Ownership costs of traditional versus alternative fuel vehicles

As gas prices remain high, and an increasing number of automakers roll out plug-in hybrid cars and full-electric vehicles, it's becoming easier to be tantalized with the idea of driving right past the gas station and simply "plugging in." The debate ensues when it comes to cost: These alternative fuel vehicles mean a larger outlay of cash at the onset, but the long-term fuel savings could make the purchase worthwhile. To help straighten out this numbers game, we use the Department of Energy's Vehicle Cost Calculator to compare alternative fuel vehicles with their gasoline-only counterparts. For each scenario, we assumed that our hypothetical owner was able to get the full $7,500 federal tax credit and a $2,500 state tax credit, such as is available in California.

Hyundai Intrado Concept previewed ahead of Geneva 2014 debut

The Hyundai Intrado (pictured) will debut at Geneva 2014 The Hyundai Intrado Concept (pictured above) is being previewed ahead of a debut at next year’s Geneva Motor Show, and previews not just the new Intrado but Hyundai’s vision of its future. The Intrado (HED-9) looks to be a compact SUV/Crossover and features Hyundai’s Fluidic Sculpture 2.0 design, showcasing the design future of Hyundai now Peter Schreyer is pulling the design strings at Hyundai as well as Kia. Hyundai say the Intrado is built round a super-lightweight structure using advanced materials joined with a revolutionary technique which, say Hyundai, could change the way cars are constructed in the future.

Teen-created PSAs combat distracted driving

Two widely held assumptions about 21st-century American teenagers is that they're too busy with their smartphones to have any interest in cars and that any who manage to find their way behind the wheel are too distracted to drive safely anyway. These generalizations are broad, unfair and perhaps even counterproductive -- yet they're reinforced every time distracted driving leads to a preventable tragedy. That's why we were glad to see young drivers take action by creating a series of anti-distracted-driving public safety announcements for the Teens Drive Smart Video Contest.