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Nissan Leaf gets World Car of the Year honors in New York

The Nissan Leaf, the zero-emission electric car, powered by a lithium-ion battery that can be recharged in about eight hours and has a 100-mile range, has been selected as the 2011 World Car of the Year. The Nissan Leaf was chosen from an initial entry list of 39 new vehicles from all over the world, then a short list of ten, then three finalists: the Nissan Leaf, the Audi A8 and the BMW 5 Series. The World Car Awards jurors, announcing the award at the New York International Auto Show, commented: “The Leaf is the gateway to a brave new

BMW unveils first electric car, ActiveE

BMW has unveiled the ActiveE, the German automaker’s first electric car that can drive about 100 miles between charges, at the New York International Auto Show. The ActiveE, based on BMW’s 1-series car, is a plug-in electric vehicle. Unlike, the Nissan Leaf or the Tesla Roadster, which are sold through dealers, BMW will lease about 700 cars out for $500 a month over two years. BMW didn’t announce the price of the care, but reported the ActiveE can accelerate from 0-60 mph in about nine seconds with its 170 horsepower engine. The Nissan Leaf can accelerate from 0-60 mph in

Dodge Grand Caravan 2011: Quick, overhauled, carlike

Some thought Sport Utility Vehicles and the newer car-based crossovers would eliminate minivans, but they remain too handy to die. While the minivan market isn’t as big as it once was, Dodge’s redone 2011 Grand Caravan minivan and redesigned minivans from Toyota, Honda and Nissan show automakers have confidence folks will continue to be drawn to minivans that provide much-needed room and a carlike driving experience. Dodge’s entries long led minivan sales, and this automaker has made major improvements to its 2011 front-drive Grand Caravan model to stay competitive with large Japanese rivals. List prices for the roomy Grand Caravan

Kia gets car commercial honors with driving, rap hamsters

Kia Motors’ driving hamsters commercial, the advertising campaign for the Soul sport utility vehicle, has earned the Automotive Ad of the Year by the Nielsen Company and awarded at the New York International Auto Show. The spot titled “This or That,” the second chapter of the Kia Soul hamster story depicts the hamsters driving through city streets to the tune of the hip-hop song “The Choice is Yours” by Black Sheep. The commercial compares “This,” the funky and uniquely styled Soul, to “That,” a number of boring and mundane appliances on wheels, cardboard boxes or hamster wheels. Together, the popular

Toyota recalls more than 300,000 RAV4, Highlanders

Toyota has announced a voluntary safety recall involving more than 300,000 RAV4 sport utility vehicles model years 2007 and 2008 and 2008 Highlander and Highlander HV vehicles sold in the United States to replace the airbag sensor assembly. The recall will involve approximately 214,000 RAV4 vehicles and approximately 94,000 Highlander and Highlander HV vehicles. In the roll sensing curtain shield airbag system of the subject vehicles, two sensors in the airbag sensor assembly designed to detect vehicle roll angle. If one of these sensors malfunctions, the airbag warning light (malfunction indicator light) will illuminate and the roll detection system will

Hyundai announces used car trade-in price guarantee

For the third time in 12 years, Hyundai has announced an automotive industry marketing first. This time, the South Korean manufacturer will guarantee the trade-in price of new cars after two, three or four years. =Hyundai recently ended its industry unique Hyundai Assurance Program. It promised to buy back buyers' cars if they lost their jobs. In 1999, Hyundai became the first manufacturer of offer a 10-year, 100,000-mile warranty. With the new program, Hyundai buyers can only apply the trade-in value to a new Hyundai. If the assessed value of that car is higher than Hyundai's guaranteed price, the buyer

Honda Civic 2012 debuts, 4 engines, 13 trims in redesign

The redesigned 2012 Honda Civic is simultaneously debuting at the New York International Auto Show and at dealerships nationwide, with pricing starting at $15,600 for the base DX sedan extending to $26,750 for the hybrid with option packages. The eighth generation of the perennially top-selling Honda is the same size as the 2011 edition. But it’s 40 pounds because of a newly utilized high-strength steel and other weight-reducing changes. Standard for the 2012 Civic will be a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine with 140 horsepower and five-speed automatic transmission. Its manufacturer estimate is 39 mpg on the freeway. The HF model, which

Eco-Friendly Cars: Toyota Prius to Tesla Roadster, Part 2

Despite vast promotions and bright, constant media spotlights, Chevy and Nissan are not the only new green players. Tesla, the Bay Area-based manufacturer, debuted its all-electric, super-quick but limited production Roadster in 2006. About 2,000 Tesla Roadsters with a 244-mile range, have been sold worldwide. And the Tesla’s less expensive, estimated $50,000 S sedan will be available next year with three range options. Automakers carefully choose when and how they debut new models, although most often it occurs at various auto shows around country throughout the year, The buzz for hybrids and electric vehicles was particularly prevalent at the Detroit

Eco-Friendly Cars: Toyota Prius to Tesla Roadster, Part 1

Without fanfare or an exact date, there must have a collective automotive epiphany in recent years. Somehow, all major carmakers were in on it, except Toyota. It had its awakening 14 years ago. The Japanese carmaker introduced its hybrid gas-electric car in 1997 and then debuted it in the United States car market in 2001. It wasn’t the first electric or hybrid car available in the country. But it was the first mass-produced gasoline-electric hybrid car in the U.S., and the auto industry hasn’t been the same since. Combine the increasing influence of the environmental movement, pending federal regulation for

Toyota reveals online registration plan for 2012 Prius buyers

Toyota has announced the introduction of a soon-to-launch online system for customers to order the redesigned 2012 Prius Plug-in Hybrid. The first phase of the online system, called Priority Registration, will launch April 22, 2011. Customers interested in purchasing a Prius Plug-in can visit the carmaker’s site to complete the registration. Toyota’s Priority Registration allows customers first access to the online ordering systems when it’s available later in this year. The new online service will allow customers the convenience of configuring their own vehicle from any web browser, select their dealership of choice (within 15 launch states), and track their

Ford, Hyundai top fastest 2011 cars under $30,000

Forbes.com compiles innovation car lists, best used cars to most cost effective hybrids. The business website’s latest car list in the top-10 fastest 2011 cars that cost less than $30,000. The list extends from the Ford Mustang GT to the Hyundai Sonata SE, one of most increasing popular cars in the United States. Forbes.com used 0-60 mph times for 2011 models tested by Edmunds’ InsideLine.com. The 10 fastest that cost $30,000 or less made the cut. As Forbes.com stated, the Aston Martin V12 Vantage (4.1 seconds) and Porsche 918 Spyder hybrid (3.1 seconds) are too expensive for the list. Here’s

Volkswagen Beetle is back with big, bad 2012 model

Sixty-three years after its iconic legacy began, the Volkswagen Beetle is back. The 2012 edition, the third generation of one of the best-selling cars in history, is debuting simultaneously this week in media days at the New York Auto Show, Shanghai Auto Show and Berlin Auto Show. Launched in the U.S. in 1949, the car has had two distinct tenures. It in first 30 years, more than five million were sold in the United Sates until it was discontinued in 1979. The second generation Beetle sold just under 500,000 units in the U.S. from 1998-2010, increasing to what Volkswagen reports

Coda joins Tesla, Hyundai, sets debut in shopping mall

Coda Automotive Inc., the electric carmaker, will join Telsa and Hyundai when it opens its first showroom in July at a Southern California shopping mall. The Santa Monica auto and electric battery company has signed a lease to open a 900-square-foot store at Westfield Century City. Its current occupants are primarily high-end clothing and jewelry retailers. Hyundai and Tesla also have showrooms in shopping malls. To hopefully jump-start sales, Coda is negotiating fleet deals with companies looking to increase their use of alternative fuel vehicles. Both Hertz Corp. and Enterprise Holdings Inc. have expressed interest in placing $44,900 Coda sedans

Volvo P1800, 1961-1973 car review

The Volvo P1800 sports coupe seemed to come out of nowhere. It took everyone by surprise when it arrived in 1961 because Volvo was considered a sober Swedish automaker known to most Americans for plain-looking, rugged family cars. Volvo actually had made a few fiberglass-body sports cars called the Sport in the 1950s, but they came and went so fast you missed them if you blinked. Volvo actually was far more adventuresome than most Americans thought. Assar Gabrielsson, Volvo’s founder, had come to the United States in 1953 to study the market here and to examine the then-new fiberglass-body Chevrolet

Nissan Leaf Named Kelley Blue Book Green Car of 2011

Despite its miniscule fleet in the United States, the Nissan Leaf electric vehicle has been named the top green vehicle of 2011 by Kelley Blue Book because of its “ground-breaking combination of range, room and price.” The Chevy Volt, an electric car with a range-extending gas engine finished second in the voting by the renowned car guide. Although there about 20,000 active reservations in the U.S. for the Nissan Leaf, less than 500 have been delivered via mechanical issues or the recent earthquake and Tsunami in Japan. Kelley Blue Book labeled the Leaf as “the first electric car for the

Volvo S60, 2011 car review

Ten years after Volvo debuted its S60 sedan, the second generation arrived for the 2011 model, and what a difference a decade makes. The newly designed S60 is the most sports car-like offering in the Volvo fleet and it has all the signature qualities of the Swedish manufacturer now owned by the Chinese carmaker Geeley. Volvo builds heavy (the S60 weighs 3,901 pounds) and sturdy cars equipped with arguably the longest list and most efficient safety features in the auto industry. The S60 continues the tradition, but it also gives Volvo one of its rare models that catapult the brand