It will be named GoogleCar and have gps technology as a standard feature, "so that we can learn how and where people travel to offer them more personalized GoogleCar features in the future." ;)

Evil or not any company that helps in one way or another to advance todays technology for self profit or for the worlds good is a good company in my eyes. Not much else to say about it other than nice idea.

...to develop plug-in hybrid electric vehicles capable of getting 70 to 100 miles per gallon

IMHO the whole hybrid thing is a bit of a gimmick...

A small car with a diesel engine can already deliver 60+mpg without really trying (I know this because I drive one, and yes, I've checked the fuel consumption and it's just as good as the manufacturer claims).

On trips through Europe I usually spend more on road tolls than I do on fuel.

There are already vehicles that do 100 miles per gallon.

Infact - there's probably vehicles in production that do 70 miles per gallon. The Avensis Diesel does 75 mpg - just that America doesn't buy diesels.

You are all good search people... look for one in bath that achieved 4306 MPG.

100MPG? Bah!

Aren't there some areas where Google shouldn't tread? Have they perfected their internet operations that they think they should try to "fix" the rest of the world? With all the independent development going on for alternatively powered vehicles they are wasting their stockholders' money.

The one thing holding back electric cars from a technology standpoint is battery tech which is still in the dark ages compared to how far electronics have come.

But even if there was a perfect electric car in existence there's still the social roadblock in the USA. I cannot believe how many SUVs I see on the road with young single drivers who don't need it for any other reason than ego. Unless they make an electric SUV (unlikely) it's going to take generations to die off for electric cars to become "cool". Well either that or $5/gallon gas.

Oh good grief I just read the headline properly:

(Google) Offers millions to advance plug-in hybrid vehicles and other technologies that link nation's transport system to the electric grid

LINK! They want to control the transport infrastructure as well! Imagine the scenario... Every road becomes a battery and every car is digitally controlled.

Incredibly efficient - provided you don't mind the machine knowing where you are going to and recording your every movement.

Just hypothesising... but look at the end point to such an objective.

LINK! They want to control the transport infrastructure as well! Imagine the scenario...

I am imagining the scenario. After 5 attempts to get my destination, I think on some occasions I'll have to hire a Yahoo or MSN car to get me there.

In the US, it's actually cheaper for many companies/individuals to purchase trucks/SUVs for tax purposes - there's a huge credit that currently exists if you claim the vehicle is necessary for work purposes.

Every road becomes a battery and every car is digitally controlled.

I think the "LINK" portion was the reporter's verbage, not Google's. I didn't read in the article anything about actually linking them to the roads, etc., only plugging them in and possibly selling off excess energy back to the grid while plugged in and not in use.

Now, whether the end result (many years down the road) would actually be a true "linking" ... we could definitely be moving in that direction.