Could Outmoded Phone Booths Become E.V. Charging Stations?
New York City is full of dormant, albeit still electrified phone booths. Some say the unused infrastructure could be repurposed for electric vehicle charging.
Motorweek test drive the Volkswagen XL1 [VIDEO]
MotorWeek take VW's futurecar for a spin around Wolfsburg, Germany and the Autobahn. They managed 147 miles per gallon on their trip (not 261 mpg as VX claim)
UNSW Sunswift launch 140 km/h “eVe” Cruiser Class Solar Racecar
UNSW Solar Racing Team Sunswift revealed their solar racing car eVe at the University of New South Wales last Friday.
The latest addition to the Sunswift family is designed for the new Cruiser class, which consists of four-wheeled vehicles that must meet regulations for a normal vehicle in the country they come from (i.e., the challenge is to design truly road-worthy vehicles). They’re also required to have both a driver and a passenger.
The new Sunswift racer is powered by 2x 1.8 Kw direct drive CSIRO wheel motors, now manufactured under license by Marand Precision Engineering, giving a top speed of 140 km/h. A 15 kWh Lithium Ion battery, weighing only 63 Kg, gives eVe a single charge highway speed cruising range of over 500 km, as much as a 85 kWh Tesla Model S!
This incredible range is achieved by a combination of light weight carbon fiber monocoque construction, extremely low drag coefficient and 98.3% energy efficient direct drive wheel motors.
eVe has a 1800 x 4500 mm footprint with four square metres (WSC rules allow up to six square metres) of Mono-crystalline silicon cells provided by SunPower.
The World Solar Challenge starts on October 6th in Darwin and finishes 3,000 km later on Sunday 13th October in Adelaide.
Spy Shots: Venucia E30 EV Spotted in China
New spy shots showing the production version of the Venucia e30 EV have surfaced. Venucia is a sub-brand of the Dongfeng-Nissan joint venture, the e30 EV is based on the Nissan Leaf. The Venucia e30 debuted as the Venucia E-Concept on the 2012 Beijing Auto Show, and re-appeared as the ‘Venucia e30′ on the Shanghai Auto Show in April.
Small-batch production will begin later this year with deliveries starting in 2014, but only for local demonstration projects. Deliveries to the general car market will only start in 2015. Power will come from the same electric motor as in the Nissan Leaf, output is 110hp and 280nm. Top speed will be 144km/h and range 228km.
A Clean-Car Boom
Having more hybrid and electric vehicles on the road will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Is the Tesla Model S the Best Gadget Ever? [VIDEO]
IGN is a Videogame review media network with 152 Youtube channels, 27 Million subscribers and 7 Billion Video views. They don't 'do' cars but they recently tested the Tesla Model S all-electric sports sedan to see if it is the Best. Gadget. Ever.
Tesla Model S Scores Five Stars In NHTSA (Side Impact [VIDEO])
Tesla Model S Scores Five Stars In NHTSA (Side Impact Test)
Tesla Model S Scores Five Stars In NHTSA (Side Pole Impact [VIDEO])
Tesla Model S Scores Five Stars In NHTSA (Side Pole Impact Test)
Tesla Model S Scores Five Stars In NHTSA (Frontal Impact [VIDEO])
Tesla Model S Scores Five Stars In NHTSA (Frontal Impact Test)
FIA Formula E announces FOX Sports as Broadcaster
FOX Sports, one of the largest global sports networks, has today (August, 9th 2013) signed a multi-year, international multi-media deal with the FIA Formula E Championship, the world’s first fully-electric car racing series beginning in September 2014.
Formula E is a new FIA Championship featuring open-wheel cars powered exclusively by electricity and racing in the heart of 10 of the world’s leading cities, including two in the US with Los Angeles and Miami. Designed to promote interest and investment in electric vehicles and sustainable motoring, 10 teams each with two drivers will compete in one hour races using Formula cars capable of reaching speeds of more than 220kph with zero emissions.
“This series makes racing very relevant well into the future,” said Carlos Martinez, President Latin America for FOX International Channels, who helped broker the deal. “With a global approach to acquiring knowledge and fast-tracking technology through the world of international racing competition, the FIA Formula E Championship is much more than just another weekend at the track…it makes racing an integral part of solving one of the world’s most daunting challenges and we are thrilled to be a part of that process.”
As well as full US broadcast exclusivity across the FOX family of networks, including FOX Sports 1, America’s new sports network set to launch on August 17th, FOX Sports also has exclusive and non-exclusive rights in more than 80 territories including Canada, Latin America/Caribbean, Netherlands, Italy, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, Australia, key Asian territories and other areas of Asia, India and Africa.
The deal, across all territories, includes exclusive and non-exclusive on-line and mobile transmission rights.
“We are very proud to announce this major agreement between FOX and the FIA Formula E Championship and to be partnering a truly global organization that fully believes in the future of racing,” said Alejandro Agag, CEO of Championship promoter Formula E Holdings. “This global broadcasting deal will bring our Championship to nearly 90 countries and a potential 180 million households worldwide, giving our partners, our teams, and our team’s partners a platform to visualize the association to the values of this competition. We are particularly happy to join FOX at the time when FOX Sports 1 is being launched. America is a key market for electric cars and to show our races live in the US will be central to promoting this type of mobility.”
As well as two races in the US, last month saw leading IndyCar outfit Andretti Autosport become the first US team to join Formula E. Six of the 10 teams have now been signed for the inaugural season, three of which have already been announced with Andretti Autosport, China Racing and British-based Drayson Racing.
FOX Sports internationally is largely operated by FOX International Channels, 21st Century FOX’s international multi-media business operating over 300 entertainment, sports, factual and lifestyle pay-TV network and non-linear services worldwide.
