So what has the last five months driving the Nissan LEAF been like? I guess you’d have to say the LEAF has been remarkable in that it’s been so normal. Whether by design or by accident, the driving experience isn’t massively different from that of driving any other car, beyond being smoother and quieter…. Read more »
Search Results Found For: "DOE"
The eDart: My 1974 Dodge Dart Swinger electric conversion
Who does not want to relive their youth? Theoretically, driving one of the mid-70s muscle cars is a great idea: lots of leg room, big power, and of course nostalgia. In Ontario, Canada, you even have the advantage that such cars are, by necessity, exempt from the emission tests. Of course, that assumes you do… Read more »
Smithsonian magazine taps EVs as a tech trend to watch in 2012
“Will 2012 be the year the electric car takes off?”
Meet the Saxtons: driving electric vehicles since 2008
In the late 1990s my wife, Cathy, decided she wanted her next car to be electric. It wasn’t until July of 2008 that she was able to find and buy one, a 2002 Toyota RAV4-EV, one of the few hundred saved from the crusher when California relieved the automakers from the short-lived requirement to produce… Read more »
Tax credits for chargers are finished, and credits for EV purchases may be next
In a masterpiece of bad timing, a federal tax break for EV chargers, which allowed filers to take a tax credit for 30% of the cost of a home charger, will expire at the end of this year.
Plugless Power launches wireless EV charging trial
Virginia-based Evatran announced today that it has agreed with six commercial EV users to equip their fleets of Volts and Leafs with pre-production Plugless Power wireless charging systems.
EV startup Aptera calls it a day
California-based car maker Aptera Motors, builders of the super-aerodynamic 2e EV, is pulling the plug, handing over the keys, gliding off into the sunset…and draining the battery (an important safety measure). CEO Paul Wilbur made the sad announcement on Friday. “After years of focused effort to bring our products to the market, Aptera Motors is… Read more »
The Nissan Leaf will go wireless in 2013
At the Tokyo Motor Show today, Nissan unveiled a wireless charging system for the Leaf that it says will be available starting with the 2013 model. So far, Nissan is the only EV maker to announce wireless charging capability for a production vehicle. Electromagnetic induction charging, which doesn’t require physical contact, is shaping up… Read more »
Another Volt battery catches fire after a crash test
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced Friday that it will open an investigation to assess the risk of fire in Chevy Volts that have been involved in a serious crash, after the agency’s latest test succeeded in causing a Volt battery to burst into flame. In May, a Volt caught fire three weeks… Read more »
Audi puts a PHEV in the pipeline
German automakers are looking at tough fleet-average CO2 regulations in 2015, and tougher ones in 2020, so each is searching for the perfect mix of electrons and hydrocarbons in their product lineup.