plug-in hybrid

Toyota's recent recall woes may have pushed its U.S. sales lower during the past year, but they haven't stopped one popular model from setting a new milestone: The fuel-efficient Toyota Prius hybrid recently surpassed 1 million sales in the U.S.

In the State of the Union address in January, President Barack Obama set a goal of getting 1 million electric cars on the road by 2015. Now he's proposed $7,500 rebates, instead of tax credits, to reach that goal. Will that be enough to make it doable?

Zipcar members in San Francisco, Portland and Boston can try out Toyota's Prius plug-in hybrid, providing valuable info to Toyota before rolling the cars out to consumers in 2012. And Zipcar gets another way to make its greenhouse-gas- conscious customers happy.

New models from Ford and Toyota drew the hottest interest Monday as the North American International Auto Show opened in Detroit: Each announced several electric and hybrid vehicles, including an electric Focus and a plug-in Prius.

The automaker has licensed technology from the Energy Department's Argonne National Laboratory that will boost the performance of lithium-ion battery cells for its electric Chevy Volt. The next-generation power packs will be made at a new plant in Michigan by Korea's LG Chem.

Will the Chevy Volt -- General Motor's new plug-in hybrid unveiled today -- be a game changer, as CEO Daniel Akerson hopes? We'll soon find out as the car is scheduled to begin shipping to dealers next month.

Fueling up your car at a church seems like a novel idea. But the emergence of an electric car market has resulted in a charging station at the Wooden Cross Lutheran church some 25 miles northeast of Seattle.

Tesla Motors has signed a $60 million contract with Toyota Motor to develop an all-electric version of the popular RAV4 compact sports-utility vehicle, Tesla said Wednesday.

General Electric, which is eager for a big slice of the emerging electric car market, is teaming up with a Silicon Valley startup, Better Place, to promote their charging station and battery-swapping businesses. GE gets homes for its newly introduced charging equipment, and Better Place gets a partner with buff financial muscles.

Toyota Motor (TM) is already the largest maker of hybrid vehicles, offering seven different models in the U.S. market. But the automaker's plans call for it introduce six new models by the end of 2012 and to offer two plug-in hybrid vehicles, including a version of its popular Prius to be marketed...