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Recharge Wrap-up: Chevy Volt named KBB "Best Buy," slow BMW i3 sales in Germany

The Chevrolet Volt has been awarded Kelley Blue Book's Electric/Hybrid Car Best Buy for 2015. KBB cited the car's electric commuter capabilities, extended range, acceleration, design and overall value as reasons to place it above the Nissan Leaf, BMW i3 and Toyota Prius. It works well in the real world, and doesn't leave drivers with range anxiety. Plus, it's comfortable, and a fun car to drive, according to KBB. Read more at Kelley Blue Book. The BMW i3 is seeing slow sales in Germany. BMW has sold about half the number of i3s it expected in its home country, with about 1,900 sold in the first nine months. BMW projected sales of 5,000 to 6,000 in the first year. BMW partly blames long shipping times for the slow sales, and the company is offering incentives in hopes of getting more people to adopt the electric car. In the US, BMW sold more than 1,000 units each month between August and October. Read more at Green Car Reports. Audi is pursuing new carbon-neutral synthetic fuels - or e-fuels - such as Audi e-diesel. Audi's newest project uses electrolysis of water to create hydrogen, which it then reacts with CO2 extracted from the air. The result is a liquid - called Blue Crude - full of energy from hydrocarbon compounds. The Blue Crude can then be converted into a sulfur-free synthetic diesel called e-diesel. This e-diesel can be used as a drop-in fuel, blended into fossil diesel for a more renewable fuel. Read more at Hybrid Cars. Uber is partnering with Spotify to allow passengers to choose what music they listen to during their ride. Users will be able to choose their own playlist that will be ready and playing for them when they are picked up. It offers a more personalized experience from the ride-hailing service, which, according to Uber CEO Travis Kalanick, is "nirvana" for music lovers. Paying Spotify users will be able to use the feature initially in London, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Nashville, New York, San Francisco, Singapore, Stockholm, Sydney and Toronto. Check out the video below and read more at Wired. Featured Gallery 2014 Chevrolet Volt View 11 Photos Related Gallery 2014 BMW i3: First Drive View 33 Photos News Source: Kelley Blue Book, Green Car Reports, Hybrid Cars, WiredImage Credit: Chevrolet Green Audi BMW Chevrolet Transportation Alternatives Technology Emerging Technologies Electric Videos recharge wrapup

Weekly Recap: Revisting the BBC report that ended Jeremy Clarkson's Top Gear run

Jeremy Clarkson's long run as a Top Gear host has come to an end, and the reason is clear: His physical assault on one of the show's producers crossed a line, and the government-owned BBC couldn't tolerate it. The incident between Clarkson and Top Gear producer Oisin Tymon was initially described as a "fracas," and Clarkson was suspended. But his popularity and widespread support – even British Prime Minister David Cameron weighed in – suggested that the controversial Clarkson might be given yet another chance. The BBC put this to rest Wednesday when it sacked Clarkson and revealed the findings of its investigation. The report spelled out how Clarkson struck Tymon on the patio of a North Yorkshire (UK) hotel, leaving him with a bloodied, swollen lip. It was severe enough that the producer sought medical treatment. During and after the attack, Clarkson shouted expletives at Tymon and threatened to fire him. The noise carried into the hotel's dining room and even to a bedroom. Local police investigated the incident, but Tymon isn't pressing charges. The huge audience numbers, Clarkson's popularity and the high-octane excitement of Top Gear all melted away in the eyes of BBC director-general Tony Hall, who saw an attacker and a victim. "For me a line has been crossed," he said in a statement. "There cannot be one rule for one and one rule for another dictated by either rank, or public relations and commercial considerations." In that moment, Clarkson was the bad guy, though he was actually the one who reported it to the network and made repeated attempts to apologize to Tymon. He's also urged the media to leave the producer alone. Hall voiced regret in the statement that announced Clarkson's contract would not be renewed, but the BBC decided to move on. Rumors are swirling about possible replacements for Clarkson. The network says it wants to continue Top Gear in 2016 and is looking to air the rest of this season's episodes. Despite the controversy, the show has a global audience of 350 million viewers and is one of the BBC's most valuable properties. It's unclear what Clarkson's co-hosts, James May and Richard Hammond, will do, as their contracts were also reportedly up to be renewed. Other News & Notes 2016 Chevrolet Malibu hybrid charges up with Volt technology Chevrolet is taking some of the learnings and technologies from the 2016 Volt and dropping them into the reborn Malibu hybrid.

Chevy Volt owners log half a billion electric miles, 2015 production starts

As General Motors gets ready to start 2015 Volt production Monday, Chevrolet is looking back at some of the numbers that got the car to where it is today. The headline number is that Volt owners have collectively put more than a half-billion electric miles on their cars. The unsurprising upshot is that, if you went out and bought a Volt, you're pretty keen on getting as many electric miles out of it as possible. 90 percent of all Volt trips are done purely on electric power. The typical Volt driver goes 970 miles between fill-ups, GM says, and that means that 63 percent of all miles are done on battery power. General Motors executive director Larry Nitz gave AutoblogGreen a few more details on the usage habits of Volt drivers, including that 81 percent of commuting miles are electric. Two-thirds of US Volt drivers charge their vehicle 1.4 times a day, a clear indicator of drivers trying to maximize electric miles through opportunity charging. In fact, Nitz said, 90 percent of all Volt trips are done purely on electric power. GM also says that the Volt's official 35 miles of electric range is still doable for many owners who have had their car for more than 30 months. Looking ahead, we know that one upgrade for the 2015 Volt will be 4G LTE connectivity that can turn the car, like others in the GM family, into a mobile wifi hotspot. We're of course much more interested in when GM is finally going to start production of the next-gen Volt, but GM officials would only tell us that they're very excited about the still-secret vehicle, promising we'll be learning more "soon." Nitz did confirm that today's Volt drivers are most interested in three things from the next-gen model: more range, a lower price and a fifth seat. He did not say whether or not GM will be able to deliver on those requests. Chevrolet Volt Owners Surpass Half a Billion Electric Miles After 30 months of use, a sampling of Volts shows consistent all-electric range 2014-06-19 DETROIT – Since its launch in late 2010, Chevrolet Volt owners have accumulated more than half a billion all-electric miles. Additionally, based on a General Motors' study of more than 300 Volts in service in California for more than 30 months, many owners are exceeding the EPA-rated label of 35 miles of EV range per full charge, with about 15 percent surpassing 40 miles of range.