Charged with Electric Vehicle News and Views
Meet the MTT-136, a self-contained battery powered electric tank track. Developed by Canadian Inventor Yvon Martel, the tank track has different attachments and can be used for towing, pushing and grading on virtually any terrain.
The specs claimed in the video are battery dependant, with recharging time varying from 15 minutes to eight hours and range is a similarly variable 45 to 210 kms. The device as shown in the video weighs 280 lbs (127 kg)
ABB has announced it will enter into a partnership with Shenzhen BYD Daimler New Technology Co to supply direct-current fast chargers over the next six years.
The announcement said the agreement will result in the world's largest fast-charging network for electric vehicles.
According to the two companies, the wall-mounted chargers will have a number of innovations designed for user convenience and safety including a mobile app that allows cloud-based remote monitoring and control of charging sessions.
First deliveries are expected by the middle of the year. The chargers will be sold through BYD-Daimler's Denza dealerships along with the vehicle.
The first Denza dealership will open in Beijing and more dealerships will be built up simultaneously in Shanghai and Shenzhen.
Established in 2010 between BYD Co, a leader in China's electric vehicle industry, and German automotive icon Daimler AG, BYD-Daimler was the first joint venture in China specializing in developing and producing new-energy vehicles.
The joint venture's Denza brand launched last year will have its world premiere at Beijing auto show in April. It is slated to go on sale later this year, according to an earlier announcement.
Ulrich Spiesshofer, CEO of ABB Group, said at a news conference in Stockholm that he is confident about the deal with BYD-Daimler.
"We are honored to be a partner in this venture with BYD-Daimler to move urban transportation forward in a more sustainable way. By combining car and fast charger sales, Denza is taking a bold step to address a key obstacle for potential electric car buyers," said Spiesshofer.
"ABB's electric vehicle charging solutions have been expanding rapidly worldwide as the underlying technology combines our key strengths in power electronics, software, service and power distribution."
The fully electric Denza is designed for journeys of more than 250 km and will be among the first long-range electric vehicles on the Chinese market.
Market research shows that consumers value long drive ranges but at the same time expect short charging times.
Denza will offer its customers the convenience of charging their cars in a short time at home, at the workplace or at compatible public places, according to BYD-Daimler.
"The Denza represents a significant step in sustainable transportation for the Chinese automotive market. It was vital that we have the right partner to support this innovative concept," said Arno Roehringer, COO of BYD-Daimler.
"ABB is the ideal technology partner for us as they have proven themselves with electric vehicle chargers in China as well as globally and - equally important - the service to install it," he added.
The Chinese government adopted a GBT standard for direct-current fast charging to encourage technical innovation and stimulate market acceptance of electric vehicles.
Analysts said that urban charging infrastructure is key to widespread acceptance of electric vehicles by consumers.
The GBT standard will give Chinese consumers the option of charging their vehicles at home or in public, with DC fast charging expected to be rolled out in the near future.
Experts say China's electric vehicle market could quickly gain momentum due to technology, market innovations, the GBT national fast-charging standard and favorable incentives.
ABB has worked on pilot projects with local automakers and utilities in China since 2010. In 2013 it began to build up a local electric vehicle organization to support growth including R&D, manufacturing, logistics and services.
The Golf is the most successful European car of all time. In launching the new e-Golf, Volkswagen is now bringing the bestseller onto the market as a full production electric vehicle as well. The especially agile and efficient compact car supplements the highly economic fleet of 3 Euro vehicles and boasts an extensive range of standard features. The e-Golf can be immediately recognised by its signature LED headlights and is available from €34,900.
In launching the e-Golf, Volkswagen is bringing its second electric vehicle onto the market inside six months. The agile and efficient e-Golf impresses with best-in-class qualities from the off, leading the way with low power consumption of 12.7 kWh/100 km. In addition to the environmental aspect, the practically silent and thus gliding e-Golf is also very inexpensive to run, as power costs are just €3.28 per 100 kilometres. Thanks to a particularly innovative overall technological system, improved aerodynamics (cw=0,281) and perfected rolling resistance, the new, all-electric Volkswagen is over 15 per cent more energy-efficient than the best steel-built direct competitor. Joining the e-up! and eco-up!, the e-Golf thus extends the Volkswagen brand's fleet of highly efficient 3 Euro vehicles.
The e-Golf is 'Das e-Auto' - it has the same handling, comfortable ride and generous amount of space that has seen the Golf so appreciated for decades by over 30 million car buyers. The e-Golf is in addition fitted with a very good range of standard features, including four doors, the high-end 'Discover Pro' radio/navigation system, heated windscreen, automatic climate control, parking heater and ventilation, leather steering wheel, aerodynamically optimised 'Astana' alloy wheels and, being used for the first time by Volkswagen, full LED headlights. Another especially economic and likewise standard feature are the LED daytime running lights, which by virtue of their signature C-shaped format immediately identify the e-Golf as a Volkswagen electric vehicle.
The electric engine delivers 85 kW / 115 PS and from a standing start develops maximum torque of 270 Nm. This deployment of power produces a superb driving performance: the e-Golf reaches a speed of 60 km/h within 4.2 seconds and after just 10.4 seconds the Volkswagen is up to 100 km/h. A fascinating factor here is the pull-away performance, which is extremely comfortable and totally free of any delay. Depending on the nature of the route, driving style and load, the range is between 130 and 190 kilometres. The new e-Golf is available in Germany now. Prices start from €34,900 (including the 8-year / 160,000-kilometre battery guarantee).
Robert Llewellyn takes a first drive in the electric version of the VW UP!
Also includes extensive pondering on the 'Yorkshire connection' as regards the time honoured phrase 'aye -up.'
Mahindra & Mahindra unveiled its concept electric sports car 'Halo' which it expects to launch commercially in the next three years.
"There is a plan to commercialise Halo, we are working on a bigger powertrain and a final design. It will take about three years to be production ready," Mahindra & Mahindra Executive Director and President Pawan Goenka told reporters at the Indian Auto Expo.
According to the company, the Halo can touch a speed of 0-100 kmph in less than 8 seconds. It has a top speed of 160 kmph with a range of 200 km on full recharge.
"This car has been fully designed and developed in India with all indigenous technology," Mahindra Reva Electric Vehicle CEO Chetan Maini said.
The company also introduced a quick recharge variant of its existing electric car e20, equipped with smart port technology.
The car can be fully recharged in one hour, while a recharge of 15 minutes will give a range of 25 km.
Chinese carmaker BYD will launch London’s first ever all-electric taxi fleet on Tuesday, pulling ahead of global rivals such as Nissan in the race to roll out zero emission cabs by 2018.
Following similar BYD E6 taxi fleets in China, Hong Kong and South America, BYD’s move into London transport comes ahead of a 2018 deadline set by Mayor Boris Johnson for all of the city’s taxis to be zero-emission, which has sparked a battle between manufacturers to develop green vehicles.
The Chinese manufacturer, 9.9 per cent owned by Mr Buffett, will initially launch a fleet of 20 electric cars operated by Thriev, a taxi company, less than two months after supplying the first-ever fully-electric buses to the capital.
“Londoners are typically early adopters to new technology . . . and we are very happy to be first and beat the deadline by a few years. This is where the electric vehicle technology will shine,” Isbrand Ho, managing director of BYD Europe told the Financial Times.
Although the E6 cannot be registered as a ‘Black Cab’ because of the turning circle requirements, Thriev is aiming at the established 50,000-strong mini cab market, which relies heavily on diesel-powered MPVs.
The BYD E6 is powered by a 40kWh battery and should offer a range of around 180 miles on a single charge, according to Isbrand Ho, managing director of BYD’s export division. The E6 was launched as a taxi in Hong Kong last March and a fleet is already operating in Shenzhen, the Netherlands and Columbia.
Kia Motors Corp rolled out an electric version of its Soul compact car on Thursday that the Korean automaker plans to begin selling in some U.S. markets later this year.
The 2015 Soul EV, unveiled at the media kick-off for the 2014 Chicago Auto Show, is Kia's first all-electric, zero-emissions car in the United States and its second "green" car for the U.S. market, joining a hybrid version of the company's best-selling Optima sedan that has been available here since 2011.
The Soul EV is powered by an air-cooled lithium-ion polymer battery and an 81.4 kW, 109-horsepower, liquid-cooled electric motor, which produces a 210 lb.-ft. of torque, according to Kia.
The car can go from 0 to 60 mph (0 to 96 km per hour) in less than 12 seconds, has a top speed of 90 mph (144 km per hour) and can drive 80 to 100 miles (129 to 161 km) on a full charge, the company said. The vehicle can be recharged by plugging into any standard 120v outlet or a conventional 240v EV charger.
The Soul EV will initially be sold in a handful of states, including California, Oregon, New York, New Jersey and Maryland, Kia said. Pricing has not yet been announced.
Speaking to owners during a European tour, Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk has announced several product developments and company goals.
Musk confirmed plans to release an all-wheel-drive edition of its Model S sedan. The option may be available by the time the Model X arrives on the market, around early 2015.
The company is also working on higher-capacity battery options and new seats that will likely be ready by next year. For current owners, a seat modification will be available to improve comfort.
In the meantime, existing owners will be able to experience the Version 6.0 software update within a few weeks. The revision adds real-time traffic data, along with more control over suspension settings and ride-height adjustment, among other improvements.
Musk expects its "giga factory" to reduce battery costs by at least 30 percent, hopefully as much as 40 percent, with 30 gigawatt-hours of production capacity. Cheaper batteries are likely necessary for the company to meet its goal for a $30,000 mass-market car with a 200-mile range.
Following the completion of its transcontinental charging network in the US, Tesla is currently bringing new Superchargers on line at a rate of five per week. The chargers will eventually charge at a maximum 135 kW current.
While Musk was chatting with owners at the casual town-hall meetings, Consumer Reports was completing its latest brand-perception survey that showed the startup surging into the top five ahead of Subaru, Mercedes-Benz, BMW and other established players.
On January 30, 2014, Tesla Motors embarked on a promotional tour.
The plan was to drive two Model S sedans across the United States, powering them for free on the newly completed cross-continental Supercharger network.
In addition, the team would set the world record for charge time of an electric vehicle driving the across the US.
This episode follows Robert Llewellyn's one day electric car journey from London to Edinburgh in a Nissan Leaf. Using the Ecotricity fast charge network they covered the 407 miles with 8 rapid charge stops in just 13 hours.
In 2011 the BBC's Brian Milligan took 4 days to drive an electric car from London to Edinburgh. In what could only be seen as an anti-EV publicity stunt, Milligan set out to make the 484-mile journey using only publicly available charging infrastructure, making eight stops and spending about 46 hours of his total trip sleeping and waiting for the Mini E to refill its battery.
On day 3 of the BBC trip, David Peilow talked Tesla Motors into loaning him a Roadster to complete the same distance in 1 day. The Roadster stopped twice enroute and handsomely beat the BBC crew but could have potentially completed the trip in one day AND on a single charge.
As the Leaf comes with a Level 3 CHAdeMO charging socket fitted as standard, a Nissan Leaf, using the Ecotricity Fast Charge network, can cover the BBC trip in 1 day so on the third anniversary of the BBC's trip Robert Llewellyn and David Peilow set out to prove it.
In fact we posted a video of a British couple doing 500 miles (800 km) in a day in a Nissan Leaf using the Ecotricity Electric Highway backed by renewable energy.
