Chevy Volt

Federal safety regulators released more details about the Chevrolet Volt fire that has caused officials to look into post-crash protocols for electric vehicles. The fire occurred more than three weeks after the plug-in hybrid sedan was crashed as part of the agency's New Car Assessment Program in May. Officials from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said the crash damaged the Volt's lithium ion battery and that damage eventually caused the fire. "That incident - which occurred at the test facility and caused property damage but no injuries - remains the only case of a battery-related fire in a crash or crash test of vehicles powered by lithium-ion batteries, despite a number of other rigorous crash tests of the Chevy Volt separately conducted by both NHTSA and General Motors," regulators said in a statement.

In the end, it was a very close call, but the less-expensive and longer-ranged 2013 Nissan Leaf edged out a best-ever field of competitors to win top honors on Kelley Blue Book's newest 10 best "green" cars list. "We went round and around on which car would be No. 1," Jack Nerad, KBB's executive editorial director and executive market analyst, said in an interview. "It was a very difficult choice," Nerad said of the decision to put the Leaf just ahead of the Tesla Model S sedan, which came in at No. 2. PHOTOS: Kelley Blue Book's top 10 'green' cars for 2013 "We went with the Leaf because it was so much improved, with a lower price and better battery range," Nerad said.

With most cars, idling at the arrival curb of a major metropolitan airport results in an instantaneous visit from the parking police: Whistles blown, arms akimbo, ticket pads drawn. But the new 2011 Chevy Volt isn't most cars. Picking up the vehicle at Oakland International Airport, dozens of strangers slowed their wheeled luggage to get a better look at a car that's received as much attention as an A-list celebrity. And those DayGlo-vested police who normally strike fear in idling drivers' hearts?

Three people are dead after a head-on car crash early Sunday morning in Sylmar, authorities said. The crash occurred at about 2:30 a.m. near the intersection of Laurel Canyon Boulevard and Rinaldi Street when the driver of a Honda apparently lost control and careened into oncoming traffic and struck a Chevy Volt, said Los Angeles Police Department Officer Greg Hayhurst. Two passengers in the Honda were pronounced dead at the scene and the driver was taken to a hospital where he died, Hayhurst said, adding that the driver of the Chevy emerged without major injuries.

Fisker Automotive Inc., the Anaheim maker of luxury hybrid vehicles, has cycled through to its third chief executive in a year. Tony Posawatz helped lead development of Chevrolet's Volt plug-in hybrid for six years, serving as vehicle line director before retiring from General Motors in July. Now, he'll head up Fisker, which makes pricey, sporty plug-ins such as the Karma, favored by pop star Justin Bieber for joyrides . The company has been wracked recently by stalled model development, recalls, missed deadlines and employee layoffs.

To understand the furor that erupted recently when General Motors rolled out its new electric car, the Chevy Volt, for its public debut, it pays to keep the following fact in mind: For electric car enthusiasts, GM is a company with blood on its hands. The crime was the murder of the EV1, the pioneering all-electric car GM produced from 1996 to 1999 and supported indifferently until it shut down the program for good in 2005. The killing of the electric car, to paraphrase the title of a fine 2006 documentary about the EV1, is widely seen as a major blunder by the company, and one that led to the U.S. auto industry getting its lunch eaten in the high-mpg market by competitors like Toyota.

Counting on an eager — and large — fan base for the Chevrolet Volt, General Motors Co. announced Friday that it planned to boost U.S. production of the electric car by 50%. As President Obama toured the company's plant in Hamtramck, Mich., GM said it planned to increase Volt production from 30,000 units annually to 45,000 in 2012. The long-awaited vehicle will be released in seven states — up from three — in December and will cost $41,000 before a $7,500 federal tax credit, the company said this week.

Car sales may be in a slump, but the hybrid-electric Chevrolet Volts are hot, and that's leading to shortages — and in some cases extreme dealer markups. Several dealerships, including at least one in California, have priced new Volts more than $20,000 above General Motors Co.'s suggested $41,000 retail tag. Others are selling the vehicles as used, claiming a $7,500 tax credit for themselves and leaving the eventual buyers ineligible. And there's not much that GM or regulators can do about it. "We want our dealers to be transparent about the whole sales process," Volt spokesman Rob Peterson said.

General Motors Co. said it would make modifications to the Chevrolet Volt after a series of fires ignited after test crashes of the plug-in hybrid vehicle. GM said the fires were caused by a coolant leak that occurred when the battery pack in the vehicle was punctured during severe side test crashes by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The fires occurred hours to weeks after the tests as the coolant leaked and eventually created a short circuit. The automaker will add structural reinforcement that better protects the battery pack from punctures or a coolant leak in a severe side crash, said Mary Barra, GM's senior vice president of global product development.

General Motors Corp., racing to emerge from bankruptcy, said it drove the first pre-production battery-powered Chevrolet Volt two weeks ahead of schedule. The first test drive occurred Tuesday and the vehicle was driven again Wednesday, the company said. The Volt is designed to drive 40 miles solely on electric power generated by plugging the battery into a household outlet overnight. After 40 miles, a gasoline engine keeps the battery charged.

New Year's Day is a time for reassessment and renewal - and hoping the next year is an improvement over the messy rat race that was the last one. On that note, The Times has a tradition of reserving this page on this day for our own, often hopelessly over-optimistic wishes for the coming 12 months. Our record last year: Roughly five of our 27 wishes came true (that's what we mean by over-optimistic). Undeterred, we present our slate of dreams for 2013. We wish for: The almost unimaginably tragic deaths of 20 elementary school children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut - at the hands of an emotionally disturbed young man armed with an arsenal of weapons - to finally prove the catalyst for action rather than just words when it comes to meaningful gun control legislation.

If you have family coming for the holidays or just want a different ride, Simply Hybrid has a December deal that takes 30% off rentals of its hybrids and energy-efficient cars. The company will even deliver the cars to airports, hotels or other locations for free. The deal: Toyota Prius, Chevy Volt, Nissan Leaf and even a plug-in Prius are some of the selections in the compact category. The website provides the models available but doesn't list prices or take reservations; you have to call to get a quote and make a booking.

Last Friday, I set out to write a blog post that would answer the question, "With gasoline prices spiking, are electric cars really a good deal?" I learned two things from this exercise. First, doing a cost/benefit analysis comparing vehicles is trickier than it seems, thanks to differing government incentive programs that can radically alter the cost equation. Second, readers are really, really passionate about this topic. After having been informed, repeatedly and in no uncertain terms, about my many failings on that post, I've decided to start over -- hopefully screw-up free this time, and with a new comparison among "green" cars.

Fisker Automotive Inc., the Anaheim maker of luxury hybrid vehicles, has cycled through to its third chief executive in a year. Tony Posawatz helped lead development of Chevrolet's Volt plug-in hybrid for six years, serving as vehicle line director before retiring from General Motors in July. Now, he'll head up Fisker, which makes pricey, sporty plug-ins such as the Karma, favored by pop star Justin Bieber for joyrides . The company has been wracked recently by stalled model development, recalls, missed deadlines and employee layoffs.

The electric car might not be enjoying a good moment as the Electric Vehicle Symposium, EVS26, powers up for its run this weekend at the Los Angeles Convention Center. GM stopped production for five weeks on the Chevy Volt, and sales of new all-electric cars such as the Volt or the Nissan Leaf are dismal. It's further evidence that transitioning American drivers to electric vehicles (EV) is simply a hard sell. But the transition is inevitable, believes Brian Wynne, president of the Electric Drive Transportation Assn.

ForecastTheFacts.org has put up an advertisement spoofing the new TV ads created for the Chevy Volt - but this one congratulates GM for ceasing to fund the Heartland Institute, a free-market think tank that questions the science behind global warming. The spoof ad is running only on the group's website. However, it was originally designed as part of an advertising campaign to lean on GM to stop its annual funding for Heartland. Another Happy Volt Owner Thanks GM from ForecastTheFacts on Vimeo . “This was going to be our next tactic in the campaign to put pressure on GM,” says Daniel Souweine, director of the climate and energy organizing project at Citizen Engagement Lab, which recently launched ForecastTheFacts.org.

Federal safety regulators have given the Chevrolet Volt an all-clear. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday that it did not identify a safety defect, concluding that the car does not pose any unusual risk of fire. In closing the book on its investigation into Volts catching on fire, NHTSA also issued new guidelines for how emergency personnel and tow truck operators should deal with electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids that have been damaged in severe accidents.

Citing its corporate stance that climate change is real, General Motors announced Wednesday that its General Motors Foundation would no longer be funding the Heartland Institute, a free-market think tank that has attacked human-caused global warming as “junk science.” The announcement was not made in a company statement, but rather in communications with Greg Dalton of Climate One, an ongoing dialog about the environment at the Commonwealth Club...

Federal safety regulators have given the Chevrolet Volt an all-clear. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday that it did not identify a safety defect, concluding that the car does not pose any unusual risk of fire. In closing the book on its investigation into Volts catching on fire, NHTSA also issued new guidelines for how emergency personnel and tow truck operators should deal with electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids that have been damaged in severe accidents.