French Car Rental Firms Cry Foul Over Government-Funded EV Rental Scheme in Paris

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The Parisian government’s self-hire electric car program Autolib’ is staring down a legal challenge from the nation’s more traditional car rental agencies, among them Avis and Hertz. According to British daily newspaper The Independent, these “self serve” Bollore EVs cost as little as €5 (£4.40) for a 30 minute journey and are modeled on the French capital’s highly successful Vélib’ bike hire operation.

Some 700 four-seat Autolib’ vehicles will be rolled out from December of this year, offering green motoring for both residents and tourists alike. The Italian-built four seaters come with a 250 km battery range, radio and GPS navigation system.

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Post Title → French Car Rental Firms Cry Foul Over Government-Funded EV Rental Scheme in Paris

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It’s a Sedan, It’s a Hatchback, It’s a Portable Greenhouse: Antti Eskeli’s Maininki

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Here’s an innovative idea from Finnish designer Antti Eskeli: a four-seat luxury sedan concept with a “changeable chassis length”, making it as compact as a small hatchback for city driving. So what if the foldable car is nothing new; I’d wager one’s never looked as good as Eskeli’s Maininki concept.

It’s just one of many entries into the 2011 Michelin Challenge Design Showcase we’ve reported on previously. There is something surprisingly masculine about Eskeli’s fluid, organic design; like cavorting dolphins or an Antarctic glacier.

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Post Title → It’s a Sedan, It’s a Hatchback, It’s a Portable Greenhouse: Antti Eskeli’s Maininki

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Honda CR-Z Hybrid Racer Ready for Demonstration Runs at Le Mans

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The latest news from Honda’s motorsport front is that the Japanese company will campaign a CR-Z hybrid racecar at the second annual Le Mans Vers Le Futur (literally translates to ‘Le Mans to the Future’), which is a support event for the 79th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Nissan will also participate in the exhibition, which is devoted to showcasing the Le Mans racing cars of the future, with the pure-electric Leaf Nismo RC concept. Read more »

Post Title → Honda CR-Z Hybrid Racer Ready for Demonstration Runs at Le Mans

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Viva Las Vegas: Google Lobbies to Legalize Self-Driving Cars in Nevada

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Internet and software bigwig Google has begun lobbying the state of Nevada to legalize driverless cars. The move comes on the heels of some very promising results in California, where Google had mapped out the terrain and sent a couple of its autonomous Toyota Priuses (Prii? Priora?) on an epic jaunt from Mountain View to Santa Monica.

The California-based company is keen to point out the claimed benefits of self-driving cars over their human-driven counterparts including better safety, improved fuel efficient and greater environmental friendliness.

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Post Title → Viva Las Vegas: Google Lobbies to Legalize Self-Driving Cars in Nevada

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Mercedes-Benz B-Class F-Cell’s World Tour Cut Short after Accident in Kazakhstan

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On January 30th, 2011, three Mercedes-Benz B-Class F-Cell models set out from Germany to travel around the globe covering 30,000 kilometers (about 18,700 miles) in 125 days to demonstrate the technical maturity and reliability of the world’s first series production fuel cell vehicle.
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Post Title → Mercedes-Benz B-Class F-Cell’s World Tour Cut Short after Accident in Kazakhstan

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Toyota and Shell Build New Station in California, Honda FCX Clarity Users Rejoice

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Toyota and Honda celebrated today the opening of the first hydrogen station in the U.S. fueled directly from an industrial hydrogen pipeline. Located near the headquarters of Toyota USA, in Torrance, California, the station is built on the company's land and is the result of a collaboration between Shell, Toyota, Air Products, South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) and the Department of Energy.

The station will provide hydrogen for the Toyota fuel cell hybrid demonstration program vehicles, as well as other manufacturers' fuel cell cars in the Los Angeles area.

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Post Title → Toyota and Shell Build New Station in California, Honda FCX Clarity Users Rejoice

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Seven Years On, London’s Congestion Charging Scheme Has Had Little Effect On Air Pollution

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Congestion and air pollution are killing the world’s major cities. Among them: New York, Beijing, Tokyo, Mumbai and London to name a few. And if you believe the most skewed of environmentalist hype, it’s all down to personal transport. Only it’s not. The UK’s Health Effects Institute (HEI) recently released details of a study called the, “The Impact of the Congestion Charging Scheme on Air Quality in London,” that shows that things may not be as clear-cut as some of us thought.

Led by Professor Frank Kelly of King’s College London, the study (as the title suggests) investigated what affect London’s much-derided Congestion Charging Scheme has had on the city’s air quality. The result: not much. Through the use of emissions / exposure modeling, analysis of air monitoring data and the, “assay for the oxidative potential of particulate matter,” Professor Kelly and his colleagues found:

“From their comparison of actual air pollutant measurements within the CCZ with those at control sites in Outer London, the investigators reported little evidence of CCS-related changes in pollutant levels at roadside monitoring sites, where their modeling had suggested the most pronounced effects would be seen.”

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Post Title → Seven Years On, London’s Congestion Charging Scheme Has Had Little Effect On Air Pollution

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Nissan gets Creative with Smoking Billboard at New York Auto Show

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It might not be an award winning campaign, but Nissan’s new outdoor board placed right outside the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center during the 2011 New York Auto Show (April 22 to May 1 for the public) is sure to grab attention and increase awareness for the firm’s all-electric Leaf family car.

The two-sided Smokeboard was created by the Japanese firm’s advertising partner TBWA\Chiat\Day, which is the American division of the advertising agency TBWA Worldwide.

On one side, the billboard features an actual working tailpipe that emits fumes into the air (with the agency stressing the fact that the exhaust is environmentally friendly…) and a headline that reads, “The auto show has over 1,000 of these”. On the other side, there’s a photo of the Leaf and a caption that says “But only one 100% electric, zero-tailpipe Nissan Leaf”. Check out the ad in action in the clip after the jump.

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Post Title → Nissan gets Creative with Smoking Billboard at New York Auto Show

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