If we’ve heard it once, we’ve heard it a thousand times: EVs and charging infrastructure present a chicken-and-egg problem. This thesis has been the topic of countless EV industry conference panels over the past decade. In recent years, many experts have attempted to declare the issue settled. Back in January 2013, European Union Climate Commissioner… Read more »
FreeWire Technologies, a technology company based in San Leandro, California, has partnered with global technology powerhouse Siemens to commercialize the Mobi Charger, a portable charging station powered by second-life EV batteries. Mobi Charger is designed to be easily rolled around a parking lot to wherever it is needed, enabling businesses to offer mobile EV charging… Read more »
If you are working on a plug-in hybrid powertrain for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles, you may be eligible for a grant from the DOE. The agency plans to issue a new Funding Opportunity Announcement (DE-FOA-0001349) entitled “Medium and Heavy Duty Vehicle Powertrain Electrification and Dual Fuel Fleet Demonstration.” DOE anticipates releasing the FOA in August… Read more »
The Model S is just about the greatest car ever made, but it’s always had one major defect: there are a couple of other production vehicles that can beat it in a drag race. For those of us who wish to go beyond Insane, Tesla has introduced Ludicrous mode (the name is a reference to… Read more »
Q&A with Arun Banskota and Brendan Jones. In the past year, the NRG EVgo network has quietly passed some major milestones in the EV charging industry. The company now has more public DC fast charging sites than anyone else – even more than Tesla’s vast Supercharger network. EVgo also has the highest number of CHAdeMO and… Read more »
Volkswagen is expanding its stable of plug-in vehicles with the new Passat GTE plug-in hybrid. The VW Group now offers no less than ten plug-ins: the Audi A3 e-tron, Q7 e-tron and R8 e-tron; the Porsche Cayenne and Panamera S E-Hybrids; the Golf and Passat GTE plug-ins, the low-volume XL1, and the battery-electric e-up! and… Read more »
A team of researchers from Canada’s Simon Fraser University have published a report that paints a pessimistic picture of EV adoption in the Great White North, at least in the short term. “Electric vehicles are not likely to make up more than one percent of vehicle sales in the next decade and no more than… Read more »
A bit of conventional wisdom about Tesla, repeated often in the media, is that the company does no advertising – as Elon Musk has said, if you create a truly revolutionary product, the marketing takes care of itself. Tesla has not indulged in the mass marketing activities that are so important to other automakers –… Read more »
ZTE, China’s largest listed telecom equipment company, is developing high-power wireless charging systems for public transport applications. At a recent China-US workshop on EV standardization, Academus Tian, VP of ZTE New Energy Vehicle, said the company’s inductive charging module, which operates at a frequency of 85 kHz with a gap of 20 cm. It has… Read more »
The FIA Formula E Championship has wrapped up a highly successful first season, which spurred many technical advances and introduced thousands around the world to the capabilities of EVs. Now the FIA has announced the calendar for Formula E’s second season. There will be 11 races in 10 cities, with London hosting two. The first… Read more »
