Zoomi Life

Meet the G-3, one of three models currently offered by Global Green Cars. This one is my favorite, though I’m not sure if the cargo is included in the sale price or not. You’re looking at the most American-made small pickup truck on the market. Bar none.

Read More: Global Green Cars - Affordable American-Made Electric Vehicles

Officially opening on October 24, the Tokyo Motor Show is already getting in the news as a few participants make early announcements about what they’ll be showcasing at the East’s largest auto event. So far, interesting stuff from Suzuki, Mitsubishi, and Honda have been announced.

Read More: Tokyo Motor Show 2009: Early Announcements for Participants Are Enticing

Compared to Tesla and it’s CEO Elon Musk, Fisker and its CEO Henrick Fisker, are a quiet little company in Southern California. The two companies are often compared, or more specifically, their vehicles are often compared, though. The Karma and the Roadster are both high-end sports cars with big price tags and lots of performance. Plus tons of green cred.

Read More: Henrik Fisker Gets Candid About the Karma and the Tesla Roadster

Boston-Power, based in Westborough, Massachusetts, has announced that they will be building a 455,000 square foot facility in Auburn, Mass. The new facility will be a state-of-the-art lithium-ion battery making manufacturing plant. A federal stimulus of $100 million will be used to build the new plant in addition to $9 million from Massachusetts.

Read More: Boston-Power Gets $100M in Federal Stimulus to Build Li-Ion Manufacturing Facility

A team from Carnegie Mellon University has analyzed plug-in hybrid (PHEV) fuel consumption, cost, and emissions over a range of charging frequencies (distance between charges). The study will be fully published in an upcoming issue of Energy Policy.

Read More: Study Concludes the Obvious: Smaller PHEVs Minimize Fuel Consumption, Emissions

The Rocky Mountain Institute in Colorado is a think tank that has done many things for transforming green and energy efficient technologies to the forefront. They’ve created a new car company, called Bright Automotive, based on some of that technology, which will produce plug-in hybrids.

Read More: RMI Spins Off a New Hybrid Car Company

The Spanish car company SEAT (part of the Volkwagen Group) has released information on a new concept they’re calling the “Twin Drive Ecomotive” for a new car based on their current Leon model. The concept is basically a Plug-In Hybrid that operates in either all-electric or as a hybrid.

Read More: SEAT Introduces New “Twin Drive Ecomotive” Concept

Chinese plug-in hybrid maker BYD, maker of the recently-released F3DM Hybrid currently on sale in China, is reportedly considering leasing it’s technology to other car makers. Citing a report in China Knowledge Press, analysts at Global Insight have said that unnamed sources say that companies in the U.S., Europe and Japan have shown interest.

Read More: PHEV Maker BYD Considering Leasing It’s Technology

The Chinese company BYD, which we’ve covered before with their new BYD F3DM plug-in hybrid car, is making other moves to become the world’s leader in electric vehicle technology.

Already well-known for their battery technology, especially the Ni-MH batteries used in cell phones and laptops, BYD has announced that they will be releasing two new electric car drive trains featuring their new Fe-battery technology.

Read More: BYD Moving Into Leadership Position In Electric Vehicle Technology

The BYD F3DM unveiled at the 2008 Geneva International Motor Show.

BYD Auto is now selling the world’s first mass-produced plug-in hybrid. Designated the F3DM, the car is based on their popular F3 model (which looks roughly like a Toyota Prius and a Hyundai mashed together), the “DM” meaning “Dual Mode.”

Read More: Chinese Plug-In Hybrid Unveiled, Available In China Only