Paul Evans

Cambridge University researchers have developed cheap, light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs that produce brilliant light but use very little electricity. They will cost just GBP2 (USD2.80) and last up to 60 years. The gallium nitride based bulbs are 12 times more efficient than conventional tungsten incandescent bulbs and three times more efficient than compact fluorescent low-energy bulbs. As well as lasting 100,000 hours, ten times as long as today's eco-bulbs, the LED bulbs do not contain mercury, so disposal is less damaging to the environment, they do not flicker and fully illuminate instantly, unlike the current generation of eco-bulbs. Read More

It might look ugly but this 1992 Honda Civic has double the fuel mileage of a standard Civic simply by lowering the coefficient of drag (Cd) from 0.34 to 0.17 with a little engineering savvy and $400 worth of material bought the local hardware store. In fact the drag on this 350,000 miles (563,270 km) old Civic has been reduced to the point where it is virtually equal to the radical tear drop shaped Aptera which has a Cd of 0.15. Read More

Aptera has released news that the initial pre-production front wheel drive version of the all-electric model known as the series 2e has rolled out the door of its Californian production facility. For the next several months a small number of vehicles will be built for internal testing. Volume production for retail deliveries is now scheduled for October 1, 2009. Read More

In the latest installment from the company that announced only four months ago that it is working on a new breed of EV super car “featuring a revolutionary power source allowing for the possibility of several years between charging”, we now have the just-as-fantastic prospect of the world's first roadgoing 1000 bhp battery electric vehicle. Shelby Sports Cars says it expects to roll out its first full-scale, pre-production Ultimate Aero EV in Q2 2009 so we won’t have long to see if this ambitious claim can become reality. Read More

Following INTEL’s recent demonstrations of wireless power transmission and numerous wireless power products announced at the recent 2009 CES INTEL researchers have released details of an ambient RF energy harvesting technique they have developed to power a typical wall mounted house-hold weather station complete with LCD screen from energy collected via a TV antenna pointed at the local TV station antenna 4 km away. Read More

From the country with more cottage industry sports car manufactures per capita than anywhere else in the world, the British are at it again. No sooner has the much publicized British Lightning GT - an all electric Aston Martin look-a-like with four wheel motors - vanished from sight following wheel motor manufactures PML flight link being put into administration another previously unknown British sports car hopeful has announced an all electric sports car. Former McLaren employee Jim Dowle whose company JJAD first released details about his P1 sports car in February 2008 has now announced the P1-E. The P1 was originally conceived as a 200hp 870 kg petrol powered challenger to the Lotus Exige but Dowle has obviously seen the writing on the wall and the P1 has now been reincarnated as an All Wheel Drive battery electric sports car. Read More

We first encountered the Mercedes-Benz BlueZERO concept vehicle platform when it was announced in December and recently we had chance to take a closer look at the 2009 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Read More

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla Motors, announced Tuesday in Detroit that Tesla is producing the battery pack for Daimler AG's Smart EV. The companies, which have been partnering on electric powertrain technology for almost a year and a half, will produce 1,000 vehicles in 2009 and 2010, and Musk said the deal could grow into the "tens of thousands" of Smart EVs after that. Daimler already has an existing relationship with German tier one automotive supplier Continential who will supply a 25kg lithium-ion battery pack, with cells from Johnson Controls-Saft, to be used in the new Mercedes S400 BlueHYBRID hybrid-electric car available from the middle of 2009. Read More

The promise of wireless electricity has been around for over 100 years but the technology is only just reaching the point of commercial viability. At this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, half a dozen companies are demonstrating wireless power products that will be on sale as early as April this year to recharge your laptop, iPhone or power tools. Read More