Ford Motor Company and Toyota Motor said on Monday that they would jointly develop a gas-electric hybrid fuel system for pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles aimed at keeping larger models affo

Nissan Motor said Tuesday that it was raising the price of the Leaf electric car by several thousand dollars as it prepared to offer the vehicle with additional features in 21 new states by the end of the year.

In the first half of the year, Nissan sold 3,875 of the Leaf electric car in the United States.

Nissan said the 2012 Leaf, which goes on sale in the fall, will cost at least $2,450 mo

Three automakers, including the Ford Motor Company, will get the first $8 billion from a $25 billion loan program intended to accelerate development of more fuel-efficient vehicles, the national energy secretary said Tuesday.

TRAVERSE CITY, Michigan: General Motors said Thursday that it had "essentially finished" designing its first plug-in hybrid car, the Chevrolet Volt, and would have production-ready prototypes within 10 days.

The automaker still has considerable work to do on the car's lithium-ion battery and other technology in the two years before the Volt is scheduled to go on sale, but completing the design is a milestone for what is arguably the most crucial car in decades for GM.