The Swedish Transport Administration has been testing an “electric road,” which features overhead catenary lines that provide power to electric trucks – a system similar to that used by railroads. A new Swedish project, “Research and Innovation Platform for Electric Roads,” will explore how to make the step to large-scale operation, and examine technical issues… Read more »
Search Results Found For: "Volvo"
BMW electrifies its best-selling model: the 330e iPerformance PHEV launches in the US
Which major automaker has sold the highest percentage of plug-in vehicles relative to its overall US sales? You may be surprised to learn that it’s BMW – aside from Tesla, of course, which sells 100% EVs. In the first half of 2016, BMW’s four plug-in vehicles – the i3, i8, X5 xDrive40e and 330e iPerformance… Read more »
GKN Driveline’s new electric drive system for PHEVs
GKN Driveline has developed a new electric drive system for PHEVs, which will start production in 2019 on a global platform from a European vehicle manufacturer. GKN supplies its eAxle for the BMW i8 and the Volvo XC90 T8 Twin Engine. The company has produced more than 300,000 units at its manufacturing facilities in Europe… Read more »
Torque Trends offers plug-and-play electrification for fleet conversions
Startup companies often evolve as they grow, and sometimes they stumble on a new application for a prosaic product that leads to a new way of doing things, with the huge opportunities that implies. For Mitchell Yow, the CEO of Torque Trends, the journey started with a gearbox, and has led to a complete electrification… Read more »
MAN selects ABB fast chargers for e-bus R&D facilities
Power and automation giant ABB is supplying fast chargers to MAN Truck & Bus for its new e-bus R&D program. Volkswagen subsidiary MAN, one of Europe’s largest manufacturers of heavy commercial vehicles, has announced that it will begin pilots of e-buses in 2018, and begin serial production by 2019. The company is developing e-buses at… Read more »
Thai oil company partners with six automakers to develop EVs
Thailand’s state-controlled oil company PTT has signed contracts with local units of six automakers (BMW, Mercedes, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Porsche and Volvo) to cooperate in developing EVs, and to build a network of 20 charging stations. Thailand is a regional auto industry production and export hub, and the sector accounts for 10 percent of GDP. The… Read more »
The inevitability of electric buses
Electric transit buses enter the fast-follower market stage as the leaders work to remove the last barriers to adoption. Q&A with Proterra’s Ryan Popple and ABB’s Daan Nap on the state of the market and charging standards in North America and Europe. With each passing year, more decision makers are realizing that city buses are an… Read more »
California awards $23.6 million for electrified drayage trucks at seaports
Drayage trucks, which move freight around inside and between port facilities, are a major source of air pollution, and an excellent candidate for electrification. The twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have been testing various electrified options for several years. Now the state of California has awarded $23.6 million to the South Coast… Read more »
Electric torque vectoring: Q&A with GKN’s Advanced Engineering Director (Full Interview)
Torque vectoring technology is generally defined as a vehicle’s ability to vary the power to each wheel. Quickly controlling the torque applied to the wheels independently of one another allows the driving characteristics of a vehicle to be improved in significant ways – more stability, more responsiveness and more agility. A conventional differential distributes the… Read more »
European electric bus manufacturers agree on open charging interface
As more European cities begin trials of battery-electric buses, a group of bus manufacturers and charging infrastructure providers has agreed to develop voluntary charging standards in advance of official regulations. The objective is to ensure reliability and compatibility across bus brands and charging systems. The European body CEN-CENELEC and the international standards organization ISO/IEC are… Read more »