Zoomi Life

Chrysler unveiled the first four of an eventual 250 battery-powered electric minivans for the U.S. Postal Service (USPS). The vans are based on the automaker’s Town & Country EV that was shown off late last year in LA. Because they are meant for Post Office duty routes (which are relatively short range), they are being built without the accompanying range-extending motor, so they’ll be all-electric rather than plug-in hybrids.

Read More: Chrysler’s New Electric Minivan for the US Post Office

Meet the ecoF3, a race car designed by a British Team. The car is made of vegetables and it runs on chocolate. Really, no foolin.

Read More: The Chocolate-Powered, Vegetable-Built Race Car

The all-electric BYD e6 crossover vehicle debuted at the Shanghai Auto Show today. It’s a step away from the usual designs BYD has offered so far. It includes the latest technology, which BYD’s CEO showcased a few days ago, with a 100% recyclable battery and can recharge to 50% in ten minutes.

Read More: Shanghai Auto Show: The BYD e6 Crossover Unveiled

FEV proposed the Wankel Rotary Engine as a range-extender solution at this year’s SAE conference. The issues of repeated starting and engine vibration are becoming paramount in plug-in hybrid maker’s minds. Efficiency, quiet operation, and the ability to stand up to repeated starting are important to the overall comfort and long-term operation of a PHEV.

Read More: FEV Proposes Wankel Rotary Engine as a Range Extender

Adura Systems, a Silicon Valley startup, has announced that their new MESA powertrain architecture is more efficient than a Smart ForTwo. That’s the gist of the buzz-laden press release the company put out April 20th.

Read More: Adura Systems Announces Electric Bus Powertrain With 100 Mile Range

At this year’s Shell Eco-Marathon Americas, the winning prototype won with an astounding 2,757.1 miles per gallon. Want to know something even more amazing? That’s not a world record for the event…

This year, 40 teams and 500 people competed to go the furthest distance on a set amount of fuel. The winner this year was the Alerion Supermileage team from Laval University (Quebec, Canada). They took home the $5,000 grand prize with the NTF 3.0. That was in the Combustion Engine category.

Read More: Top Prototype at Shell Eco-Marathon Americas Gets 2,757.1mpg!

Henry Ford’s great-great-granddaughter will be auctioning off a Ford Fusion Hybrid next month at a charity benefit for Heal the Bay. The environmental organization focuses on improving coastal water bodies in Southern California and is holding a fund-raising auction on May 28 during its Bring Back the Beach gala.

Read More: Elena Ford to Auction Fusion Hybrid to Benefit Heal the Bay

The 2010 Prius officially goes on sale in mid-May in Japan. They expect to have pre-orders of over 40,000 units by then and have already accepted more than 20,000 with more pouring in.

Read More: Toyota Expects 40,000+ Pre-Orders on Prius

Hyundai showcased two hybrids at the Shanghai Auto Show this year: the Santa Fe and the Avante (aka Elantra). The popular gasoline versions of these vehicles will soon be available in hybrid versions. They expect to increase efficiency, fuel economy, and reduce emissions by up to 60% in each vehicle.

Read More: Shanghai Auto Show: Hyundai’s Two New Hybrids

The first of the Norwegian-spec’d Mazda RX-8 Hydrogen RE models have arrived in Norway for delivery to the government. These are the same as the Japanese test models already on the road (one of which was sent last year for Norwegian testing), except these Norwegian versions have left-hand drive and manual transmissions.

Read More: Mazda Norwegian-spec RX-8 Hydrogen RE Begins Delivery