Battery Electric Vehicle News / Enjoying the Transportation Revolution

Martyn1981

To quote the Railway Children - "it's much too magic for me. I don't like it. Let's go home."

So, the Beta version 9 of Tesla's FSD got released a few days ago to the 'lucky' few who are trialing it. I've no idea if anyone else is interested in this, but this vid from Galli of the Hyperchange channel is really eye opening. It shows the tech in action, shows it coping really well with difficult tasks, and struggling with others that look simple.

Overall, I'm simply unable to comprehend how any of this is possible, I feel like a dog staring at a Saturn V rocket and trying to understand it. Seems like an impossible task, but looks like Tesla have made a serious dent in it ...... not the car!

Enjoy.

Tesla FSD Beta V9 First Drive!

JKenH

michaels said:

Out of interest do you measure from out of the wall socket or use the car' measurement which is out of the battery?

I always quote the figure from the car’s dash display which ignores the charging losses which are typically 10-25% when charging at home. While my headline figure has been 4.2 miles/kWh in reality I get around 3.5 from the plug.

The display in my Leaf also takes into account the energy used when the “ignition” is on but the car is stationary (as when I sit with the heating or aircon on while waiting for my wife) just as an ICE would do but I am led to believe that Tesla only counts the kWh used while the car is moving. No doubt someone will correct me if I am wrong on that point. 

I am not aware of any cars taking vampire losses into account but these can be significant if the car is used infrequently particularly with cars running some systems when parked, e.g. Tesla in sentry mode.

Martyn1981

Well, my mate might have been pleased with his journey home averaging 154Wh/mile, but he's still short of the Lightyear One, that managed to average 137Wh/Mile at 53 miles an hour, and just to rub it in, also generated some energy from its solar panels.

Not cheap at an estimated £150k but still fun to see what can be achieved on a test track.

And they plan to build 9.46 tn km 946 in 2022 H1

Lightyear One Prototype Drives 441 Miles On A Single Charge During Test Drive

The Netherlands-based solar electric vehicle company Lightyear has revealed that its Lightyear One prototype car has achieved 441 miles (710km) on a single-charge test drive. We first reported on Lightyear way back in 2017, when it revealed its goal to be one of the first solar-powered electric cars for consumers. The original concept was based around the fact that EV charging infrastructure is still lacking and so placing solar panels on a vehicle can provide some much needed extra range.

From the early days, Lightyear promised that it would be able to achieve a 450-mile range on a single charge, and the results of this test drive show that it has made good on that promise. The test took place at the Aldenhoven Testing Center in Germany, with the prototype car being put through a drive cycle at a speed of 53 miles per hour on a single battery charge of 60 kWh. Excluding the time taken by switching drivers, the car drove for a total of just under nine hours.

EVandPV

EU rules will make electric cars more profitable than petrol, says VW executive

EU emissions rules due to come into force as soon as 2025 are likely to make petrol cars less profitable than electric models, marking a landmark moment for the auto industry, according to one of Volkswagen’s most senior executives.

https://amp.ft.com/content/dd691226-bd43-4ef6-b10c-fe32c156d73c

Solarchaser

JKenH said:

michaels said:

Out of interest do you measure from out of the wall socket or use the car' measurement which is out of the battery?

I always quote the figure from the car’s dash display which ignores the charging losses which are typically 10-25% when charging at home. While my headline figure has been 4.2 miles/kWh in reality I get around 3.5 from the plug.

The display in my Leaf also takes into account the energy used when the “ignition” is on but the car is stationary (as when I sit with the heating or aircon on while waiting for my wife) just as an ICE would do but I am led to believe that Tesla only counts the kWh used while the car is moving. No doubt someone will correct me if I am wrong on that point. 

I am not aware of any cars taking vampire losses into account but these can be significant if the car is used infrequently particularly with cars running some systems when parked, e.g. Tesla in sentry mode.

Tesla takes only the vehicle moving power. 
It doesn't count the kwh lost to sentry mode etc

JKenH

Solarchaser said:

JKenH said:

michaels said:

Out of interest do you measure from out of the wall socket or use the car' measurement which is out of the battery?

I always quote the figure from the car’s dash display which ignores the charging losses which are typically 10-25% when charging at home. While my headline figure has been 4.2 miles/kWh in reality I get around 3.5 from the plug.

The display in my Leaf also takes into account the energy used when the “ignition” is on but the car is stationary (as when I sit with the heating or aircon on while waiting for my wife) just as an ICE would do but I am led to believe that Tesla only counts the kWh used while the car is moving. No doubt someone will correct me if I am wrong on that point. 

I am not aware of any cars taking vampire losses into account but these can be significant if the car is used infrequently particularly with cars running some systems when parked, e.g. Tesla in sentry mode.

Tesla takes only the vehicle moving power. 
It doesn't count the kwh lost to sentry mode etc

Have you charged yours at home yet?

Martyn1981

UK starting to make moves on heavier vehicles now, with bans for new vehicles in 2035 and 2040 .... or earlier.

Now we just need the BEV trucks, and for them to prove (hopefully) that they have lower total running costs, at that point I assume that businesses will have to transition asap or lose business to competitors able to undercut their prices. Should get interesting.

Ban on polluting lorries pledged in Tories’ transport greenprint

New diesel and petrol lorries will be banned in Britain by 2040, under a “greenprint” to decarbonise all types of transport by 2050.

The British government’s long-awaited transport decarbonisation plan, finally published on 14 July, will include what is being billed as a “world-leading pledge” to end the sale of all new polluting vehicles and move towards net zero domestic aviation emissions by 2040.

It will also include commitments to electrify the entire fleet of government cars and vans by 2027, and plans to create a net zero-emissions rail network by 2050.

While the government said the plans were still subject to consultation, it said it proposed to phase out all polluting HGVs by 2040, and polluting lorries weighing under 26 tonnes by 2035. It would do so earlier if a faster transition seemed feasible.

Solarchaser

JKenH said:

Solarchaser said:

JKenH said:

michaels said:

Out of interest do you measure from out of the wall socket or use the car' measurement which is out of the battery?

I always quote the figure from the car’s dash display which ignores the charging losses which are typically 10-25% when charging at home. While my headline figure has been 4.2 miles/kWh in reality I get around 3.5 from the plug.

The display in my Leaf also takes into account the energy used when the “ignition” is on but the car is stationary (as when I sit with the heating or aircon on while waiting for my wife) just as an ICE would do but I am led to believe that Tesla only counts the kWh used while the car is moving. No doubt someone will correct me if I am wrong on that point. 

I am not aware of any cars taking vampire losses into account but these can be significant if the car is used infrequently particularly with cars running some systems when parked, e.g. Tesla in sentry mode.

Tesla takes only the vehicle moving power. 
It doesn't count the kwh lost to sentry mode etc

Have you charged yours at home yet?

A couple of times, but I'll need to get a proper charger if I need to charge at home. Home granny charging is really only for a couple of hours top up rather than an actual charge on a 75kwh battery, remember I'm using it every day, averaging 500 miles a week since getting it.

Not like the leaf where its doing maybe 100 miles a week on pure sunshine at the moment.

I charged today from an 11kw charger for just over an hour,  tesla said it had a 12kwh increase,  the standing charger said it supplied 12.8kwh

However tesla doesn't display decimal points, so I don't know if that was 11.6-12.4 or even if it was about to click over to 13kwh, no idea.

Martyn1981

A BEV tugboat ...... sounds logical.

Meet EWolf, The Little Zero-Emission, Diesel-Killing Tugboat Taking On Big Oil

Tugboats are tailor-made for the zero-emission revolution because they don’t need a lot of cargo space or living quarters. They just need power, and plenty of it, which means plenty of big, powerful batteries.

The new eWolf electric tugboat will get the job done with a 6.2 MWh main propulsion battery provided by the firm Corvus Energy, which is already carving out a name for itself in the zero-emission tugboat area, among other specialty watercraft.

Crowley estimates that the battery will provide enough juice for two fully zero-emission trips without recharging. Just in case, eWolf will be equipped with two emergency generators.

Martyn1981

Couple of articles looking to Australia, which has an appalling rollout so far of BEV's, but looks like things may start to change soon.

Also one article is kinda funny given how many people still think of BEV's as slow, but when it comes to ill-informed critics - torque is cheap!

Electric Buses Too Quick For Brisbane

Brisbane, the capital city of Queensland in Australia, is trialing electric buses with a view to transitioning the fleet. One of the early issues was that the buses were too powerful. Yes, too powerful. The electric buses took off too fast and engineers were worried about passenger safety. This has now been rectified. Australia’s electric bus manufacturing industry is in its early years, so the trial will be conducted using Yutong buses made in China. This has caused some controversy, as local manufacturers are concerned about local jobs.

It is expected that the locals will catch up quickly and new buses will be on the road shortly, using a mix of imported and locally manufactured products. As an example, Sydney, the capital of New South Wales (NSW), is running a two-week trial using a bus fully designed and built by Custom Denning — a local firm. The NSW government plans to convert its entire bus fleet (800 units) to electric by 2030.

It’s early days for electric buses in Australia. With over 100,000 buses on the road running on fossil fuels of some sort, there is a long way to go. But early results from trials in most capital cities appear to be favourable. The extra comfort and connectivity have attracted the term “luxury.” Just as cars aren’t just cars, buses aren’t just buses anymore. 

Electric Vehicle Registrations Increase Over 60% YOY In Australia — Greater Surge To Come

Great news. However, we have to realise that this comes off a low base. Penetration of the new vehicle market by EVs (BEVs and PHEVS) is estimated to reach 2% in Australia during 2021. It may actually exceed this, as pundits predict that Tesla will ship in 15,000 cars from China and Nexport is bringing in the more affordable BYD.

With more models to choose from, more affordable models, and now some government incentives — expect the Australian new electric car market to explode in the next couple of years. Several states and territories have begun to introduce financial incentives — $3000 for a new EV in Victoria and New South Wales; interest-free loans in the Australian Capital Territory; discounts on registration or stamp duty.