A race towards progress: The all-electric racing series The greatest obstacle to getting more EVs on the road isn’t high upfront costs, range anxiety or a lack of infrastructure – it’s simple consumer awareness. Despite the fact that the Model S, Volt and LEAF are becoming common sights in many cities, a surprisingly high number of… Read more »
Search Results Found For: "Plug &"
California: Smaller automakers can earn ZEV credits with PHEVs (UPDATED)
For several years now, the California Air Resources Board’s ZEV mandate has required the largest automakers to produce a certain number of zero-emission vehicles for sale in the state. Beginning in 2018, smaller OEMs will be subject to the rules, too. Unsurprisingly, these companies would rather skip it, and at a May hearing, Jaguar Land… Read more »
Ford opens up its EV patents, puts 200 more engineers to work on electrification
Tesla isn’t the only company that can play the patent-opening game. Ford has announced that it will make its portfolio of over 650 electrification-related patents available to competing automakers. Unlike Tesla, which has implied that it will allow others to use technology “in good faith” free of charge (and Toyota, which plans to make some… Read more »
Uber adds PHEVs to its fleet in China
It’s a logical convergence of three tech trends: Uber, EVs and China. The pioneering ride-sharing service, which has already been testing EVs in Chicago and Prague, has announced that it will add ten PHEVs to its fleet in the Chinese city of Wuhan. The new car service, called UberGREEN, will use Guangzhou Automobile’s Trumpchi GA5… Read more »
California BMW dealer opens EV-only showroom
As Tesla realized from the beginning, trying to sell EVs alongside legacy vehicles could be a losing proposition. Dealerships that also sell gas-burning cars have incentives to steer customers away from plug-ins and toward their proven sellers. For an automaker that actually wants to sell its electric models, it may make more sense to establish separate, EV-only dealerships… Read more »
Qualcomm and Daimler collaborate on connected cars
Qualcomm Technologies and Daimler have announced a strategic collaboration focused on connectivity. In the first phase, the companies will focus on 3G/4G connectivity and the Qualcomm Halo Wireless Electric Vehicle Charging (WEVC) technology. Qualcomm’s Wireless Power Transfer 2.0 program not only provides the ability to charge EVs and PHEVs without having to physically plug them… Read more »
Nissan and BMW to build EV charging station network in South Africa
Nissan and BMW have agreed to jointly build a national grid of public charging stations in South Africa. The stations will feature DC fast chargers compatible with both the CCS2 standard used by BMW’s plug-in models and the CHAdeMO standard used by the Nissan LEAF. Some stations will also include Level 2 chargers. “Our introduction… Read more »
Pennsylvania renews EV rebate program
What the EV gods taketh away in Georgia, they reneweth in Pennsylvania. The Keystone State’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has announced the continuation of the Alternative Fuel Vehicle Rebate Program, which provides rebates of up to $2,000 to buyers of plug-in vehicles. Under the program, which is supported by a gross receipts tax on… Read more »
LG Chem inks battery deal with Great Wall
Korean battery-maker LG Chem has made a deal with China’s Great Wall Motor to supply lithium-ion batteries for the carmaker’s upcoming plug-in hybrid SUVs, which are scheduled to go into production in 2017. LG Chem has extended its cooperation with Chinese carmakers in recent years, and with the Great Wall deal, the company says that… Read more »
Volvo XC90 PHEV to come with AeroVironment’s portable TurboCord charger
While some plug-in vehicle owners steer towards hard-wired wall-mounted charging stations, other drivers find that portable “trunk chargers” offer a sufficient and convenient solution. Volvo has announced that its 2016 XC90 T8 will include AeroVironment’s portable TurboCord Dual (120 V/240 V) charger as standard equipment when the new PHEV goes on sale in the US later this year. This marks the first time… Read more »