Category: Battery Electric Car

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Tesla sells record 10,030 cars in Q1, up 55% year over year

Tesla Motors delivered a record 10,030 cars in the first quarter of 2015, a 55% increase compared with the number of deliveries in the first quarter of last year.

The company said going forward it will publish the number of new car deliveries within three days of quarter end as inaccurate sources of information have sometimes been used by others in publishing the number of vehicle deliveries.

The company expects to deliver about 55,000 cars globally in 2015, an increase of about 74 percent.

Tesla Motors is also set to offer upgrades including hands-free steering on its Model S sedan in three months, about a year ahead of other automakers.

Up to Thursday's close of $191, the stock had fallen 14.1 percent this year.

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Aston Martin To Build Electric Rapide by 2018

Aston Martin Chief Executive Andy Palmer says the company may build an electric version of its Rapide sports car in two to three years as a part of its plan to overhaul its lineup and add several new models.

Mr. Palmer said the company has launched a research project for the electric car and is speaking with electric-vehicle technology companies to partner with, though he declined to say which companies.

“We are looking at technologies around the world, including some pretty cool technologies coming from Silicon Valley,” he said. Tesla Motors Inc., based in Palo Alto, Calif., isn’t one of them, he said.

Mr. Palmer, who came to Aston Martin from Nissan Motor Co., where he was an executive vice president, said the company would be producing ultraluxury special editions of its current models in the short-term to generate buzz and revenue, ahead of the new models. Aston is planning a crossover vehicle as well as an executive large sedan to compete with Rolls-Royce.

Aston Martin recently revealed an all electric DBX Concept at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show.

Source: WSJ

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Electric vehicles account for over 20% of Norway’s new-car sales

Plug-in electric car sales in Norway continue at just above 20% (21.03%) with 2,235 registrations in February 2015. Battery only electric vehicles now account for 18% of national car sales.

The over-all #1 selling car in Norway for the second month running is the VW e-Golf with 839 units. Sales of the Volkswagen e-Golf in Feb were almost double the top selling fossil fuelled car, the Toyota RAV4 with 450 sales.

The e-Golf accounts for almost 40% of all EV sales in Norway YTD (1,718) selling 3x more than second place Nissan Leaf (556) and 4x more cars sold than the third placed Tesla Model S (392).

The e-Golf and GTE Plug-in variants now account for 70% of all Volkswagen sales in Norway.


PlNorwayFeb.YTD '15%'14Pl
1Volkswagen e-Golf8391.718395
2Nissan Leaf247556121
3Tesla Model S32139292
4Mitsu Outlander PHEV e)15038496
5Volkswagen e-Up! e)16033173
6BMW i312622754
7Audi A3 e-Tron134188421
8Kia Soul EV4513737
9Renault Zoe5413338
10
11		Mitsubishi I-Miev
Peugeot iOn		32
54		130
114		3
3		9
11
12Volvo V60 Plug-In2757114
13
14
15
16
17		Nissan e-NV200 / Evalia e)
Mercedes B-Class ED e)
BMW i8
Toyota Prius Plug-In
Opel Ampera 		20
20
4
2
53
22
10
5
2		1
0
0
0
0		15
N/A
20
17
21

TOTAL2.2354.459100


Source: EV Sales Bestsellingcarblog

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Automakers race to double the driving range of affordable electric cars

Global automakers are readying a new generation of mass-market electric cars with more than double the driving range of today’s Nissan Leaf, betting that technical breakthroughs by big battery suppliers such as LG Chem Ltd will jump-start demand and pull them abreast of Tesla Motors Inc.

At least four major automakers — General Motors, Ford, Nissan and Volkswagen — plan to race Tesla to be first to field affordable electric vehicles that will travel up to 320 km (200 miles) between charges.

That is more than twice as far as current lower-priced models such as the Nissan Leaf, which starts at $29,010. The new generation of electric cars is expected to be on the market within two to three years.

To get a Tesla Model S that delivers 265 miles (427 km) on a charge requires buying a version that starts at $81,000 before tax incentives. Most electric cars offered at more affordable prices can travel only about 75 to 85 miles (121 to 137 km) on a charge – less in cold weather or when drivers have the air conditioning on.

Automakers need to pump up electric vehicle demand significantly by 2018. This is when California and eight other states will begin to require the companies to meet much higher sales targets for so-called zero emission vehicles — in other words, electric cars — and federal rules on reducing fuel consumption and greenhouse gases become much stricter.

BATTERY BREAKTHROUGHS

Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk said last week that “200 miles is the minimum threshold” to alleviate consumer concerns over EV range. There is “a sweet spot around 250-350 miles that’s really ideal,” he said.

Musk has promised a more affordable Tesla, the Model 3, which will sell for around $35,000 and provide a driving range of 200 miles or more. That car is slated to begin production in mid-to-late 2017.

However, GM says it plans to field a 200-mile electric car, the Chevrolet Bolt, by late 2016.

The Bolt will use an advanced lithium-ion battery pack developed by Korea’s LG Chem, which also supplies batteries for the Chevrolet Volt hybrid. The newer batteries are said to have much higher energy density and provide much longer range between charges, thanks to breakthroughs in battery materials, design and chemistry, according to a source familiar with LG Chem’s technology.

"Several factors are at play that are landing at this 200-mile range" for a vehicle priced between $30,000 and $35,000, LG Chem Chief Executive Prabhakar Patil said in an interview. "We’ve been talking to several OEMs (automakers) regarding where our battery technology is and where it’s going."

LG Chem also supplies standard lithium-ion batteries to the Ford Focus Electric and may supply the longer-range batteries to a new compact EV that Ford is tentatively planning to introduce in late 2018 or early 2019, according to three suppliers familiar with the program.

Compared with the 2015 Focus Electric, which has a range between charges of 76 miles, the new compact electric model would have a range of at least 200 miles, the suppliers said.

Nissan and VW both have battery supply deals with LG Chem, and both are working on longer-range EVs for 2018 and beyond.

Nissan is planning to introduce a successor to the Leaf in early 2018, according to a source familiar with the program, and that model is expected to offer significantly greater range than the current Leaf, the best-selling electric car in the United States, which can go 84 miles (135 km) between charges.

The 2015 Leaf uses batteries made by a joint venture between Nissan and supplier NEC. It is not clear if the future model will shift to LG Chem, although Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn has identified LG Chem as a potential battery supplier.

VW plans to expand its current range of electrified vehicles, including a successor to the battery-powered e-Golf in 2018 with much longer range, according to two sources familiar with the program. The current e-Golf uses batteries made by Panasonic and has a range between charges of 83 miles.

Volkswagen plans to decide in the first half of this year whether new battery technology under development at U.S. startup QuantumScape Corp, which may expand an electric vehicle’s driving distance between recharges to as much as 700 kilometers (430 miles), is ready for use in its electric cars.

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Foxconn Partners with Tencent in Electric Car Business

Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd, better known as Foxconn, on Monday said it has partnered Chinese social networker Tencent Holdings Ltd to develop opportunities related to electric vehicles, marking the latest tech foray into "smart" cars.

Foxconn, WeChat operator Tencent and luxury car dealer China Harmony Auto Holding Ltd signed an agreement to work together in the Chinese city of Zhengzhou, Henan province, the contract manufacturer said without detailing specifics.

The partnership would put Tencent on a par with online peers Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and Baidu Inc, which have already moved into the nascent market for Internet-connected cars vie tie-ups with major auto makers.

Foxconn said the coalition would form a working team drawing on its manufacturing capabilities, Tencent's Internet platform and China Harmony Auto's dealership network, to explore commercial possibilities in smart electric vehicles.

Foxconn announced an investment of over $800M to build electric cars in China in 2014.

Foxconn, known more for assembling the bulk of Apple Inc's iPhones, already has experience with electric vehicles having manufactured the touch screens in some cars made by U.S. automaker Tesla Motors Inc.

The absence of a carmaker from its new partnership appears to put the group on a different tack to that of Alibaba or Baidu in targeting electric vehicles.

The Chinese government has recently redoubled efforts to promote electric vehicles, renewing tax breaks and setting aggressive emission standards.

Foxconn has manufacturing operations across China and has been working to diversify from the competitive, low-margin contract business. As part of that drive, it bought around 10 percent of Zhengzhou-based China Harmony Auto last year.

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Nissan LEAF Battery Reliability Outperforms Cynics [VIDEO]

Robert Llewellyn, from Red Dwarf & Fully Charged fame, debunks motoring journalists who when the Nissan Leaf was launched questioned it's battery reliability.

Of the 30,000 sold across Europe just 0.01% of batteries have been replaced since 2010. That makes the Nissan Leaf more reliable than a petrol or diesel engined car, according to industry averages.

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UK Highways Agency commissions study into wireless power on roads

The Highways Agency has commissioned the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) to undertake a feasibility study into the use of dynamic wireless power transfer (WPT) on Britain’s roads.

The Highways Angency wants to understand whether WPT can be used on motorways and major A roads, so it can prepare for and “potentially encourage” greater uptake of electric vehicles (EV).

Scheduled to report in spring this year, TRL will identify two near-market dynamic WPT technologies that could be suitable in future research and trials of the technology in the UK. The feasibility study will also consider “the requirements for integration with road infrastructure and maintenance, connection to the grid and requirements for provision of power and energy”.

In addition, TRL will look into approaches by vehicle manufacturers of integration into different classes of vehicle from cars to HGVs and busses, and investigate the viability of introducing the technology.

TRL said in a statement: “The purpose of the project is not to find an alternative to current plug-in charging infrastructure but rather to develop a comprehensive charging eco-system capable of delivering power to EVs via different methods. This is to facilitate greater and more flexible use of EVs in the UK, overcome range anxiety and allow switching to zero emission for vehicle types that have traditionally been accepted as not suitable for electrification, such as HGVs and coaches.”

Once the study is completed, TRL said it could be followed by a series of off-road “test track trials and accelerated pavement facility testing”.

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Next BMW i model not due until 2020

BMW R&D chief Klaus Froehlich says the company will launch a third BMW i car but it won’t arrive until at least 2020.

“We are still in the strategic research phase where we brainstorm,” BMW Group r&d chief Klaus Froehlich told Automotive News Europe. “Teams that start with a white sheet of paper. They talk with customers, hold workshops, then present their ideas and we decide.”

Froehlich disputed media reports that claimed the third model after the i3 and i8 would be a variant of the X5 premium large SUV. He said the mission of the i subbrand is to change the perception of how a low-emissions car should look and perform, therefore there are no plans to re-package an existing BMW Group model and call it an i model.

Also, he said the i subbrand is supposed to be a starting point for cutting-edge innovation that progressively moves down into the rest of the automaker’s lineup. Current examples include carbon fiber, which is a key part of the i3 and i8 and is moving into other BMWs, and the i8’s plug-in hybrid powertrain, which is being added to high-volume models such as X5, 3 series and 4 series.

BMW will focus on steadily improving the i3 and i8 during the six-plus years until the subbrand’s portfolio grows again.

“We have a minimum 20 percent battery density improvement every three years, thus over the i3 and i8’s life cycle, we will offer more performance, more range or a combination of the two,” Frohlich said.

When asked whether current i3 and i8 owners would be able to switch to the more powerful electrical powertrains Froehlich said: “I don’t think a retrofit makes sense. When better batteries are available, we could then offer models with a longer range or with the same range but at a lower price.”

BMW Ceo Norbert Reithofer, who approved the i project skunkworks that developed the lightweight, low-cost carbon-fiber composites and electric drivetrains for the i3 and i8, will step down in May to be be replaced by Harald Krüger, current head of production. Krüger is known to have a more pragmatic view of electric vehicles than Reithofer.

Also BMW's R&D Chief, Herbert Diess, who oversaw the launch of the i3 and i8, and was thought to be a potential successor for BMW's CEO role was recently poached by Volkswagen to become chairman of VW's passenger car brand.

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Porsche To Expand With New Electric Car to Challenge Tesla

Porsche AG may expand its growing lineup with a battery-powered vehicle to cater to demand for cleaner luxury vehicles and counter the rise of Tesla Motors Inc.

“Tesla has built an exceptional car,” Porsche chief Matthias Mueller said Friday at the brand’s annual press conference in Stuttgart, Germany. “They have a very pragmatic approach and set the standard, where we have to follow up now.”

The Volkswagen AG unit plans to roll out its seventh model line by 2020, but has yet to make a final decision on the car’s form. Porsche previously said it might expand the Panamera coupe line with a smaller version or a more spacious shooting brake variant. Porsche has also been considering a sports car between the 911, which costs $151,100 for the Turbo version, and the $845,000 918 Spyder hybrid supercar. The new sports car model would be designed to challenge autos made by Ferrari SpA.

Porsche plans to sell more than 200,000 vehicles for the first time this year, driven by demand for the $49,900 Macan compact sport-utility vehicle it introduced in April 2014. The increase comes amid a rising tide for most luxury-car makers, with Porsche, its sister brands Audi and Bentley, Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz and BMW AG all reporting fresh sales records last year.

Porsche’s deliveries rose 17 percent to 189,849 cars in 2014 and surged 34 percent in February to 14,836 cars. Demand for luxury autos is forecast to rise further this year thanks to growth in China and the U.S.

Smartphone on Wheels

The profit margin for the sports-car brand narrowed to 15.8 percent from 18 percent last year due to costs for adding the Macan to its lineup and revamping the best-selling Cayenne SUV. Even so, Porsche’s return on sales remained one of the highest among global automakers. Porsche also sells the Boxster roadster and the hard-top Cayman variant.

Porsche will focus its development efforts on engines and handling rather than push for the latest advances in in-car Internet and automated driving.

The brand’s customers “don’t want a smartphone on four wheels or the biggest touchscreen in the center console,” said Mueller. “At Porsche there’s no room for window dressing.”

For an electric car, which would help the brand comply with tightening environmental regulations, Porsche is targeting a range of more 500 kilometres (310 miles) before needing to recharge, which shouldn’t take longer than a normal stop on a motorway, he said.

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Uber in deal with China’s BYD to test electric cars

Uber Inc said on Friday it struck a deal with Chinese automaker BYD Co Ltd to test a fleet of electric cars for its drivers.

The test program, which kicked off a few weeks ago in Chicago and could eventually expand to other cities, is the Silicon Valley startup's first attempt to focus on an electric vehicle, said Uber spokeswoman Lauren Altmin."We've seen interest in the program already from current and potential Chicago partners (drivers)," Altmin said.

Uber, which allows users to summon rides on their smartphones, originally started with a luxury town-car service but in many cities has added UberX, a low frills service with nonprofessional drivers using personal cars. The BYD offering is aimed at those drivers.

The electric car is part of Uber's program to help drivers buy or lease new or used cars. The BYD e6 vehicles are available through Green Wheels USA, a Chicago car dealership that focuses on electric and hybrid cars and also builds EV charging stations.

About 25 BYD vehicles are currently being used by Uber drivers in Chicago, and the hope is to bring that number to a couple of hundred by the end of the year, according to Doug Snower, Green Wheels' president.

Uber began talking to BYD and Green Wheels late last year, Altmin said.

For BYD the deal with Uber could be a step toward the long-held goal of selling its cars to U.S. consumers. The company, whose name stands for "build your dream", is a major automaker in China, but its e6 vehicle has thus far only been used in pilot programs in the United States.

Nissan Motor Co Ltd and Tesla Motors Inc are better known in the United States for their electric cars, the Leaf and the Model S. Uber would not comment on why it had picked a company with a relatively unknown brand.

The e6 is larger than many other electric cars, however, and is being used in London by chauffer service Thriev.

BYD gained Warren Buffett's backing in 2009 and announced plans to sell its e6 electric car in the United States the following year. Since then, BYD's U.S. business has focused mainly on electric buses for public transportation.

BYD publicized the program on its Facebook page but declined to comment on the deal with Uber.

The Facebook post, which has a picture of the vehicle, says the e6 has a 186 mile range on a single charge. It also says financing is available from BYD-approved lenders.

Green Wheels is offering several options to drivers interested in the e6. The most popular program, Snower said, allows an Uber driver to pay $200 a week to use an e6 for his or her driving shift. The vehicle is then returned to a Green Wheels lot, where it is charged until it is used again.

Drivers can also enter into a more traditional lease or a lease-to-own program, Snower said.

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Plug-in Electric Car Sales Surge in Europe


Plug-in electric car sales have undergone a huge rise in many key European markets according to figures released by the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA).
The biggest gains came in the UK, where a 300 per cent rise in electric cars has taken place compared to this time last year.
In total 75,331 new electric cars have been registered according to the ACEA, with Norway leading the way with just under 20,000 new registrations.
In Germany electric car registrations are up by 70 percent, while in France they had climbed by almost 30 per cent compared to the 2013 figures.
Total Electrically Charged Vehicles = Pure Electric Vehicles + Extended-Range Electric Vehicles + Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles
Q4Q4% ChgQ1-Q4Q1-Q4% Chg
’14’1314/13’14’1314/13
AUSTRIA93983113.0%3,6413,22712.8%
BELGIUM59531191.3%2,032819148.1%
BULGARIA20n.a.21100.0%
CZECH REPUBLIC241109121.1%58347522.7%
DENMARK676225200.4%1,612650148.0%
ESTONIA10046117.4%402150168.0%
FINLAND1309241.3%440218101.8%
FRANCE4,2482,77353.2%12,4889,62229.8%
GERMANY3,9692,71546.2%13,1187,70670.2%
GREECE223633.3%6441500.0%
HUNGARY146133.3%4316168.8%
IRELAND197171.4%25650412.0%
ITALY492497-1.0%1,4731,17425.5%
LATVIA22045400.0%391132907.7%
NETHERLANDS3,24116,926-80.9%12,92022,495-42.6%
POLAND1,578571176.4%3,9681,900108.8%
PORTUGAL846040.0%28922130.8%
ROMANIA42100.0%7475.0%
SLOVAKIA453818.4%16913624.3%
SPAIN644261146.7%1,40588359.1%
SWEDEN1,203457163.2%4,6671,547201.7%
UNITED KINGDOM6,086676800.3%15,3613,833300.8%
EUROPEAN UNION24,55226,610-7.7%75,33155,14436.6%
EU1522,34825,834-13.5%69,76652,44933.0%
EU (New Members)2,204776184.0%5,5652,695106.5%
NORWAY4,6953,70926.6%19,7678,210140.8%
SWITZERLAND8187499.2%2,6931,71756.8%
EFTA5,5134,45823.7%22,4609,927126.3%
TOTAL EUROPE (EU+EFTA)30,06531,068-3.2%97,79165,07150.3%
WEST. EUROPE (EU15+EFTA)27,86130,292-8.0%92,22662,37647.9%

Pure Electric Vehicle
Q4Q4% ChgQ1-Q4Q1-Q4% Chg
’14’1314/13’14’1314/13
AUSTRIA34524043.8%1,28165495.9%
BELGIUM32720956.5%1,164500132.8%
BULGARIA20n.a.21100.0%
CZECH REPUBLIC10217500.0%19737432.4%
DENMARK676225200.4%1,612650148.0%
ESTONIA10046117.4%398149167.1%
FINLAND6114335.7%18350266.0%
FRANCE3,6322,46147.6%10,5618,77920.3%
GERMANY2,4752,18013.5%8,5226,05140.8%
GREECE00n.a.00n.a.
HUNGARY8560.0%3210220.0%
IRELAND2156150.0%22149351.0%
ITALY32727518.9%1,09886427.1%
LATVIA137113600.0%17644300.0%
NETHERLANDS1,2461,863-33.1%2,9822,61913.9%
POLAND231921.1%8131161.3%
PORTUGAL544035.0%18916613.9%
ROMANIA42100.0%7475.0%
SLOVAKIA195280.0%586866.7%
SPAIN473234102.1%1,07681132.7%
SWEDEN28118849.5%1,239432186.8%
UNITED KINGDOM2,448388530.9%7,4162,719172.7%
EUROPEAN UNION12,7558,41851.5%38,49524,58656.6%
EU1512,3608,32348.5%37,54424,34454.2%
EU (New Members)39595315.8%951242293.0%
NORWAY4,3433,63219.6%18,0907,882129.5%
SWITZERLAND501505-0.8%1,6591,15643.5%
EFTA4,8444,13717.1%19,7499,038118.5%
TOTAL EUROPE (EU+EFTA)17,59912,55540.2%58,24433,62473.2%
WEST. EUROPE (EU15+EFTA)17,20412,46038.1%57,29333,38271.6%

Electrically Charged Vehicles other than Pure Electric Vehicles = Extended-Range Electric Vehicles + Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles
Q4Q4% ChgQ1-Q4Q1-Q4% Chg
’14’1314/13’14’1314/13
AUSTRIA5945910.5%2,3602,573-8.3%
BELGIUM268102162.7%868319172.1%
BULGARIA00n.a.00n.a.
CZECH REPUBLIC1399251.1%386438-11.9%
DENMARK00n.a.00n.a.
ESTONIA00n.a.41300.0%
FINLAND6978-11.5%25716853.0%
FRANCE61631297.4%1,927843128.6%
GERMANY1,494535179.3%4,5961,655177.7%
GREECE223633.3%6441500.0%
HUNGARY61500.0%11683.3%
IRELAND41300.0%3513400.0%
ITALY165222-25.7%37531021.0%
LATVIA8332666.7%21592288.9%
NETHERLANDS1,99515,063-86.8%9,93819,876-50.0%
POLAND1,555552181.7%3,8871,869108.0%
PORTUGAL302050.0%1005581.8%
ROMANIA00n.a.00n.a.
SLOVAKIA2633-21.2%111130-14.6%
SPAIN17127533.3%32972356.9%
SWEDEN922269242.8%3,4281,115207.4%
UNITED KINGDOM3,6382881163.2%7,9451,114613.2%
EUROPEAN UNION11,79718,192-35.2%36,83630,55820.5%
EU159,98817,511-43.0%32,22228,10514.6%
EU (New Members)1,809681165.6%4,6142,45388.1%
NORWAY35277357.1%1,677328411.3%
SWITZERLAND31724429.9%1,03456184.3%
EFTA669321108.4%2,711889204.9%
TOTAL EUROPE (EU+EFTA)12,46618,513-32.7%39,54731,44725.8%
WEST. EUROPE (EU15+EFTA)10,65717,832-40.2%34,93328,99420.5%
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Audi Ask Sudents to Code Self-Driving Cars

Audi is taking Piloted Driving to a decidedly smaller level, giving 1:8-scale Q5s to 10 student teams who must program their tiny crossovers to compete in the inaugural Autonomous Driving Cup. The whole thing is sort of like DARPA’s off-road competition for (full-size) self-driving cars, only scaled down and conducted indoors.

Audi’s smart play here is asking students, the next generation of automotive engineers, to tackle the most pressing issues facing autonomous-car development—namely, programming the vehicle to not only recognize widely varied road scenarios but also to react accordingly. To ensure that whatever the German students figure out is applicable to Audi’s full-scale Piloted Driving experiments, the tiny Q5s’ software-development environment is said to be identical to that used on real-life Audi prototypes.

The student teams will program their donated micro Q5s to run a large indoor course, on which they’ll encounter traffic (as an awesome aside, this “traffic” consists of small-scale Audi race cars), have to complete parking tasks, avoid accidents, and avoid obstacles. Making things even trickier is speed—the Q5s will accelerate up to 25 mph during the competition—and the sheer volume of complex sensors, which work the same way as the sensors in Audi’s full-size self-driving vehicles.

Look closely, and you’ll see a bank of sensors sticking through the little Q5’s windshield; that’s the 2D/3D camera, which is used to help the car discern range, depth of field, and color. Four ultrasonic sensors (similar to parking sensors) located at each corner and six infrared sensors help the vehicle identify its proximity to surroundings and obstacles, while a six-axis gyroscope, wheel-speed sensors, and a steering-angle sensor help the car understand its own movements. Onboard, there’s a 1.7-GHz quad-core processor, 2 GB of RAM, an SD-card slot, and an open-source Arduino control computer.

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Audi launch 2nd Generation Audi R8 e-tron @ Geneva

The second generation of the Audi R8 forms the basis for two models. Audi has made major engineering developments in its high-performance electric sports car, the R8 e-tron. The latest evolution of the vehicle takes up the multimaterial Audi Space Frame from the new series-production model.

The supporting structure was enhanced by a CFRP rear-section module comprising the luggage compartment. The walls of the CFRP luggage compartment well are corrugated. This way, in the event of a rear-end collision, more energy can be absorbed despite the reduced material weight.

Thanks to targeted modifications to the outer shell and on the wheels, the Audi R8 e tron achieves an aerodynamic drag coefficient (cd) value of 0.28. In terms of performance and range, the car enters entirely new dimensions.

The large T-shaped battery is structurally integrated into the center tunnel and behind the occupant cell – optimally positioned in the car. It supports the dynamics of the R8 e-tron with its low center of gravity. Audi produces the high-voltage battery itself, for the first time based on a newly developed lithium-ion technology which was specially conceived for a purely electric vehicle drive. In comparison to the first technology platform, the battery capacity has grown from 49 kWh to approximately 92 kWh. This progress was possible without changing the package.

The R8 e-tron achieves an electric range of 450 kilometers (279.6 mi) instead of a previous 215 kilometers (133.6 mi) with an energy density that has been increased from 84 Wh/kg to 154 Wh/kg and some other modifications to the car. The electrically powered high-performance sports car has the Combined Charging System (CCS) on board, which allows charging with direct and alternating current. Using this system, it is possible to fully charge the battery in significantly less than two hours.

The power is now twice 170 kW and the maximum torque twice 460 Nm (339.3 lb-ft). The R8 e-tron accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h (62.1 mph) in 3.9 seconds on its way to an electronically restricted top speed of 210 km/h (130.5 mph) or 250 km/h (155.3 mph). Intelligent energy management and an electromechanical brake system enable high energy recuperation rates. Targeted torque vectoring – needs-based distribution of power transmission between the rear wheels – ensures maximum stability and dynamism.

Audi uses the electrical high-performance sports car primarily as a mobile high-tech laboratory. Accordingly, the findings from the R8 e-tron help in creating a vehicle with a sedan character. Upon customer request, the R8 e-tron will be available for order in 2015 as an electrically powered sports car in supreme hand-built quality.

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Aston Martin début all-electric all-wheel-drive DBX Concept

Aston Martin has surprise all at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show with the debut of an all electric DBX Concept.

Aston Martin is calling the DBX Concept a high luxury GT that fits the description of a crossover coupe. Far from a production ready vehicle, the concept is just a design study for the time being, but Aston does admit there is a market for such a vehicle.

The DBX Concept is an all-wheel drive crossover high luxury GT that uses in-board electric wheel motors at all four corners powered by lithium sulphur cells. Steering is a drive-by-wire system and both the driver and passenger have head-up displays surrounded by auto-dimming ‘smart glass’.

The DBX Concept can accommodate four adults and all the cargo they could ever want since there is a traditional rear cargo area as well as a front trunk occupying the place usually reserved for a ICE.

Souce: Autocar

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2015 Audi R8 e-tron confirmed with 450 km range

The 2015 Audi R8 e-tron electric supercar will have 340 kW of power and a remarkable 920 Nm of torque, sprint from 0-100 km/h in 3.9 seconds and offer a range in excess of 450 km.

The second-generation of Audi’s halo product will have more than doubles the range over the original small-batch model thanks to an increase in battery capacity from 49 kWh to approximately 92 kWh. Energy density has increased from 84 Wh/kg to 154 Wh/kg apparently without affecting packaging.

The battery powered R8 has a Combined Charging System (CCS) on board, which allows charging with direct and alternating current. Using this system, it is possible to fully charge the battery in significantly less than two hours.

The rear wheels are powered by two electric motors with specs uprated from 381 HP (280 kW) and 820 Nm (605 lb-ft) to 462 HP (340 kW) and 920 Nm (679 lb-ft). It's enough electric power to provide the Audi R8 e-tron 2.0 with a 0-62 mph (0-100 km/h) time of 3.9 seconds before hitting an electronically-capped top speed of 155 mph (250 km/h).

Audi says the new R8 e-tron serves "primarily as a mobile high-tech laboratory" that will eventually feed into technology used in a high-volume sedan — but in the meantime, if you've got the time and the money, the Germans are willing to build you one by hand. Hopefully we'll see the car on display in Geneva next week.

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Electric Jaguar F-Pace crossover Due 2018

Jaguar Land Rover is developing an electric drivetrain that will debut in a future variant of the upcoming Jaguar F-Pace SUV.

Unnamed sources within the British automotive industry have told Autocar that Jaguar Land Rover is currently working on an electric vehicle with a range of around 480 kilometres.

A key rival for the electric Jaguar F-Pace will be the upcoming Tesla Model X and one of the key reasons behind the development of the car is increasingly changing legislation. In the United States for example, eight states including California have adopted new Zero Emission Vehicle legislation which stipulate that between 2018 and 2025, sales of zero emission cars will reach 15.4 per cent from 5 per cent. All told, it is hoped that the effort will result in 3.3 million zero emission vehicles being on U.S. streets in the next 10 years

With this in mind, it is speculated that the all-electric Jaguar could arrive for the 2018 model year. The British marque will apparently draw on its engineering experience from the hybrid Jaguar C-X75 supercar which was developed alongside Williams Advanced Engineering. The C-X75 combined a twin-charged (supercharged and turbocharged) 1.6-litre four-cylinder delivering 502 hp at 10,000 rpm and mated to four electric motors with one at each axle.

Source: Autocar

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Japan Has More EV Chargers Than Petrol Stations

There are more electric-car charging points in Japan than there are petrol stations.

That surprising discovery comes from Nissan Motor Co., which reported that the number of power points in Japan, including fast-chargers and those in homes, has surged to 40,000, surpassing the nation’s 34,000 gas stations.

The figure shows that in the relatively brief time since electric vehicles were introduced, the infrastructure to support them has become bigger than what the oil industry built over decades in the world’s third-biggest economy -- at least by this one measure.

Why that matters is obvious. Nissan’s battery-powered Leaf can travel 84 miles (135 kilometers) on a charge, and the anxiety of being stuck away from home without power has restrained consumer demand. As the charging network expands and batteries become more powerful, that concern will wane.

“An important element of the continued market growth is the development of the charging infrastructure,” Joseph G. Peter, Nissan chief financial officer, told analysts on a conference call.

As charging stations become more common, electric-car support services are also emerging. Open Charge Map, for example, operates an online listing of public charging points worldwide. A mobile app combines the data with GPS technology to guide drivers to the nearest site.

Of course, gas stations typically have multiple pumps and can serve more vehicles in a day than an electric-car charging point.

Private Chargers

Also, one criticism of Nissan’s number is that many of those charging sites are in private garages. Considering the emerging so-called sharing economy, such as the online home-sharing service operated by Airbnb Inc., homeowners may soon be willing to make their chargers available to other drivers.

And more charging locations are being built all the time. Automakers have recognized that oil companies are unlikely to install plugs next to gasoline pumps, and are building their own networks.

Tesla Motors Inc. has its own network of charging stations, and Bayerische Motoren Werke AG and Volkswagen AG announced in January that they are joining the network operated by ChargePoint Inc., and plan to build as many as 100 fast chargers along the busiest corridors of the U.S. coasts, from Portland to San Diego in the west and from Boston to Washington, in the east.

Free Charging

Utilities are joining in. Great Plains Energy Inc., the Kansas City, Missouri-based utility holding company, announced in January plans to build a network of more than 1,000 charging stations in the region by mid-2015. Charging will even be free to everyone for the first two years.

Given that there are only about 9,000 public charging stations in the entire U.S., the initiative gives Kansas City, the nation’s 29th largest metropolitan area, a chance to become the nation’s electric car capital with as much as 10 percent of the nation’s chargers.

Kansas City may not be able to retain that position. PG&E Corp., owner of California’s biggest utility, asked regulators Feb. 9 for permission to build a network of about 25,000 chargers in public areas over a five-year period.

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GM will build Chevy Bolt in Michigan in late 2016

General Motors Co plans to begin building its new Chevrolet Bolt electric car in October 2016 at an underused small-car plant north of Detroit, two supplier sources said.

Despite the hype surrounding the car's unveiling last month at the Detroit auto show, the sources said, GM's production target for the Bolt is relatively modest, at about 25,000-30,000 cars a year.

Last year, GM sold 18,800 Chevrolet Volt hybrid electric cars. The Volt, priced from around $35,000, uses a small gasoline engine to increase range.

GM has said the Bolt's target price was $30,000. A GM source familiar with Chevrolet's plans said the price would actually be "in the mid-$30,000s" but federal and state incentives to purchase "green cars" would reduce the consumer's final cost to $30,000.

The Bolt is expected to go on sale in early 2017 and will have a range between charges of more than 200 miles.

The Bolt will compete with Tesla Motors Inc's similarly priced Model 3, planned to debut in calendar 2017, as well as the Nissan Leaf, which sold just over 30,000 last year.

The supplier sources said the Bolt and a companion model for GM's Opel subsidiary in Europe will be assembled at GM's plant in Orion Township. The GM source said the company has not yet reached a final decision on whether the Opel model will be assembled in Orion Township.

The factory now makes the Chevrolet Sonic and Buick Verano and has been operating at well below capacity as small-car sales have suffered from falling gasoline prices.

The Bolt is being developed on GM's Gamma global small-car platform, according to the supplier sources. The same basic set of components will provide the base for the next-generation Sonic, also due in late 2016, they said.

The GM source asked not to be named and an official company spokesman declined to comment.

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Kia Soul e-AWD concept to be unveiled in Chicago

Kia Motors America will unveil an advanced and capable electric all-wheel drive (e-AWD) concept vehicle at the upcoming Chicago Auto Show.

The off-roader was conceived by Kia's California design studio and built for city dwellers seeking the ultimate urban escape. Intended to enable a wide array of outdoor activities from skiing and snowboarding, to camping, hiking and mountain biking, this rugged runabout captures the essence of adventuring at higher elevations with the promise of surefootedness in the wild.
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Tesla Model X Caught Testing [VIDEO]

Youtuber Juan del Real shot this video of a Tesla Model X being tested at the former naval air station in Alameda California about 30 miles north of Tesla's factory in Fremont.

Based on the size of the Model S in the background, Jalopnik think the camouflaged prototype looks too small to be a Model X and believe this may in fact be the first sighting of a Model 3.