1. Ab 2009 zählt Schadstoff statt Hubraum

(Quelle: Spiegel) - Käufer von Neuwagen können im kommenden Jahr voraussichtlich zwischen zwei unterschiedlichen Besteuerungsgrundlagen wählen: Statt des Hubraums sollen auch Schadstoffe und Kohlendioxid (CO2) als Berechnungsgrundlage für die Kfz-Steuer dienen.

08/11/2007 | 1287 Hits | 1 comment | Print | Email

2. A Stackable Electric City Vehicle

(Source: TR/MIT) - The Smart Cities group at the MIT Media Lab is working on two low-cost electric vehicles that it hopes will revolutionize mass transit and help alleviate pollution. Next week, the group will unveil a prototype of its foldable electric scooter at the EICMA Motorcycle Show, in Milan. A prototype for the team's foldable electric car, called the City Car, is slated to follow next year.

The MIT group sees the vehicles as the linchpin in a strategy that aims to mitigate pollution with electric power, expand limited public space by folding and stacking vehicles like shopping carts, and alleviate congestion by letting people rent and return the vehicles to racks located near transportation hubs, such as train stations, airports, and bus depots.

04/11/2007 | 1005 Hits | Print | Email

3. Auf dem Weg zum Elektroauto - ist der Hybrid überflüssig?

(Quelle: heise) Renault/Nissan und Honda zweifeln den Sinn von Hybridkonzepten an. Auf der Tokyo Motor Show sei in dieser Woche ein Streit darüber entstanden, ob es nicht an der Zeit sei, die teilweise Elektrifizierung von Autos - also Hybridkonzepte mit Verbrennungsmotor - kurzerhand zu überspringen und lieber gleich die Idee des reinen Elektroautos wiederzubeleben.

25/10/2007 | 2217 Hits | 1 comment | Print | Email

4. Auto Giants Revisit Electric Cars

(Source: WSJ) Worried that urban congestion and fears about climate change could provoke a backlash against petroleum-fueled cars, big auto makers are revving up efforts to electrify automobiles.

In the process, usually circumspect auto-industry leaders are taking shots at each others' technology strategies in a style more familiar to Silicon Valley than Detroit or Toyota City.

23/10/2007 | 902 Hits | Print | Email

5. Australia's NSW Looks to Japan for a Hybrid on Rails

(Source: smh) It is like a giant Prius on railway tracks. A two-car train operating in northern rural Japan is the world's first hybrid train and the NSW Government is investigating whether the green technology could work on sections of the state's rail network.

The Japanese train, powered by a diesel engine and electric battery, is recharged by energy created from braking at curves and at stations and helps reduce emissions of nitrogen oxide and particulate matter by up to 60 per cent, compared with conventional trains. It cuts fuel consumption by up to 20 per cent and runs more quietly, according to East Japan Railway, the company behind the trial.

09/10/2007 | 617 Hits | Print | Email