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Chris Harris falls in love with Mercedes-AMG GT at Laguna Seca

It's not every day that an automaker goes down a market segment and still comes off as even more ambitious, but that's exactly what Mercedes has done with the new AMG GT. While the SLS was bigger and more expensive, with the new GT, Mercedes has set its sights on one of the most iconic sports cars of all time. That, of course, would be the Porsche 911, and the big question is whether Benz has achieved its target. For the answer, we turn to none other than the Monkey himself – the inimitable Chris Harris, who recently went solo with his own YouTube channel. And for his latest segment, he took the latest German sports car around no less suitable a track than Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

Meet the Greenest and Meanest vehicles of 2016

If you've been keeping track, you won't be surprised with the number one entry in this year's list of greenest cars from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE). In fact, the top three spots on the 2016 list are all the same as they were in 2015. After that, things get interesting. For one thing, this is the first Greenest list that doesn't have any purely internal combustion engine powertrain on it. Hybrids, yes, but if you want to be one of the top 12 greenest cars this year, you'd better have some sort of electric angle. ACEEE says that the conventional, gas-powered Smart Fortwo and Chevrolet Spark just missed the cut. In a statement, ACEEE lead vehicle analyst Shruti Vaidyanathan said, "The 2016 scores are in, and plug-in electric vehicles are outpacing all other vehicle offerings in terms of environmental friendliness." Like last year, one of the noticeable vehicles missing from the green list is the Tesla Model S. One reason? ACEEE takes curb weight into account (lighter is better), and the Model S is a heavy beast. The ACEEE doesn't just look at the clean side of the ledger. It also puts out a "meanest" list. These are the vehicles that pollute the most, not only from their tailpipes, but also any pollution created during the entire manufacturing process, from mining the raw materials to the energy used to produce the vehicle at the factory. The entire list, from greenest to meanest, is done using a "cradle to grave" analysis. You can see how the ACEEE determines its rankings here, explore the entire greenest cars site here, or click through our galleries to see which vehicles are extra green (above) or extra mean (below) this year. 12: Mercedes-Benz GL550 4MATIC View 12 Photos More Electric Cars than Ever on Greenest Vehicles List Electric Vehicles Nab 9 out of Top 12 Spots in ACEEE's Environmental Vehicle Rankings Washington, DC: Despite a tumultuous year for the automotive industry, manufacturers have continued to offer exciting technology options for a growing vehicle market. Today at greenercars.org, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) released its 19th annual comprehensive environmental ratings for vehicles. The following vehicles comprise the Greenest List for 2016: Greenest Score 1. Mercedes-Benz Smart ForTwo Electric Drive Convertible / Coupe 63 2. Chevrolet Spark EV 63 3. Fiat 500E 62 4. Toyota Prius Eco 61 5. Volkswagen E-Golf 61 6. Nissan Leaf S / Leaf SV 61 7. Kia Soul Electric 59 8.

Recharge Wrap-up: KillaJoule hits 270 mph; Mercedes B-Class ED gets PlugShare

The Mercedes-Benz B-Class Electric Drive will get its own version of the PlugShare charging-station locator app. Developed by Recargo with the help of Daimler, the vehicle-specific app will be integrated into the car's navigation system. The system maps the location of nearby charging stations from various networks. So far, Mercedes-Benz doesn't offer a universal pay service for the various charging networks, like those offered by BMW and Nissan. Read more at Green Car Reports. HyperSolar uses solar energy to make hydrogen from water. Without using electrolyzers, HyperSolar uses a photochemical process to separate and capture the hydrogen in the water, which can then be used for clean energy, such as automotive fuel cells. The solar devices are submerged in water inside a container, and sunlight powers the device to free the hydrogen. HyperSolar claims that its process is more efficient and cost effective than other methods used to produce hydrogen from water. See some demonstrations in the videos below and learn more at HyperSolar's website. Eva Hakansson drove the KillaJoule electric motorcycle to a top speed of 270.224 miles per hour. After a computer model showed a possibility of about 270 mph, the team took the motorcycle with sidecar out to the salt flats for Mike Cook's Shootout. Everything went smoothly, and Hakansson easily surpassed speeds of the 249.1-mph world record she set a few weeks ago. The team is calling it quits for the season, but will make some tweaks to the KillaJoule in hopes of getting 300 mph out of the red bullet next year. Read more at KillaCycle Racing, or at Business Insider. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.