Houston Cars

I’m almost starting to wonder if I need a whole section of Houston Cars dedicated to diesel hybrids.  The VW Golf TDI Hybrid is the latest diesel hybrid to be announced.  VW’s hybrid design is a full hybrid system, capable of powering the Golf solely on electric, solely on diesel, or with a combination [...]

Not content to leave Lexus alone in the luxury hybrid segment, Mercedes-Benz is readying it’s own entry.  Called the S400, this car will mate an electric motor with a V6 for a total of 275 HP.  Nothing exciting yet, right?  The cool part is that reportedly, Mercedes is going to use lithium-ion batteries, rather [...]

After all sorts of wild speculation, GM has finally announced pricing for their full-size Hybrid SUV twins. As is usual with GM, the Yukon runs slightly higher than the Tahoe, even though they’re mechanically identical. Here’s how it breaks down:

Tahoe 2WD - $50,490
Tahoe 4WD - $53,295
Yukon 2WD - $50,945
Yukon 4WD - $53,755

While [...]

We’re still 70 days away from the unveiling at the Detroit Auto Show on January 13, 2008. but the Fisker Hybrid is now officially available for preorder. What’s the damage? Not so bad, really. You have your choice of two order types -

Premium Order: $100,000 price tag, $5000 down to mark [...]

Honda’s CEO doesn’t believe that plug-in hybrids will reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and isn’t interested building them. Instead of a plug-in hybrid, Honda is continuing to develop their fuel cell technology. In the meantime there are two traditional hybrid vehicles in the works -the global small hybrid as well as the CR-Z [...]

There has been a lot of talk lately over hybrids and the fact that they could be hazardous to blind people. Quite frankly I think it’s a bit absurd. If we’re going to use the logic that hybrids are too quiet and cause a threat to blind folks, then we need to use [...]

The first spy shots of the refreshed Prius are finally here - woo. This isn’t the fully redesigned Prius that we are all waiting for - so no lithium-ion batteries to be seen here. It looks like the changes are just skin deep - with a new grille & headlights as the [...]

It’s been known for awhile that Honda was planning a small global hybrid, to compete with the juggernaut that is the Toyota Prius. Today, we see proof that Honda already has this hybrid under development - which means it could arrive as early as 2008, as a 2009 model. Pricing is expected [...]

The 2009 Ford Fusion Hybrid gets caught on camera - and it looks, well, just like a Ford Fusion is expected to look.  There are some minor changes here and there ( as 2009 is the Fusion refresh year ), but nothing earth-shattering.  Power is expected to be produced by a 2.5 liter 4 [...]

Right on the heels of the new that the 2008 Toyota Camry Hybrid is getting a $1,000 price cut, Toyota announced a cut for the 2008 Prius.  Now you’ll be able to pick up a new Prius for as little as $20,950, plus a $660 destination charge - a $1225 cut from 2007.  Naturally [...]

The 2008 Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid was introduced just the other day, and is expected to go on sale this October.  It shares the hybrid powertrain with the Aura Green Line, which makes it a mild hybrid, unlike the full hybrids like Toyota offers.  What is a mild hybrid, you ask?  Pretty much useless when you [...]

Just saying GMC Yukon Hybrid sounds strange - most folks don’t think of large SUV’s and hybrids at the same time. GM is aiming to change that though, with their pending release of this possibly revolutionary vehicle. I say possibly because no one has real world numbers yet - so it’s hard to [...]

Al Gore’s son was recently pulled over for going 100 MPH in a Toyota Prius hybrid. In other news, the Toyota Prius can go 100 MPH.
Seriously though, you can’t get away with speeding in a hybrid. Cops had to know something was up - who drives a dorkmobile only to negate the great [...]

The 2009 Prius, originally set to launch some time in 2008, may be on hold.  Recent statements from Toyota representatives indicate that Lithium Ion battery technology isn’t ready for prime time.  It seems that Toyota has safety concerns with the LiIon batteries.  Everyone remembers the incident with the exploding Sony laptop batteries not so long [...]

There are many reasons why Toyota is a better automaker than GM, and many reasons why Toyota is now the largest automaker in the world. For starters, Toyota listens to their customers, where GM seems to ignore them. Toyota continually refines a successful formula, where GM lets it stagnate. Not to mention [...]

The Toyota FT-HS concept that drew a lot of praise has the green light from Toyota to go into production. With any luck, Toyota will change the name to something less, well, awful, than FT-HS. Something like, say, Supra. Just a name off the top of my head, you know.
The FT-HS [...]

I’ve never pretended to be a huge fan of the Toyota Camry - and I’m not a big fan of the latest one, either. The Camry is reliable as heck, but it’s about as exciting as a dust bunny. However, that doesn’t make it a bad car - in fact, it’s a [...]

Chrysler’s first hybrid offerings are the traditional small, funky looking hybrids that Honda and Toyota started out with, oh no. Chrysler didn’t even go the Nissan route and hybrid-ize their midsize sedan, the Sebring. Instead, they’ve decided to go where no automaker has gone before - full-size SUV hybrids.
Say what? Full-size [...]

The 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid is a mechanical carryover from last, but just like the regular 2008 Ford Escape, the body is updated significantly.
Under the hood though, is the big story. While it’s not new, the hybrid powertrain powering the Ford Escape Hybrid is a marvel. Ford’s engineers hooked up their 2.3 [...]

Saturn announced the  pricing on the new 2008 Aura green line Hybrid.  MSRP will start at $22,695 ( includes destination charge ) - and since it’s a Saturn, what you see is what you pay.  This makes the Aura the cheapest Hybrid available - cheaper than the Civic Hybrid, and cheaper than the Prius, though [...]

Nissan just announced the official 2007 Altima Hybrid pricing - well the base pricing, at least.  You can get yourself an Altima Hybrid for as little as $24,400.  That is, if you’re lucky enough to live in one of the eight states that will ever see this fantastic vehicle.  Here’s a rundown of the lucky 8 [...]

After an impressive 33% increase in hybrid sales in 2006 vs 2005, Toyota isn’t satisfied.  They want a full 40% increase in 2007.  That would mean selling a total of 430,000 hybrids this year - an increase of over 110,000 units. 
I’m naturally skeptical, but I’d be a little surprised if Toyota didn’t pull this [...]

Currently, the US government offers a tax credit on many hybrid models. As a general rule, the more fuel efficient the model is, the bigger the tax break. So you see tax credits as low as $650 for vehicles like the full-size GM pickup mild hybrids, all the way up to $2100 for [...]

Again - Ford is doing something spectacular. The Fusion is already a pretty spiffy little family sedan, and this makes it rock even more. Meet the first picture of a Ford Fusion Hybrid prototype. How do we know it’s a hybrid? Well, one of the photographers caught sight of a [...]

The General is making progress on the hybrid front, they’re just doing it slowly. the 2008 GMC Yukon Hybrid comes as one of the biggest announcements in the hybrid world. This will be the first full-size SUV hybrid application, and it will be interesting to see the real world results. Since [...]

If you’re in the market for a Toyota Prius, you’ll want to make your purchase ASAP - before October 1, 2006. If you wait, the massive $3150 tax credit drops to $1575.  Just a friendly reminder.