Mercedes-Benz unveiled its second-generation B-Class at the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show along with a concept for an E-Cell version of the front-wheel drive compact sport tourer.

The new B-Class is almost two inches shorter than the previous version yet has more leg room thanks to a lowered floor. The seats are also more upright but still offer a lot of head room.

European customers will have the choice of two new gasoline and two diesel options, all with ECO start/stop. The turbocharged 1.6 liter B 180 offers 122 hp while the B 200 version offers 156 hp. The 1.8 liter diesel options include the B 180 CDI with 109 hp and the B 200 CDI with 136 hp. B-class models will come with either a 6-speed manual transmission or a new 7-speed dual clutch transmission.

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There have been hybrids on our streets for some time, and even a few fully electric vehicles. However, the Chevrolet Volt is the first mass produced plug in hybrid to be offered to the general public.

It can either drive up to 40-miles on just electric power on a full-charge, or when this power source is depleted, it will revert to its on-board gasoline engine. The idea is, the gas engine is there to get you home, just in case you run out of electricity.

The advantages of this system is proving its worth to Volt owners, like Kory Levoy. He says he used to spend up to $200 a month filling up his Audi TT, but ever since he has bought the Volt, he has filled up only three times in 7500-miles of driving.

Levoy uses his 240-volt home charger to energize the car overnight, and also charges his car at work using the portable 120-volt charger. Since his total daily commute is only 50-miles, he has more than enough battery power to make the round trip.

He is not alone, as Carey Bailey, another Volt owner is also seeing the rewards of plug-in motoring. He used to spend roughly $500 a month on gas, and now he spends about $100. Bailey says he will probably see his fuel bills drop even more with time. The Volt roughly costs $1.10 a day to fully charge.

“About two-thirds of the more than 2 million miles driven by Volt owners to date have been powered by domestically produced electricity,” said Cristi Landy, Volt marketing director. “We are hearing from owners like Kory and Carey who are able to charge both at home overnight and at work during the day. These owners are able to maximize driving on electricity alone, seeing real saving at the pump and in their wallets.”

So if you’ve been frustrated by ever rising gas prices, perhaps the Volt really is a real-world answer.

Fisker Automotive is looking to hire 120 workers at its newly refurbished Delaware plant as the company gears up for its second electric vehicle,  a sedan code-named Project Nina.

Although the Fisker Karma plug-in hybrid has still not gone on sale, Fisker is looking to hire assembly line workers as well as engineering staff and electro-mechanical technicians. A further 80 workers will be hired in 2012. Fisker acquired the Wilmington, Delaware plant from General Motors.

“This is an exciting time for Fisker. As we bring the Fisker Karma sedan to market and start delivering to customers, we are simultaneously starting to employ a world-class American workforce to build world-class American electric vehicles with extended range (EVer) in a re-commissioned American plant,” said Fisker COO Bernard Koehler.

Has BMW, the maker of the ultimate (electric) driving machines decided to follow Chevrolet’s example?

Word from Munich today is that BMW’s head of electrical components, Dr. Christian Schmidt, said it is weighing the possibility of a range-extended engine to pair to electric vehicles.

For some time now BMW has said it would consider an array of gas-plus-electric possibilities. Its fully electric i3 prototype is on one extreme, and its mildly e-boosted 7 Series ActiveHybrid is on the other.

BMW’s pending i8 (pictured) is in the middle and closer to a range-extended car. With mid-mounted petrol engine plus one electric motor driving the front wheels and one driving the rear, it can go either all-electric around town or gas-plus electric for high performance.

The extended-range Chevrolet Volt couples a gas-powered generator to pick up when limited-range batteries would leave a driver stranded, and apparently BMW is seeing the logic in GM’s engineered compromise.

Rumors and conjecture abound state that battery energy density increases will make doing away with petrol power viable for cost-effective, longer-range, quicker charging EVs. One battery researcher working for EPRI, a non-profit utility company research arm, recently estimated a conservative doubling of power in the next 10 years.

BMW’s Schmidt did not say which BMWs could receive a range extender, but said the Mini E did not receive many range anxiety complaints. If BMW decides to go with a range extender, it will be one more gas-electric solution in its growing stable of partially electric vehicles.

[Source: Autoblog]

With sales of the Honda CR-Z starting soon in North America, the new hybrid is already far exceeding its sales targets in Japan, which has Honda looking to repeat its success with another model. According to a report by Motor Trend, Honda is working on a larger hybrid coupe that would use a version of Honda’s Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) hybrid setup, mated to a 2.5-liter 4-cylinder. That engine is a solid liter larger than the one used in the current CR-Z. The car would be roughly the size of the Accord Coupe.

According to MT’s same source, the car was originally slated to use a V6 hybrid setup but that has no been down-sized. The V6 Hybrid powertrain is still being developed, however, for possible use in larger vehicles like the Honda Odyssey. In addition, Honda’s hybrid development seems to be pushing forward with big advances, with word that the company is currently testing a range-extender powertrain like the one found int he Chevy Volt.

[Source: Motor Trend]

In front of a select audience, Jaguar took the wraps off its Limo-Green Concept, a hybrid version of the company’s newly-released 2010 XJ flagship. The car will appear at the Frankfurt Auto Show starting tomorrow (September 15th).

Powered by a 145kw (195hp) and 295 ft-lb electric motor and a 1.2-liter gasoline engine (developed by Lotus), the car is capable of 30 miles under pure electric power before the gasoline engine kicks in to provide an extended range of 600 miles. Jaguar says the car is rated at 57 mpg and a top speed of 112 mph.

The Limo-Green is more than just a fanciful concept car, however, and Jaguar says it will begin testing a production model next year. Anthony Harper, head of research at Jaguar Land Rover, told the U.K.’s AutoCar that Jaguar originally began testing this Range Extender engine in the previous XJ but decided to switch to the new chassis when it debuted just a few months back.

Jaguar won’t set a date for when the Limo-Green Concept could see production and did warn that it could be a while as the parts involved are still prohibitively expensive and not quite up to Jaguar standards yet.

[Source: AutoCar]