2012 T5 R-design Premier Plus Used Turbo 2.5l I5 20v Automatic Fwd Hatchback on 2040-cars

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Embrace one-pedal driving in EVs and PHEVs

I just came back from a trip out to California, where I was able to drive the new 2022 Volvo XC60 Recharge in its new extended-range form (you’ll find that review on Autoblog tomorrow). One of the newly-added headline features for this plug-in hybrid SUV is true one-pedal driving. This is one-pedal driving in a PHEV, not a full battery electric vehicle, and as of now, one-pedal driving in PHEVs is exceedingly rare. Other plug-ins may offer levels of braking regeneration, but one-pedal driving is typically a feature reserved for full EVs. Adding the feature to the Volvo is a huge boost to the driving experience for me, and I sincerely hope we see it in even more PHEVs soon. In case youÂ’re new to the one-pedal driving game, hereÂ’s a quick explainer. ItÂ’s called “one-pedal” because most of the time, youÂ’re only using one pedal to accelerate and decelerate. Press in to accelerate; let off evenly and gently to decelerate via regenerative braking. The trick at the end is in slowing down the final few mph and bringing the car to a stop smoothly, which typically requires some practice and time spent figuring out how best to modulate the throttle pedal. Once youÂ’re stopped in a car with one-pedal driving, it should hold itself in place when you have your foot off the throttle, allowing you to relax your legs at lights. Applying pressure to the brake pedal would be unnecessary so long as traffic doesnÂ’t necessitate quicker deceleration than what the car is capable of via letting off on the throttle. The point, of all of the above, is that one-pedal driving in an EV or PHEV simply makes driving easier. Once you learn the car, not having to swap back and forth between the throttle and brake pedals makes stop-and-go traffic (or any kind of driving) a lot more relaxing to manage. The point of this story is to call out the lack of this feature in some EVs and nearly all PHEVs. Some of you may have already hit the comments to voice your disdain for one-pedal driving, but do note, while IÂ’m advocating for the feature to be present in all EVs, IÂ’m not advocating for it to be a required always-on feature. In fact, you should be able to turn it off and on at your whimsy. Many car manufacturers already offer one-pedal driving in their EVs, but companies like VW, Audi, Porsche and to a certain extent, Mercedes, do not. This is slightly irritating, mostly because those companies make some of the most desirable EVs on the market today.

How Norway became a world leader in EV sales, and where it goes from here

OSLO, Norway — A silent revolution has transformed driving in Norway. Eerily quiet vehicles are ubiquitous on the fjord-side roads and mountain passes of this wealthy European nation of 5.3 million. Some 30 percent of all new cars sport plug-in cables rather than gasoline tanks, compared with 2 percent across Europe overall and 1-2 percent in the U.S. As countries around the world — including China, the world's biggest auto market — try to encourage more people to buy electric cars to fight climate change, Norway's success has one key driver: the government. It offered big subsidies and perks that it is now due to phase out, but only so long as electric cars remain attractive to buy compared with traditional ones. "It should always be cheaper to have a zero emissions car than a regular car," says Climate and Environment Minister Ola Elvestuen, who helped push through a commitment to have only zero-emissions cars sold in Norway by 2025. The plan supports Norway's CO2 reduction targets under the 2015 Paris climate accord. To help sales, the Norwegian government waived hefty vehicle import duties and registration and sales taxes for buyers of electric cars. Owners don't have to pay road tolls, and get free use of ferries and bus lanes in congested city centers. These perks are being phased out in 2021, though any road tolls and fees would be limited to half of what gasoline car owners must pay. Gradually, subsidies for electric cars will be replaced by higher taxes on traditional cars. Registration tax on new cars is paid on a sliding scale with a premium for the amount of emissions produced. Elvestuen pledges that the incentives for electric vehicles will be adjusted in such a way that it does not scupper the 2025 target. "What is important is that our aim is not just to give incentives," he says. "It is that we are taxing emissions from regular cars." Using taxes to encourage consumers to shift to cleaner energy can be tricky for a government — protests have erupted in France over a fuel tax that hurt the livelihood of poorer families, especially in rural areas where driving is often the only means of transportation. In the U.S, some would like to see the tax credit on EVs and hybrids eliminated while others would extend it. In this sense, Norway is an outlier. The country is very wealthy after exporting for decades the kind of fossil fuels the world is trying to wean itself off of. Incomes are higher than the rest of Europe, as are prices.

Volvo C30 Polestar Concept hits the 'Ring

It's been over three years since the Volvo C30 Polestar Concept was unveiled, driven by journalists and, as it turns out, lapped around the Nürburgring with Scandinavian Touring Car Championship driver Robert Dahlgren behind the wheel. For whatever reason, the video of the 'Ring track session was only published by the tuning company yesterday. (Another discrepancy: Did Polestar's C30 lose 46 horsepower somewhere along the line? Because the video states that it has 405 hp, while the company's website quotes 451 hp...)
Whatever the case, the tuned Volvo is a beast, much more so than the similar-looking, 250-hp 2013 Volvo C30 Polestar Limited Edition that was sold last year. With 451 hp (sounds better than 405 hp, doesn't it?), all-wheel drive, limited-slip differentials front and rear and Öhlins dampers, the Polestar Concept checks all of the right boxes for us.
For some reason, the video, which you can watch below, seems a bit vanilla to us. Perhaps the overly dramatic music takes away from the action and the beautiful sounds of the turbocharged five-cylinder engine?