Electric Vehicles & Plug-in Hybrids

Electric Vehicles (EV)

Who killed the electric vehicle? No one. 20 million people ride ebikes daily in China. The numbers are growing rapidly. As millions of these people make more money, they will want more powerful light electric vehicles (LEV). There are more than 40,000 LEV on the road globally. 16,000 neighborhood electric vehicles (NEV) are in daily use in California. 67% of them replaced cars and trucks that required gasoline and caused significant emissions.

Tesla's Wild Ride

Electric Vehicles for 2010

By John Addison (6/4/08). With oil prices rocketing past $130 per barrel, a growing number of vehicle makers are planning to offer electric vehicles by 2010. Zero gasoline will be used. A growing number of fleet EVs, however, are early trails of a new generation of freeway-speed EVs that will be available to the mass consumer market in 2010. Read about the latest from Toyota, GM, Honda, Nissan, Renault, Mitsubishi and others. Clean Fleet Report

French Post Plans 500 Electric Delivery Vehicles

(3/26/08) With frequent stops for regenerative braking and limited miles, postal delivery is ideal for electric vehicles. Venturi Automobiles and PSA Peugeot Citroën are partnering to supply electric vans based on the Citroën Berlingo First / Peugeot Partner Origin in response to a tender from the French Post Office, La Poste. Issued in April 2007, the international tender from La Poste initially involves the supply of a small number of test vehicles. Following a six-month trial period, during which the vehicles will be thoroughly tested, La Poste will select the supplier of 500 mail delivery vans. Green Car Congress

Subaru EV to Charge in 15-minutes

(3/17/08) The new Subaru R1e can recharge in a regular wall outlet up to 80 percent capacity in 15 minutes. The vehicle reaches speeds of 65 miles and hour and has a range of 50 miles, with a charge cost of $2. Subaru will partner with New York Power Authority (NYPA) to evaluate the company's R1e electric vehicle. The R1e comes with an NEC lithium ion battery that eliminates charge memory loss, allowing partial charges and quick charges that do not decrease battery life. The NYPA partnership will be kicked-off at the New York International Auto Show this week. Green Car Congress

TH!NK Delivers New EVs and Partners with A123

(3/11/08) The TH!NK City now offers a choice of three battery packs: a 28 k Wh Zebra sodium nickel chloride pack, a 26 kWh Li-ion pack from Enerdel and a 19 kWh Li-ion pack from A123Systems.' Customers can buy their own Th!nk City electric cars for about $30,000. The battery will be leased separately for about $300 per month. Think is delivering its first cars in Norway, with international sales to follow later in the year. GE is investing in TH!NK and A123. Green Car Congress

Smart Grids and Electric Vehicles

By John Addison (1/28/08). Several early models of passenger vehicles have enough energy stored in advanced batteries to power several homes for hours. Hybrid electric buses and heavy trucks could power many homes or a school or a hospital in an emergency. Recent announcements demonstrate that electric utilities and some auto makers want to make V2G a reality. The Smart Grid Consortium, established in December 2007 by Xcel Energy, will select a community of approximately 100,000 residents to become a Smart Grid City using V2G. The Renault-Nissan Alliance and Project Better Place have signed a MOU to create a mass-market for electric vehicles in Israel. Clean Fleet Report

Mitsubishi Dazzles with New Electric Vehicle with Solar Roof

The i-EV maximizes the sporty possibilities of the zero-emissions electric vehicle. The high power and environmental performance of its electric motors make it an exhilarating drive that delivers superior environmental performance. Solar roofing powers a auxiliary photovoltaic generator. Mitsubishi Paper

320 EVs at the U.S. Marines Camp Pendleton

In the USA, fleets are the leading users of electric vehicles. The United States Depart of Defense is serious about being less dependent on foreign oil. EVs are important in achieving this goal. U.S. Marine Corp Camp Pendleton, as part of the Department of the Navy, demonstrates the shift to using less oil. At Camp Pendleton, there are over 320 electric vehicles (EV). Over 200 are electric scooters. 120 are GEMs, the 25 mph General Motors vehicle. The EVs use an 8 station charger that is solar powered, producing a totally green solution. Article

Energy Planet Electric Car Directory

Plug-in Hybrids (PHEV)

Toyota's New Plug-in Hybrid Concept Car Debuts

(2/8/08) Toyota 1/X Plug-In Concept makes its North American Debut at the 2008 Chicago Auto Show. The hybrid powertrain in the ultra-lightweight 1/X combines a home-rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack with a 500cc flexible-fuel engine in a system that is 1/4th of the total weight of the Prius powertrain. The result is a vehicle with the possibility of traveling more than 600 miles on a small four-gallon tank of fuel and achieving acceleration performance equivalent to that of the Prius. Green Car Congress

GM Volt Battery Cost and Thermal Management

(11/14/07) GM continues to be on track to accept orders for the plug-in hybrid Volt in 2010. The configuration will be a gasoline or E85-fueled plug-in hybrid with an all-electric range (AER) of 40 miles and an “aggressive” target production date of November 2010. Lithium battery cost and thermal management are keys to meeting the target date. The original Request For Proposals for the Volt battery pack went out to 22 companies. Two partnerships (Compact Power/LG Chem and Continental/A123Systems) were chosen. Green Car Congress

Google.org Funds Over $100 Million for Plug-In Hybrids and Renewable Energy

1/27/07) Through a partnership with Enterprise Rent-A-Car, the Google Fleet is a program designed to support alternative commuting through a free car-sharing program that will be offered to Google employees. The program will eventually expand to include 20 to 100 plug-ins as they become available.Google.org will also invest approximately $100 million in technologies and companies featuring plug in hybrids, fully electric vehicles, vehicle-to-grid capabilities, batteries and other storage technologies, and the application of renewable energy and fuels to green vehicles. Google announced a new strategic initiative to develop electricity from renewable energy sources that will be cheaper than electricity produced from coal. The newly created initiative, known as RE<C, will focus initially on advanced solar thermal power, wind power technologies, enhanced geothermal systems and other potential breakthrough technologies. Google.org

AQMD orders 30 more PHEV

By John Addison (3/19/07) South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) is ordering 30 more plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) that are likely to achieve over 100 mpg. Ten will be Toyota (TM) Priuses converted to PHEV by Hymotion using A123 lithium batteries. 20 will be Ford (F) Escapes converted to PHEV by Quantum (QTWW) using Advanced Lithium Power batteries. Total investment in the 30 vehicles and charging stations will be $3,777,843. AQMD will contribute most of the money. Full Article

CalCars - Map and Database of PHEV

Vehicle to Grid (V2G)

In the future, utilities will pay you to plug-in your vehicle. You will plug-in EV, PHEV and FCV at night when electricity is cheap, then plug-in during the day when energy is expensive and sell those extra electrons at a profit. Vehicle to Grid (V2G) technology is a bi-directional electric grid interface that allows a plug-in to take energy from the grid or put it back on the grid. V2G helps solve the major problem that demand for electricity is high during the day when everything from industrial plants to air conditioning is running full blast and then excess electricity is wasted at night. V2G is a Billion Dollar Opportunity for Electric Utilities

Smart Grids and Electric Vehicles

By John Addison (1/28/08). Several early models of passenger vehicles have enough energy stored in advanced batteries to power several homes for hours. Hybrid electric buses and heavy trucks could power many homes or a school or a hospital in an emergency. Recent announcements demonstrate that electric utilities and some auto makers want to make V2G a reality. The Smart Grid Consortium, established in December 2007 by Xcel Energy, will select a community of approximately 100,000 residents to become a Smart Grid City using V2G. The Renault-Nissan Alliance and Project Better Place have signed a MOU to create a mass-market for electric vehicles in Israel. Clean Fleet Report

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