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Fisker Karma to makes its Windy City debut at Chicago Auto Show Feb. 12-21

One of the world’s most electrifying cars, the Fisker Karma, also known as the world’s first premium plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, will make its Chicago debut at the Chicago Auto Show, February 12-21.

It’ll be a boon for two area dealers – Fields Auto Group and Patrick Dealer Group, as well as auto aficionados who may be eager to view the $87,900 base MSRP vehicle up close and personally. Fisker notes that Illinois buyers will be eligible for a $7,500 federal tax credit, plus additional state incentives of up to $4,000 under the Illinois Alternate Fuels Rebate Program.

You’ll need to be belted-in after it’s been plugged in at take-off. Fisker lists a 0-to-60 mph time of 6 seconds and a top speed of 125 mph that its generated from the 403-horsepower engine. On top of all this heart-pounding excitement are the economics of scale: 100 miles per gallon and zero emissions are sent through the tailpipe.

2010 NAIAS: Hyundai Brings Blue-Will Concept to Cobo

This odd looking duck is a look into what Hyundai is doing with hybrids. Powered by a direct-injected 1.6L that puts out 152 HP and a 100kw electric motor and a CVT transmission. Hyundai says this combination is good for 50-55 mpg in hybrid mode and 106 mpg in plug-in mode. Operating on electric only mode the plug-in hybrid is expected to do 40 miles, which is the same as the Chevy Volt.

This is Hyundai’s test bed for a lot of tech. Dubbing the design ‘eco-sleek’ it packs organic LED displays for the gauges and touch screen HVAC controls. Other tech goodies aid in fuel economy, with an exhaust manifold mounted thermo-electric generator, roof-mounted solar cells and regenerative braking. The thermo-electric generator converts heat to electricity to power auxiliary device. Hyundai has coupled this with low-resistance tires and brake pads to reduce friction.

Even more interesting tech is packed into the Blue-Will, including an integrated bike rack. To save weight, carbon-fiber reinforced plastics and nano composites have been applied to the side sills, moldings and fenders.

Press Release After the Jump

Bentley Continental Supersports goes green

We all know that Kermit the Frog was ahead of his time when he sang “it ain’t easy bein’ green.”

This however is the new mantra in the automotive world and Bentley is crowing about its latest iteration from Crewes to be the first of the Continental lineup to meet the standards with the Continental Supersports.

Car And Driver Release 10BEST List, Fusion ousts Prius as Choice Green Car

Car and Driver have released its annual 10BEST list with some predictable and not-so-predictable results. Among the predictable, the 2010 Honda Accord, BMW M3 and Mazda Miata, with those cars making the list at least 11 times.

The upset? The Ford Fusion Hybrid beat out the Toyota Prius as the car magazines go-to green car. What do they like about the Fusion Hybrid compared to the Prius? Namely, that it isn’t a Prius. “We admire it as much for what it isn’t (polarizing, showy, cramped) as for what it is.”

Beyond the objectivity though, C&D points out the Fusion Hybrids class-leading fuel economy and excellent driving dynamics, a sentiment that we concur with after driving the Fusion Hybrid in October.

The full list is available after the jump

Chevrolet Hosting Webcast on Volt

GM will be hosting a live webcasts to discuss the Volt and how cities can get “plugged-in” with leading industry, government and policy officials and influencers. Later today, at 6:30 pm Chevy will let you submit questions at ChevroletVoltage.com during the live webcast.

BMW Bringing Trio of Hybrids to LA Auto Show

BMW recently announced pricing for its ActiveHybrid X6, but they aren’t done just yet. In addition to the 480-hp crossover, BMW is bringing its ActiveHybrid 7, and Vision EfficientDynamics concept car.
As you might have guessed the ActiveHybrid 7 is a hybrid 7-series. The hybrid 7 features a twin-turbo “High Precision Direct Injected” V8 with a 3-phase electric motor that gives the eco-luxury ride a total combined output of 455 hp and 515 lb-ft of torque. Along with the 8-speed automatic transmission the ActiveHybrid 7 gets 15-17% better gas mileage. According to our calculations, that translates to about 26 mpg. But this hybrid is no slouch, sprinting to 60 in 4.7 seconds. That’s a little quicker than the Lotus Evora that was just announced.

2010 BMW ActiveHybrid X6 will start at $89,725

Just in time for that hard to shop for lug nut on your list who has an empty bay in his multi-room garage, BMW is offering its polarizing 2010 X6 Active Hybrid with destination and shipping for $89,725.

Hybrids begin to go mainstream with the 2010 Honda Insight

Not all hybrids are created equal even now, though, as a $110,000 Lexus LS600hL makes abundantly clear. It takes longer to appreciate the same point in a $22,000 Insight, but it’s there. For 2010 Honda has engineered away the dynamic flaws of early hybrids while keeping their miserly fuel consumption.

Pre-production Chevy Volt takes a bath in GM’s universal water chamber

Development on the Chevy Volt continues to progress at neck-break speed and GM has been sharing bits and pieces of the vehicle’s testing and engineering along the way. This new video caught our interest for the sheer fact that it combines the “electric” Volt undergoing leak testing in GM’s Universal Water Chamber.

Ford plug-in vehicles will “talk” to the electric grid

Although we’ve been hearing the rumors of this for over a year, Ford has officially announced it’s plans to use an “intelligent” system to connect electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles to the grid.