Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 12, 2007

Menahem Anderman, PhD, is Mister Battery Consultant. CARB, DOE, Congress all seem to turn to him to analyze the state of battery technology. His reports always suggest batteries won't quite cut it for freeway-capable cars. His report at CARB in 2003 seemed to suggest the electric cars then on the road couldn't be functioning as well as they were. Drivers of electric cars were stunned at his low opinion of the state of battery technology.

NiMH 100

NiMH 2003 Congress Plug-in 100

Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 13, 2007

The Detroit News is reporting on the efforts in the Senate to craft a viable energy bill. As presently consitituted, the Senate bill drops the requirement of electricity generators to achieve 15% renewable sources, but includes higher CAFE standards and major provisions for plug-ins, including conversions. The bill also increases to just more than $1 billion consumer tax credits for buying a plug-in hybrid, with a $5,000 per-vehicle maximum.

Plug-in 100

Plug-in Plug Tax Credit Energy 100

Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 11, 2007

An emotional Alexandra Paul, actress who appeared in Who Killed the Electric Car? , is interviewed by Matt Kelley of Next Gear in front of an EV1 that made an appearance at RenewableLa put on by by Energy Efficiency Solar. I gather GM really did destroy the molds and sever relationships with suppliers, but it is so clear that if they simply re-released the EV1 today it would still be a show stopper.

EV1 100

EV1 GM Gas-Electric Solar 100

Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 11, 2007

An Agence France Presse report has produced a small flurry of articles this past week, here and here , for example, that has a German company developing Lithium batteries that would be suitable for electric cars. Li-tec is said to be working in cooperation with Bosch and Volkswagen, which has heightened interest. One can only hope, despite scant evidence, that the fierce grip of internal combustion on the German automakers might loosen.

Electric Cars 100

Electric Cars Batteries Battery Cars 100

Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 11, 2007

Every electric car advocate is asked the same question every day: Are EVs really cleaner, greener, better for the environment? The long tailpipe, and all that. Slate, the online magazine, has an enviro Q&A column, The Green Lantern , that asks the question today. Driving one still has an environmental cost, mostly associated with the use of Santa's most feared stocking-stuffer: 49.7 percent of our nation's electricity is generated by the burning of coal.

Electric Cars 100

Electric Cars Cars Coal Cleaner 100

Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 10, 2007

Business 2.0's Green Wombat blogger Todd Woody has written up an optimistic report on the Th!nk City titled A Honda Civic for the age of global warming. As I mentioned a week or so ago, the first new Th!nk City electric car has rolled off its Norwegian assemblyline. Everything in the piece agrees with our previous understanding - Zebra batteries for now, EnerDel and A123 Lithium in the future; battery leasing in Norway; US release a number of years away at best.

Norway 100

Norway Honda Electric Electrical 100

Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 7, 2007

The French government's Ministry of Ecology has instituted a CO2 based "feebate" scheme. Low emission vehicles will receive a rebate, high emission cars will be assessed a fee. Mid level emitters, representing about 45% of the cars currently sold, will be unaffected. As reported on the Green Car Congress website , electric vehicles would receive 5 times the rebate available to the best currently conceivable ICE vehicle.

CO2 100

CO2 Electric Cars Congress Cars 100

Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 5, 2007

John Voelker has posted from EVS23 for IEEE's Spectrum, and he ain't writing about fuel cells. Except to point out that Honda's FCV rep actually got hissed as he dissed lithium batteries. The same lithium batteries without which Honda's much heralded Clarity who chug along like a quiet 1960s era VW bug. The FCX Clarity will be leased for $600 a month, starting next summer, to selected customers in Southern California.

Plug 100

Plug Honda Plug-in California 100

Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 3, 2007

GM-Volt.com is reporting on battery announcements at EVS23. Both A123 and LG Chem/Compact Power have delivered packs to GM for testing in the Volt. GM has announced plans for real world testing in vehicles in spring 2008, and with these batteries in hand, they appear to be meeting their announced timetable.

Volt 100

Volt Batteries Battery GM 100

Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 3, 2007

It's a shame the video on TMZ.com doesn't include the reporter's voiceover, because the narration I heard when the story aired on TV caught the reality of hydrogen hype better than most serious enviro journalism. Automakers using movie stars to greenwash was its essence. The story, as reported on TMZ.com: He's all for saving the environment, but Jeremy Piven also likes to break the law!

BMW 100

BMW Hydrogen Environment Green 100

Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 3, 2007

IEEE Tech Talk's John Voelker's report is titled EVS-23: A Surge of Energy for Electric Cars. It is a first comment on the palpable difference being experienced at this year's Electric Vehicle Symposium (EVS23), the electric drive industry trade show. An astounding 450 people attended Sunday's plug-in hybrid workshop. A member of congress, for the first time, spoke from the floor about promoting electric vehicles through federal legislation.

Congress 100

Congress Plug-in Plug Volt 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 29, 2007

Good news from Norway. Automotive News (subscription required) reports: Think Global has launched production of an electric minicar for European markets. On Wednesday, the first City minicar rolled off the assembly line at Think’s plant in Aurskog, northeast of Oslo. “This project is on time. We are building full production cars with all the right components from the right suppliers,” Think Global CEO Jan-Olaf Willums said.

Think City 100

Think City Norway Global Batteries 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 24, 2007

Edmunds Inside Line 's Alistair Weaver interviewed Wolfgang Hatz, the head of powertrain for the entire Volkswagen Group. The title of their piece, Mr Engine Fuels the Future , probably tells you all you need to know. Quotations from the interview below; first, my somewhat snarky synopsis. Hatz, in short: Hybrids are bogus - "a very expensive way to save a small amount of fuel.

CO2 100

CO2 Hydrogen Hybrid Diesel 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 22, 2007

London could soon replace California as the electric car capital of the world. Thanks in large part to Mayor "Red Ken" Livingstone, who enacted London's much criticized congestion charge policy in 2003. The policy, which exempts electric cars from hefty daily taxation, is resulting in increasingly significant vehicle choices for English consumers. India's Reva was first into the market with the G-Wiz.

London 100

London G-Wiz i-MiEV Recharge 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 20, 2007

US News and World Report interviews GM's Bob Lutz. So of all the different technologies GM is working on, how would you prioritize them? Electric. Advanced hybrid. Plug-in hybrid. Advanced clean diesels. And far out, there's hydrogen. Tags: Bob Lutz.

GM 100

GM Hydrogen Clean Cleaning 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 21, 2007

In the Wall Street Journal Online, The Informed Reader , Andy Grove, onetime CEO of Intel, discusses corporate "cross-boundary disruption," such as Apple moving into the music business. As a suggestion, Mr. Grove says General Electric Co. could benefit from a cross-boundary disruption by building an electric car. Neither auto makers nor energy companies seem willing to exploit new energy sources or reduce the U.S.’s dependence on foreign oil.

Corporation 100

Corporation Oil Building Auto 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 21, 2007

NY Times late Wednesday: Oil prices flirted with the symbolic $100-a-barrel level in overnight trading. Crude oil futures briefly rose above $99 in overnight trading and an Energy Department report showed that inventories fell slightly last week, leaving investors wondering how soon oil will be nudged above its inflation-adjusted record of $102. Crude settled in New York trading at $97.29, down 74 cents.

Oil 100

Oil Oil Prices New York Price 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 19, 2007

The op-ed in today's LA Times (We Need Voltswagens in the print edition; Bring back the electric car online) deserves attention from the public and state policy makers. Sherry Boschert, author of Plug-in Hybrids , is publicly posing the stark question as it needs to be asked: Will CARB push for cars capable of zero-emission driving for today's consumers using available, affordable, tested battery technology or will they support mere research programs even proponents say won't be marketable for a

California 100

California Hydrogen Plug-in Honda 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 16, 2007

Aftenposten TV news clip of the new Th!nk City here including shots of the assembly line and interview with CEO Jan Olaf Willums. The report mentions a price for the car and monthly charge for the battery, but more than that I couldn't comprehend. How's your Norwegian? Tags: jan olaf willums think city.

Think City 100

Think City Price Charging Batteries 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 14, 2007

Bob Lutz of GM is in LA. He's meeting with journalists and electric drive advocates. The first report I've seen from the LA Auto Show regarding the much anticipated Volt, in the UK's Guardian , says Lutz expects to see road-tests of "a street-drivable" Chevy Volt by the end of Q1 2008. Now talking specifically about a November 2010 showroom launch. Tags: gm volt lutz.

Volt 100

Volt GM 2008 2010 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 8, 2007

The IEEE Spectrum Magazine for November 07 touts on its cover "Battery or Fuel-Cell Cars? A California Cabal Will Decide." Interesting choice of headlines. Surely a strong argument can be made that something approaching a cabal turned a practical electric-cars-on-the-road mandate into a research and development program for hydrogen fuel cells vehicles.

Plug-in 100

Plug-in Plug Parts Cars 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 7, 2007

One 11am EST AP report in the NY Times •U.S. oil supplies fell last week for the third straight period. •Stockpiles of gasoline also dropped, the government reported Wednesday. •Demand for gasoline over the past four weeks was 0.8 percent higher than a year earlier. •.prices had climbed as high as $98.62 in electronic trading. •At the pump, gas prices rose nearly 2 cents overnight.

Gasoline 100

Gasoline Oil Price Supplies 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 6, 2007

As the price per barrel goes beyond $97, one story in the NY Times reports : •Bombing in Afghanistan kills 64. •Attack on pipeline in Yemen. •Domestic oil inventory to fall. •Severe weather forecast for North Sea. Oil platforms evacuated. •Dollar weak. •Severe weather shuts Mexican ports, disrupts oil supply to US. Tags: petroleum oil price per barrel.

Yemen 100

Yemen Afghanistan Oil Prices Oil 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 6, 2007

Another sign that fuel cells for cars are history. Ballard Power systems, long time fuel cell hot shot, wants out of the automotive fuel cell business. The Globe and Mail of Toronto reports that Ballard is hoping to unload this part of the business on Daimler and Ford, which already own 19% and 11% of Ballard respectively. Once viewed as a business worth billions, soon, it will be interesting to see what Daimler and Ford might be willing to pay.

Fuel 100

Fuel Cars Ford Personal 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 2, 2007

Just as major and mid-size auto makers are announcing what seem to be real electric cars for 2009-2010, for example here (Subaru) and here (Mitsubishi iMiev), newly formed independents are finding it difficult to get product out. TeslaMotors' delays have received attention in the blogs and mainstream media. Autobloggreen is reporting what can only be considered major changes in the Phoenix Motors SUT vehicle.

Phoenix 100

Phoenix Mitsubishi 2009 2010 100

Plugs and Cars

OCTOBER 30, 2007

Got2BeGreen reports BYD, a large Chinese firm that is jumping into cars, will be showing a plug-in hybrid, the F6DM, at the Detroit Auto Show. According to this report, it will begin selling next year in China for about $20,000. It is said to be using an iron-based battery, which none of the major world auto-makers is considering. The Chinese have nothing to lose breaking new ground in the US market.

Chinese 100

Chinese BYD Detroit PHEV 100

Plugs and Cars

OCTOBER 28, 2007

Thomson Financial is reporting that Mitsubishi aims to launch its i-MiEV city electric car one year earlier than expected. Techon blog from Japan gives more details. 16kWh of Lithium betteries. 160 kilometer range. Mitsubishi Motors President Osamu Mashiko clearly stated "We will commercialize a small electric vehicle in 2009.". Tags: mitsubishi electric car imiev.

Mitsubishi 100

Mitsubishi 2009 i-MiEV Japan 100

Plugs and Cars

OCTOBER 27, 2007

Required reading: Bill Moore's EVWorld review and Martin Zimmerman's LA Times piece about their test drives of the Toyota Plug-in Prius and the hydrogen fuel cell Highlander FCHV. Paradox 1 - Soot: There's an apparent emissions paradox with plug-in hybrids (PHEV): Driving longer distances on battery power means more cold starts as the internal combustion engine (ICE) stops and starts up again after the batteries deplete.

Plug-in 100

Plug-in Plug Prius Highlander 100

Plugs and Cars

OCTOBER 25, 2007

The Fisker Coachbuild name meant nothing to me, but I'm not really an auto geek. We recently read that this premium automobile design company intends to offer a luxury plug-in hybrid. In a joint venture with Quantum Technologies , retaining the Fisker moniker, Fisker Automotive now has a one page website. It sort of shows the vehicle, appropriately if obnoxiously dubbed ECO-CHIC, they will debut at the Detroit Auto Show.

Plug-in 100

Plug-in Plug Fisker Hybrid 100

Plugs and Cars

OCTOBER 26, 2007

NY Times reports: Oil Prices Continue to Rise $91.86 per barrel at Friday's close. A little context: oil at its lowest this year? $50.48 a barrel on January 18, 2007. Tags: oil price per barrel Big Oil.

Oil Prices 100

Oil Prices Oil 2007 Price 100

Plugs and Cars

OCTOBER 24, 2007

Joseph White, Wall St Journal Detroit bureau chief, is writing about electric cars again , this time about the majors. He's in Tokyo reporting from the big Japanese Motor Show. Hybrid or All-Electric? Car Makers Take Sides Nissan-Renault continue talking up small all-electric cars. Toyota and GM are continuing down their differing hybrid paths. Honda, the quintessential internal combustion company, is lobbing criticism at hybrids, a market Toyota exploited better than Honda.

Honda 100

Honda Nissan Toyota GM 100

Plugs and Cars

OCTOBER 22, 2007

Popular Mechanics got a look and briefing on Toyota's own plug-in Prius. And they said it couldn't or wouldn't be done. Or it would take Lithium to make it worthwhile. Well, surprise, surprise: "Toyota has the knowledge and experience with nickel metal hydride. And we have to use the battery we know best, in terms of overall performance," said [Yoshitaka] Asakura [Project General Manager of Toyota's Hybrid Vehicle System Engineering Development Division.

Nickel Metal Hydride 100

Nickel Metal Hydride Plug-in Toyota Plug 100

Plugs and Cars

OCTOBER 21, 2007

Terry Tamminen, Arnold's green guru, showed up at the Santa Monica AltCar Show in a BMW Hydrogen 7. Mr. "Lives Per Gallon" ought to be ashamed to lend his name to BMW's greenwashing. But of course he's been hydrogen's biggest booster, despite its inefficiencies and impracticalities. You can't beat a free car and free fuel. Especially a super luxury car that switches to gasoline with the flick of a finger.

BMW 100

BMW 2002 Hydrogen Gasoline-Electric 100

Plugs and Cars

OCTOBER 19, 2007

Forbes 12:43pm ET: Oil retreats from today's record highs around 90 usd as traders lock profits Bloomberg Crude Oil Falls From Record on Signs U.S. Supplies Are Adequate Associated Press Oil Futures Retreat From $90 Record CNN Money Oil retreats from $90, but gas keeps climbing. Tags: petroleum Big Oil.

Oil 100

Oil Oil Prices Price Supplies 100

Plugs and Cars

OCTOBER 16, 2007

Back in May Tesla announced it would be selling batteries to Th!nk Global for its revived City electric car. Seemed a great synergy at the time. Now CNet is reporting that Tesla won't be supplying Th!nk with batteries after all. Tesla Energy Group is on hold, while TeslaMotors concentrates on getting the delayed Roadster produced. Th!nk Global has therefore had to to look elsewhere for batteries.

Think City 100

Think City Energy Batteries Battery 100

Plugs and Cars

OCTOBER 14, 2007

Joseph B White, Wall Street Journal's Detroit bureau chief, takes Tesla seriously and respectfully. His column in Monday's WSJ Online explains what's going on with the Silicon Valley automotive startup so many hope will push electric to the fore. Other than one stupid paragraph about the EV1 and RAV4 EV that repeats the conventional received wisdom on why we have no plug-in choices - "GM EV1 and the electric Toyota RAV4 struck mainstream customers as geeky, slow and impractical" (really?

EV1 100

EV1 Tesla Motors Detroit Plug-in 100

Plugs and Cars

OCTOBER 11, 2007

I've long heard rumors of Chinese auto makers developing an electric car. It makes lots of sense, given Chinese battery production. Now Autobloggreen has a report out of China involving BYD. I recalled hearing in 2005 that BYD acquired a license from Ovonics to manufacture NiMH batteries. But I was disappointed if not surprised when it was stated clearly in the press that they were acquiring "the nonexclusive right to manufacture, use and sell Ovonic Battery's proprietary NiMH technology-based b

Chinese 100

Chinese 2008 Electric Cars NiMH 100