Nio looks to shed other businesses to keep building cars

Nio ES8 high-performance electric SUVAfter laying off 70 workers and closing an office in the U.S., Chinese automaker Nio is searching its cupboards for cash. EV sales have foundered in China this year after generous subsidies expired. and several companies have delayed or abandoned expansion plans. Nio seems to be no exception, except that it has other resources it can look to cash...

BMW 5-Series plug-in hybrid gets wireless home charging deal

BMW 5-Series plug-in hybrid wireless charging systemAmericans soon will have a fully automaker-supported car that supports inductive wireless charging. BMW announced Friday that it will soon offer inductive charging in the 2019 BMW 530e iPerformance. In BMW’s current nomenclature, that’s the plug-in hybrid version of its 5-Series sedan. The catch: You’ll need to live in one of 13...

Hybrid tech could bring more power and safety to IndyCar racing for 2022

IndyCars (Source: IndyCar)When it comes to auto racing, hybrid technology isn't just about cutting emissions and fuel consumption. New hybrid powertrains planned for Indy racers are expected not only to boost horsepower, but also to make racing safer by diminishing or eliminating stalls on the track, which now require a safety crew to respond to restart the car. IndyCar...

Tesla faces lawsuit over software that cut range from some cars

2013 Tesla Model S, in July 2017   [photo: David Noland]What over-the-air-updates give, they can also take away. That’s part of what's at the root of a new lawsuit against Tesla on Thursday from a California man who says that a recent software update to his 2014 Model S cut 40 miles off the maximum range of his car, and it has lost about 8 kilowatt-hours of battery capacity. Since Tesla prices...

Nikola wins DOE fuel-cell development grant

Nikola TwoStartup truckmaker Nikola, which plans to build fuel-cell-powered semi trucks in Arizona, won a $1.7 million grant to research improved techniques to assemble fuel-cell membranes, the company announced on Wednesday. The company will partner with Department of Energy scientists from Carnegie Mellon University, Northeastern University, and Georgia...

Report: Next-generation Minis to go all electric

MINI Rocketman Concept MkIIAs the next-generation of Mini models goes on sale, they may all be electric. According to a Tuesday report from Automobile, Mini's overseers at BMW have may have nixed all future gas engines for the brand and simultaneously pared its future lineup to just three models. The remaining models, to come in 2023 or later, will include a replacement for...

EU engine-tech project could help gas catch up with gasoline

2012 Honda Civic Natural Gas, El Segundo, CA, Nov 2011Some biofuels, like biogas from landfills—or synthetic methane—are attractive for use in vehicles as they have a potentially low energy cost to produce. They also have lower criteria emissions, of the sort that affect human health and cause smog. These engines should easily be cross-compatible with those using compressed natural gas...