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Tesla Motors Electric Car
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The Tesla Roadster
Enthusiasts of the electric vehicle have cause for celebration this year with the release of the Tesla Roadster from Tesla Motors.   While there are only 100 cars available, expected to be delivered by the Summer of 2007, the company has already begun taking order for next year's model as well.

The Roadster is packed with a 248hp electric motor capable of 13,500 rpms and a two-speed transmission.  Performance is extraordinary with a 0-60 time under 4 seconds and a top speed of over 130 mph.  The car definintely goes, and unlike gasoline powered cars, the peak torque begins at 0 rpm and stays powerful up to 13,000 rpm.

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Electric Vehicles
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GM EV1
The time for electric vehicles may have finally arrived.  After the ill-fated, but much loved GM EV1 was pulled from the market in 2003, the electric vehicle has been put on the back burner.  In its place in the last few years hybrids have been getting most of the attention and, seemingly, research and development dollars.  Proponents of alternative fuel vehicles are also exploring ethanol and possibly hyrdogen as the next answer to a sustainable source of fuel to power our vehicles.  This may all be changing soon as several smaller companies are making great leaps forward in producing a viable electric powered vehicle.

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A New Plug-In Hybrid, The Chevy Volt
Chevy Volt GM recently released their new plug-in hybrid, concept car, the Chevrolet Volt.  Unlike other hyrid vehicles, the Volt will be pushed along exclusively via an electric motor powered by a next-generation battery pack that is recharged by a small, gasoline powered onboard motor--or plugged into any standard, electricity socket.

There's only one catch to this exciting car, the technology isn't available to make production feasible--and may not be for several more years.  "We have a thoroughly studied concept, but further battery development will define the critical path to start of production," said Jon Lauckner, a GM vice president for product development.

That said, the fact that GM is willing to put it's name behind such a product is worth mention.  GM has recently been criticized for its abandonment of the EV1 electric car which it produced from 1996 to 2003.  GM claims that it learned a lot about electric vehicles from that product and that technology helped in the creation of the Volt.  The biggest changes in this new generation of electric/hybrid car will feature small, more powerful batteries that recharge faster, more room for passengers and faster maximum highway speeds.

The Chevy Volt is projected to fun for about 40 miles on electric-only power before the motor kicks in the start recharging, though the gas motor will never actually power the car itself.
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Hybrid

Hybrid CarA hybrid vehicle or gas-electric hybrid powered vehicle uses a mixture of technologies such as internal combustion engines (ICEs), electric motors, gassoline, and batteries.Today's hybrid cars are driven by electric motors powered by both batteries and an ICE. Please see Gas-Electric Hybrid for further clarification of what the word hybrid is describing with regards to these vehicles.

 
The Latest in Hybrid Happenings

Written by Gregg Hall

Hybrids are one of the most popular options in transportation today. Consumers are flocking to these vehicles for many reasons. One of the most popular reasons consumers love hybrids is because they save them hundreds of dollars a year in gasoline purchases.

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Plug-In Hybrid

Prof. Andrew Alfonso Frank, Director of Hybrid Vehicle Research at the University of California-Davis, has recently written an interesting article on the need to move towards using plug-in hybrids vehicles (PHEV). He claims: "In contrast, to the much touted hydrogen economy, there is no need for massive infrastructure development and construction. The PHEV allows us to immediately transition from our dependence on oil for transportation to one where we can begin to transition to cleaner and more efficient electricity without a need for new infrastructure.

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Second Hybrid
Hybrid-car Hybrid cars are very popular vehicles in today's society. Hybrid cars combine the power of a gasoline engine with the environmental benefits of an electric engine to create what most consider being a better car. There are essentially two different types of hybrid cars on today's market.

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