As Porsche begins work on its first pure EV, it is embarking on a major program of capital investment. Reuters reported that the company will invest about 1 billion euros ($1.12 billion) at its Zuffenhausen plant, where the new EV is in development. Chief Executive Oliver Blume said that the company has “many new products… Read more »
Add another item to the list of neat tricks that cars will soon be learning: the ability to maneuver sideways in order to slip into tight parking spaces. The OmniSteer project, funded by Germany’s Ministry of Education and Research, aims to develop a vehicle with “a lateral and transverse guidance system capable of performing orthogonal,… Read more »
The Smart City Challenge is a competition organized by the DOT to encourage cities to develop plans for a 21st-century intelligent transportation system, including such innovations as data-driven management platforms, electric and automated vehicles, and the sharing economy. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx has announced that 77 cities have submitted applications for the Smart City Challenge,… Read more »
The latest Tesla earnings report followed the usual pattern: large losses today, but plenty of potential tomorrow. The Messiah of the Motor Industry reported revenue of $1.21 billion for the 4th quarter of 2015, and $4.05 billion for the full year, both healthy increases over the previous periods. Tesla delivered 17,478 vehicles in Q4, including… Read more »
It’s still a bit of a mystery why we Americans fell behind in EV sales in 2015. While US plug-in sales fell short compared to 2014 (a trend that has happily now reversed), sales in Europe almost doubled. Up north in Canada, sales also grew, by 32% compared to 2014 (actually a slower rate of… Read more »
Obviously, hybrids can save gas, but reaching the true potential of the technology requires drivers to adopt a driving style that maximizes fuel economy. A team from the Technical University of Chemnitz in Germany and the University of Southampton in the UK attempted to quantify these driving techniques. In “Ecodriving in hybrid electric vehicles –… Read more »
San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) has long been a pioneer in researching EV integration with the power grid. Last March it launched a pilot project that explores making fleets of EVs available as a dispatchable distributed energy resource to help stabilize the grid. Back in April 2014, SDG&E sought authorization from the California Public… Read more »
EV-builder DeltaWing Technology Group and motor-maker DHX Electric Machines have announced an agreement granting DeltaWing the rights to make and use DHX motors for automotive applications. Georgia Tech spinout DHX has relocated to DeltaWing’s campus in Braselton, Georgia, and the companies are ramping up motor production and developing applications for several automotive projects. DHX’s motors… Read more »
Detroit startup Inventev has won a $500,000 grant from the DOE’s ARPA-E agency, as well as a $50,000 matching grant from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, to develop its plug-in hybrid drive system for commercial trucks. Other collaborators include Pacific Gas & Electric, A123, BorgWarner, Ford and NextEnergy, which will provide testing and demonstration services… Read more »
Skellefteå Kraft, one of Sweden’s largest electricity producers, has reached an exclusive agreement to supply 100% renewable electricity to Tesla’s Swedish Supercharger network. The utility will also offer its Tesla-driving customers a discount on their electric bills. Skellefteå Kraft currently supplies electricity to 14 Tesla charging locations in Sweden. “Skellefteå Kraft is the first energy… Read more »
