ELECTRIC CARS

General Motors' venture capital unit is buying a minority stake in electric car start-up Bright Automotive to advance the development of fuel-efficient vehicle technologies.

General Motors on Tuesday set a price of $41,000 for its electric Chevrolet Volt -- $8,000 more than its nearest competitor, the Nissan Leaf.

Can white elephants come in green? President Barack Obama flew to Holland, Mich., on Thursday to attend groundbreaking ceremonies for a new lithium-ion battery plant, which the White House advertised as an example of federal stimulus grants at work and a gateway to a clean-energy future.

Tesla Motors Inc and Toyota Motor Corp said on Friday that they will together build and market an electric RAV4 sports utility vehicle by 2012.

Driving into the chic Place Vendome in central Paris, lined with up market jewelers and exclusive hotels, a small orange van looked out of place on Tuesday evening amid the sleek luxury cars.

Electric carmaker Tesla Motors Inc said on Friday it signed a memorandum of understanding with Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp to deliver two electric vehicles to the world's largest automaker by the end of month.

Toyota Motor Corp is working to develop a prototype electric vehicle with Tesla Motors as it continues work on a battery-powered small car the Japanese automaker plans to launch in 2012.

Electric cars offer a chance to develop lucrative new technologies, and suppliers would benefit from grabbing more of this work -- but they will have to fight carmakers keen to hold on to control of future profits.

General Motors will develop electric car technology for the Indian market in its home town of Detroit, after ending a partnership with Indian firm Reva, the head of its operations in the country said.

Toyota Motor Corp said it would take a $50 million stake in U.S. electric carmaker Tesla Motors, a move that gives the Japanese automaker a chance to repair its dented public image and vaults the California start-up on to the world stage.

Toyota Motor Corp said it would take a $50 million stake in U.S. electric carmaker Tesla Motors, a move that gives the Japanese automaker a chance to repair its dented public image and vaults the California start-up on to the world stage.

As much-hyped electric cars arrive in European dealerships, carmakers face an uphill struggle to change drivers' mindsets and convince them that running cost and emission advantages will compensate for a reduction in autonomy.

Toyota Motor Corp is extending heavy discounts to boost U.S. auto sales for a third month, U.S. Toyota executives said on Monday, as the automaker tries to recover from a series of damaging safety recalls.

The space-age Aptera might look like something straight out of a futuristic cartoon, but executives at the California start-up behind the electric vehicle say its time is now.

Mazda Motor Corp said it expects a single digit increase in March U.S. sales, lagging the projected growth in industry sales, after cutting back on sales to rental companies and incentives to consumers.

Japan's Nissan Motor Co will begin building the Leaf electric compact car at its Sunderland plant from early 2013, making Britain its third global production site for the zero-emission vehicle.

Carmakers emerging from a savage crisis hope to lure drivers to electric cars in the coming years, but cost, range and safety considerations mean many are still cautious, holding back from predicting an early sales boom.

U.S. electric sports carmaker Tesla Motors will partner with Japan's Panasonic Corp for the next generation of lithium-ion batteries, the companies said on Thursday.

General Motors Co sees limited sales of electric cars over the next five years and will ramp up output of its much-anticipated Volt plug-in cautiously, the automaker's vice-chairman said on Wednesday.

Toyota Motor Corp is considering working with affiliate Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd to develop its electric vehicles, slated for a global launch in 2012, the Mainichi newspaper said on Tuesday.

A world where electric cars running on clean power is getting closer, corporate leaders said on Thursday, the day after an electric car battery maker raised much more than expected in an initial public offering.