While some electric vehicle companies are floundering, AMP Electric Vehicles has just been cleared by the IRS to give a federal tax credit to its customers. 

With the prices of gas steadily increasing, the timing of AMP’s qualification is right on point. Jim Taylor, AMP CEO says “Given the recent increase in gas prices and the low operating cost of an EV, more buyers are turning their attention to EV alternatives.”

Buyers of AMP’s electric vehicles can now get up to $7,500 off in federal tax credits, and additional tax credits of up to $5,000 are also available depending on your state.

AMP provides all-electric versions of Jeep Grand Cherokees and Mercedes-Benz MLs. With the tax credits, it means that buyers could get into an AMP EV for $49,000.

The vehicles both claim a range of at least 80 miles on a single charge, and still boast the same cargo space and passenger room as the standard gas variants, even with the batteries.

With the EV-Everywhere initiative, President Obama is looking to spur the creative minds of business men, engineers and scientists across the country to make electric vehicles more affordable to own and drive in the next 10 years.

One of the biggest challenges pressing car makers and buyers today is the price of gas. President Obama’s latest EV pushing strategy is meant to help the American public from having to rely on gas powered vehicles. The goal of the project is to have 5-passenger affordable American electric vehicles that will pay themselves off in five years or less and be capable of getting the average American to and from work without worrying about range. Obama said he would like to see these five vehicles on the road by the year 2022.

“The EV-Everywhere Challenge is focused on advancing electric vehicle technologies and continuing to reduce costs, so that a decade from now, electric vehicles will be more affordable and convenient to own than today’s gasoline-powered vehicles,” Secretary Chu said yesterday at an event at a Daimler Truck factory in Mt. Holly, N.C.

The initiative will bring together the ideas from several offices at the Department of Energy and aims to find ways to bring down costs of the various parts of electric vehicles.

This process will involve reaching out to Universities, laboratories and businesses. Additionally, to recruit more bright minds, workshops called EVerywhere will take place across the country in the next few months.

The EV-Everywhere challenge is the second challenge issued by the Department of Energy as part of their “Grand Challenges” model. Their last challenge involved finding a way to make solar power directly cost-competitive with electricity from fossil fuels by the end of the decade. More challenges are expected over the next few months to find better ways to harness clean energy.

Hyundai has released a lone photo of its new i-Oniq concept car, a vehicle that showcases the next generation of the Korean automaker’s styling and fuel-efficient technology.

With a big commitment to 40 mpg gasoline engines and a modest push with conventional hybrids, the i-Oniq is a range-extended electric car, along the lines of the Chevy Volt. Using a 1.0-liter 3-cylinder gasoline engine mated to an electric motor and lithium ion battery pack, power is rated at a models 109 hp. Hyundai claims a zero-emissions range of 120 km (75 miles) with a total range of 700 km (435 miles) once the gasoline engine kicks in.

Outside it’s a sportbrake-styled coupe roughly the length of a Hyundai Elantra and inside there’s space for four.

“The i-oniq concept has been created to reflect the new thinking that runs through the Hyundai brand,” says Allan Rushforth, Senior Vice President and COO of Hyundai Motor Europe. “It has a bold design, inside and out, that provokes contemplation on the future of automotive possibilities, and a powertrain that highlights one of the ways in which we could power future products – wrapped in a package that exudes premium qualities.”

Look for more on the i-Oniq concept with its world premiere scheduled for the Geneva Motor Show next week.

The dawn of a new era is upon us with electric vehicle charging and it appears that Swedish automaker Volvo wants to help streamline the recharging process for owners out in public looking for juice for their EV. The project, titled Electric Vehicle Intelligent Infra Structure (ELVIIS) is being kicked off with the help of Ericsson, Göteborg Energi, and the Viktoria Institute.

The goal of the project is to make EVs rechargeable at any outlet with the owner of the car automatically getting billed for the energy usage. Currently, the ELVIIS project will help direct owners to an outlet via GPS where they can preset charge times through their vehicle’s infotainment system or a mobile device like a smartphone. The vehicle can then communicate with the respective utility company to help minimize grid usage for lower electrical rates. Through the wonders of technology, the vehicle’s owner would then have the energy used charged on their own electrical bill.

Volvo is lending a helping hand with five C30 Electrics as demo vehicles, all of which are equipped with a new 7-inch touchscreen in the dash. The team will monitor and evaluate the project over this year and it will be interesting to see if this sort of integration makes its way to production models.

Watch the video after the break.

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There’s not a lot of mystery in the auto industry. Automakers release info on cars before they debut, and with leaked info and spy photos, even then, there’s often little that’s unknown about a new model before it arrives.

And then there’s this… a mysterious German electric vehicle spotted testing in Northern Europe. In fact, we wouldn’t even know it was an EV were it not for the stickers declaring so on the side of the car (a safety precaution mandated to make first responders aware in case of an emergency). The fact that the sticker says “electric vehicle” in German seems to indicate the car’s country of origin.

Styling of the car looks like something almost classic, like a Morgan or Weismann, while we’ll admit there’s a bit of French design flare here as well. The most likely option, however, is that it’s a new model by Smart. Of note, the body placed on this vehicle is certainly misleading, as the rear fenders appear to be almost a foot wider than the car, with the wheels recessed significantly.

Out spy photographers have reported that the test was very secretive, with the car taking just one lap of a test track before being hidden away.

Think you know what it is? Leave your comments below.

GALLERY: Mystery German EV

When you’ve got a vehicle that’s as hyped as Tesla‘s Model S, you need to keep interest alive, especially if you’re pushing the boundaries of automotive technology and looking to recoup at least some of your investment.

The all-electric Model S, which aims to deliver a 0-60 mph time of around 5.6 seconds, a top speed of 125 mph and a range of up to 300 miles, has witnessed a long gestation period, though Tesla says it plans to have the car, which will be built at the old NUMMI plant in Freemont, California, on sale by this summer.

In the meantime, in order to try and keep the Model S the hot topic of conversation, Tesla has released this video, in which designer Franz von Holhausen and sales supremo George Blankenship discuss the merits of the all-electric, high performance sedan.

Tesla says the car will have a base retail price of $57,400 (before tax credits) and will come with a choice of three different battery systems  (40 kw/h for a 160 mile range, 60 kw/h for 230 miles and the 85 kw/h 300 mile range topper), plus four different trim levels, Model S, Model S Performance, Signature and Signature Performance (the latter three including such features as air suspension and Nappa leather trimmed interiors).

Whether or not the Tesla Model S will actually live up to the hype remains to be seen, nonetheless, the company is doing what it can to ensure that when the first cars are eventually delivered, they don’t end up suffering from the DeLorean syndrome.

Click here to watch the Tesla Model S video.

[Source: 2012: The Year of Model S from Tesla Motors on Vimeo.]

It’s true. Whereas many of us in North America and Western Europe particularly, are finding it tough to embrace EVs; preferring Hybrids when it comes to green motoring, in China, the opposite is true.

The world’s largest auto market is experiencing growing pains, namely heft increases in air pollution and congestion over the last three decades. As a result, in an attempt to combat the problem, the Chinese government has introduced fairly significant incentives for those consumers that purchase a car that doesn’t run purely on gasoline or diesel.

Last year, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, some 2,713 Hybrids were sold in China, out of a total of some 14.5 million cars and trucks. Yet EV sales were around double the Hybrid total; 5,655 units to be exact.

Although that number is still very small, it’s a sign that Chinese consumers are clearly showing a preference for EVs over hybrids and could predict future mobility trends in the country.

In fact, analysts at Pike Research believe that the Asia-Pacific region, driven largely by China, will become number one in sales for EVs, outpacing demand in the US. Projections for 2017 estimate a total 617,000 EVs will be sold in that part of world, which is more than double the number expected in America.

And as for the reason why, it’s largely believed that Asian preference for EVs over Hybrids is driven by the fact that in many households, electric mopeds and scooters are already common, making the step toward electric four-wheeled vehicles a fairly logical one. This contrasts sharply with the Western world where limited range and charging times are seen as a reduction in mobility, especially after decades of relying on internal combustion engines for personal transportation.

After a half a decade of build-up, sales of the Chevrolet Volt are not going as planned. With a targeted goal of moving 10,000 units in its first full year on sale GM moved 7,671, leading to speculation that the American auto giant won’t be able to meet its lofty forecast for 60,000 sales in 2012.

Further casting doubt upon the success of the Volt is the fact that the rival Nissan Leaf (a fully electric vehicle), met its 10,000 unit sales target, despite the fact that (as GM’s Volt commercials accurately point out), the Volt is better suited to the needs of vastly more American consumers.

With a now-resolved crisis over the cars that could catch fire, GM is facing another roadblock, it’s dealers. According to a new report by Automotive News, Chevy dealers across the country are rejecting mass-allocations of Volts. In New York City GM offered 104 Volts to its 14 local dealers last month. Dealers only took 31.

Even dealers that have had no problem selling their Volt inventory in the past are now being cautions. Brett Hedrick, of Hedrick’s Chevrolet in Clovis, Calif., said he’s turned down offers by GM the past two months.

The news of low dealer orders has been confirmed by GM PR rep Rob Peterson, citing the misinformation surrounding the car’s recent safety concerns. Still, according to GM North America President Mark Reuss, supply, rather than demand, is the automaker’s biggest problem.

[Source: Automotive News]

Coda Automotive, known for their upcoming sedan electric vehicle, has expanded their business by announcing a new venture called Coda Energy. The spinoff business unit will specialize in building stationary energy storage systems.

All the knowledge gained by Coda while designing and developing lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles has lead them directly into the grid storage energy world, which has become quite common amongst battery manufacturers. Both A123 Systems and BYD have been known to design systems for both industries, helping to curb production costs while bringing scalability to their operations. Nissan and General Motors have also announced their intentions to repurpose used EV batteries for grid storage.

Coda Automotive is expected to have their sedan EV on the market sometime soon in California, offering a 150-mile range vehicle for under $40,000 and a 125-mile range vehicle for around $37,250 – both prices before a $7,500 federal tax credit and state incentives. Either way, we are continually impressed by the number of projects that are out there, to store energy.

[Source: CNet]

After every auto show there’s normally a lull in new product news as media and PR folks alike decompress. That won’t be the case with this year’s Chicago Auto Show, however, with the reveal of electric car maker Tesla’s new crossover the day after the Chi-town press day.

The reveal won’t be anywhere near Chicago either with Tesla announcing yesterday it would reveal the new Model X at its Design Studio in California. The new model is expected to sit on a modified version of the same platform used for the Model S electric luxury sedan and make use of similar powertrains.

Tesla recently announced pricing for the Model S, which will start at 49,900 after a federal tax rebate. The top Signature package will retail for $69,900 after tax incentives and will deliver a 300 mile range plus a 0-60 time of just 4.4 seconds.

The fuel wars are heating up as automakers search for new ways to squeeze more mileage out of their cars. While some might take this chance to preach doom and gloom for future cars, Chrysler-Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne isn’t ready to call the Road Warrior just yet.

Some companies are turning to electric vehicles, others to extended-range hybrids. Yet another school of thought is turning to diesel engines to meet mounting expectations for fuel consumption. In the face of what seems like a trembling industry, unsure of what the next revolution will be, Marchionne stands strong.

“I believe in our industry’s ability to find solutions. Even with traditional combustion engines, we have only skimmed the surface of the ability to squeeze out higher fuel efficiency levels, allowing us to extract much more power out of smaller displacements,” Marchionne said during an appearance at the Automotive News World Congress.

For the time being, he is determined that diesel engines will remain reserved for larger cars, like the Jeep Grand Cherokee (pictured above), which Chrysler will begin assembling in Detroit early next year. Diesel engines, despite their shrinking stigma, are still a minority consideration in the overall U.S. market. We really like some of the small car diesel variants to pop up recently. For example, Mazda will offer a diesel version of their Mazda6 sedan in 2013, as will Chevrolet with the Cruze.

Despite that, Marchionne is hanging onto the gasoline engine and hoping cars like their recently unveiled Dodge Dart will tackle the small car market and capture young consumer imaginations. Critics of his stubborn resolve might want to hold their opinions for now, considering the about face Marchionne championed since 2009, taking Chrysler from near-ruin to respectable territory.

“Fiat and Chrysler come from two different pasts, but they have something very strong in common,” said Marchionne. “Both have been to hell and back.”

GALLERY: 2013 Jeep Grand Cherokee Diesel

[Source: The Detroit Bureau]

It’s not intended for production, but rather showcases just what possibilities are out there when it comes to Volkswagen‘s best loved car. The new 2012 Beetle is proving that interest in the iconic Bug is still strong, so given the current trend towards EVs, why not have some fun and make a sporty, zero emissions concept out of it.

Although not a true roadster (the roof is fixed), the E-Bugster lends a feeling of fun and intimacy due to its two-seat cabin, cropped windshield and swoopy roof, which does actually look like a removable hardtop.

As it’s name suggests, the E-Bugster relies on pure electric power for motivation, in this case an 85 kW (114 hp) electric motor and lithium-ion battery pack. Projected range is over 100 miles according to VW, while three charging options are available.

Level 1 operates off a standard household 120-volt system, Level 2, off 240 volts and Level 3 is a quick charge setup. For the latter, VW says that around 80 percent of battery capacity can be restored in 30 minutes. Inside VW has fitted EV specific gauges to monitor charge and and driving range, as well as the intensity of battery power generation.

The electric drive system in the E-Bugster, dubbed Blue-e-Motion by Volkswagen, will probably pop again in the near future, as it’s slated to be fitted in an upcoming version of the bread and butter Golf Hatchback. And who knows, depending on its success in the marketplace, perhaps we’ll see another E-Bugster a few years from now, one you’ll be able to actually lease or buy.

GALLERY: Volkswagen E-Bugster Concept

5. 2012 Mazda3 Skyactiv

What’s the best car of 2012? Who knows. Is a Porsche GT3 RS 4.0 better than a Ferrari 458 Italia? What about the Scion FR-S? Or a Prius Plug-in Hybrid? The past year has seen the launch of numerous excellent vehicles, including some we really didn’t expect to be any good. That said, we’ve put together our list of the top five surprisingly good cars of 2012, starting with the updated Mazda3.

We thoroughly enjoyed the new 3 (read our 2012 Mazda3 review here), something that’s not at all surprising at first. What is more of a shock is that it was Mazda’s new Skyactiv model, designed primarily for fuel economy, and that it managed to deliver in that department while sticking true to the brand’s Zoom-Zoom slogan.

Adding to our reasons for placing this car on our list of surprisingly good cars is the technology behind it. At both a preview event and the actual drive, Mazda gave us a deep-dive into the engineering solutions behind its new SkyActiv technologies, rethinking every aspect of the engine and transmission for this updated model. When Ford sold off its shares in Mazda recently many skeptics proclaimed that in this new era a smaller company like Mazda couldn’t possibly hope to be competitive without a large partner like, say, Toyota. But Mazda has proved them wrong, not only competing, but perhaps delivering the the only 40 mpg car that’s actually fun to drive.

The new year is rapidly approaching and with it a host of new vehicles begging to be driven are sitting in dealer lots waiting to wow shoppers. When it comes to new cars, those shoppers often expect more for less as new models hit the showroom, but that wont be the case for electric vehicles like the Nissan Leaf (pictured above).

Next year the government is removing three of the four subsidies available to consumers as incentives to adopt the new technology. The fourth, and arguably most important, will remain in the coming year. A total of $8,500 in tax incentives will get the ax as the ball drops in Times Square, which represents more than half of the total $16,000 in incentives offered this year. Consumers buying EVs next year won’t enjoy this year’s $1,000 maximum to install a home charging station, $2,500 maximum for two- or three-wheeled EVs with 2.5-kWh batteries or larger and the $4,000 maximum for converting either a hybrid to plug-in or a regular ICE to EV power.

People purchasing EVs will still be eligible to receive up to $7,500 in tax credits for buying a new plug-in vehicle, though the subsidy depends on the size of the battery in the vehicle. These incentives are meant to boost the number of EVs sold and will be phased out on a per-manufacturer basis once the individual automakers sell more than 200,000 plug-ins.

It might be good to act before the new year if you’ve been planning on cashing in with those incentives, but don’t worry about losing out on the $7,500 credit that will remain. The 200,000 vehicle figure isn’t likely to be hit any time soon thanks to low selection and relatively high prices for EVs with or without bonuses.

[Source: AutoBlog]

10. Fiat Returns to America

As another calendar year draws to a close it’s time to take a look back at the top 10 biggest stories of the year in the auto industry. It’s been a busy 12 months, starting all the way back in March when the Fiat 500 officially went on sale, marking the return of the brand to America. The last time an Italian car was sold here that didn’t cost six figures (or close to it) was 27 years ago. Since then, Fiat has introduced the 500C convertible model and most recently the Fiat 500 Abarth, aimed at enthusiasts.

The jury is still out on the Fiat brand’s success in North America, although the first year has failed to live up to expectations, with Fiat predicting sales of 50,000 units, while according to automotive data firm GoodCarBadCar only 17,444 have been sold in the first 11 months of the year (add 5,000 more if you include Canada). Some of this may be the result of Fiat’s marketing initiative with several ads featuring Jenifer Lopez, which the Fiat faithful rejected and many believe cost the brand boss Laura Souve her job. Getting the Fiat dealer network up and running also proved a challenge.

With more models coming, and Alfa Romeo set to return in 2013, Fiat is here to say. More importantly, perhaps, is the Fiat connection to Chrysler – a company it saved from bankruptcy and which it is now slowly rebuilding back into a profitable automaker.

Following in IKEA’s eco-footsteps, Kolh’s is the latest store to add EV charging stations in its parking lots.

The department store will be adding electric vehicle charging stations to 33 Kohl’s locations throughout the U.S. Each of the stores will be setting aside one to four spots for EV drivers to recharge while they shop – at no extra charge. To charge up, EV drivers need to ask for a radio frequency identification card from the Kohl’s customer service desk or call a phone number provided on the charging station.

Partnering with ECOtality Inc. and Coulomb Technologies, these EV charging stations are part of an infrastructure pilot program funded partially through the U.S. Department of Energy.

“Kohl’s pilot of electric vehicle charging stations demonstrates our commitment to advancing environmental solutions in a meaningful and tangible way for our customers,” said John Worthington, Kohl’s chief administrative officer. “Not only are these stations an added shopper convenience, they also encourage environmental responsibility among our shoppers. We will continue to explore additional locations to pilot charging stations at our stores nationwide.”

You can expect to see these EV charging stations at Kolh’s stores in Arizona, California, Florida, Maryland, Michigan, New York, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Washington.

After confirming that the EV-STER Concept was making its way into production, it appears now that Honda‘s concept may not be an electric vehicle at all. We already knew that Honda CEO Takanobu Ito already hinted at the possibility of both standard gasoline and electric powertrains for the EV-STER Concept, and now we have reason to believe that the gasoline variant may see the light of day before the electric one does.

The EV-STER has a layout perfect for an engine to be housed right behind the seats, making it a mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive replacement for the popular but now discontinued Honda S2000. Unfortunately no one still has any reports of which powerplant is even on Honda’s radar to use in the EV-STER, but now we’re really hoping for a S2000 replacement from the EV-STER.

GALLERY: Honda EV-STER Concept

[Source: Motor Trend]

The Big three do some things really, really well: like building pickup trucks that turn construction guys giddy. While each company has had their fair share of foibles over the past decade they’ve managed to stay more-or-less true to themselves.

That’s why you might be really surprised to find out that Chrysler announced plans today to deliver ten plug-in electric hybrid (PHEV) Dodge Ram 1500s to DTE Energy of Detroit.

Many members of the truck community would probably snort at the idea of marrying hybrid technology with their go-to workhorse, but Chrysler isn’t convinced it’s such a bad idea. So far they have distributed a total of more than 100 test vehicles throughout U.S. cities with the intent to gather market research.

“Cities have been carefully selected to help the Chrysler Group LLC collect a wide range of data,” said Abdullah Bazzi, senior manager of Chrysler’s advanced hybrid vehicle project.

Chrysler maintains that this is strictly a test program for now with no plans for production versions of the trucks in the future, but the trucks will driven over the next three years to evaluate several factors that the company will use.

They plan to test charging performance, real-world performance, city drive cycles and fuel economy. Just because there’s hybrid technology on board, don’t assume these trucks are packing less of a punch. They have the option to run in four or two-wheel drive to save fuel but you’ll find a plenty-potent 5.7-liter Hemi under the hood.

The project, funded both by Chrysler and the Department of Energy, is also developing a similar fleet of 25 PHEV Town & Country minivans.

Ford will significantly expand its lineup of 40 mpg or better models in 2012, launching not only the new C-Max Hybrid and Energi plug-in hybrid, but also the new Focus Electric.

The Focus EV, says Ford, is expected to achieve a miles per gallon equivalent (mpge) rating of 100, besting the Nissan Leaf by a single digit. This would make it the most efficient model available in the US, were it not for the 126 mpge Mitsubishi i.

As a result of these new offerings, Ford says almost one third of its lineup now has a 40 mpg or higher model.

In addition, giving the Focus Electric an edge on the competition is a new charging system that allows the battery to be recharged in half the time of the Nissan Leaf, using a 240 volt outlet. Ford says this works out to roughly 30 miles per hour of charging.

The Focus Electric will get a new MyFord Touch system designed to work with electric vehicles and provide more information for drivers. In addition, a MyFord Mobile app will allow owners to charge their vehicle remotely and check on battery life, state-of-charge and more.

In addition to it’s eco-friendly nature, Ford is touting the Focus EV as a livable 5-seater, with “real driving enjoyment”.

At launch, the Focus Electric will be available in just California and the New York/New Jersey areas, and later in 2012 Ford will expand the launch markets to include: Atlanta; Austin and Houston, Texas; Boston; Chicago; Denver; Detroit; Los Angeles; San Francisco; San Diego; New York; Orlando, Fla.; Phoenix and Tucson, Ariz.; Portland, Ore.; Raleigh-Durham, N.C.; Richmond, Va.; Seattle; and Washington, D.C.

GALLERY: Ford Focus Electric

Last week we brought you a story about Aperta employees boorishly smashing the remaining shells of their 2e electric vehicle, including quotes from their disgruntled former CEO, Steve Fambro. You may wonder how things went so wrong.

If you haven’t been following the Aptera saga, or if you don’t know what Aptera is, this is a good time to jump in.

Rewind to 2006 where founders Steve Fambro and Chris Anthony found a company called Aptera with the intent to build and sell super-efficient electric vehicles. They planned to take advantage of a program offered by the Department of Energy by which companies could take over abandoned factories and enjoy low-interest loans if they made vehicles 25 percent more efficient than those they would replace.

Aptera had a funky three-wheeled car in mind that looked a lot like a tear drop made out of plastic composite. In September of 2008 Fambro found himself on the outside of the company, replaced as CEO by Paul Wilbur.

By December, Aptera’s application for money from the DoE had been submitted and promptly rejected— three-wheeled cars apparently didn’t qualify.

Over the next two years Tesla and Fisker both recieve hundreds of millions of dollars in DoE funding, and three wheel cars are provisioned for subsidy by the DoE.

In 2010 Aptera re-applies and was denied funding again, this time becuause the DoE says they cannot pay back capital costs for the company.

Shortly afterwards, the company re-allocated their remaining resources to developing a four-wheeled sedan that had a better chance of catching on.

At this point the DoE committed $150 million in loans on the condition that the company also secure $80 million in private funding. That proved to be too much. Aptera simply couldn’t find investors to pour money into their company after another operation failed to get funding because of their similar plastic composite bodies.

By early December of this year the company had run out of cash and needed to shut down. They decided to execute the close early enough to distribute remaining cash reserves among their employees as severance.

In an interview with Green Car Reports, Wilbur admitted that they spent too much time chasing DoE finding and that a better path would have been to look for private money from the beginning. The DoE, he said, took far too long to yield any money for Aptera to stay afloat.

[Source: Green Car Reports]

Maybe the staff at Aptera watched the printer-smashing scene in Office Space too many times and felt like taking some frustration out on inanimate objects.

Whatever their reason the video footage of their antics is creating a stir. Last Sunday we reported that Aptera, the environmentally focused startup responsible for building funky-looking 3-wheeled EVs would cease to exist. They had no choice but to shut their doors after failing to find investors willing to match a $150 million Department of Energy loan offer.

Had they succeeded, Fox News reported that the company was aiming to market a family sedan similar in size to the Toyota Camry.

Aptera co-founder and former Chief Technical Officer Steve Fambro expressed his dismay on the Aptera forum yesterday, saying These were beautiful, fully functioning vehicles.” He went on to say that there was ”no viable or logical reason for this to have been done, only to prevent the founder from ever seeing their functioning [cars] work again.”

Fambro left the company in 2009 after a failed coup attempt aimed according to him at trying to save the company “from team B’s failed path of waiting for the DOE.”

The videos feature unnamed employees destroying what looks like body shells of the raindrop-like 2e. You can watch them below.

The star attraction of Honda’s Tokyo Motor Show press conference is an all-new electric sports car concept. Initially billed as the Small Sports EV Concept, at it’s debut Honda is now referring to the car as the EV-STER.

The rear wheel drive two seater looks like a spiritual successor to the Beat sporty car. Measuring 3,570 mm or 140 inches it’s about two feet shorter than the Honda S2000. With a max electric output of 58 kW (or 78 hp) Honda claims a 0-60 time in 5.0 seconds. Sound too good to be true? It is. That’s 0-60 km/h, not miles.

Honda claims a 160 km (100 mile) range, roughly equivalent to its new Fit EV, with a 6 hour charge using a conventional plug and a 3 hour charge time with a 200 volt outlet.

GALLERY: Honda EV-STER

See video of the car below:

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One of Honda‘s numerous reveals today at the Tokyo Motor Show is a wild little concept car referred to as the “Micro Commuter Concept.” An EV designed for personal transportation it is a half-foot shorter in length than a Smart fortwo, but offers room for three thanks to a central diving position with a passenger bench area located behind.

The interior space can also be used to fit the Honda Motor Compo, an almost briefcase-sized box with wheels and handlebars that essentially works as an electric bicycle. It’s more than just that, however, also functioning as an electric power source.

Other features of the Micro Commuter Concept include a large heads-up display, with driver information projected onto the lower section of the windshield. As for operation, Honda has designed what it calls “twin lever steering” that is says uses natural arm movements to control direction. The body of the car covers over the wheels, both for safety and aerodynamics, while colorful panels can easily be swapped with others to help personalize the car.

GALLERY: Honda Micro Commuter Car Concept