Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 15, 2008

There's good news in Jim Motavalli's Greentech report in the NY Times about NiMH batteries in hybrids. The batteries have gotten cheaper, and they have proven robust and long-lived. Toyota reports a tiny percentage of replacements - 350 packs out of hundreds of thousands of 2nd generation Priuses. Yellow Cab in Vancouver has about 100 hybrids, some having racked up as many as 300,000 miles.

Hybrid 100

Hybrid NiMH Batteries Battery 100

Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 15, 2008

Think Global, the Norwegian electric car maker, has halted production of its electric City car, generating fears of a possible bankruptcy. As reported by Reuters , "Like many other car companies, privately-held Think said it had difficulties in obtaining working capital and that automotive suppliers offered tougher terms on parts." It has asked the Norwegian government for $100-200 million to see it through the crisis.

Detroit 100

Detroit Production Global Parts 100

Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 9, 2008

The Wall St Journal's new glossy mag, WSJ, reports on the rivalry between Tesla's Elon Musk, and Henrik Fisker. A bit of scratching and clawing. Tags: tesla fisker automotive henrik fisker battery electric car elon musk.

Fisker 100

Fisker Tesla Electric Cars Batteries 100

Plugs and Cars

DECEMBER 9, 2008

In Congressional testimony last week, Alan Mullaly, head of Ford, committed the company to developing plug-in cars. Next month at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, we will discuss in detail Ford’s accelerated vehicle electrification plan, which includes bringing a family of hybrids, plug-in hybrids and battery electric vehicles to market by 2012.

Ford 100

Ford Detroit Plug-in Plug 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 16, 2008

We first heard about Chrylser's plug-in car plans at the end of September. Less than two months later Chrysler's EV guy Lou Rhodes held an impromptu drag race against his own best gasoline sports car. It doesn't surprise that the electric car outpaced the competition. That such a car was ready to show so quickly does. How about tying the billions of bailout dollars to EVs on the road by the end of 2009?

Dodge EV 100

Dodge EV Dodge Chrysler EV Chrysler 100

Plugs and Cars

NOVEMBER 13, 2008

Chris Paine, director of Who Killed the Electric Car? and Linda Nicholes, President of Plug In America , took delivery on Wednesday of their Tesla Roadsters. Chris directed filming of the long-awaited event at Tesla's Santa Monica showroom. And, Chris blogs about it at on his Revenge of the Electric Car site. [Thanks to Paul Scott for the photo.

Tesla 100

Tesla America Plug-in Plug 100

Plugs and Cars

SEPTEMBER 17, 2008

The NY Times is reporting that Wednesday morning will see the announcement of a deal that will see Tesla's second electric car, the sedan, built in San Jose. On Wednesday morning, the company will announce a deal to lease 89 acres of land in San Jose, Calif. to build a company headquarters and a 600,000-square-foot plant to produce the battery-powered Model S sedan.

San Jose 100

San Jose Tesla Battery Powered Building 100

Plugs and Cars

JULY 31, 2008

Once again, a conference on plug-in cars. Coming on the heels of the Google/Brookings event in Washington, D.C., Plug-in 2008 in San Jose, California witnessed a noon-time address by new heavy-weight convert, Andy Grove, former CEO of Intel. Grove brings some needed high-profile gravitas to the community of electrification advocates. One week earlier, former Vice President Al Gore issued his well-received challenge to make the American grid 100% renewable in ten years.

Plug-in 100

Plug-in Al Gore Plug Gore 100

Plugs and Cars

JULY 17, 2008

Buried in Al Gore's challenge today calling for a 100% renewable electric grid within ten years is a call for plug-in electric cars. This represents a big change in his thinking, and will hopefully quickly push political and environmental leadership to coalesce around policies to push plug-in cars into the market as quickly as possible. We could further increase the value and efficiency of a Unified National Grid by helping our struggling auto giants switch to the manufacture of plug-in electric

Al Gore 100

Al Gore Gore Electric Cars Cars 100

Plugs and Cars

JUNE 26, 2008

It was January 2nd this year when oil hit $100 for the first time. Today it reached $140 , and OPEC warns it will only get worse, and soon. Instead of biting the bullet and facing the need for plug-in cars quick, "solutions" put on the table by the presidential candidates wouldn't have an impact as soon as required to meet carbon and petroleum reduction or national security goals.

Plug-in 100

Plug-in Oil Plug Congress 100

Plugs and Cars

JUNE 6, 2008

Rechargeit.org , Google.org's campaign for plug-in cars, has issued a call for short videos. If you've got one, explain how it works for you. If you want one, explain why. Videos are beginning to show up on youtube. Jeff U'ren drove an EV1 for three years.well, the vid tells the tale. Tags: rechargeit.org google.org battery electric car plug-in car.

Google 100

Google Electric Cars EV1 Cars 100

Plugs and Cars

MAY 29, 2008

Tom Friedman of the NY Times has been hammering away at the bi-partisan disaster that is the US energy policy for years now. One cornerstone of the policy is cheap gas. Pandering politicians have ensured the true cost of gas remains shrouded in tax policy and the defense budget. Now the pressures of a changing global market have provoked a precipitous rise in gasoline prices for the heretofore protected American driver.

Obama 100

Obama Gas-Electric Gas Electric Cars 100

Plugs and Cars

MAY 4, 2008

Today Barak Obama appeared on Meet the Press. (full transcript here.) MR. RUSSERT: How long before our automobiles are off of gasoline oil and, and using something like an alternative fuel? SEN. OBAMA: Well, you know, I, I think that if we decided right now that we were going to make the kind of investment I've proposed--$150 billion over 10 years--then I think at the end of the decade we could have a auto industry that has significantly reduced our consumption of oil by as much as 35, 40 percen

Obama 100

Obama Cars Detroit Plug-in 100

Plugs and Cars

MAY 2, 2008

The Aptera electric car, so futuristic looking it will appear in an upcoming Star Trek movie, is becoming more believable with each passing day. Extremely lightweight, it will be able to get decent range out of a relatively small lithium battery pack. Three-wheeled, it will not be speed limited like four-wheeled NEVs. They produced a short video from inside their Southern California base station.

Aptera 100

Aptera Three Wheeled California Electric Cars 100

Plugs and Cars

APRIL 19, 2008

Stefano Paris, plug-in car and renewable energy supporter and renaissance man, has made a video of Plug In America's rally in Sacramento outside CARB last month. Check out the video, and his extremely useful website on plug-ins here. Tags: stefano paris california air resources board Plug-in Hybrids plug in america.

Sacramento 100

Sacramento Plug-in Plug America 100

Plugs and Cars

APRIL 11, 2008

Check out today's LA Times piece by Ken Bensinger on CARB Board Member Dan Sperling, here. The UC Davis Institute he heads took in millions from auto and oil companies in the years prior to his appointment by Gov Schwarzenegger. At last month's Board Meet, Sperling spearheaded a proposal to cut the number of zero emission vehicles required by the ZEV program.

Davis 100

Davis Detroit Hydrogen Oil 100

Plugs and Cars

APRIL 7, 2008

Check out my snarky AutoblogGreen.com post on Lexus' greenwashing. Quoting myself, Lexus is taking hybrid hype to the next level, the penthouse.At one time Toyota was content to let the Prius subliminally lower consumers' green expectations from electric cars to hybrids which use gasoline-generated electricity to raise efficiency. Lexus has gone literal - "h" is the new green lifestyle.

Lexus 100

Lexus Toyota Prius Gasoline-Electric 100

Plugs and Cars

APRIL 5, 2008

The following guest blog post is by Earl Killian who often blogs at Joe Romm's ClimateProgress.org. Biographical information below the post. Is NRDC drinking the hydrogen kool-aid? Imagine for a moment that the world had rejected wind and solar energy, and instead decided to wait for a hydrogen fusion research program to reach fruition. Where would we be today?

Hydrogen 100

Hydrogen Renewable Wind Fusion 100

Plugs and Cars

APRIL 2, 2008

Governor Schwarzenegger can expect delivery of his $100,000 electric Tesla Roadster within a few months. His pals in the Old World won't have to wait too much longer before they can buy their own, for a cool €100,000 ($156,000.) The Roadster will be sold in Europe beginning in Summer, 2008, CEO Ze'ev Drori has told the Financial Times. The upstart California auto maker decided to offer its vehicles in Europe for a number of reasons.

Europe 100

Europe Tesla 2008 Tax 100

Plugs and Cars

APRIL 2, 2008

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) and the California Fuel Cell Partnership (CFCP) have become inseparable. The Green California Summit taking place next week in Sacramento appears to provide one more small example. As I stated in my testimony before CARB's Zero Emission Vehicle Program meeting last week, to understand the conflict of interest one need look no further than the CARB homepage, where hydrogen and fuel cells – not ZEVs - receive prominent placement, with no equivalent recogni

California 100

California Sacramento 2003 Hydrogen 100

Plugs and Cars

APRIL 1, 2008

Sandia Labs Researcher Ben Cipiti has penned a short piece entitled An Unbiased Approach to Evaluating Transportation Fuels in which he extols the virtues of plug-in cars to meet our environmental and national security goals. He correctly identifies the problem bedeviling consumers, policy makers and, perhaps, auto makers. Many of us want to know what we can do to make a difference.

Alternative Fuels 100

Alternative Fuels Electric Electrical Waste 100

Plugs and Cars

MARCH 25, 2008

The Large Volume Manufacturers, the automakers with obligations under the California Air Resources Board (CARB) Zero Emission Vehicle Program, have made a joint comment about the staff proposed revisions that will be voted on Thursday March 27 in Sacramento. It can be seen here (comment #121) along with 187 other public comments (overwhelmingly asking for a stronger mandate for plug-in cars) on the CARB website.

2003 100

2003 Sacramento 2008 2012 100

Plugs and Cars

MARCH 21, 2008

Subaru has brought some R1e electric mini-cars to NY. They have a program with Tokyo Electric Power Company that has been testing vehicles in Japan since 2006. Now, they're at the NY Auto Show, and two of them are joining the New York Power Authority fleet. Much like the Th!nk City that NYPA also tested, the cars have a 50 miles range with a 65 mile per hour top speed.

2006 100

2006 New York Japan Electric 100

Plugs and Cars

MARCH 5, 2008

The expense and impracticality of hydrogen fuel cell powered cars is beginning to dawn on the major automakers. Batteries will do within a few short years what H2 advocates can only dream. The Wall Street Journal reports GM, Toyota Doubtful on Fuel Cells' Mass Use. Top executives from General Motors Corp. and Toyota Motor Corp. Tuesday expressed doubts about the viability of hydrogen fuel cells for mass-market production in the near term and suggested their companies are now betting that electri

Honda 100

Honda California General Motors Toyota 100

Plugs and Cars

FEBRUARY 28, 2008

Th!nk CEO Jan Olaf Willums made a return appearance at the Cleantech Forum in San Francisco this week. He sat down with Todd Woody, Business 2.0's Green Wombat. The small 2 seater Th!nk City is rolling off the Norwegian assembly line and 500 cars are set for March delivery. Cars will be delivered in London and Paris and Scandinavia. The strategy of delivering cars to urban centers with incentive programs bodes well for California cities, especially if CARB comes up with better incentives for bat

San Francisco 100

San Francisco London BMW Tesla 100

Plugs and Cars

FEBRUARY 15, 2008

There's much I should be blogging these days and hopefully will shortly. The pathetic CARB staff ZEV recommendations ( here ); Bob Lutz's latest inanity about inefficient windshield wipers effect on electric cars' range; London's step backward on the congestion charge. I'll get to them. But for now, enjoy a pointed chuckle. Check out the blog Stuff White People Like on the Prius.

Prius 100

Prius Lexus London Volvo 100

Plugs and Cars

FEBRUARY 1, 2008

Even as BMW clean car honchos tour the globe with the Hydrogen 7, the German automaker could be coming to terms with reality. According to Drive, an Australian magazine The head of BMW's clean-energy technology, Jochen Schmalholz, says hydrogen-powered cars are still 15 to 20 years away from being on the road "in significant numbers" and revealed the German maker is also working on an electric vehicle.

BMW 100

BMW Hydrogen Clean Cleaning 100

Plugs and Cars

JANUARY 30, 2008

The storyline is meant to be changing. From Who Killed the Electric Car? to Who Revived the Electric Car? Now that automakers seem to be reevaluating plug-in cars, you'd think the era of automakers taking extraordinary steps to keep electric cars from private ownership would be over. You'd be wrong. As GM talks up the Volt, it ensures EV1s at museums and universities not be returned to the road as electric cars.

Toyota 100

Toyota San Francisco Dealers Plug-in 100

Plugs and Cars

JANUARY 24, 2008

Tesla has sent a letter to those who have ordered one of its Roadsters with some good news. The first Roadster is on its way. All necessary EPA, DOT and NHTSA approvals have been received. And series production begins in March, beginning at the rate of one per week. The much discussed problems with the original 2 speed transmission will be resolved with an interim one speed so as not to delay early production.

Production 100

Production Tesla EPA Store 100

Plugs and Cars

JANUARY 11, 2008

In meetings reminiscent of Dick Cheney's energy confabs, California Air Resources Board Chair Mary Nichols convened energy companies and auto makers to try to save California's buckling Hydrogen Highway. As reported in the San Jose Mercury News today , Friday, January 11, "We are getting strong expressions of support from them to increase their level of commitments, including financially," said Mary Nichols, who chairs the Air Resources Board, talking about the energy companies.

Hydrogen 100

Hydrogen San Jose Mercury California 100

Plugs and Cars

JANUARY 10, 2008

The San Jose Mercury News reports on roadblocks appearing on Schwarzenegger's much ballyhooed Hydrogen Highway. Planned stations aren't opening and existing stations are closing. California utility giant PG&E has turned down $1.5 million in state funds to open a retail hydrogen station in San Carlos. PG&E officials said they've shifted hydrogen to the back stage and now consider it a distant technology, with electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids moving to the front of the line.

Hydrogen 100

Hydrogen California San Jose Mercury 100

Plugs and Cars

JANUARY 6, 2008

An anonymous commenter on my previous blogpost asks, "GM has alway said that the battery might not be ready. GM never lied about it but like always lots of people like to knock GM. Why not pick on Toyota for a while." I've got no problem picking on Toyota, too. Toyota continues to use the Prius to cover a multitude of sins. They are selling larger, less fuel-efficient vehicles than ever; they slap a hybrid drive into a $100,000 Lexus, achieve minimal fuel savings, and earn more green kudos all w

Toyota 100

Toyota EV1 Prius GM 100

Plugs and Cars

JANUARY 6, 2008

CNNMoney.com reports on an online chat with GM CEO Rick Waggoner. General Motors might not be able to hit its target to have its breakthrough electric-powered car the Chevrolet Volt in production by 2010. GM has already started to build advertising campaigns around the Volt, even though in the best-case scenario it is years away from production. It is seen as a way of trying to change public perceptions about the fuel efficiency and environmental responsibility of the U.S. automaker, which is mo

Volt 100

Volt GM EV1 NiMH 100

Plugs and Cars

JANUARY 2, 2008

NY Times reporting: Oil prices reached the symbolic level of $100 a barrel for the first time on Wednesday, a long-awaited milestone in an era of rapidly escalating energy demand. Crude oil futures for February delivery hit $100 on the New York Mercantile Exchange shortly after noon New York time, before falling back slightly. Oil prices, which had fallen to a low of $50 a barrel at the beginning of 2007, have quadrupled since 2003.

Oil 100

Oil Oil Prices New York 2003 100

Plugs and Cars

MARCH 9, 2008

Touchstone Energy Cooperatives has made an ad touting its preparedness to deliver electricity whatever needs it in the future. Hattip to Domenick Yoney - AutoblogGreen.

Aptera 100

Aptera Electric Electrical Future 100

Plugs and Cars

JULY 22, 2008

[Source: CNN ]. Tags: solar power miles o'brien toyota rav4 ev ev1 cnn solar PV solar electricity energy efficiency solar battery electric car.

EV1 100

EV1 Solar Toyota Miles 100

Plugs and Cars

SEPTEMBER 23, 2008

Curbside EV Charging Stations are sprouting in Portland Oregon. Full story here. Hat tip to David W.

Portland 100

Portland Oregon Charging 100