2024 Nissan Frontier S on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Prince Charles tours Nissan Leaf plant in Sunderland, UK

Environmental sustainability and job training. Those are two of the issues the UK's Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, has long supported. And that's why the king-to-be paid a visit to Nissan's Sunderland plant earlier this week. As shows in a two-minute video from Broadcast Exchange, Prince Charles took a tour of the plant, checking out the production line while conferring with the young (and slightly star-struck) students there who were learning a thing or two about building a car, electric Nissan style. The Sunderland plant is located about 285 miles north of London. The factory runs an apprenticeship program for budding car-builders and employs about 6,700 people. The Nissan Leaf electric vehicles built there are sold in Europe, where Leaf sales jumped 33 percent last year. Opened in 1986, the Sunderland factory broke ground on its battery-production facilities in 2010 and began producing the Leaf in the spring of 2013 after Nissan invested about $635 million upgrading the plant to handle electric-vehicle and lithium-ion battery production. Even before the EV battery production activity the Sunderland plant burnished its green credentials by installing wind turbines to help with the power supply. Prince Charles already has his credentials (sort of), thanks to a biofuel Jaguar and a wine-powered Aston Martin. Check out the video with Prince Charles below. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Nissan NV200 puts on a Bowtie as new Chevy City Express

Your eyes do not deceive you - that is, in fact, a Nissan NV200 work van with Chevrolet badging. General Motors and Nissan today announced a partnership where the Japanese automaker will build Bowtie-badged vans for Chevy dealers to sell throughout the United States and Canada. The new van, called the City Express, is expected to go on sale in the fall of 2014.
"Our fleet customers have asked us for an entry in the commercial small van segment, so this addition to the Chevrolet portfolio will strengthen our position with fleets and our commercial customers," Ed Peper, US vice president of GM fleet and commercial sales, said in a press release.
No details have been released regarding specific changes for the new City Express, though from the images released today, it's clear that the vehicle's front fascia has been reworked, and some super-sexy new wheel covers have been added. If we're honest, the NV200 wasn't all that pretty to begin with, and this, well, isn't any better. Not that looks are of primary concern in the commercial truck business, of course.

Recharge Wrap-up: BMW Next 100 video, how Nissan "tops off" battery

BMW explains the ideas behind its Vision Next 100 concept car that debuted at the Geneva Motor Show. As BMW celebrates its 100th birthday, it wants to look into the future rather than dwell on its past. This involves the digital and analog worlds working together "to create a seamless experience." Hence the "live geometry," wherein physical parts of the car move to translate digital information to the driver. The video also gets into the future of driving modes, like "Ease," for more autonomous driving, and "Boost," for when the driver wants to take control to enjoy some motoring the good, old-fashioned way. Check out the video above, and read more from Hybrid Cars. Nissan has managed to find a way to boost the range of EV batteries inspired by pouring a glass of beer. The automaker has found that after a full charge, one can wait a few minutes for subsequent "minicharges" to "top off" the battery. The voltage dips slightly, much as the foam does on a pint of beer, allowing the battery to accept some more juice. The result is an extra 0.7 percent of energy, which could mean just enough extra range to reach the next charging station. Read more from Automotive News. Hyundai has delivered its first Tucson Fuel Cell in Ontario, Canada. The lucky recipient is Joseph Cargnelli, Chief Technology Officer of Hydrogenics Corporation, a company based on hydrogen technology. The expansion into Ontario follows Hyundai's trial of six Tucson Fuel Cell vehicles in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Read more at Green Car Congress. Toyota has entered a public-private partnership to test an end-to-end hydrogen supply chain in Japan. The collaboration with the Kanagawa Prefectural Government, the municipal governments of the cities of Yokohama and Kawasaki and three private companies to create renewable hydrogen to power forklifts. It will use wind energy to electrolyze hydrogen, which will then be shipped to a factory, a vegetable and fruit market and two warehouses to be used in the fuel cell-powered vehicles. This supply chain is expected to reduce CO2 emissions by 80 percent compared to traditionally fueled forklifts. Read more from Toyota. Related Gallery BMW Vision Next 100 Concept News Source: Hybrid Cars, YouTube: BMW, Automotive News, Green Car Congress, Toyota Green BMW Hyundai Nissan Toyota Concept Cars Electric Hydrogen Cars Videos recharge wrapup