Torino, Italy-based transmission specialist Oerlikon Graziano is presenting its family of hybrid and electric transmission systems at this week’s VDI Wissenforum show in Friedrichshafen, Germany. Oerlikon Graziano has been building electric and hybrid driveline assemblies for 20 years. Its products are used in vehicles ranging from golf carts to city cars to light commercial EVs… Read more »
Nissan has announced plans to offer a battery replacement program for US LEAF buyers who wish to replace their original lithium-ion battery pack. LEAF batteries are already protected by a warranty that covers battery capacity loss (below 70%) for five years or 60,000 miles, and manufacturing defects for eight years or 100,000 miles. The new battery replacement… Read more »
Okay, Tesla has shown that the Model S battery pack can be swapped out quickly and elegantly, to the accompaniment of thumping techno music. However, there are a lot of questions about how this is going to work in the real world, so after Thursday’s live demonstration, CEO Elon Musk stuck around to offer some answers…. Read more »
Tesla’s entire business model is built on succeeding where others have failed, so it was perhaps inevitable that it would make a go of the controversial process of battery swapping. Proponents say swapping eliminates one of the major objections to EVs: long charge times. Skeptics say it’s a complicated and cumbersome way to address an… Read more »
It’s bad news for early adopters, but good news for those who are impatient for EV prices to come down to a more affordable level. A new report from the National Association of Auto Dealers (NADA) predicts that values for used plug-in vehicles are expected to decline nearly 30% this year – the highest depreciation… Read more »
Bosch has developed a new electromechanical brake booster called the iBooster, which is designed to make hybrid and electric vehicles more efficient by providing situation-dependent support when a driver initiates braking. For maximum efficiency, a hybrid or EV must recover as much energy as possible when braking. Ideally, a vehicle would be slowed down purely… Read more »
Oh my God, a recall! Is this it for Tesla? Is this pie-in-the-sky liberal fantasy going to crash to the ground, taking trillions of taxpayer dollars and, perhaps, all of Western civilization, with it? Well, not this time, apparently. The recall concerns a mounting bracket for the left-hand latch of the second row seat, which… Read more »
Now that Tesla has made EVs cool, most of the “car guys” are more or less grudgingly acknowledging their existence. But Jay Leno has been a serious electrification advocate all along. In previous episodes of Jay Leno’s Garage, he has featured not only the Model S, but the Mission R electric motorcycle, an electric truck… Read more »
The second World EV Summit, which took place in May in Lillestrøm, Norway, brought together over 150 industry specialists, representing automakers, charger manufacturers, local governments and other interested parties. Representatives of Europe’s two competing fast charging standards called for cooperation, rejecting any notion of a standards war (G-8 leaders, take note). Takafumi Anegawa, the founder… Read more »
A better lease deal and more availability seem to have led to a surge in demand for the Fit EV, and dealers may not be able to keep up. The electric hatchback can now be leased for $259, with no limit on annual mileage, and it’s available at every Honda dealer in eight states (California,… Read more »