We all acknowledge the absurdity of ignoring an elephant, when one is present in the very room in which important matters are being discussed, but what about a hulking, jacked-up, V8-powered monster truck? Tesla permanently changed the conversation about EVs when it electrified a sporty two-seater, a luxury sedan and a crossover SUV, but few… Read more »
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VIDEO: Just how does an EV work, anyway?
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 »
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 »
New study finds V2G discharging harmful to EV batteries
Vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology is seen as a potentially valuable resource for balancing electrical grids and facilitating the use of renewable energy. However, a new study by a team at the University of Hawaii suggests that the additional cycling to discharge vehicle batteries to the grid is detrimental to battery performance. In “Durability and reliability of… Read more »
Southwest Research Institute consortium conducts independent battery benchmarking
Comparing the spec sheets from different parts manufacturers is tricky business for engineers in any industry. However, the advanced battery market seems to be uniquely challenged in this regard. As Tesla CEO Elon Musk often points out, when it comes to batteries, the BS factor is outrageous. Even if you assume that every vendor provides… Read more »
California utility orders 500 Workhorse PHEV pickup trucks
Workhorse Group (NASDAQ: WKHS) has received a Letter of Intent from Southern California Public Power Authority for 500 W-15 Plug-In Electric Pickup trucks. The Workhorse W-15 light-duty platform design is an extension of the E-Gen electric technology used in Workhorse medium-duty delivery trucks. It uses Panasonic 18650 Li-ion battery cells, and is expected to offer… Read more »
Tesla Model 3 could take the title of most American-made car
The world car has been a reality for many years now. Automakers source parts and expertise from around the world, and they build vehicles in different regions to be closer to markets or to take advantage of cheaper labor. Buying American is a worthy cause, but it isn’t as simple as buying an American brand…. Read more »
Samsung SDI shows several battery innovations in Detroit
Battery powerhouse Samsung SDI introduced several advances in battery tech at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The star of the show was a new cell that the company says could enable EV driving ranges of up to 373 miles, and can fast charge in 20 minutes. Mass production is slated for 2021…. Read more »
Tesla Gigafactory begins producing cells
It seems we’ve been waiting forever, but in fact, as these things go, it happened with lightning speed. Tesla’s game-changing Gigafactory has started producing battery cells, destined for the Powerwall and other energy storage products and, beginning in the second quarter, the Model 3. The sprawling Nevada plant is already assembling utility-scale Powerpacks for Southern… Read more »
Tesla introduces third-generation battery pack technology
As is often the case with Tesla, the mainstream press has missed the true significance of the company’s latest product. Tesla’s announcement of its new P100D battery pack option focused on the quicker 0-60 time, so that’s what most media outlets wrote about. Everyone other than acceleration junkies greeted it with a yawn – who… Read more »