Inhabitat


Design your Own Electric Vehicle With the Trexa EV Platform!

by Mike Chino, 01/19/10

sustainable desgin, green design, green transportation, trexa, electric vehicle platform, ev, diy electric vehicle

What if designing your own electric vehicle was as simple as picking out the parts and plugging them together? Trexa is aiming to make that dream a reality as they unveil the world’s first fully-electric vehicle development platform. This svelte all-wheel drive platform includes everything you need to make a vehicle go – a battery, driveline, and power electronics. The design of everything else is up to you, and its modular nature means that it can be tailored to virtually any application – from futuristic connected tram systems for commercial fleets, to high-performance hot rods, to neighborhood-friendly EV’s perfect for a jaunt around town.

READ MORE >

Top 5 Eco Vehicles From the Detroit Auto Show

by Dan Mendes, 01/15/10

The Detroit Auto Show kicked off this week with a slew of fantastic electric and hybrid vehicles ranging from the purely conceptual to the near production-ready. Electric vehicles were so prominently featured that they prompted the convention to open Electric Avenue, a 37,000-square-foot showcase where visitors could see and test-drive evs! Without further ado, check out this year’s Top 5 from the Detroit Auto Show.

READ MORE >

Tata Nano: World’s Cheapest Car to Go Hybrid

by Ariel Schwartz, 12/01/09

sustainable design, green design, hybrid vehicle, green transportation, tata nano, phev, ev, india

The Tata Nano, a four-passenger city car developed and sold in India, has become famous for being the world’s cheapest car. At just $2,200 a pop, the Nano has also gained a reputation for its fuel efficiency (51.7 mpg). And while a compressed air version of the Nano has long been rumored to be in the works, Tata chairman Ratan Tata has just announced that a hybrid version could eventually hit the streets. If all goes according to plan, the ultra-cheap hybrid stands to shatter the economic barrier to getting greener vehicles on the roads.

READ MORE >

ChargeCar Aims to Create Crowdsourced Electric Vehicles

by Ariel Schwartz, 11/17/09

chargecar, ev, electric car, carnegie mellon, sustainable design, green design, sustainable transportation

A person who drives 60 miles to work every day has different needs than someone who drives across town. So instead of designing electric cars to match the performance of petroleum-powered vehicles, researchers at Carnegie Mellon’s ChargeCar initiative think that EVs should be designed for individual commuting needs. To that end, ChargeCar hopes to create a so-called “commute ecology” based on crowdsourced data to develop EVs for different types of commutes.

READ MORE >

275 MPG eVARO Electric Vehicle Goes From 0 to 60 in 5 Seconds

275 MPG eVARO Electric Vehicle Goes From 0 to 60 in 5 Seconds

The Progressive Automotive X-Prize is heating up as the May 2010 start date approaches, and one of our favorite entrants is the eVARO, a three-wheeled plug-in hybrid from Future Vehicles Technology. The sleek electric vehicle can go from 0 to 60 MPH in 5 seconds and purportedly reaches 275 mpg under certain conditions. And for those times when there isn’t a gas station in site, the eVARO can cruise for up to 90 miles on pure battery power.

READ MORE >

3Prong Power Upgrades Any Prius to Plug-in Status

3Prong Power Upgrades Any Prius to Plug-in Status

Toyota is leasing 500 prototype plug-in hybrid Prius’s to lucky recipients in the U.S, Europe, and Japan next year, but what about all the other Prius owners who want to provide some plug-in juice to their cars? Enter 3Prong Power, a Berkeley, California startup that offers plug-in hybrid conversions for first, second and third generation Prius’s as well as the Ford Escape Hybrid.

READ MORE >

Yamaha Unveils Slick EC-f Electric Motorcycle

Yamaha Unveils Slick EC-f Electric Motorcycle

We’ve see plenty of great green concept cars at this week’s Tokyo Motor Show, but Yamaha might take the prize for the best-looking two-wheeler with its new EC-f electric motorcycle. Designed to make motorcycling attractive to riders of all ages and experience levels, the vehicle features  a lightweight aluminum frame, a long-lasting lithium ion battery, and a 0.6 kWh electric motor.

READ MORE >

SunPods Modular Solar EV Charging Station Debuts in California

SunPods Modular Solar EV Charging Station Debuts in California

The problem with most electric vehicle charging stations is that you never know where your electricity is coming from–and unfortunately it’s often arriving courtesy of a dirty coal plant. Luckily, the prefab SunPods SP-300 EV Plug-N-Go solar charging station, installed this week in San Jose, CA, changes that by reassuring EV drivers that their power is coming straight from the sun.

READ MORE >

Hydrogen Peroxide Powered Drag Racers Take Off!

Hydrogen Peroxide Powered Drag Racers Take Off!

Hydrogen peroxide is best known for its properties as a hair dye and disinfectant, but it might just power the next generation of drag racers as well. Unlike expensive hydrogen fuel cell and electric-powered cars, h202-powered vehicles are both cheap (hydrogen peroxide is just water with an extra oxygen molecule) and fast — drag racers powered by the stuff can quickly reach speeds of 450 mph!

READ MORE >

Cupcake Car is the Tastiest Electric Vehicle Around

Cupcake Car is the Tastiest Electric Vehicle Around

Electric vehicles already attract attention on the street, but if you really want to get noticed, consider buying the Cupcake Car, a tasty-looking automobile designed by Bay Area artist Lisa Pongrace. It’s certainly one way to drive your efficient vehicle and eat it too (although it’s not actually edible, so you probably want to hold off on that).

READ MORE >

First Electric Vehicle Charging Corridor Installed Between SF and LA

First Electric Vehicle Charging Corridor Installed Between SF and LA

One of the biggest problems with electric vehicle technology is the lack of a plug-in infrastructure on our roads. But that problem is about to disappear — at least for some commuters on Highway 101 going between San Francisco and Los Angeles — thanks to a so-called “electric highway” of five recharging stations between the two cities. Four of the stations are already online, and a fifth will be up and running in Goleta by October.

READ MORE >

Solar Filling Stations: On-Demand Fuel for Electric Cars and Bikes

Solar Filling Stations: On-Demand Fuel for Electric Cars and Bikes

The problem with grid-powered electric cars, bikes, and scooters is that you never know what’s supplying their energy. Is it coal, solar, nuclear, or some combination of the three? Enter the E-Move Charging Station, a  solar-powered filling station in Bozen, Denmark that can charge up to eight vehicles at the same time. With the E-Move station, you’ll always know where your vehicles power is coming from – the sun!

READ MORE >

The Next Revolution: Iran Gets its First Electric Car

The Next Revolution: Iran Gets its First Electric Car

Outside of Israel and Shai Agassi’s electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure company Better Place, the Middle East doesn’t have much of an electric car industry. That might change soon now that a team of Iranian scientists from Tehran’s Khaje Nasir Toosi University of Technology have developed the country’s first EV, a mini two-seater called “Qasedak-e Nasir”, or the dandelion of Nasir.

READ MORE >

KAIST Hybrid Vehicles Run on Electric Roads

KAIST Hybrid Vehicles Run on Electric Roads

Hybrid-electric vehicles are expected to explode in popularity over the next decade thanks to their gasoline-saving abilities. But Korea’s Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) thinks that battery-powered cars aren’t the answer to our energy crisis. Instead, KAIST has developed a new kind of electric vehicle that forgoes batteries entirely and instead relies on power from cables buried beneath the road.

READ MORE >

New Tesla Roadster Design Will be Bigger, Roomier

New Tesla Roadster Design Will be Bigger, Roomier

Tesla has been bringing innovation and green style to auto industry, ever since the groundbreaking launch of the Tesla Roadster – and more recently with the announcement of the Model S sedan. But is Tesla content to rest on its laurels for now? Not likely. Elon Musk, the company’s CEO, sat down recently for an interview in which he revealed that the next version of the Tesla Roadster will ditch its Lotus roots and will be bigger, better, stronger, and, most importantly, roomier! 

READ MORE >

INTERVIEW: John Viera of Ford Motor Company

INTERVIEW: John Viera of Ford Motor Company

Just yesterday we had the chance to sit down with John Viera, Ford Motor Company’s Director of Sustainable Business Strategies, to talk about how the Big Three manufacturer is going green. Viera touched on a number of topics, but we were most interested in what he had to say about Ford’s future in plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and electric vehicles (EV). Read on for our exclusive interview!

READ MORE >

HOT NEW HYBRID CAR: The Fisker Karma

HOT NEW HYBRID CAR: The Fisker Karma

We love our green sports cars here at Inhabitat, and we have plenty of room on our favorites list for more than one. While we’ve been raving for the last two years about the Tesla Roadster, the Fisker Karma has been doing the one thing Tesla has yet to do: bring a hybrid sports car to market. Created by noted car designer Henrik Fisker, the ultra cool Karma is a sleek, power packed eco-luxury ride.

READ MORE >

TRANSPORTATION TUESDAY: First Tesla Store Open in LA!

TRANSPORTATION TUESDAY: First Tesla Store Open in LA!

We get all revved up whenever we hear new developments on the fabulously sexy electric Tesla Roadster. We were floored when we caught our first glimpse of this ultra-sleek sports car, and beside ourselves when this amazing electric vehicle started into production. You can be sure that the latest news announcing that Tesla has just opened its first dealership in Los Angeles has got our green vehicle radar on overdrive. Built close to the 405 freeway (11163 Santa Monica Blvd. for those of you living in Los Angeles), the Tesla Store is the first of five stores currently planned to open up in the United States.

READ MORE >

NO MORE GAS Personal Electric Vehicle

NO MORE GAS Personal Electric Vehicle

With a name like ‘No More Gas’, you can bet that this cute little personal electric vehicle is as good to the environment as it is to the user. Its size, weight and fuel make it much better for the planet, while its look and driving experience make it great fun for the driver. Looking like it’s dropped straight out of an episode of The Jetsons, this tiny car can achieve speeds of over 75mph for a cost of $0.02 per mile. All this eco-goodness earned Myers Motors’ NmG vehicle kudos at this year’s Well-Tech Awards exhibit in Milan.

READ MORE >

TRANSPORTATION TUESDAY: The Detroit Electric is Back!

TRANSPORTATION TUESDAY: The Detroit Electric is Back!

Step right in ladies and gentlemen, and gaze at the marvels of modern technology! Allow us to show you the most amazing car of the century: The magnificent Detroit Electric, the car of summer luxury! This 100 year-old antique electric car will be available in early 2009 from ZAP and China Youngman Automotive Group, proving once and for all that there is no such thing as a new idea. The Detroit Electric is considered to be the most popular electric car in history — and was produced by the Anderson Electric Car Company in 1907 (production ran from 1907 to 1939). This cute little EV could go fo 130 miles on one charge, and had a top speed of about 32km/h. Famous Detroit Electric owners included Thomas Edison, Charles Proteus Steinmetz and John D. Rockefeller, Jr.

READ MORE >

LOTS MORE GREAT GREEN DESIGN STORIES HERE... KEEP READING!

© Inhabitat.com 2010 | Terms Of Use | Privacy Policy | Inhabitat, LLC