Electric Automobile – Page 5

Automobiles, Electric Automobile, Ford Motor Company, Science & Technology News

Ford announces launch of largest electric vehicle charging network in the US

October 29, 2019

New York (CNN Business)Ford doesn’t currently offer any electric vehicles, but it announced Thursday that, once it does, it will offer the largest North American network of electric vehicle chargers of any automaker — including Tesla.

Unlike Tesla, though, Ford didn’t build this charging network on its own. Working with EV charging companies Greenlots and Electrify America, Ford has created what it calls the FordPass Charging Network. When needed, users will be directed to one of the network’s chargers using an app or in the vehicle’s central touch screen.

Next year, Ford will begin selling an electric crossover SUV with styling based on the Ford Mustang. It’s the first vehicle Ford has ever offered that was designed, from the outset, as an electric vehicle. That vehicle has not been unveiled yet. An electric version of the Ford F-150 pickup is also being developed.

The FordPass network will include more than 12,000 charging stations with a total of 35,000 plugs in the United States and some parts of Canada. Tesla has 4,375 public charging stations with about 15,000 plugs in the United States, according to the Department of Energy.

Continue reading… “Ford announces launch of largest electric vehicle charging network in the US”

Automobiles, Electric Automobile, Science & Technology News, Transportation

Motorway speed limits could rise to 80mph across the country – and it’s all thanks to electric cars

October 7, 2019

SPEED limits on motorways across the country could be increased to 80mph, according to the transport secretary.

Grant Shapps said he was “thinking about” increasing the speed limit following a surge in the number of eco-friendly vehicles on the road.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said he is considering raising the motorway speed limit to 70mph

Speaking at the Conservative Party conference, Mr Shapps said: “On 80mph speed limits, I’ve been thinking about this issue and maybe even sought advice on the subject of late.

Continue reading… “Motorway speed limits could rise to 80mph across the country – and it’s all thanks to electric cars”

Batteries, Electric Automobile, Elon Musk, Science & Technology News, Tesla

Tesla battery researcher unveils new cell that could last 1 million miles in ‘robot taxis’

September 15, 2019

Tesla’s battery research partner has released a new paper on a battery cell that could last over 1 million miles, which they say is going to be particularly useful in ‘robot taxis’ — something that Tesla wants to bring to market.

When talking about the economics of Tesla’s future fleet of robotaxis at the Tesla Autonomy Event, Tesla CEO Elon Musk emphasized that the vehicles need to be durable in order for the economics to work:

The cars currently built are all designed for a million miles of operation. The drive unit is design, tested, and validated for 1 million miles of operation.

But the CEO admitted that the battery packs are not built to last 1 million miles.

Continue reading… “Tesla battery researcher unveils new cell that could last 1 million miles in ‘robot taxis’”

Automobiles, Batteries, Electric Automobile, Science & Technology News

Lamborghini Sián: The world’s first supercapacitor-hybrid supercar

September 13, 2019

Sensual curves meet jagged angles in the remarkable Sian, Lamborghini’s first hybrid and the first car in production history to use a supercapacitor hybrid system

Lamborghini has chosen a radically different way of dipping its toe in the waters of hybridization with the announcement of its new Sián, which couples a screaming, naturally aspirated V12 engine with a supercapacitor-based secondary electric system.

Supercapacitors, as opposed to batteries, offer a unique set of advantages and drawbacks to automakers. They have enormous charge and discharge rates, meaning they can put out huge amounts of power, charge up almost instantly, and pull in a much larger amount of energy through things like regenerative braking, in which a battery’s ability to accept charge becomes a limiting factor. They also don’t deteriorate over time, maintaining their performance over millions of cycles.

Continue reading… “Lamborghini Sián: The world’s first supercapacitor-hybrid supercar”

Batteries, China, Electric Automobile, Electric Vehicles, Science & Technology News

Chinese shadow growing longer over India’s electric-vehicle dream

August 19, 2019

India’s dream of getting more and more middle-class families to use electric vehicles (EVs) seems to be hinging to Beijing, which controls the supply of some key battery components. And this might well become another flashpoint in the volatile relations between India and China.

With nations placing a strategic interest in controlling the supply chain, political interference in mining activities is increasingly making the availability of lithium, cobalt, nickel and copper scarce, EV major Tesla has warned. India might soon have to join a global struggle for Lithium, the most consequential of these minerals.

Continue reading… “Chinese shadow growing longer over India’s electric-vehicle dream”

Automobiles, Electric Automobile, Electric Vehicles, government, Science & Technology News

Automakers run into collision with Centre’s electric vehicle plan

August 15, 2019

Two- and three-wheeler manufacturers are stoutly resisting the government’s e-mobility plan. The government wants to ban internal combustion engine (ICE)-powered three- and two-wheelers (with an engine capacity of less than 150cc) by 2023 and 2025, respectively, and replace them with electric vehicles (EVs).

With the meeting between the NITI Aayog and auto industry executives ending in a stalemate on Friday, the two sides may continue to spar over the road map for e-mobility in one of the world’s most polluted countries..

Via Wap Business Standard

Electric Automobile, Elon Musk, Science & Technology News, Tesla

Tesla pickup truck to be priced below $50,000, makes Ram seem puny

June 19, 2019

The target starting price is even lower.

This is a real shocker. In fact, it’s a bit hard to believe.

According to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the upcoming Tesla truck will have a target price of under $50,000. This seems an impossible figure given the fact that other Tesla products (aside from the Model 3) start at a price that’s much higher. However, Musk stated this in a recent Ride The Lightning Podcast:

“You should be able to buy a really great truck for $49k or less.”

Continue reading… “Tesla pickup truck to be priced below $50,000, makes Ram seem puny”

Electric Automobile, Human Behavior, Science & Technology News, Transportation

EU will force electric cars to emit a noise below 20 km/h on July 1

June 19, 2019

Starting July 1, all electric vehicles with four or more wheels in the EU will be required to emit noise of at least 56 decibels if the car is going 20 km/h or slower, the New Atlas reports.

This makes a ton of sense as electric cars don’t make any of the engine noises we’ve grown accustomed to from standard Earth-killing gasoline cars. Making sure pedestrians can hear cars coming could increase the safety of visually impaired individuals, as well those of us who have the bad habit of walking into traffic while looking at their phones.

Continue reading… “EU will force electric cars to emit a noise below 20 km/h on July 1”

Electric Automobile, Electric Vehicles, Energy, Science & Technology News, Transportation

COBE debuts ‘green oasis’ charging station to power electric vehicles in 15 minutes

June 11, 2019

COBE presents the first of 48 ultra-fast charging stations in scandinavia, marking the inception of a new way of recharging vehicles on the road. the station, situated in the danish city of fredericia, is part of a larger network along the highways of denmark, sweden, and norway. german-based energy giant E.ON and danish e-mobility service provider clever embarked on the joint venture to build and operate this network with the aim of ultimately transitioning entirely to electrically powered vehicles, replacing the conventional method of burning fuel internally.

Continue reading… “COBE debuts ‘green oasis’ charging station to power electric vehicles in 15 minutes”

Automobiles, Driverless cars, Electric Automobile, Science & Technology News, Transportation

What’s the piece-of-the-pie for driverless cars in the $2 trillion infrastructure plan?

June 5, 2019

Potholes and roadway decay, it’s messy and dangerous, among other infrastructure crumblings.

There are emerging discussions that perhaps Congress and the White House might agree to a rather significant spend on America’s infrastructure. Some say it could be on the order of $2 trillion potentially allocated. Whether or not you favor such an expenditure, most would likely agree that our infrastructure does seem to be progressively crumbling, as evidenced by everything from dams that break without apparent warning to a plethora of tire-bashing potholes permeating our roadways from coast-to-coast.

According to the most recent Report Card on our infrastructure by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), we all need to be seemingly ashamed of what we’ve allowed our country to become since the United States infrastructure earned a paltry and embarrassing D+ grade.

Continue reading… “What’s the piece-of-the-pie for driverless cars in the $2 trillion infrastructure plan?”

Electric Automobile, Electric Vehicles, Ford Motor Company, Science & Technology News

Billion-dollar bets on electric vehicles await payoff

April 18, 2019

If carmakers have any hope of making money on electric vehicles, they’ll need to re-think how they design and sell them, a new McKinsey study suggests.

Why it matters: Automakers will pour $255 billion into EVs by 2023 but are resigned to losing money on them for the foreseeable future — an expected outcome of a market dictated by regulators and lawmakers, rather than consumers. But because they’re key to future self-driving cars, they’ll keep investing in them.

The big picture: Right now, electric vehicles are an expensive black hole for carmakers.

Continue reading… “Billion-dollar bets on electric vehicles await payoff”

Batteries, Electric Automobile, Electric Vehicles, Science & Technology News, Tesla

How we get to the next big battery breakthrough

April 13, 2019

Electric planes could be the future of aviation. In theory, they will be much quieter, cheaper, and cleaner than the planes we have today. Electric planes with a 1,000 km (620 mile) range on a single charge could be used for half of all commercial aircraft flights today, cutting global aviation’s carbon emissions by about 15%.

It’s the same story with electric cars. An electric car isn’t simply a cleaner version of its pollution-spewing cousin. It is, fundamentally, a better car: Its electric motor makes little noise and provides lightning-fast response to the driver’s decisions. Charging an electric car costs much less than paying for an equivalent amount of gasoline. Electric cars can be built with a fraction of moving parts, which makes them cheaper to maintain.

So why aren’t electric cars everywhere already? It’s because batteries are expensive, making the upfront cost of an electric car much higher than a similar gas-powered model. And unless you drive a lot, the savings on gasoline don’t always offset the higher upfront cost. In short, electric cars still aren’t economical.

Similarly, current batteries don’t pack in enough energy by weight or volume to power passenger aircrafts. We still need fundamental breakthroughs in battery technology before that becomes a reality.

Continue reading… “How we get to the next big battery breakthrough”