China unveils new electric car the S18

China's largest homegrown auto maker, Chery Automobile, has debuted its new plugin hybrid that is able to run 90 miles on a single charge. The S18 can be fully charged at a home electrical outlet in about five hours and can hit speeds over 70mph. The S18 uses iron-phosphate based lithium-ion batteries.

"Our electric vehicle uses the world's latest technology, highly efficient energy conservation and is easy to use," Yuan Tao, the company's deputy general manager, said at a ceremony held earlier this week at Chery's headquarters in eastern China's Anhui province. "The pricing will be very suitable for families," Yuan said in a statement.

Chery did not give details on pricing or timing for introducing the vehicle to the market. However, the Shanghai Daily cited an unnamed company official as saying that Chery will first supply the vehicles to government agencies for trial use and then introduce them to the retail market within a year. It said the compact sedans would cost less than less than £10,293.

China has been pushing automakers for progress on electric vehicles as part of its effort to limit the country's growing dependence on imported oil and to help clear smog from its polluted cities .

Hybrid Car Sales Fall Further

It is a double whammy right now for hybrid car sales. Not only are gas prices way down from the past couple of years, the economy is in such a state where nobody is buying new autos. Sales of the popular Toyota Prius fell 29% in January and other hybrid lines fell the same.

Hybrid sales are falling at the same time Congress is pushing automakers to create greener more fuel efficient vehicles, something the industry is spooling up for. Honda is set to roll out the Insight this spring, Ford has a Fusion hybrid ready for prime time and Toyota is set to announce the next gen Prius.

2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid and Mercury Milan Hybrid qualify for largest tax credits

The 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid and Mercury Milan Hybrid will both qualify buyers for a $3,400 tax credit from the federal government. It is the largest federal tax credit available for hybrid buyers. Ford Fusion Hybrid and Mercury Milan Hybrid are considered the most eifficient mid-sized sedans on the market today.

Fusion Hybrid’s class leading 41 mpg rating in the city and 36 mpg on the highway, which is based on a vehicle’s potential fuel efficiency. Together, the fuel savings and tax incentive can help significantly offset the premium to the customer for hybrid-electric technology over a conventional gas powered vehicle.