Judging from the articles that appear in the mainstream press, there’s still a lot of confusion and ignorance about how EVs actually work. Anyone who’d like a little deeper understanding of the workings of an electric powertrain, without going to engineering school, would do well to watch “How does an Electric Car work?” Part of… Read more »
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Teardown of Chevy Bolt points to massive disruption ahead
It’s not unheard-of for financial analysts to tear down a vehicle to get an accurate estimate of what it costs to produce. Back in 2015, a consulting firm took apart and reverse-engineered a BMW i3. More recently, a team from UBS disassembled a Chevy Bolt and published a cost analysis of the new EV. However,… Read more »
Plug-in sales shatter records in May, Prius Prime takes the lead
As more and more automakers are accelerating their plans for an electric future, sales of existing EV models are also gathering momentum. Monthly US plug-in vehicle sales have now beaten previous-year figures for 20 consecutive months. The trend continued in May, as an estimated 16,568 plug-ins were sold, a gain of 44% over last May…. Read more »
Will Ford’s new CEO put more emphasis on EVs and AVs?
Ford has replaced CEO Mark Fields with Jim Hackett, the head of the company’s Smart Mobility division. The company also appointed a new executive in charge of “strategy and business model development for electrified vehicles and autonomous vehicles.” The buzz in the media is that the new regime will put more emphasis on electric and… Read more »
EV tech explained: Why do EVs restrict the amount of battery capacity that can be used for driving?
All EVs that use lithium-ion batteries are designed so that their full capacity can’t be used in driving – a few kWh are always left over as a buffer. Sometimes you’ll find this figure in spec sheets, which might (for example) quote capacity as “60 kWh (55 usable)” or some such. What is the reason… Read more »
Wrightspeed partners with AxleTech to meet demand for heavy-duty vehicles
Business is picking up for Wrightspeed, the manufacturer of plug-in powertrains for heavy-duty vehicles headed by Tesla founder Ian Wright. The company is expanding its supply chain team, bringing on experts with experience at Tesla, Ford, Cummins, and others, and scaling up operations to meet demand from customers such as New Zealand bus operator NZB… Read more »
EV fast charging in transition: What’s currently installed, coming soon and still years away?
Phoenix Contact discusses the upcoming transition phase for DC fast charging We receive a lot of press releases at Charged about plans for next-generation DC fast charging. It’s easy to lose track of exactly what is currently installed, what is coming in the near future, and what is still a few years away. Despite all… Read more »
Elon Musk: GM is in it for the CARB credits, will produce only 25,000 Chevy Bolts per year
As a plethora of pundits pontificate about Tesla and the hypothetical competition for its upcoming Model 3, many fall into error because they don’t understand the dynamic between Tesla, which exists to sell EVs, and the legacy automakers, which grudgingly sell a few in order to comply with government regulations. Elon Musk is happy to… Read more »
Hyundai launches Ioniq with three distinct powertrain choices: EV, PHEV and hybrid
In the short history of the modern EV industry, it’s been common for automakers to launch plug-in cars under a new brand or model – particularly those companies who are serious about selling EVs at scale. Or, at least the ones that want to appear serious about selling a lot of EVs. Even though Hyundai… Read more »
Nevada: There’s lithium in them thar hills!
Scare stories about a looming lithium shortage are just that. As informed observers keep pointing out, lithium is not a consumable fuel, it’s easily recycled, and batteries don’t really use all that much of it. Be that as it may, there is a scramble going on to secure supplies of the light white stuff, especially… Read more »