more