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Recon Power Bikes partners with GMC on AWD Hummer eBike

Want the ultimate two-wheeled companion to your new GMC Hummer EV, or maybe you just want something electric and all-wheel drive without the Hummer's price tag? Recon Power Bikes has you covered with its new Hummer EV e-bike. Not convinced? Well, hear the specs before you bail. You might be surprised.  Recon's new offering is marketed as "all-wheel drive," which our resident two-wheeled expert and consumer guru Jeremy Korzeniewski tells us is quickly becoming conventional nomenclature for dual-motor electric bicycles. Hey, if you've got two wheels and both have motors, it's technically correct, even if it sounds a bit silly to those of us who prefer the comforts of a cage and four wheels on pavement.  Each of the two motors produces 750 watts, which combines for just a little over 2 (two!) horsepower, but remember, this is a bicycle, not a sport bike. And flipping the coin, that lone pony is accompanied by more than 118 pound-feet (or roughly a 1.8-liter Miata's worth) of torque. Recon says its top speed is north of 28 mph, which is plenty quick for something that you might see strapped to the same hitching post as a 30-year-old Huffy. The base battery offers 17.5 aH of capacity; an upgrade bumps that to 21. Recon says the total range should fall between 40 and 50 miles. The package is rounded out by an adjustable front suspension, four-piston hydraulic brakes, puncture-resistant 4-inch all-terrain tires with molded-in liners and Shimano gearing.  Recon says the Hummer e-bike offers "on-demand" AWD (rear by default; both when called upon) and even offers three fixed drive modes — "Cruise" (rear wheel drive, for maximum range and efficiency), "Traction" (front wheel drive, for navigating with low grip) and "Adrenaline" (for "off road all wheel drive dominance of the toughest, steepest terrain"). "Adrenaline" mode even offers real-time torque vectoring, just like a real Hummer EV. The two vehicles are basically the same, only the bike weighs just 96 pounds, not more than 9,000.  Look for the Recon Power Bikes GMC Hummer e-bike to hit the market in early December with a starting price of $3,999. That may sound steep, but keep in mind that QuietKat's Jeep eBike costs nearly double that.  Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Featured Gallery Recon Power Bikes GMC Hummer eBike Green GMC Green Culture Bikes Electric

GM program sees dealers taking on way more loaner cars

Given the volume of vehicles we're talking about, this is a significant development for GM's bottom line. Bring your car into the dealership for service, and you may need a loaner car in exchange. And with so many recalls being carried out, that means a lot of loaners – especially at General Motors dealerships. That could be one of the reasons why GM is massively expanding its loaner fleet program. While many Chevrolet and Buick-GMC dealerships have an on-site rental car location operated by a third party like Enterprise (which may or may not provide a GM vehicle), others manage their own loaner fleets. But while the range of dealerships operating such fleets was once small, reports Automotive News, the number has been growing rapidly: from the locations responsible for only 20 percent of those brands' sales two years ago to about 90 percent today. The impetus for that growth comes down to a massive expansion of GM's Courtesy Transportation Program. The initiative encourages dealers to ramp up their loaner fleet to a maximum size determined by GM, with a mix determined by the dealer itself, so that a showroom in Texas can be bolstered with a fleet of pickup trucks and a dealer in California can employ more Volt and Camaro Convertible loaners. The dealership gets a $500 credit for each vehicle its puts in its fleet, and can use those vehicles as loaners for service customers, as multi-day test drivers or to rent out separately. The vehicles remain in the dealer's fleet for 90 days or 7,500 miles, then they can be sold as used, but with new-car incentives. The dealer gets a fleet of loaners, customers get to use the loaners, try out a new car overnight or buy a barely used car with attractive incentives, and GM gets to clock more sales. But therein lies the kicker: the automaker counts the dispatch of the loaner new vehicle to the dealership as a new-car sale, which could end up distorting its sales figures. Counting loaner vehicles as sold vehicles is something of an industry-standard practice, but given the volume of vehicles we're talking about, this is a significant development for GM's bottom line. One dealership - Paddock Chevrolet in Kenmore, NY, for example - had no loaner fleet two years ago, but now runs a fleet of 50 vehicles. Multiply that by the 4,000 or so dealers GM has across America and you're talking about the potential for hundreds of thousands of these sorts of sales.

Recharge Wrap-up: BYD unveils 60-ft electric bus, Honda sticking with hybrids in Europe

BYD has debuted a 60-foot electric bus at the American Public Transportation Association Expo in Houston, TX. The Lancaster bus, as it is called, has a 120-passenger capacity and can drive over 170 miles on a single charge. The articulated bus features low floors and no steps, thanks to in-wheel hub motors. BYD also displayed a 40-foot electric bus that drove the 1,500 miles to the show under its own power (recharging along the way, of course). Read more in the press release below. Honda says it will continue to sell hybrids in Europe, despite the fact that it has stopped selling the CR-Z and Insight due to slow sales. "Our focus at the moment is on our 1.6-liter diesel but we haven't forgotten about hybrid technology," says Honda Europe's Philip Ross. Honda will sell the next-generation Fit (badged as the Jazz) in Europe when it launches next summer, and will sell the next-gen hybrid version beginning in 2016. Honda sold 4,500 of the Jazz hybrid in Europe last year. Read more at Automotive News. XL Hybrids is selling its XL3 Hybrid Electric Drive System in California. The news comes after the California Air Resources Board issued an executive order allowing the aftermarket hybrid conversion for 2012-2014 Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana vans. The XL3 Hybrid regenerative braking conversion increases real-world mpg by about 25 percent. Read more in the press release below. NRG eVgo has finished installing 60 charging stations at the Sony Pictures Entertainment studio lot and offices in Culver City, California. The Level 2 chargers, which will be managed by NRG eVgo, allow employees to charge their EVs during the workday. An average of 90 EVs and PHEVs park at the studio headquarters every day, thanks in part to Sony Pictures' Alternative Vehicles Incentive program for its employees. Learn more in the press release below. Pennsylvania's Public Utility Commission will allow operators of EV charging stations to set prices based on kilowatt hour usage. This change ensures that drivers pay for the actual energy they use, rather than the time they spend charging, since different cars can charge at different speeds. Car Charging Group has already begun using the per-kWh fee structure at its charging stations throughout the state. Other states that allow kWh pricing are California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, Virginia and Washington. Read more in the press release below.