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Battery Electric Vehicle
Wraps to come off Mavizen TTX02 electric superbike
By Gizmag Team
23:38 November 1, 2009 PST
A new era of motor sport began in June this year with the running of the world's first zero-emissions GP at the famous Isle of Man circuit. Now the TTXGP’s manufacturing arm is set to unveil a factory production electric superbike. Billed as "a computer on wheels", the Mavizen TTX02 is designed to deliver racing performance in a versatile package that will serve as a development platform for would-be competitors in the fledgling world of the e-GP... and it even comes with its own dedicated IP access and connectivity to the network. Read More
EV record: Tesla Roadster travels 313 miles on a single charge
21:58 October 28, 2009 PDT
The Tesla Roadster has set a new distance record for a production electric vehicle by traveling 313 miles (501km) on a single charge. The milestone took place during the 2009 Global Green Challenge in Australia where eco-friendly vehicles have been battling it out over a formidable 1800 mile course. The distance achieved is well above the 244 mile range Tesla quotes in its specs... and on top of that, the electric sportscar reportedly had 3 miles worth of charge left in its batteries when it finished the record breaking run. Read More
Test drive: the all-electric Tesla Roadster
11:55 October 5, 2009 PDT
While the big news recently from Tesla has been its Model S vehicle, U.S. government loans to the company, and a plan for using the Model S platform for several new products including a minivan, crossover vehicle, and a utility van, we decided it was worth a closer look at the Tesla vehicle that you can buy now. Dave Weinstein climbs aboard the Roadster for a test drive. Read More
Honda’s LOOP and HELLO vehicle2vehicle and vehicle2driver infrastructure
By Gizmag Team
10:55 October 1, 2009 PDT
Honda issued a press statement and images of its Tokyo Motor Show exhibits yesterday, raising far more questions than it answered with the brief and cryptic release. One of the primary announcements involved a car2car and car2driver and car2infrastructure communications system named HELLO! (Honda ELectric mobility LOop) and a LOOP portable communication tool that fits in the palm of one’s hand and “allows people and mobility devices to communicate with each other.” The various components of the system look fascinating. Read More
Ford PHEVs to save by ‘talking’ to electric grid
By Jeff Salton
23:38 August 20, 2009 PDT
A new development by Ford allows owners of the company’s plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) to further reduce their operating costs by programming when to recharge the vehicle, for how long and at what utility rate. Ford says it has developed a vehicle-to-grid communications and control system for its (PHEVs) which enables them to ‘talk’ directly with the nation’s electric grid. Read More
Obama bets US$2.4 billion on battery-electric vehicles
By Loz Blain
03:29 August 7, 2009 PDT
Awesome news: battery technology is about to get a US$2.4 billion-dollar kick in the pants. US President Barack Obama has announced the single largest funds injection into battery development and electric/hybrid vehicle technology the world has ever seen. Obama's hope is that this huge chunk of stimulus funds will be enough to knock down the biggest wall standing between electric vehicles and the mainstream: the fact that current batteries are still too expensive, take too long to charge, and don't hold enough energy. If the move succeeds, it could put America right at the front of the electric car revolution - but at the least, it could help the next generation of iPhones last more than a day between charges. Read More
(UPDATED - VIDEO) Nissan LEAF: 100 mile range, mid-size production EV revealed
By Gizmag Team
20:05 August 2, 2009 PDT
Last month we looked at the Nissan's latest prototype EV and the infrastructure it hopes to put in place to support the "electric future". Now production plans have been revealed with the company taking the wraps off a fully-electric mid-size vehicle which it intends to launch in Japan, the United States and Europe in late 2010. With a name to compliment its green credentials, the LEAF is a five-seat hatchback powered by lithium-ion batteries which deliver a range of 160km (100 miles) on one full charge. The electric motor delivers 80kW (107bhp) and 280Nm of torque with top speed slated at 140kmh (around 90mph). Read More
Electric vehicle trials gain traction in UK
By Jeff Salton
04:09 June 26, 2009 PDT
A raft of electric vehicle related news from the UK this week with Mitsubishi, Ford, Toyota and BMW (through its Mini brand) all getting a piece of the action. A total of approximately 340 all-electric and hybrid vehicles will begin trials on UK roads within the next 6-18 months. Read More
Daimler buys 10 percent stake in Tesla
02:19 May 22, 2009 PDT
Daimler AG has announced the acquisition of almost 10 percent of fledgling Californian EV producer Tesla. The deal, which should help Tesla meet its planned 2011 launch date for the Model S sedan, is the latest news in an ongoing relationship between Tesla and the German automotive giant which also includes a previously announced agreement to supply lithium-ion battery packs in the first 1,000 units of Daimler’s electric smart car. Read More
UK team Develops plug-in hybrid retrofit kit for ICE vehicle
By Paul Evans
20:39 May 7, 2009 PDT
Automotive engineering facilities in the UK have joined forces to design a system which allows conventional delivery vans to be cheaply converted to run in a zero-emissions, all-electric mode for urban use. The ADDZEV (affordable add-on zero emissions vehicle) system was developed using a standard Vauxhall Combo van, retaining the existing conventional front-wheel-drive (FWD) system and an adding an electric drive in parallel for the rear wheels. The vehicle can operate with just front wheel drive powered by the internal combustion engine or can turn off the petrol engine and run with rear wheel drive under electric power only. Read More
The UK's first four-seat, all-electric production car goes on sale
By Paul Evans
14:24 May 3, 2009 PDT
The first all-electric family car went on sale in the United Kingdom over the weekend. Electric Car Corporation Plc has launched a lithium ion battery-powered, all-electric version of the Citroen C1, called the C1 ev'ie. Unlike the previous largest selling electric vehicle in Britain – the Indian-built Reva G-Wiz, which was legally classed as a quadricycle – the C1 ev’ie is a proper car, albeit a mini car. Read More
The 100+ miles-per-gallon, plug-in hybrid Hummer
By Paul Evans
16:49 May 2, 2009 PDT
Raser Technologies has debuted a Hummer H3, converted into a plug-in series hybrid, to coincide with the company's listing on the New York Stock Exchange. With the aerodynamics of a house – it has a drag coefficient of .43 (Cd .43) – and a curb weight of 4700 lb (2132 kg) in standard trim, the H3 hardly makes an ideal vehicle to base a hybrid conversion on. Raser chose the Hummer because trucks and SUVs have been among the best-selling vehicles in the US and stood to benefit most from increased fuel economy and reduced emissions. The recent economic slump and fuel price volatility have led to the Hummer brand being put up for sale (with no takers), while SUV sales have stalled with many SUV plants now closed. Read More
Carl Edwards drives 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid 1445.7 miles on a single tank
By Paul Evans
18:54 April 28, 2009 PDT
A team of Ford hybrid engineers, a fuel efficiency expert and a NASCAR star have driven a 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid 1445.7 miles (2313.12 km) on a single 17.5 US gallon (66.24 Liter) tank of gasoline using Eco-Driving techniques. That's an average of 81.5 mpg (2.88 l/100 km), not bad from a totally standard production car. The 1,000-Mile Challenge started at 8:15 a.m. on Saturday, April 25, from Mount Vernon, Va., and the car finally ran out of gas and battery power on April 28th at 5:37 am in Washington, D.C. NASCAR star Carl Edwards was behind the wheel at the 1000 mile mark and world-record breaking hypermiler Wayne Gerdes was also part of the team. Read More
2025 Sunbeam Tiger electric car concept
By Paul Evans
16:52 April 16, 2009 PDT
The 1925 Sunbeam Tiger was a supercharged V12 four-liter racing car, driven by Sir Henry Segrave at 145 mph (233 km/h) and was the smallest-engined car ever to hold the world land speed record. The Sunbeam Tiger electric sports car concept has been designed to "virtually" commemorate the 100th anniversary (1925-2025) of the Tiger's land speed record win. The Tiger concept car is powered by a Siemens 3 phase AC motor powering the rear wheels with a 26 kilowatt/hour lithium-titanate battery pack and has a curb weight of 600kg (1323lb). Read More
World's top 5 fastest street legal electric cars
By Paul Evans
02:40 April 10, 2009 PDT
Cars like the million dollar Porsche Carrera GT and Ferrari Enzo are rightly considered supercars with their lightweight carbon fiber construction and 650 hp (477 kw) thoroughbred mid mounted engines making them capable of 0-60 mph in 3.9 seconds. The amazing thing is that electric vehicles like the 250 hp (183 kw) Tesla Roadster, which produce 100% instant torque from zero rpm, can accelerate to 60 mph in the exact same time, and at costs as low as $0.02 per mile. Paul Evans takes a look at the leading lights of this new breed of speed demon - the top 5 fastest Electric Vehicles in the world. Read More
GM and Segway Join forces to reinvent urban transportation
By Paul Evans
19:28 April 7, 2009 PDT
Straight out of left field, General Motors and personal mobility pioneer Segway have revealed a two-wheel, two-seater prototype vehicle they’ve code named Project P.U.M.A (Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility). The self-balancing electric “car” is designed to transport two adults in a seated position at speeds of up to 35 mph and can travel up to 25 and 35 miles (40 - 56 km) powered by large format lithium-ion batteries on as little as $0.60 worth of electricity. The control system is based on the original Segway with dynamic balancing and drive-by-wire for acceleration, steering, and braking. It also features vehicle-to-vehicle communications, digital smart energy management and a dockable user interface that allows off-board connectivity. Read More
Closer look: the Tesla Model S
By Paul Evans
01:31 April 3, 2009 PDT
There is much excitement and publicity surrounding the launch of the long awaited all electric sedan from Tesla Motors and more details have emerged since the Tesla Model S was unveiled. The specs that have officially been announced are not yet substantial enough for a full technical review at this stage, but we do know that the EV sedan has a top speed of 130 mph, is capable of 0-60 in 5.6 seconds, charges in 45 minutes and has a 160 mile (256 km) range with the standard battery option. According to the company's website we can expect to see an AWD option somewhere in the future and although it's not not officially stated, according to reporters at the the unveiling who were able to question Tesla engineers the Model S will be rear wheel drive (RWD) in its standard configuration. Gizmag's Paul Evans takes a closer look at what we know, and what questions remain unanswered. Read More
Solar car travels more than 12,500 miles to break world distance record
By Paul Evans
17:36 March 29, 2009 PDT
A Solar car called Power Of One (Xof1) claimed a new unofficial world distance record for a solar powered car when it arrived in Los Angeles on March 6th having driven over 12,5000 miles (20,000 km) using only sunshine as fuel. Read More
Cajun Crawler: the Segway gets a leg-up
By Paul Evans
19:21 March 17, 2009 PDT
Take one DIY Self balancing electric vehicle project, replace the wheels with 6 pars of short legs based on Theo Jansen kinetic sculptures and the result looks like something out of “Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy”. A dynamically stabilized, ride-on robot that crawls. Read More
Lithium Ion Battery breakthrough promises 100-fold boost in performance
By Paul Evans
05:42 March 16, 2009 PDT
Researchers have developed a new advanced Lithium Ion battery that will allow mobile phone and laptop computers to be fully charged in seconds. Electric car batteries may be charged in as little as five minutes, removing one of the main barriers to wider uptake of EVs. Solar and wind power generation could also benefit as better batteries could be used to store surplus energy. Read More
TH!NK FROST: AWD, all-wheel-steer electric sports car concept
By Paul Evans
18:54 March 11, 2009 PDT
While World Rally Championship cars travel at incredible speed on ice covered roads using studded tires, something with a little more surface area is needed for an Arctic Off-Road vehicle. Taking cues off four track snowmobiles Norwegian designer Anders Gloslie designed the FROST as a concept proposal for TH!NK, an electric car company based in Norway. The layout of the FROST is a 2-seat sports car platform based on a tubular space frame chassis with double wishbone suspension front and rear teamed with push-rod actuated in-board coil over shock and spring units. The suspension features hydraulic wheel extenders to increase the track when required and the proposed electric drivetrain features All Wheel Drive (AWD), all-wheel-steering and radical tracks instead of conventional wheels that should offer superior traction when driving on snow, ice and slush. Read More
SEAT's green vision: Leon Ecomotive and Twin Drive concepts
By Paul Evans
16:50 March 11, 2009 PDT
SEAT displayed its first electric vehicle prototype in January of this year to Spain’s Minister of Industry who recently promised one million EVs on Spanish roads by 2012. SEAT has now announced the 74.3mpg TDI powered Leon Ecomotive at the Geneva Auto Show 2009. Read More
Tata Nano heads to Europe
By Paul Evans
20:38 March 10, 2009 PDT
The European version of the world’s cheapest car, the Nano was introduced at the Geneva Auto Show this week. The Nano Europa is an upgraded version of the $2,500 "People's Car" soon to go into production in India. The Europa model sticks to the same narrow, upright, four-door format, but has a longer wheelbase, more safety features and is better finished than the Indian-market version so will be considerably more expensive than the Indian model due to go on sale in April 2009. Read More
Magna MILA EV, the future BMW Electric Car?
By Paul Evans
16:27 March 10, 2009 PDT
As part of the BMW Project i electric car program, Magna, the company that will be building the Ford Focus EV in 2011, has presented the MILA EV at the Geneva Motor Show 2009. Where most mass production electric vehicles announced to date are retrofitted or converted versions of existing vehicles, the five-door Mila has been designed without compromise as a fully integrated electric vehicle platform. Driven by a 50 Kw (67 hp) electric motor powered by a lithium-ion battery pack, the MILA EV is expected to have a charge time of 2.5 hours a range of up to 150 km (94 miles) with charging supplemented by solar cells integrated in the glass roof. Read More
600 hp Infiniti Essence: the World's most powerful hybrid car
By Paul Evans
17:15 March 9, 2009 PDT
To celebrate 20 years as a brand Infiniti has produced a stunning concept car for the 2009 International Motor Show in Geneva. The Infiniti Essence is the world’s most powerful Hybrid car with a total of 600 horsepower combined output from its V6 twin turbo and electric motor. The luxury sports car hybrid offers enormous power on the open road and zero emission driving in urban settings. Read More
Jonathan Cole
- November 6, 2009 @ 16:15 UTC
