Read the rest of BMW Unveils Plug-In Hybrid Active Tourer Concept at the 2013 New York Auto Show

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Post tags: 2013 New York Auto Show, BMW, BMW 3 Series, BMW 328d, BMW Concept Active Tourer, BMW diesel, bmw hybrid, electric car, green car, green transportation, lithium ion battery, new york auto show, ny auto show, plug-in hybrid

Range anxiety is a much-discussed concern among drivers—and potential drivers—of electric vehicles, and in attempt to thwart it, automakers are trying to install more EV charging stations, offering free gas-powered rentals for longer trips and, of course, developing batteries with a substantially longer range. Israeli start-up Phinergy believes they might just have the answer: aluminum-air batteries that can go for thousands of miles on a single charge. This alone might sound like it’s on the ambitious side, but the company believes the batteries could be installed in production vehicles as soon as 2017!

Read the rest of Phinergy’s Recyclable Aluminum-Air Battery Could Power Electric Vehicles for Thousands of Miles

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Post tags: aluminum air, Car Battery, electric car, electric vehicle, ev battery, green energy, green transportation, phinergy, range anxiety, recycle battery

Today’s lithium-ion batteries are expensive and bulky – which is why Toyota is currently developing two new types of ultra-efficient batteries to power its electric vehicles. Toyota is conducting research on solid-state batteries and lithium-air batteries that promise to be more compact and be able to store more energy than lithium-ion batteries – and the automaker plans to switch to these new technologies by 2020.

Read the rest of Toyota Developing Revolutionary Solid-State and Lithium-Air Electric Vehicle Batteries, Aims to Launch by 2020

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Post tags: all-solid-state batteries, compact packaging of solid-state batteries, Lithium Polymer Battery, lithium-air batteries, lithium-air batteries store 50 times more energy than lithium-ion batteries, lithium-ion batteries, lithium-ion-phosphate, prius plug-in, RAV4 Electric Vehicle, size of lithium-ion batteries, Toyota

Range anxiety is often cited as one of the primary hesitations that consumers have when looking to purchase an electric car. While it will be a while until the infrastructure is in place to allow for longer driving distances, BMW has announced plans to provide its future EV buyers with gas-powered loaner cars that they can borrow for trips that exceed the electric driving range of its upcoming i3.

Read the rest of BMW Hopes to Cure Range Anxiety With Gas-Powered Rental Cars for EV Buyers

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Post tags: BMW, BMW electric car, bmw i3, electric car, electric motor, green car, green transportation, range anxiety

A lightweight carbon-fiber car that runs on lithium-ion batteries and a portable wind turbine has just traveled 3,000 miles across Australia—and it used only $15 worth of electricity. The car, dubbed the Wind Explorer, was designed by New Jersey-based Evonik Industries to demonstrate the potential of the company’s developments in battery power and lightweight materials.

Read the rest of Wind-Powered Car Travels 3,000 Miles Across Australia for $15 Worth of Electricity

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Post tags: carbon fiber car, clean energy transportation, energy efficient cars, Evonik Industries New Jersey, fuel efficient vehicles, green technology, green transportation, hybrid cars, lightweight electric vehicles, lightweight materials, lithium ion battery cars, wind energy, Wind Explorer car, wind powered car

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Post tags: collaborative consumption, gifts, giving, reuse, sharing, sharing economy, swapping, valentine's day

Car designer and entrepreneur Henrik Fisker made his name in the car industry designing the highest of the high-end luxury cars for BMW and Aston Martin. After making waves in the auto industry with vehicles such as the Aston Martin DB9, Aston Martin V8 Vantage and BMW Z8, he decided to break away from this corner of the auto world imbued with tradition and start his own company, Fisker Automotive. Fisker’s first vehicle to hit the road has been the Karma, an impressively green, extended range electric vehicle with so many curves, your eyes are already driving it before you’ve even gotten behind the wheel. Coming in as loud and clear as the Karma’s sex appeal, Henrik Fisker is on a mission to make green cars cool. We recently had a chance to talk to him about how he’s risen to the top of the electric vehicle pack, and where he plans on taking his cars from there.

Read the rest of VIDEO: Inhabitat Interviews Henrik Fisker, Founder of Fisker Automotive and Designer of the Karma

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Post tags: eco car, eco vehicle, electric car, electric vehicle, extended range electric vehicle, Fisker Automotive, fisker car, fisker karma, fisker vehicle, green car, green transportation, green vehicle, henrik fisker, high gas mileage, karma, karma car, karma electric vehicle, Karma EV, low emissions car, low emissions transportation, sustainable car, sustainable vehicle

Toyota Motor Corp and BMW AG are joining forces to develop next-generation car batteries that are expected to be more powerful than the lithium-ion batteries used in most electric vehicles. The new lithium-air batteries will be able to generate a major portion of a car’s power needs from thin air. The two companies have announced that the new fuel-cell vehicle system will be complete by 2020.

Read the rest of Toyota and BMW Join Forces to Create Next-Generation Car Batteries That Run on Thin Air

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Post tags: "clean energy", BMW, car battery research, carbon emissions, electric car batteries, electric cars, emission-free vehicle, fuel cell vehicles, green car, green transportation, lithium-ion electric car batteries, new car technology, plug-in cars, Toyota, toyota developed battery, toyota electric vehicle

In Beverly Hills, California, luxury cars like BMWs and Mercedes-Benz are the norm – so it was surprising to get so many oohs and ahhs when we rolled up in the 2013 Chevy Volt! Yes, California is also the land of hybrids, but the warm welcome we received in the Volt still caught us off guard and definitely should put a smile on GM’s face. Following the completion of the 2012 LA Auto Show, General Motors gave us the keys to the 2013 Volt, which even generated a few oohs and ahhs from us. Read on to find out why!

Read the rest of TEST DRIVE: Inhabitat Drives the 2013 Chevy Volt in Los Angeles

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Post tags: automotive, chevy, Chevy hybrid, chevy volt, electric car, general motors, green car, green transportation, plug-in hybrid

Bulgarian environmental artist Christo has draped an inexplicable array of landscapes and objects in a distinctive orange hue since the 1960s – but few of his installations have been as conceptually perplexing as his latest planned installation. The Mastaba is to be a permanent flat-topped pyramid of oil barrels located in the desert about 100 miles from Abu Dhabi. While oil-rich nations vie for the dubious accolade of having the “world’s tallest building,” Christo’s sculpture—comprised of 410,000 oil barrels—is set to make Abu Dhabi home to the world’s largest permanent sculpture.

Read the rest of Conceptual Artist Christo to Build Giant Pyramid of 410,000 Oil Barrels for Abu Dhabi

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Post tags: abu dhabi, christo, Conceptual Art, oil barrel sculpture, the mastaba, united arab emirates, worlds largest sculpture, worlds most expensive sculpture

The first model from BMW’s new i electric range, the BMW i3 is slated to arrive in 2013, and it will be followed by the i8 electric supercar in 2014. BMW has big plans for its new i division and it’s set to unveil a new i3 concept – the i3 Coupe – at the 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show. The i3 Coupe concept, as the name suggests, is basically a coupe version of the electric i3.

Read the rest of BMW Set to Unveil Electric i3 Coupe Concept at the Los Angeles Auto Show

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Post tags: 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show, automotive, BMW, BMW electric car, bmw i3, BMW i3 coupe concept, bmw i8, electric car, green car, green transportation, lithium ion battery

Yesterday was a big day for Tesla as it celebrated the arrival of its second major award with Motor Trend naming the Model S its 2013 Car of the Year. After receiving the award, Tesla CEO Elon Musk was interviewed by Motor Trend, in which he provided more details about Tesla’s future, which may include a pickup truck.

Read the rest of Tesla CEO Elon Musk Says an Electric Pickup May be in Tesla’s Future

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Post tags: elon musk, green car, green transportation, Green Truck, tesla, Tesla electric car, Tesla Model X, tesla model-s, Tesla pickup

When the all-new 2013 Lincoln MKZ Hybrid arrives later this fall, it not only arrives with a new bolder exterior, but will also be more fuel-efficient. The EPA has just certified the 2013 MKZ with a 45 mpg city, 45 mpg highway and 45 mpg combined rating, making it the most fuel-efficient luxury vehicle in America.

Read the rest of 2013 Lincoln MKZ Hybrid is America’s Most Fuel-Efficient Luxury Car

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Post tags: electric car, ford, ford hybrid, green transportation, hybrid car, hybrid luxury car, lincoln, lincoln hybrid, Lincoln MKZ

Read the rest of Top Eight Innovative Green Cars Debuting at Next Week’s 2012 Paris Motor Show

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Post tags: 2012 Paris Motor Show, BMW Concept Active Tourer Plug-In hybrid, honda cr-z, lexus, Lexus LF-CC Concept, Mercedes-Benz Concept B-Class Electric Drive, Mitsubishi Outlander, Nissan Terra Fuel Cell SUV Concept, Peugeot Onyx, smart forstars concept

BMW has unveiled the BMW Concept Active Tourer plug-in hybrid, which is a preview of BMW’s upcoming compact MPV with its new eDrive hybrid system. According to BMW, the Concept Active Tourer is geared towards customers of the premium segment who appreciate a high level of comfort, a raised seating position and a generous amount of space.

Read the rest of BMW Unveils Compact Active Tourer Plug-In Hybrid Concept

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Post tags: 2012 Paris Motor Show, BMW, BMW Concept Active Tourer, bmw hybrid, BMW plug-in hybrid, BWM electric car, electric car, green car, green transportation, lithium ion battery, plug-in hybrid

The problem with cycling in a big city is that many maps are outdated, and certain routes aren’t exactly ‘cyclist-safe’. With this in mind, BMW Guggenheim Lab and Lab City Project have created ‘Dynamic Connections’ – a crowd-sourced bike map of information for cyclists in Berlin.  The map was created for German cyclists in order to “enable cyclists to mark the routes they frequently ride on a Google-based map”. Users are also able to answer a number of questions about that route regarding traffic flow, number of parked cars, visibility, topography, and the density of amenities along the route.

Read the rest of BMW Guggenheim Lab Creates ‘Dynamic Connections’: A Crowd-Sourced Cycle Map for Berlin Cyclists

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Post tags: Berlin Lab, Berlin Lab Team, bikes, BMW Guggenheim Lab, crowd sourced project, cycling, cyclists, Dynamic Connections, lab city project, map, Rachel Smith

For consumers, knowing where our food comes from and finding alternative sources to the big-box grocery store is an important part of the sustainable food conversation. Luckily, our friends at SPURSE, an NYC-based research and design collaborative, have once again put their think-outside-the-box spin on this very subject — but they need our help. Their newest project, the Eat Your Sidewalk Cookbook, is not just about recipes, it also doubles as an art book, a field guide to wild edible plants, and a manifesto on what “local” means beyond a consumer’s point of view. In order to get this project off the ground they are featuring it on Kickstarter, and with just two days left for people to donate money time is running out!

CLICK HERE TO MAKE A DONATION >

Read the rest of NYC Design Collaborative Shows Communities How To Cook with Ingredients from the Sidewalk

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Post tags: design collaborative NYC, Eat Your Sidewalk Cookbook, feeding communities, food and urban environments, food from sidewalks, local food, local food manifesto, sidewalk food, slow food movement, SPURSE, sustainable food

BMW has chosen the city of San Francisco to launch its new DriveNow car sharing program, alongside their ParkNow mobile parking solution. San Francisco is at the forefront of cities working to develop and implement innovative approaches to urban challenges, including traffic congestion and the need for smarter, greener parking systems. The DriveNow car-sharing program gives drivers access to BMW’s ActiveE electric car, while the ParkNow mobile app makes it easier for drivers to find parking spots in the city.

Read the rest of BMW Launches ParkNow and DriveNow Electric Car Sharing Program in San Francisco

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Post tags: BMW, BMW ActiveE, BMW DriveNow, BMW electric car, BMW ParkNow, Car Sharing, electric car, green car, green transportation, parking lot of the future, San Francisco, San Francisco Parking

Read the rest of BMW’s Waterfall Pavilion Shows Off Efficient Vehicles in London’s Olympic Park

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Post tags: "sustainable architecture", 2012 London Olympics, 2012 olympics, BMW, bmw electric, BMW Group Pavilion, BMW Pavilion, BMW vehicles, BWM hybrid, eco design, electric cars, evaporative cooling, green architecture, Green Building, green design, hybrid cards, London, london 2012 olympics, London Olympics, olympic park, pavilion, pop up showroom, river, serie architects, showroom, Sustainable Building, sustainable design, temporary pavilion, water filtration, waterfall

In addition to providing a fleet of green BMW hybrids and electric MINI Coopers for the 2012 London Olympic Games, BMW has also created a fleet of remote-controlled MINI Coopers for the games. Unlike the BMW 3 and 5 Series models that are being supplied to transport the athletes at the games, the small remote-controlled MINI Coopers are being deployed specifically to assist with clearing the field during Olympic events.

Read the rest of MINI Provides Tiny Remote-Controlled MINI Coopers for the Olympic Games

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Post tags: 2012 London Olympic Games, BMW, BMW electric car, electric cars, green car, green transportation, Mini, mini cooper, MINI electric car