VIA Motors expects to sell 50,000 of its plug-in pickups and vans per year by 2018, Chairman Bob Lutz told Bloomberg this week. For 2015, he said, the company would be happy to sell about 12,000 vehicles. VIA will start selling the pickups to fleet customers in February and to individuals by the end of… Read more »
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Fuji Pigment develops new type of aluminum-air battery
Metal-air battery technology could offer very high energy density, and is considered a promising candidate for “beyond Li-ion” next-generation batteries. Aluminum, which is abundant and cheap, is a likely anode material. Aluminum-air batteries have a theoretical specific energy of up to 8.1 kWh/kg, second only to lithium-air batteries (13.0 kWh/kg). A pioneer in the aluminum-air… Read more »
VIDEO: Mister Musk goes to Detroit, presses automakers to get serious about EVs
Elon Musk spoke at the Automotive News World Congress in Detroit this week, and as usual, he had plenty to say – in an hour-long interview and a Q&A with reporters, he covered a wide range of topics. The gadfly of the automotive industry reiterated his long-standing challenge to other automakers to move faster on… Read more »
2015 VW e-Golf ushers in an era of interchangeable drivetrains for every Volkswagen model
Rising above the waters of the Mittelland Canal in Wolfsburg, Germany, four iconic smokestacks cut through an otherwise sparse skyline. These are the most recognizable – and among the last – vestiges of the original Volkswagen factory from 1938. Symbolically, however, the smokestacks represent much more than the symbols of a power plant that –… Read more »
AutoLion Li-ion battery simulation software claims a unique modeling technology
Super modeling: EC Power’s AutoLion claims unique technology, reliable results and extraordinary savings in development time and cost With battery technology being one of the key bottlenecks slowing down the widespread adoption of electric vehicles, Pennsylvania’s growing startup EC Power proposes a tantalizing offer to battery developers: cut your product development cycle by around 20 percent, and… Read more »
Pushing the power limits: Fuji Electric on the new requirements of power electronics
With each passing model year, the requirements demanded of automotive power electronics increase. Market forces are pushing Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) modules towards lighter, smaller, more powerful and more reliable technology. These switching devices are what power an EV or hybrid inverter, and with increasingly stringent emissions requirements, automakers are looking for more innovative… Read more »
Cycle World publishes lengthy primer on electric motorcycles
An electric motorcycle may seem like an incongruous idea – after all, if there’s anyone who loves noisy, smoky gasoline engines, it’s the stereotypical leather-clad biker. However, as Charged readers well know, e-cycles are here, and their performance is steadily winning converts. Kevin Cameron of Cycle World observes that lovers of two-wheeled speed have two… Read more »
EVs, renewables & energy storage: The unstoppable trio of energy’s future
The ripples of disruption: Q&A with Mike Calise The concept of disruption is often discussed in the fields of semiconductors, the internet, data, computers and software. But what about the energy industry? The world has been largely generating and consuming energy the same way for over a century. Charged talked to Mike Calise, Head of Electric… Read more »
Utah State University builds a dynamic wireless charging test track
Wireless charging is gradually making its way to the market. We’ve seen countless demonstration projects over the past few years, and a couple of OEMs have announced that they have wireless charging systems in the pipeline. Convenience is the most obvious reason to cut the cable, but wireless can deliver several other benefits as well… Read more »
2014 plug-in sales post 23% gain over 2013 as Tesla takes the lead and Mercedes and VW enter the race
2014 was another year of steady growth for EV sales. Some 12,874 plug-ins were sold in the US in December, a healthy gain compared to December 2013. For the full year, sales are up 23%. The Tesla Model S passed the LEAF and Volt to slide into the lead (doubtless thanks to the new P85D’s… Read more »