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Recharge Wrap-up: Chevy teases Bolt driving range, China pursues EV subsidy cheaters

Chevy is teasing the Bolt's driving range, which it is set to reveal on Tuesday. It will certainly be able to travel more than 200 miles between charges, but the second and third digits in that value, as it stands today, are still question marks. On its Facebook page, Chevrolet is asking fans to try to guess the official range. Of course, Tesla fans have already started posting their own snide remarks in the comments. Chevy fans are certainly hoping to see the Bolt's range eclipse that of Tesla's upcoming Model 3, which the California-based automaker puts at 215 miles. See Chevy's post on Facebook to make your own guess, or check back there (or here at AutoblogGreen) for the official number once it is unveiled. Fuel cell company PowerCell Sweden says it has signed an agreement with a Chinese company to make range extenders for commercial trucks. The unnamed Chinese customer has placed an order and signed a memorandum of understanding with PowerCell Sweden, and the partners will develop methanol reformer fuel cell range extenders for electric distribution trucks. "Our unique expertise in fuel cells and reformer technology is receiving an increasing attention worldwide and we are truly pleased to get another Chinese order," says PowerCell Sweden Sales Director Andreas Boden. Read more at Green Car Congress, or from PowerCell. China is accusing major automakers of violating EV subsidy rules. After the country's Ministry of Finance penalized five companies with fines and, in one case, revocation of production license for subsidy cheats, China has since named 20 more potential violators, including Nissan, Hyundai, JAC, and a subsidiary of BYD. Of the first five companies to be punished under the investigation, Suzhou Gemsea Coach Manufacturing is having its production license revoked, while four others, including a subsidiary of Chery, are being fined for about half of the subsidies received. The scandal is bad new for China's subsidy program, which has helped spur sales of plug-in vehicles. Read more from Fortune, or at Hybrid Cars.

First peek inside Hyundai's hybrid Prius fighter

There are two new vehicle rumors that the auto industry can't seem to get enough of these days: "Tesla fighters" and "Prius fighters." The former category is filled up by Porsche and Audi and more. In the ranks of those who want to take on the world's best-selling hybrid, we can add Hyundai, but this time with a potential twist. First, let's take a look at the latest spy shots of the potentially 2017 model year gas-electric hybrid, including our first look inside. This car will be based on the next-generation Elantra that is also supposed to arrive in 2017. Rumor has it that a medium-sized lithium-polymer battery pack could offer 38 electric miles before the 1.6-liter engine takes over. The new hybrid will likely have a new name and could appear at an auto show at some point in 2016. We've seen other versions of this Prius fighter disguised in different camo. If you'd like to compare the vehicles, you can do so here and here (the latter shows modified Elantra GTs). Now, what about that twist? Well, alongside the standard gas-electric vehicle, it appears that Hyundai might also be working on an all-electric version of its "Prius fighter." Wearing the "AE" moniker, the all-electric version isn't guaranteed to arrive when the gas-electric car does, and may show up later, according to Green Car Reports. This all fits with Hyundai's promise, in 2014, to introduce a new all-electric car for the US market. We won't be surprised if it has wireless charging, too.

2019 Subaru Ascent, 2019 Hyundai Santa Fe earn highest IIHS safety ratings

Two important crossovers introduced this year, the 2019 Hyundai Santa Fe and 2019 Subaru Ascent, have finally been crash tested by the IIHS, with both receiving a Top Safety Pick+ rating. Both crossovers earned the highest score of "Good" in every crash test, including the tricky passenger small overlap frontal test. Each comes with forward collision prevention technology that adequately warns the driver, and can bring the car to a complete stop before hitting an object at speeds up to 25 mph. View 72 Photos One of the other key tests to merit the Top Safety Pick+ award is headlight performance. In this case, each gets a "Good" rating to earn the award, but there's a caveat. Only high-end versions of each vehicle have highly rated lights. On the Subaru Ascent, the "Good" headlights are LED units on the Limited and Touring trims, and the Hyundai's are LED units that come with the Limited and Ultimate trims. The lower trim levels of both vehicles come with halogen headlights. The Ascent's halogens were rated "Poor" for not providing enough illumination while also causing glare for oncoming drivers, while the Santa Fe's lights were rated "Marginal," the next highest rating from bottom, for simply not illuminating enough, but they didn't cause glare. View 65 Photos While this doesn't apply to a Top Safety Pick+ rating, the Subaru Ascent has one additional commendation. The IIHS also evaluates how easy it is to access LATCH anchors for mounting child seats in a car, as well as how many there are. In this case, the three-row, family-friendly Subaru received the "Good" rating and a "+" for having extra anchors for more placement flexibility. The two-row Santa Fe just received an "Acceptable" rating in this regard, the second highest rating from IIHS. Related Video: