Tesla responded quickly to Consumer Reports’ embarrassing statements about Model S’s mediocre reliability. In a public tweet, and again in a conference call with stock analysts, Elon Musk assured us that most of the early problems with the drive units have been fixed, and that the powertrains now rolling off the line are “excellent.” The… Read more »
Search Results Found For: "DOE "
Joint Center for Energy Storage Research looks beyond Li-ion for battery advances
The Joint Center for Energy Storage Research (JCESR), a consortium of national labs, universities, and private firms, was founded in 2012 with funding from the DOE with the objective of developing a battery five times more powerful and five times cheaper than the current state of the art within five years. At the recent Bay… Read more »
Daimler uses smart EV battery packs in German electricity balancing market
Daimler, together with partners The Mobility House and GETEC, has built what it says is the world’s largest second-life battery storage unit. The stationary storage unit is to go into service at the beginning of 2016 at the site of REMONDIS, a recycling, service and water company in the German town of Lünen. It uses… Read more »
Tesla’s goal: drive units that never wear out
Consumer Reports’ recent finding that the Model S’s reliability is only mediocre was a black eye for Tesla, but Elon Musk says that, while early drive units had a range of problems, most of these have now been fixed. During a recent conference call, Musk assured stock analysts that the powertrains now rolling off the… Read more »
How We Got to Now: Six Innovations That Made the Modern World (book review)
How We Got to Now, by Steven Johnson, is a companion book to a TV series that was recently broadcast on PBS and BBC. It’s an excellent book that should be of interest not only to tech fans, but to anyone interested in history and social trends. The author examines five key technologies, and traces… Read more »
Under new Chinese owners, A123 finds promising niche in micro-hybrid market
Most Charged readers will certainly remember A123, the company that was founded in 2001 on the basis of promising battery technology developed at MIT; received a $249-million grant from the DOE and $100 million in tax breaks from the state of Michigan; raised $380 million in a 2009 IPO; made a bad bet on Fisker… Read more »
Bob Lutz thinks Tesla’s in trouble
Since Tesla’s 2003 founding, there’s been a steady stream of articles explaining why it would soon go belly-up. The latest comes from a seemingly unlikely source: Bob Lutz, the “father of the Chevrolet Volt.” Back in the day, Lutz and Musk seemed like fellow travelers – the former GM exec said he would always be… Read more »
Why is Ford suddenly advertising its Focus Electric after 3 years?
Many EVangelists believe that the plodding progress of plug-in sales has a lot to do with the automakers’ minimal marketing efforts. So it’s welcome news that Ford has launched a new ad campaign for its Focus Electric. It seems to be a substantial buy (although Ford declined to talk about budgets), with TV ads running… Read more »
Will a post-diesel VW turn to EVs?
The developing VW scandal has highlighted the lengths to which some automakers will go to find an alternative to electrification. Some industry gadflies have speculated that Volkswagen might opt to redeem itself by becoming a (sorely needed) leader in the electromobility field. “With hydrocarbon combustion we’ve hit the limits of physics,” Elon Musk told Auto… Read more »
Model X delivered as Musk admits “we got a little carried away”
The long-awaited Model X is finally on the road – at least, a few of them are. In a super-duper sound-and-light show in Fremont, Elon Musk handed over the keys to the first six buyers. Production is just getting started, and it will take a while to ramp up to full volume. Musk offered no… Read more »