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Nissan Leaf sales get January jump as Chevy Volt trends downward

The cold January sales dip hit both the Nissan Leaf and the Chevy Volt last month, but when compared 2014 to 2013's first-month-of-the-year sales totals, one of the two early plug-in vehicles obviously came out on top. The top Leaf market also shifted away from Atlanta for the first time in months. Last year, the Leaf sold just 650 units in January, but it managed to move 1,252 last month, a 92.6-percent increase over 2013 but a big drop from the 2,529 sold in December 2013. Paige Presley over at Nissan told AutoblogGreen that the Leaf has now broken sales records for 11 months straight and that, "we see unique seasonality with some December pull-ahead demand based on federal and state tax incentives." The number one Leaf market also shifted away from Atlanta for the first time in months, moving back to San Francisco. That change could be short-lived. "We had some inventory constraint issues early in the month in Atlanta with end-of-year demand depleting stock," Presley said. "By the time we resolved that, the weather hampered sales." There was not as much good news on the Chevrolet front. Last month, the Volt sold 918 units, down from 1,140 in January 2013 and 2,392 in December 2013. It also marks the first time the Volt has sold in the three-digit range since January 2012, when it sold 603 copies. That string of solid months means that the plug-in hybrid has a roughly 12,000-unit lead over the EV since the two cars brought plug-in vehicles back to the mass market all the way back in December 2010. We will have our full report of January's green car sales up soon.

Plug In 2014: VIA makes the case for 'free' plug-in hybrid work vans, trucks

If you're a fleet manager who's been waiting anxiously for the chance to buy a plug-in hybrid van from Via Motors, your wait is almost over. If you work for the right fleet, anyway. David West, the chief marketing efficer for VIA Motors, took AutoblogGreen for a ride around the San Jose Convention Center in a Via van sporting an Electric Blue paint job as part of the Plug In 2014 Conference this week and gave us an update on how things are coming along. The big news is that the Via PHEV van production is going to start by the end of September. Via can currently build two vans an hour at its production plant in Mexico, or about 16 a day and could easily double that. "That would get us to 20,000 a year with two full lines running," West said. "We have the capacity." "There is no way gas can compete with electric." – David West, Via Motors But they can't sell that many quite yet. By the end of December, around 350 Vans will be made, mostly for a $20-million program from the Department of Energy (DOE) and the South Coast Air Quality Management District that will see the vehicles used by fleets that will report energy data to the Idaho National Lab. Via is also finishing up CARB certification for both the van and the company's plug-in hybrid pick-up truck. About 50 percent of Via's technology in the truck will not need to be tested again, since it's the same as what's in the van, but things like crash tests will need to be done twice. Despite the progress, this is not where Via hoped it would be today. The bankruptcy of battery supplier A123, "took about a year off our timeline," West said. "It's been getting a little slow getting it to market, there have been some challenges, particuarly since we had the country's worst recession right in the middle of this wrap up, but it's inevitable in my mind. There is no way gas can compete with electric." Maybe that's why FedEx has expressed an interest in buying around 5,000 units, West said. FedEx already has some pilot vehicles, just like Verizon does, and PG&E wants to replace all of their gas trucks with electric vehicles, which would be another 3,000 sales, he said. Besides the fuel savings, vehicles like these, with easy on-site power generation, could also work wonders in post-disaster situations, he said, since they could replace the need for generators.

2019 Chevy Blazer vs Honda Passport, other midsize crossovers: How they compare

The two-row midsize crossover market is a sizable one that just keeps growing. The two newest additions being the 2019 Chevy Blazer and the 2019 Honda Passport, additions we just recently drove. As such, it seemed like a good time to see how their numbers compare with the veterans of the segment: Ford Edge, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Hyundai Santa Fe and Nissan Murano. In this comparison to see where it lands in the numbers game, we'll take a look at everything including power, torque, towing, ground clearance, passenger room, cargo space, fuel economy and pricing. Cue the chart. Powertrain The Passport only has one engine option, Honda's trusty 3.5-liter V6. You can find this engine in both the Pilot and Ridgeline, and we like it in all its applications. But if you're looking for something more affordable or more frugal, you're out of luck. The Passport is one of just two that offer just one engine option. Most of the others have two choices, and Jeep even offers three. Compared with similar engine options, the Passport is pretty middling. The Ford Edge ST's turbo V6 makes the most power and torque at 335 ponies and 380 pound-feet. Next up is the Blazer, the only other to break 300 horsepower, and then the 295-horsepower Grand Cherokee. The Passport does beat the V6 Murano and the turbocharged Santa Fe, though. 2019 Chevrolet Blazer View 37 Photos For vehicles with smaller engines, the Edge wins again with its 250-horsepower turbocharged four-cylinder. The Chevy Blazer is next, but at 193 horsepower, it's barely ahead of the 185-horsepower Santa Fe. The Jeep Grand Cherokee has a couple of powertrain aces, though. It's the only vehicle available with a V8, and it makes an impressive 360 horsepower and 390 pound-feet of torque. There's even a turbodiesel model with 240 horsepower and 420 pound-feet of torque, the most twist of the group. The Grand Cherokee is also the choice if you want to tow much. The V6 models will pull 6,200 pounds, and the V8 and diesel can handle 7,200 pounds. Add 200 more pounds to the diesel if it only has rear drive. 2019 Honda Passport View 19 Photos When it comes to fuel economy, the front-drive four-cylinder Edge and Santa Fe are tied for the best, with the all-wheel-drive Edge getting one more mpg on the all-wheel-drive Santa Fe on the highway. The Murano comes up next.