Roxie Roadfly brings a fun and humorous side to her overview of the new 2012 BMW 1 Series ActiveE Electric Car.

BMW first introduced the Concept ActiveE at the 2010 Detroit Auto Show. Later this month BMW will unveil the BMW 1 Series ActiveE at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show, and it will be available to a select group of customers under a special leasing arrangement. BMW plans 1,000 1 Series ActiveEs for North America, Europe, and China.

2012 BMW 1 Series ActiveE Electric

2012 BMW 1 Series ActiveE Electric

Vehicle: 2012 BMW 1 Series ActiveE
Motor: Electric
Horsepower: 170 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque
0-60 MPH: 8.5 seconds

YouTube Link: 2012 BMW 1 Series Electric on YouTube

BMW Forum Link: BMW Forum

BMW 1 Series Forum Link: BMW 1 Series Forum

If you’re a future hybrid owner who doesn’t want to just go with the flow by purchasing a Prius, you may want to consider the Honda CR-Z.  Join host Jessi Lang as she reviews the 2011 Honda CR-Z hybrid.  Besides the distinct styling and environmentally-friendly aspects, the CR-Z throws in a twist by offering a 6-speed manual transmission in addition to the CVT automatic.

The transmission, whether you choose manual or automatic, is paired to a 1.5-liter 4-cylinder engine with Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) that produces 122 horsepower and 128 lb-ft of torque.  There are three driving modes: Normal, Eco, and Sport.  Normal and Eco live up to their names but when you hit the Sport button there is a noticeable change with the tightening in the throttle, steering, and shifting. Thanks to the low center of gravity and the agile ability of the CR-Z, it pairs the hybrid functionality to nimble driving very well.

The interior is laid out with the driver in mind.  The instrument cluster is similar to that of the 2011 Honda Insight hybrid.  The gauges change colors based on your driving efficiency and the display shows data for real-time fuel consumption with trip comparison if you take your fuel efficiency seriously.  With 31 mpg city and 37 mpg highway (slightly better if you have the automatic transmission), no matter the mode, you can expect good mpg averages.

We had the base model CR-Z that starts at $19,200 but after the standard destination fee, the final price came in at $19,950.  For a stylish hybrid with a little bit of sport in its blood, the only downside to the CR-Z is the large blind spots, but with fuel economy in the mid-30s and a price tag under $20,000, it is a hybrid that will be hard to ignore.

The Ford Fusion Hybrid seems to be straddling the line of mid-size sedan and hybrid vehicle with ease. Join Jessi Lang as she reviews the ’10 Fusion Hybrid.

The Ford Fusion Hybrid is powered by a 2.5 L 4-cylinder engine and an electric motor. The gasoline engine produces 156 horsepower at 6,000 rpm and 136 lb-ft or torque at 2,250. However, with the electric motor and gasoline engine combination, horsepower goes up to 191. Fuel economy, as expected, is great: 41 mpg city and 36 mpg highway, with Ford estimating that the driver will be able to do 700 miles per tank.

The Fusion’s interactive “Smart Gauge with EcoDrive” lets you see how efficiently you’re driving. There are four modes (Inform, Power, Engage, and Empower) to view your driving with varying degrees of details. The “efficiency leaves” graphics is also a fun, yet stylish, way to tell how green you’re driving (you’ll have to watch the video to see!).

Compared to its competitors, the Fusion Hybrid seems like it is towards the head of the pack. Trunk space with the battery is better than the Camry and Altima hybrids but still less roomy than the Prius. The hybrid Fusion also switches seamlessly from the various driving modes unlike some of the other mainstream hybrids.

In addition to the environmentally-friendly upsides of the Fusion Hybrid, the pricing is surprisingly affordable. Base price starts at $27,270 and with the two packages we had on our tester, we still didn’t break $30,000, coming in at $29,590.

For more on the available creature comforts or to see what package options our tester came with, check out our 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid Video.

Volkswagen brought their second generation Touareg (with a twist) to the 2010 New York Auto Show. The 2011 Touareg features a hybrid powertrain, showcasing the brand’s first-ever hybrid. The Touareg offers three available engines to suit a variety of different drivers: A V6 FSI gasoline engine, a V6 TDI Clean Diesel engine, and a V6 TSI gasoline hybrid engine. With the hybrid model, a 3.0-liter supercharged, direct injection V6 gasoline engine is paired with a special electric motor that reduces fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by about 40 percent.

An eight-speed automatic transmission, helps the Touareg Hybrid achieve approximately 25 mpg and 21 mpg during highway and city driving respectively. A special clutch can disengage the transmission from the engine when the engine is not powering the Touareg, allowing it to coast forward emission free to further aid in fuel savings. The electric motor can also recover kinetic energy during braking to help recharge the nickel metal-hydride battery pack. With the V6 engine and electric motor combined, a total of 375 horsepower and 428 lbs.-ft. of torque are available, allowing for full towing capacity of up to 7,700 pounds.

Compared to its predecessor, the 2011 Touareg is wider and has a shorter overall height for a stronger presence. A longer wheelbase and greater length provide greater stability, and more room inside the cabin, while the use of new materials and other adjustments have removed nearly 450 pounds from the vehicle. The Touareg’s interior has also been refined, making for a better use of space for both the driver and passengers, as well as in the cargo area.

A seven-inch widescreen color display located between the main gauges in the dash provides the driver with the latest vehicle status information, including of the drive system in the hybrid model, turn-by-turn navigation directions, and more. Volkswagen’s new RNS850 touch screen entertainment and navigation system features an 8-inch screen, a 60GB hard drive with 18GB of space available to upload audio, video, and more, and a DVD/CD player with MP3 playback and Satellite/FM/AM stereo. The navigation system can display maps and directions in a 3-D view, and highlights major landmark highlights to further assist when traveling.

We recently got to test the 2010 Insight, the hybrid electric car from Honda. The Insight is the main competitor to the Toyota Prius, and definitely shines at some key points when compared side-by-side to the Prius.  For comparable models on a Prius versus an Insight, the Insight would come in almost $4,000 cheaper.  Our tester model was the the fully-loaded Insight EX with navigation, with a base price of $19,800 and an as-tested price of $23,810.  At that price, you would only be able to get a Prius sans navigation with the second out of four trim levels.

But, price isn’t everything.  The Honda Insight is less powerful than the the Prius, getting 98 horsepower at 5,800 rpm and 123 lb-ft of torque at 1,000-1,700 rpm.  While we realize you won’t be buying the Insight for its power, the folks at Honda put in paddle-shifters to control the CVT so you could at least pretend that you are zipping around at sport car-like speeds.

And finally, to probably the number one thing people are concerned with when purchasing a hybrid, the fuel economy.  The Insight gets very respectable gas mileage for a hybrid, averaging 41 mpg in mixed driving or 40 mpg city and 43 mpg highway.  With the gauge right in front you of, you can easily see if you are being economical in your driving style.  Honda took the fuel-saving aspects of the Insight to the extreme, including a “Econ Mode” button that you can push for additional precautions to prevent wasteful driving.

With the growing hybrid trend in the automotive industry, it was only a matter of time before Cadillac got into the game with its large, gas guzzling, luxury SUV, the well-known Escalade.  The 2009 Escalade looks like the regular model, but the hybrid badges and messaging are plastered all over the vehicle.  Like its cousins, the Chevy Tahoe and GMC Yukon hybrids, the Cadillac Escalade uses the same 2 mode gas-electric drivetrain but shares none of the other commonalities like the aerodynamic front ends or light weight construction.  Some things though, remain the same in the hybrid ’09 Escalade, like the styling and the cabin noise, but in this case, the bulk of the noise is from the switch from the gas and electric motors.

The engine in the hybrid Escalade is the 6.0-liter hybrid, producing 332 horsepower at 5,100 rpm and 367 lb-ft of torque at 5,100 rpm, mated to an electronically variable transmission.  This engine is only slightly less powerful than the Escalade’s regular 6.2-liter V8 engine that produces 403 horsepower.  The fuel economy for the 2009 Escalade hybrid comes in at 20 mpg city and 21 mpg highway.  While those are not Prius numbers, it is still impressive for this three ton SUV, considering that the 200 pound lighter GM SUV hybrid models get the same 20 mpg numbers.

But with the savings on fuel, you may be wondering, “what will I pay for this hybrid”, since it still bears the Cadillac Escalade name and luxury.  Base price starts at $71,685 and our as-tested model was slightly more, coming in at $72,780