Formula E is expecting six to eight new manufacturers to come on board for its second season, bringing a variety of powertrains to the electric racing series. Formula E is three races into its first season, in which all the cars are using identical powertrains built by McLaren, with batteries from Williams. Season two, however,… Read more »
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Elon Musk: Tesla and Toyota may form a new partnership in a couple of years
Tesla and Toyota might just patch up their differences and form a new partnership some day, Elon Musk told reporters at an event for the start of deliveries in Japan (with a cool backdrop of three Model S in a showroom high above Tokyo). “If you look out maybe two or three years from now,… Read more »
Are auto dealers the EV’s worst enemy?
It’s safe to say that car dealers aren’t a particularly beloved bunch. Shopping for a car may not be as bad as going to the dentist, but for many people, it’s right up there. Technically-minded buyers find it frustrating to try to glean some factual information from the typical rambling sales pitch, while more gentle… Read more »
New book excerpt: The early days of Tesla
This article is an excerpt from Tesla Motors: How Elon Musk and Company Made Electric Cars Cool, and Sparked the Next Tech Revolution by Charged Senior Editor Charles Morris. This 270-page book is a comprehensive history of Tesla, told by the entrepreneurs who made it happen, as well as an assessment of the company’s lasting influence… Read more »
Pratt & Whitney exec: Electric aircraft would require technological miracles
A Pratt & Whitney executive has explained something that even the most fanatical e-vangelist can see: full-size commercial airliners are not likely to become EVs any time soon. In a question-and-answer session with reporters this week, Alan Epstein, P&W’s VP of Technology and Environment, said that the company has investigated electric aircraft and determined that… Read more »
City of Boulder deploys two EV ARC standalone solar charging stations
The city of Boulder, Colorado has installed two Envision Solar EV ARC standalone solar charging stations. The new chargers are located at the East Boulder Community Center and the Broadway & Spruce Parking Lot, and are available free of charge to the public. San Diego-based Envision Solar (OTCQB: EVSI) bills its EV ARC as a… Read more »
Toyota developing free-piston engine linear generator for electric drive vehicles
A team at Toyota Central R&D Labs is developing a prototype Free Piston Engine Linear Generator (FPEG), which they described at the recent SAE 2014 World Congress in Detroit. Unlike a traditional ICE, which propels a drive shaft, the FPEG is designed to generate electricity directly. It consists of a two-stroke combustion chamber, a linear… Read more »
Tesla Gigafactory takes shape, stock soars, short-sellers weep
Let’s all shed a crocodile tear or two for the poor Tesla short-sellers. Their faces (and their balance sheets) turned an even deeper shade of red this week, as TSLA shares powered through the $200 mark without tapping the brakes, on the way to $260 and beyond. A series of positive news items has driven… Read more »
oneDRIVE of a kind: KLD Energy’s new propulsion system
In August 2013, KLD Energy announced that it has received official UN and IEC certification for the battery pack solution of its proprietary electric drive system. The announcement marked the end of a five-year development effort and the beginning of high-volume production for the company’s ultra-efficient turnkey oneDRIVE propulsion system. There are hundreds of different… Read more »
EVSE: the low-hanging fruit of smart city buildout
How installing a few charging stations is more of a long-term solution than meets the eye. We often hear about the need for smart cities, smart grids, and sustainability in general, but what does it really mean? How can we ever hope to build a smart and sustainable global ecosystem, considering the energy-consuming path that… Read more »