EV advocates have long been puzzled by the policies of Toyota. The company that initiated vehicle electrification in 1997 with the Prius, and that currently makes the second-best-selling plug-in vehicle in the US (the Prius Prime) has consistently dismissed the benefits of pure EVs, insisting that hybrids are superior, and diverting resources to fuel cell… Read more »
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The auto industry is finally advertising its EVs
Over the past few years, we in the EV media have been highly critical of automakers for failing to advertise their EVs (and then claiming that there’s no consumer demand for them). So it’s only fair that we praise them now that they’re starting to release some pro-EV ad spots. Several TV campaigns have referred… Read more »
Cree joins Volkswagen’s FAST program to provide silicon carbide
Automotive manufacturer Volkswagen Group has selected Cree as the exclusive provider of silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductors for its Future Automotive Supply Tracks (FAST) program. Founded in 2015, FAST aims to optimize the collaboration between Volkswagen and its suppliers. According to Cree, the use of SiC semiconductors makes EVs more efficient, allowing for reduced costs, quicker… Read more »
Electrify America launches app, membership plans, lower introductory charging rates
Electrify America, the EV charging network operator and VW’s state-mandated penance for Dieselgate, has launched a mobile app for Android and iPhone as well as new membership plans and lower introductory charging prices. All of this is on top of the organization’s plan to install 484 charging stations in the US by July this year…. Read more »
Electrify America to install 30 ultra-fast charging stations at Krogers and other businesses
Charging network operator Electrify America, VW’s government-mandated penance for Dieselgate, is working with nine companies to host more than 30 ultra-fast charging stations across the US. The companies include grocery chains Kroger and Save Mart, a handful of real estate investment trusts, and real estate company Pan-Cal. More than 20 of the new charging sites… Read more »
A look at Volkswagen’s MEB architecture
The all-electric underpinnings that the VW Group will use to build dozens of EVs A few weeks before the end of 2019, if all goes according to plan, the first Volkswagen I.D. Neo electric car will roll off the assembly line at the company’s plant in Zwickau, Germany. Different versions will offer ranges from 160… Read more »
Several states now plan to require credit card readers on public chargers
In California, a controversial plan to require credit card readers on all public charging stations has generated a lot of pushback from the industry. Charging network operators, hardware manufacturers and other stakeholders say that installing and maintaining the readers would impose excessive costs on what is already a very low-margin business, and point out that,… Read more »
Tesla’s Model 3 was the top-selling car in Switzerland in March
I’ve written so many articles about Switzerland being an EV laggard in Europe that it’s only fair to trumpet the news that the Swiss auto market has been “struck by Tesla lightning,” as the Neue Zürcher Zeitung, one of the country’s top daily newspapers, put it. Tesla’s Model 3 was the best-selling car of any… Read more »
New book: the Dieselgate scandal was not an isolated incident, was not a secret, and is not over
The “Dieselgate scandal,” or as we like to call it, the “dirty diesel debacle,” was a catalytic event (pun intended). It led to some major changes at Volkswagen, and shook up the European auto market. However, only time will tell how much of this change will prove to be permanent. The Volkswagen Group has announced… Read more »
2019 Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid review: Subaru’s first PHEV offers its loyal customers a taste of zero-emission miles
Any new plug-in vehicle from a maker that hasn’t previously offered one is cause for excitement, even if volumes are low at first. So I approached my six-day test of the new plug-in Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid with anticipation. Sure, its rated 17-mile electric range is below the curve, but at least it’s a start –… Read more »