Battery Electric Vehicle News / Enjoying the Transportation Revolution

JKenH

In 2021, Tesla's Autonomy Tech May Change Skeptics' Minds

Very bullish article on Tesla’s FSD.

https://seekingalpha.com/article/4380998-in-2021-teslas-autonomy-tech-may-change-skeptics-minds

Martyn1981

Just an ickle post, on ickle cars, and ickle tractors. I seem to recall Countryfile featuring a small BEV tractor, and then Rob from Fully Charged visiting the farm for a play too.

Ideanomics Invests in California-Based e-Tractor Company Solectrac

Fiat 500e starting at £20k

Fiat New 500 Specs And Pricing Revealed

NigeWick

Martyn1981 said:

More news on Tesla's small rollout of the FSD Beta. Am I the only one that finds this terrifying in a good/bad way as the rate of change is simply too hard to comprehend. So exciting, but also makes me feel old ........ I remember when it was all trees around here, and we had to actually steer AND change gears!

A Look At Tesla’s FSD Beta

Some of those videos were provided by John from Tesla Owners of Silicon Valley. Since the publication of that article, John has shared more videos and also told me more in a Twitter DM about the experience. He noted that Tesla gave him express permission to share his experience.

“Truly an amazing step forward in FSD space, this is a mic drop from Elon/Tesla that FSD is here. I was able to drive from my house to Target and from one supercharger to the next from city streets to highways. It is mind-blowing and it all came from OTA,” he told me in a direct message on Twitter.

I can't wait for full ABEVs. I can hopefully keep driving until the "mini" Tesla rolls out and I'll buy a full autonomous one to ferry SWMBO and myself about and let loose as a robotaxi when not required by us which will be most of the time.

ASavvyBuyer

An article I spotted on the IAM website about an EV test drive.

JKenH

Wall Street analysts were blown away by the Tesla Model 3's 'next-gen, military-grade' tech — and say that's why the base model will never turn a profit (TSLA)

https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/tesla-model-3-has-next-gen-military-grade-tech-ubs-says-but-will-never-turn-profit-2018-8-1027468439

JKenH

Wall Street analysts tore down 7 competing electric-vehicle batteries — and say Tesla is once again leading the pack

https://www.businessinsider.com/teslas-batteries-best-cheapest-industry-ahead-competition-ubs-teardown-2020-10

JKenH

Ford Mustang Mach-E Electric Car Sees First Firm Dates: Tesla Model Y Rival Revs Up Production

https://www.forbes.com/sites/brookecrothers/2020/10/24/ford-mustang-mach-e-electric-car-sees-first-firm-production-dates-tesla-model-y-rival-revs-up-production/

JKenH

Tesla Begins Deploying Full Self-Driving Beta To Select Customers But It Is In No Way 'Full Self-Driving'

https://jalopnik.com/tesla-begins-deploying-full-self-driving-beta-to-select-1845452979

shinytop

Martyn1981 said:

Just an ickle post, on ickle cars, and ickle tractors. I seem to recall Countryfile featuring a small BEV tractor, and then Rob from Fully Charged visiting the farm for a play too.

Ideanomics Invests in California-Based e-Tractor Company Solectrac

Fiat 500e starting at £20k

Fiat New 500 Specs And Pricing Revealed

This is more like it.  Our second car has always been a cabriolet, currently a mini and never needs to go 50 miles from home. The Fiat 500 was the other one we considered so for the first time ever there is a BEV we might actually buy.  

Martyn1981

OK, have to say I'm impressed by this, but I've no idea if it really makes financial sense, but fingers crossed for converting old(er) ICE cars into, shall we say, BEV second cars. I'd guess that the conversion cost could be recovered quite quickly for those paying the London congestion charge?

Transition One Will Convert Your Old Gasmobile To Electric Power In About 4 Hours

If you own a perfectly fine conventional automobile but want to join the EV revolution, you have two choices. Engineer an electric drivetrain swap yourself, which involves hours and hours of lying on you back on a creeper in your garage, or buying a new electric car. Now, if you live in France, there’s a third way. Transition One will take your current car, remove the existing internal combustion engine, replace it with batteries and an electric motor, and give it back to you in about 4 hours.

The first question anyone will ask is, “OK, that sounds interesting. How much does it cost to do this?” The answer is about $8,500 in round numbers. But wait. The process now has the official stamp of approval from the French government, which makes it eligible for EV incentives, which can bring the total cost down to around $5,500. Once the process is complete, you will immediately derive the benefits of owning an electric car, including greatly reduced maintenance and fuel costs. Remember that gasoline costs a lot more in Europe than it does in the US. Transition One estimates the conversion will pay for itself in about 4 years time. Range after the conversion should be in excess of 100 miles — more than enough for most daily driving chores.