Search Results Found For: "daimler"

Fuel cells vs batteries for vehicle powertrains

Jeffrey Wishart, a Senior Project Engineer at Intertek, conducts research and development on products and services in the areas of energy, the environment, and advanced transportation. In addition to his supervisory position at Intertek, Dr. Wishart worked for several years at ETEC LABS (the research and consulting division of ECOtality) and at a utility company… Read more »

Navigant names 10 trends in the EV market for 2014

A new white paper from Navigant Research forecasts global EV sales of over 346,000 units in 2014. Navigant sees expansion at the higher end of the market, as Audi, BMW, Cadillac, Mercedes, Saab, and Volvo introduce new plug-in models; and in the middle, with new offerings from Kia, Mahindra, Skoda, and Volkswagen. “Electric Vehicles: 10… Read more »

California gives Tesla tax break on new machinery

The state of California has granted Tesla a $34.7-million tax break on a batch of new manufacturing equipment valued at around $415 million. California is one of the few states that taxes the purchase of manufacturing equipment, but it sometimes offers exemptions to clean-tech companies. Tesla received a similar deal in 2010 when it bought… Read more »

The new A123 looks a lot like the old A123: Q&A with Jeff Kessen

Start-ups are tough. The majority of them do not succeed, particularly those built around new technologies in burgeoning industries. Nowhere is this more evident than in the EV industry. Even with political support and government grants, many companies have miscalculated the market and the capital required to make it into the black.  In October 2012,… Read more »

EVs for share or rent?

The world’s transportation ecosystem has hundreds of species of vehicles, each one adapted to the requirements of its particular niche. Some niches are clearly well-suited to EVs, and others are probably not. Urban delivery trucks, which typically make route-based journeys from a central depot and consume a lot of diesel fuel, can quickly recoup an… Read more »

Mercedes exec: B Class EV beats BMW i3

Daimler R&D chief Thomas Weber talked EVs in an interview this week with Automotive News Europe’s German sister Automobilwoche. Weber believes the upcoming Mercedes B class Electric Drive will be a worthy competitor for the BMW i3: “In all the key criteria, this vehicle will be at least as competitive as our competitors’ models. With… Read more »

A123 Systems announces organizational alignment within Wanxiang Group

A123 Systems has outlined its organizational structure and strategic focus as a member of the Wanxiang Group, the Chinese company that acquired most of A123’s businesses last January. During the next year, Wanxiang’s lithium-ion battery activities will be integrated under A123’s leadership, both in China and the US. The executive team is headquartered in A123’s… Read more »

Tesla plans to produce an autonomous car within three years

Vehicle autonomy is a trend that’s proceeding in parallel with electrification, so it’s no surprise to learn that Tesla is working on the technology. This week, Elon Musk outlined an ambitious plan, saying that the company hopes to produce a car that can run on “auto-pilot” within the next three years. Tesla’s autonomous car will… Read more »

Connecting Europe’s charging networks

Many have posed the question of why the EV market in Europe has lagged behind the market in the US, considering the Continent’s higher fuel prices and strong green tradition. While there are several plausible answers, on closer examination the question itself makes little sense, because in fact there is no European EV market, but… Read more »