Charged with Electric Vehicle News and Views
Auto Bild magazine has set up an old school versus the latest tech drag race. The BMW M4 has a turbocharged inline-six with rear wheel drive, up against the i8 with its turbocharged three-cylinder with electric all wheel drive. See what happens when they go head to head.
Even on paper, the race looks quite close. The i8 weighs about 150 kg less but the M-car has a healthy horsepower advantage with 425 hp against the hybrid's 357 hp.
Robert Llewellyn takes a 560 km (350 mile) test drive in the all new Kia Soul EV.
Kia Motors is using a 360-V lithium-ion battery pack of “class-leading” energy density (200 W·h/kg) in the 2015 Soul EV to give it range of about 200 km (125 mi) on the European Driving Cycle, and “real-world” range of 80-100 mi (129-161 km) in the U.S. The cells and the battery are the same in all regions.
Kia says high-performance anode and gel electrolyte additive materials were developed. The new electrolyte additive allows for better range by more effectively dealing with low and high temperatures. A “special” ceramic separator with improved thermal resistance properties is used.
The cell casings are of polymer pouch type (as opposed to metal), and the battery pack is air-cooled. Standard equipment on the Soul EV includes receptacles for SAE J1772 Level 1 and Level 2 ac charging, as well as CHAdeMO dc fast charging (480 V).
The battery in the 2015 Kia Soul EV is the result of a three-year development program with lithium-ion cell maker SK Innovation. The 192 cells are packaged into eight modules and deliver a total battery capacity of 27 kW·h. The cell cathode is of nickel-rich NCM (nickel-cobalt-manganese) chemistry, with the raw materials for that and other components optimized for energy density, durability, and safety.
The new BMW i8 is a futuristic stunner, with a hi-tech duo of an electric motor and petrol engine from the MINI Cooper. Jump back more than three decades and the last mid-engined car to wear a BMW badge was the M1 - which turned just as many heads when it debuted in 1978.
To find out how thirty years of evolution has changed the BMW supercar, Auto Express took along a classic M1 to meet the new i8 at the test track. The BMW i8 features a 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbocharged petrol from the MINI Cooper driving the rear wheels, while an electric motor drives the front. Under the engine cover of the M1 is something altogether much more traditional: a 3.5-litre six-cylinder unit putting out 277bhp and 330Nm of torque. This compares to 357bhp and 570Nm in the i8.
On the track, the two cars feel very different. The M1 wasn't pushed too hard due to its age and value - mint examples fetch around £400,000 - but it performed brilliantly around the track. The gearbox has lovely action, the steering is perfectly weighted and the chassis feels perfectly matched to the power on tap.
Jump into the i8 and it feels very futuristic. There's instant power on tap due to the combination of the electric motor and the engine in Sport mode, with a great soundtrack in the cabin - it's even reminiscent of the sound of the M1. There's plenty of grip, too, and the performance is great. It's rather special and doesn't feel like any other BMW.
Both the i8 and M1 are true BMWs at heart. It's not often that BMW breaks the mould and builds a mid-engined car, but when they do, they know how to make their mark.
UNSW’s solar racing team Sunswift has launched a crowd-funding campaign to raise money to rebuild their car for Australian road registration.
The eVe vehicle, which recently smashed a 26-year-old world record for the fastest electric car over 500 km, is seen as a symbol for a new era of sustainable driving. It is covered in zero-emission solar panels and uses a battery storage system that can be charged with the solar cells or by plugging the car into a power outlet.
The world record proved the car is technically capable of covering the maximum distance a normal road user might want to drive in a single day.
The next step in the Sunswift journey is to put eVe within reach of the average driver by converting it from concept car to road-registered coupe.
The team of 60 undergraduate students behind Sunswift is aiming to raise $30,000 – about one-third of the amount they need – using the crowd-funding site Pozible. They plan to source the remaining money and components via sponsors and in-kind contributions from industry partners.
If successful, it will mark the first time a university solar car team has built a vehicle to the stringent standards of the Australian Design Rules – the national motoring standards that govern vehicle safety, anti-theft and emissions.
“Full registration is no humble feat with essentially the whole car needing to be deconstructed and rebuilt,” says project director and engineering student Hayden Smith.
“The car requires front, rear and side impact protection, headlights, windscreen wipers, new raised suspension and new wheels in addition to updated electrical components.
“The interior will also be redesigned to meet safety regulations and offer a level of comfort that would be expected from a commercial car.”
Coinciding with its latest fundraising push, the team has set an ambitious goal of achieving road registration as early as March 2015.
“Having solar cars conquer the roads would mark a huge leap in the race to develop more sustainable transport alternatives, showcasing their potential to be commercialised in the near future,” Sunswift’s chief business officer and student Rob Ireland says.
"However, we can't change the world by ourselves so we're asking for help to make it happen."
Supporters who contribute to the crowd-funding campaign will be offered rewards including 3D printed models of the car, solar cell mantlepiece trophies and one-time advertising space during PR events. The campaign begins on Monday 1 December.
The Renault-Nissan Alliance has sold its 200,000th electric vehicle and has a leading 58% market share for zero-emission cars.
Together, Renault and Nissan EVs have driven approximately 4 billion zero-emission kilometers – enough to circle the earth 100,000 times. Renault-Nissan’s EVs represent 200 million liters of fuel saved – enough to fill about 80 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Alliance EVs also represent 450 million kg of CO2 that has not been emitted while driving.
The Alliance sold its 200,000th EV in early November, about four years after the launch of the Nissan LEAF, the world’s first mass-market electric vehicle. Nissan LEAF remains the best-selling electric vehicle in history.
From January through the first week of November of this year, the Alliance has sold about 66,500 units—an increase of about 20% from the same period last year. The Alliance sells about two out of three electric vehicles worldwide, including Twizy, Renault’s two-seater urban commuter vehicle and the Nissan e-NV200 van on sale in Europe and Japan.
“Renault and Nissan’s electric vehicles are the zero-emission volume leaders – and, most important, they enjoy high satisfaction rates from customers around the world,” said Carlos Ghosn, Chairman & CEO of the Renault-Nissan Alliance. “Based on positive owner feedback and the increasing demand for cars that run on renewable energy, it’s no surprise that EV sales are accelerating – particularly in regions where charging infrastructure is well developed.”
To capture what the first 200,000 consumers love about their electric vehicles, the Renault-Nissan Alliance is launching a series of videos featuring EV owners on three continents. “I Made the Switch” tells why people bought their electric vehicles and how switching to a zero-emission vehicle has changed their lives. The first video features Chris Beers, a software engineer from Holliston, Massachusetts, USA, one of many Americans who powers his Nissan LEAF with clean solar energy.
USA and Japan lead the world in EV ownership
In the United States, the Alliance’s biggest electric vehicle market, there are more than 750 quick chargers in operation. Nissan is working with its dealers and charging partners to increase that number to 1,100 by mid-2015. The quick chargers are able to charge a LEAF from zero to 80% capacity in about 30 minutes.
This year, Nissan also launched its “No Charge to Charge” program, which provides free access to selected charging stations for two years with the purchase or lease of a new Nissan LEAF. “No Charge to Charge” is currently active in 12 U.S. markets, and Nissan plans to expand to additional markets by mid-2015.
In Japan, the Alliance’s second-biggest EV market, there are more than 2,900 quick chargers in operation. Nissan and Japan’s three other top automakers have pledged to work together to raise that number to 6,000 by March 2015.
In Europe, the UK is the most advanced market in terms of electric vehicle infrastructure. Today, the quick charging network already covers 87% of the UK’s motorways.
Nissan LEAF is the world’s best-selling electric vehicle; Renault led in Europe in October
With six electric vehicle models on the road, the Renault-Nissan Alliance is the only global car group with a full range of 100% electric vehicles – and they can be fully charged with purely renewable energy.
Yokohama, Japan-based Nissan has sold a cumulative 148,700 units worldwide since December 2010, when Nissan LEAF went on sale. Nissan LEAF has collected industry honors including the 2011 World Car of the Year, European Car of the Year 2011 and Car of the Year Japan 2011-2012.The electric vehicle has the highest global customer satisfaction rate for any Nissan vehicle ever.
The top markets for Nissan LEAF are the United States with about 67,000 sales since its launch, Japan with about 46,500 units and Europe with about 31,000 units.
In the United States, LEAF is on track to be the top electric vehicle in 2014, outselling all other electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Sales so far this year are up 35%, and Nissan LEAF has enjoyed 21 consecutive record sales months and has already shattered its own yearly U.S. sales record with two months to go. In addition to LEAF, Nissan also sells the e-NV200 van, which went on sale in Europe in June and in Japan in October.
Meanwhile, Boulogne-Billancourt, France-based Renault has sold a cumulative 51,500 electric vehicles worldwide since its first model the Kangoo Z.E. went on sale in October 2011. Kangoo Z.E. was voted International Van of the Year 2012. Renault recently delivered its 5,000th Kangoo Z.E. to La Poste, France’s national postal service and operator of the country’s largest corporate fleet. An additional 5,000 units will be delivered in the coming years.
In addition to Kangoo Z.E. and Twizy, Renault’s zero-emission range also includes the ZOE subcompact and the Fluence Z.E. sedan. In South Korea, the Fluence Z.E. is sold as the SM3 Z.E. under the Renault Samsung Motor badge. Like Nissan LEAF, ZOE enjoys the highest satisfaction rate of Renault’s global product lineup.
Renault’s top markets in Europe - its main electric vehicle market - are France, Germany and the United Kingdom. In October, Renault regained the number one EV position in Europe with a market share of 31%. ZOE was the most popular vehicle with a 23% market share.
Subaru has revealed the digital-only Viziv GT Vision Gran Turismo, which will find its way into the Gran Turismo 6 on the PlayStation 3 video game system . It takes up the mantle from the Viziv Concept that debuted at the Tokyo motor show last year.
The virtual Viziv GT is powered (virtually) by a 2-liter boxer four featuring both direct injection and turbocharging to the tune of 591 imaginary horsepower.
The Viziv GT has all wheel drive with little lights over each fender that light up when the axle is receiving torque vectoring courtesy of three electric motors, one up front and two in the rear. Subaru compares it to their iconic "Symmetrical AWD" in an attempt to link it to their road-going cars, but this is a hybrid system unlike anything the company has previously worked on.
“By independently controlling each of the motor outputs, turning ability while cornering is drastically improved, while the torque vectoring lamps built into the fenders visualize its movement, Thus, as with any other Subaru, the car is made controllable for anyone driving the car, regardless of its extremely high performance levels.”
Maybe it's where the company is headed? Mitsubishi is already going down that road. Perhaps this is a sneak peek at a hybridized, CUV-like future for the iconic WRX and STI. Or it could just be a digital flight of fancy, which of course it is.
During a recent interview with CNBC.com , mutual fund manager Ron Baron of Baron Capital revealed that two of his analysts recently visited BMW in Germany and the BMW financial team believes that a "revolution in the drive train is underway."
"We believe that BMW will likely phase out internal combustion engines over the next 10 years,"
Baron wrote in his most recent quarterly letter to shareholders of his funds.
Almost exactly 12 months ago, BMW product chief Herbert Diess told Autocar "all BMW models will soon need to be sold with some form of electrification." BMW’s head of production for large vehicles, Peter Wolf, told motoring.com.au. “We are planning to have a plug-in hybrid in each and every model series.”
We have also regularly reported on a steady stream on informal announcements from German automakers (Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Porsche) regarding their plans to build a 'Tesla killer', but Wall Street financial analysts concluding a major automaker may abandon the production of ICE power plants within a decade still comes as a revelation. It was only four years ago (December 2010) the first mass market electric vehicle, the Nissan Leaf, began deliveries to retail customers.
Baron, who holds a $250 Million position in Tesla Motors, believes that of all the major automakers, BMW is the only car company with a 'culture' comparable to that of Tesla. Baron believes the rest of the auto industry is resisting the move to electric vehicles. "As a result, they are developing electric expertise so slowly that the lead Tesla has built up through its fast growing staff ... may soon become insurmountable."
He argues automakers don't want electric vehicles to happen because their engine and transmission plants would become stranded assets. Unions don't want EVs to happen because they are easier to assemble which results in fewer jobs and dealers don't want EVs to happen because of direct sales and lack of vehicle servicing. Electric cars have 18 moving parts compared to 2,000 moving parts in a combustion engined car. EVs simply don't wear out or breakdown leading to lost automaker/dealer revenues.
With global auto sales heading towards 100 Million a year, Baron believes that in 15 years time Tesla could be selling 10 Million vehicles a year.
The Tesla Model S has received a maximum-possible 5-star safety rating from the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP).
Model S is one of just a few cars to have ever achieved a 5-star safety rating from both Euro NCAP and the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Additionally, Model S is the only car this year to have achieved both a 5-star Euro NCAP rating and 5 stars in every NHTSA subcategory, including frontal impact, side impact, and rollover. Only two other cars have earned the same recognition since 2011 (when NHTSA introduced its latest rating scheme).
The reason so few models achieve 5-star ratings in both Europe and the U.S. is that each program places emphasis on different safety aspects in the assessment process. NHTSA emphasizes structural and restraint safety, with a deep focus on how well the vehicle can withstand and absorb the energy of an impact while protecting its occupants. It is also primarily concerned with adult occupants. On the other hand, Euro NCAP assesses a wider range of scenarios, including tests for child and pedestrian safety. Unlike for NHTSA, active safety is also an important part of Euro NCAP’s 5-star requirement. Every year, the European organization raises the standard for a 5-star rating to account for technological advances in the industry.
The dual 5-star ratings for Model S validate our holistic approach to safety. We have been engineering passive and active safety systems in parallel, so the car is structurally sound and is also designed to intelligently anticipate and react to potentially dangerous situations.
Structurally, Model S has advantages not seen in conventional cars. It has a low center of gravity because its battery pack, the largest mass in the car, is positioned underneath the passenger compartment, making rollover extremely unlikely. It also has a large front crumple zone because of the lack of an engine, meaning it can absorb more energy from a frontal impact, the most common type of crash resulting in fatalities. Its body is reinforced with aluminum extrusions at strategic locations around the car, and the roof can withstand at least 4 g’s. It was for these reasons that Model S achieved 5 stars in every subcategory when tested by NHTSA in 2013.
This quarter, we started implementing the Model S active safety system in conjunction with the introduction of new Autopilot hardware, consisting of 12 ultrasonic sensors that sense up to 16 feet around the car, a forward-looking camera, a forward radar, and a digitally controlled, high-precision electric brake boost. We specifically selected this hardware to accommodate the progressive introduction of new safety features via software updates over the course of the next several months.
While the features already pushed to the Model S fleet – Lane Departure Warning and Speed Limit Warning – have proven sufficient to merit a 5-star NCAP rating, we will go much further with active safety systems. Features coming soon include Forward and Side Collision Warning and Avoidance, Blind Spot Warning, and Automatic Emergency Braking.
The video shows the Frontal Impact test which takes place at 64 Km/h, 40% of the width of the car striking a deformable barrier. In the side impact, a mobile deformable barrier impacts the driver's door at 50 km/h. In the pole test, the car tested is propelled sideways at 29km/h into a rigid pole.
Electric RaceAbout ran the annual tests on the legendary Nordschleife track in Nürburg Germany in the end of October. E-RA went around the 20,6 km long, so called Sport Auto lap, in 8:01,41 beating its own best time.
Last years visit in Nordschleife gave a lot of inspiration and ideas to E-RA team, how to continue improving the performance and reducing the weaknesses of the car. During the past year, the whole vehicle has been developed, but the most remarkable things were the active rear wing control, suspension and ABS brake system. The Torque Vectoring control system of the motors has also been improved since last year.
This time E-RA was driven by Jesse Krohn, a young Finnish VLN- series professional driver and his comments concerning the performance and strengths of E-RA are similar with our teams earlier test drivers. “The drive ability of the vehicle was good regarding its weight and the acceleration from 100 to 200 km/h was very convincing”, says Jesse, who drove the vehicle for the first time.
The testing period in the end of October lead to the second fastest lap around the Nordschleife track in the street legal electric vehicle group. The unpredictable Eifel mountain range climate did not help the testing and E-RA was on the track only three times in four days.
“The low amount of laps did not help me get accustomed to the vehicle”, says Jesse and continues: “Also, we had to start every lap with cold tires and brakes”.
During the fastest lap, the battery of the vehicle heated up more than the team anticipated and the battery output power had to be limited from halfway of the track to the end. Additional laps would have helped to optimize the vehicle setup - there is still potential for a faster lap-time.
The best time of the EV's on Nordschleife still remains with Mercedes-Benz AMG SLS Electric Drive 7:56,2.
The Tesla Model S represents the cutting edge of electric car technology. But is it reliable? Data from over 1,300 Consumer Reports subscribers supplies an answer.
