Ford Fusion Hybrid awarded 2010 Urban Green Automobile of the Year

Filed under: Hybrid, Ford, USA

2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid - Click above for high-res image gallery

There’s seemingly no end to the lists and awards that can be dolled out to deserving (sometimes) cars and trucks at the end of the year. Take, for instance, the Urban Automobile of the Year Award by On Wheels Media. This is the 14th year in a row the award has been passed out, and this year top billing goes to the 2010 Ford Taurus SHO.

Athletic, upscale, class-leading, confident, engaging and impressive are all words that seem befitting of an award winner, and you’ll find all of them in the press release after the break describing the new SHO. Ford has said time and again that the SHO’s EcoBoost V6 engine delivers V8 power with V6 fuel economy. But wait - there’s more! We have a second Urban AOTY, this one on the green side of the coin. With the latest Toyota Prius and Honda Insight obvious choices for such an award, Ford is surely happy to see that its 2010 Fusion Hybrid - the most fuel efficient midsize sedan in America at 41 city, 36 highway - earned the trophy, giving the Blue Oval a total sweep of the ceremony.

So, what qualifies a vehicle to be an Urban Automobile of the Year, anyway? Glad you asked. According to Randi Payton, president and publisher of On Wheels Media, “The Urban Automobiles of the Year resonate with the majority of new car buyers who live in urban and suburban areas. The vehicles chosen are cost and fuel-efficient and have performance and safety characteristics relevant to consumers in metropolitan areas.” So, there you have it.

[Source: Ford]

Continue reading Ford Fusion Hybrid awarded 2010 Urban Green Automobile of the Year

Ford Fusion Hybrid awarded 2010 Urban Green Automobile of the Year originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Wed, 23 Dec 2009 09:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mitsubishi Colt Cleartec road test

There's decent space for passengers in the front and back of the Colt and the rear bench can be slid fore and aft to vary rear legroom. The rear seat is a 60/40 split and fold affair that is necessary to augment the small boot if you want to carry larger items. The three-door [...]
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What is the potential for high-blend UK biofuel use?

How much of an impact can biofuels play in the battle against harmful emissions – a new study for the UK's LowCVP Transport & Travel Research Ltd has examined the possibilities.
The report looks at the opportunities for increased use of high-blend biofuels at blends greater than 10 per cent by volume in the UK and [...]
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What's holding back electric cars in Amsterdam? Bicycles

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, On Two Wheels, Europe/EU

There are a lot of hurdles to getting people into electric cars. There’s the cheaper price of gasoline, worries about range anxiety, and those cancer fears. Who would’ve thunk it that another problem is people are too in love with their bicycles? This is the situation in Amsterdam, where decades of bicycle promotion have resulted in a population that happily gets around on two wheels. Who wouldn’t, considering that bikes have the right-of-way over cars? Some people in the city really don’t like cars.

Now that the Dutch government is trying to promote plug-in vehicles with things like free power to EV owners, purchase assistance and more parking spaces, they’re finding bike riders are strongly opposed to the plan. Adding 10,000 cars to the city in the next five years, the government’s stated plan, doesn’t have broad appeal in a town with 550,000 bicycles. In fact, there were more transportation “movements” in the city performed by bicycle last year than by cars (38 percent of the total to 37 percent). The cyclists aren’t opposed to electric cars per se, just the idea of more cars in their small, bike-filled city.

[Source: Green Car Advisor]
Photo by herval. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0.

What’s holding back electric cars in Amsterdam? Bicycles originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Tue, 22 Dec 2009 19:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Toyota to raise Prius MSRP by $400 in February, Camry Hybrid by $250

Filed under: Hybrid, Toyota, USA

2010 Toyota Prius - Click above for high-res image gallery

Buried at the very bottom of a press release announcing pricing for the completely new 2011 Sienna minivan, Toyota included a chart indicating that it will increase the price for the 2010 Prius and Camry, including the hybrid. The Prius’ base MSRP will now begin at $21,400 for the level I model.

The Prius II, which is probably the cheapest you’ll be able to get, goes up to $22,800; the Prius III will go to $23,800, the Prius IV will increase to $26,600, and the loaded Prius V will cost you $28,070. That represents a $400 increase (where have we seen this before?) and doesn’t include a $750 charge for processing and delivery. For information on what is included at each trim level, click here.

Camry Hybrid prices don’t go up quite as much, rising $250 to a starting price of $26,400. These adjustments are slated to go into effect on January 24th for the Prius and February 1st for the Camry. See the complete breakdown after the jump.

Gallery: 2010 Toyota Prius

[Source: Toyota]

Continue reading Toyota to raise Prius MSRP by $400 in February, Camry Hybrid by $250

Toyota to raise Prius MSRP by $400 in February, Camry Hybrid by $250 originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Tue, 22 Dec 2009 08:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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REPORT: Ford believes it can get premium dollars for Fiesta... what do you think?

Filed under: MPG, Ford

2011 Ford Fiesta - Click above for high-res image gallery

So you’re ready to be your own 2011 Ford Fiesta agent, but you’ll actually be paying for yours instead of the company giving you one to drive for free. If you want one that’s got all the doodads, this is what you need to do: bring money. A base Fiesta sedan starts at $13,320, but go for the pricier hatch and check a few boxes and you’ll hopscotch your way past the $23,000 line — and there will still be options left.

Ford doesn’t see this car as just a small American hatchback for people who want a smaller footprint but all the style and utility. The base and lower end models fit the bill for that, but on the other end, Ford officials tell Automotive News that it sees the Fiesta as an aspirational, high tech hatch that can command attention and commensurately elevated prices. Said Ford’s Jim Farley, “Americans have shown us if we bring out aspirational products, not only will they pay the base price, but go up.”

We played with the Fiesta configurator and wound up at $22,970. Yes, it’s easy to do, but that does give you just about everything — we skipped the graphics packages, the smoker’s kit, and a couple of other accessories. But of that $9,650 difference between the sedan’s base and our wishlist hatch, about half of the cost is loaded on the front end: the SES starts at $17,120 before you do anything to it, and that goes to $18,190 if you go for the automatic. Ford’s getting premium prices in Australia for the Fiesta, and it believes it can do the same here. If you think so - or don’t - let us know in comments.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req.]

REPORT: Ford believes it can get premium dollars for Fiesta… what do you think? originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Mon, 21 Dec 2009 19:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Daimler to ramp up lithium-ion battery production

Lithium-ion battery production could increase by 10x its original target number if Daimler and Evonik get their way.
According to a report in Germany's Handelsblatt, the companies want to invest an additional €200million in their joint lithium-ion manufacturing venture Deutsche Accumotive GmbH & Co. KG to boost production at the plant that is currently under construction.
The [...]
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