Mitsubishi has suspended production of its Outlander PHEV and some models of the i-MiEV, after two separate incidents in Japan in which the battery packs caught fire.
Newswire
Tesla stock blasts off as sales exceed target and profit predicted
It’s no April fool. Tesla Motors has announced that it sold 4,750 units of its Model S electric sedan in the first quarter, cruising past the target of 4,500 that it set in its February shareholder letter. As a result, the company will adjust its Q1 financial guidance from achieving an operating profit (which excludes… Read more »
Mercedes B-Class EV comes to US in 2014, S-Class PHEV in the pipeline
The German automakers are plugging in. Audi introduced its first PHEV, the A3 Sportback e-tron, in Geneva in February, and VW has promised an electric version of its blockbuster Golf later this year. Now Mercedes has unveiled its B-Class Electric Drive at this week’s New York Auto Show. Daimler hasn’t offered many details, but it seems that… Read more »
ABB launches new 20 kW DC fast charger for the Americas
Initial shipments will support the CHAdeMO fast-charging standard, and SAE/Combined Charging System units will be available later this year.
Fisker furloughs workers
Its production line idle since July, and its search for a suitor seemingly in limbo, Fisker Automotive put its US workforce of about 200 employees on furlough this week to cut costs.
Long Beach Transit votes to buy BYD buses, Proterra protests
After several delays and much controversy, the Long Beach Transit Board voted on Monday to award a $12.1 million contract to purchase 10 electric buses to a US subsidiary of the Chinese firm BYD. The contract is funded mainly by the federal government’s Transit Investment for Greenhouse Gas and Energy Reduction (TIGGER) program, one of… Read more »
New report: Solid-state batteries will rule by 2030, driven by consumer electronics
A report from technology advisory firm Lux Research predicts that new battery technologies will become strong competitors with existing lithium-ion technology by 2020, and that solid-state batteries will surpass Li-ion by 2030. However, consumer electronics, not electric vehicles, will be the market driving the advances. “While much of the motivation for next-generation batteries – whether… Read more »
Rolls-Royce to supply Azipull propulsion system for Norway’s electric ferry of the future
Rolls-Royce plc has signed a contract to deliver its Azipull propulsion and control system for the battery-powered “ferry of the future.” The new vessel is being built at the Fjellstrand yard in Norway, and will go into service in 2015 on the route between Lavik and Oppedal, across the Sognefjord, operated by Norwegian transport company… Read more »
Oak Ridge researchers give solid Li-ion electrolytes a new spin
Their novel approach offers an advantage in terms of safety and also results in a broad (5 V wide) electrochemical window.
Automakers: Safety sounds for EVs could hurt sales if done the wrong way
Love the way your EV glides silently through the city? Well, it might be dangerous for pedestrians, especially the blind. The US government addressed this issue with a 2010 law that requires automakers to provide EVs with some sort of artificial sound generator to announce their coming. Japan and the EU have implemented similar regulations…. Read more »