Battery Electric Vehicle News / Enjoying the Transportation Revolution

Ectophile

EVandPV said:

All-electric Volkswagen ID. California campervan announced

Announced today after the company’s supervisory board meeting, the new model will be built at VW’s Hannover facility on a new assembly line - production of which has already started. The Hannover plant will produce the ID.Buzz electric van in People Mover (passenger) and Cargo (commercial vehicle) forms from next year, well before the ID. California is launched “in the second half of this decade”. 

https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/volkswagen/356851/all-electric-volkswagen-id-california-campervan-announced?amp

They announced it several years ago.  It seems to be the habit of VW to announce things long before they are ready.  That said, Tesla seems to do the same thing.

orrery

Ectophile said:
They announced it several years ago.  It seems to be the habit of VW to announce things long before they are ready.  That said, Tesla seems to do the same thing.

It's just the usual car manufacturers routine. They announce the "Concept Car", including all sorts of trendy features, then they announce they are actually going to built it. By 'it' I mean something not entirely dissimilar.

EVandPV

Following on from the Fully Charged episode on V2G in Utrecht .....

BI-DIRECTIONAL ALTERNATING CURRENT CHARGING: A WORLD FIRST

Thanks to the innovation developed by Groupe Renault, exchanges between the car and the network are made with alternating current, which enables the implementation of smart charging without major modifications to the charging stations. Thus, there is no need for local authorities or individuals to invest in expensive charging stations.

RENAULT TESTS ITS BI-DIRECTIONAL CHARGING SYSTEM IN UTRECHT

Renault is commissioning two ZOE prototypes in the Netherlands equipped with V2G (vehicle-to-grid) technology. Integrated into the self-service electric vehicle fleet of the Utrecht eco-neighbourhood, they will enable bi-directional charging to be tested in real conditions prior to large-scale deployment.

https://www.renaultgroup.com/en/news-on-air/news/renault-tests-its-bi-directional-charging-system-in-utrecht/

Coastalwatch

Along with impressive numbers for growth and year to date, the last sentence also serves to answer those critics of EV's who delight in continually pointing out the environmental harm all battery manufacture includes, forgetting that lead acid batteries and cobalt have been around in FF's for decades without a previous consideration. Perhaps because they pale into insignificance when compared to the harmful emissions being released at every fourth stroke of each piston in the block!

Tesla's Shanghai plant delivers over 400,000 vehicles in first 11 months of 2021

Tesla's Shanghai plant had delivered over 400,000 vehicles as of November 2021, the U.S. electric car maker said.

Deliveries at Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory came in at 413,283 vehicles in the first 11 months of this year, up 242 percent from the same period last year.

According to the company, it has built more than 1,000 supercharging stations, 8,000 supercharging piles and 700 destination charging stations on the Chinese mainland.

Tesla's made-in-China sedans have been exported to countries including Denmark, Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, the Netherlands and Norway.

The current annual production capacity of Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory has exceeded 450,000 vehicles, with the localization rate of parts reaching 90 percent, the company noted, adding that 92 percent of Tesla's metallic materials of battery cells at the Shanghai plant can be recycled.

http://www.ecns.cn/business/2021-12-10/detail-ihatptun5312692.shtml

JKenH

Coastalwatch said:

Along with impressive numbers for growth and year to date, the last sentence also serves to answer those critics of EV's who delight in continually pointing out the environmental harm all battery manufacture includes, forgetting that lead acid batteries and cobalt have been around in FF's for decades without a previous consideration. Perhaps because they pale into insignificance when compared to the harmful emissions being released at every fourth stroke of each piston in the block!

Tesla's Shanghai plant delivers over 400,000 vehicles in first 11 months of 2021

Tesla's Shanghai plant had delivered over 400,000 vehicles as of November 2021, the U.S. electric car maker said.

Deliveries at Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory came in at 413,283 vehicles in the first 11 months of this year, up 242 percent from the same period last year.

According to the company, it has built more than 1,000 supercharging stations, 8,000 supercharging piles and 700 destination charging stations on the Chinese mainland.

Tesla's made-in-China sedans have been exported to countries including Denmark, Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, the Netherlands and Norway.

The current annual production capacity of Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory has exceeded 450,000 vehicles, with the localization rate of parts reaching 90 percent, the company noted, adding that 92 percent of Tesla's metallic materials of battery cells at the Shanghai plant can be recycled.

http://www.ecns.cn/business/2021-12-10/detail-ihatptun5312692.shtml

It’s not only critics of EVs that point out the environmental impact of batteries, fans can do as well. You can appreciate the benefits of a technology and at the same time acknowledge it isn’t perfect when looked at from a different angle. It’s called being objective - as defined in Wikipedia 

“not influenced by personal feelings or opinions in considering and representing facts.”

Edit: it’s bit like when I point out that my Leaf doesn’t have the greatest range, is inefficient on short trips in cold weather and suffers charging losses of around 15%. It still is the best EV option for me and I really like it. Does that make me a critic or am I being objective?

I often comment that for anyone considering a new car, it is a no brainer if you have the option of salary sacrifice to buy an EV and right up there near the top of my list (if I were in that situation) would be a Tesla Model 3. I also understand why for some people it makes more sense to buy an ICE car. 

Tesla probably make one of the best EVs on the market and when it comes to tech and manufacturing they appear ahead of ICE manufacturers making EVs. They even make money building cars. Does that mean they can’t be criticised, for instance when they release a self driving video that apparently (according to their employees) was faked?

Some people just can’t acknowledge any (alternative) perspective other than their own.  

Martyn1981

Couple of articles that caught my eye.

Toyota are starting to pivot, or at least bend towards 2030. Great news so long as they don't stall too much. And Lexus plans to be all electric in Europe by 2030, though legislation may require this anyway.

Toyota And Lexus Preview EV Onslaught, Unveil 15 Upcoming Models

Toyota Motor Co CEO Akio Toyoda hosted a press briefing today on the company’s battery electric vehicle strategies and revealed no fewer than 15 Toyota and Lexus BEVs that it is readying for market launch, in addition to the all-new Toyota bZ4X coming next year.

During the presentation, the executive announced that Toyota is going to roll out 30 BEV models and is forecasting sales of 3.5 million BEVs globally by 2030. He also said that the Lexus brand would become 100% electric in Europe, North America, and China by 2030.

I do have a bit of a soft spot for Hyundai, and this article, whilst US based, does seem to suggest that the Ioniq 5 compares very well against a host of BEV's.

Hyundai Ioniq 5 Vs Tesla Model Y, Other EVs: Price, Range Compared

Hyundai announced pricing for the upcoming Ioniq 5 model in the U.S., which allows us to compare the basic numbers with similar electric models.

In this post, we will start with the all-wheel-drive version (base SE trim), with 77.4 kWh. It starts at an MSRP of $47,150. There are also more expensive, better-equipped versions like the SEL trim (for $2,250 more) or Limited (for $7,350 more).

All the other models will be crossovers/SUVs, in base all-wheel-drive versions, and with 19" wheels. Let's start with the two most popular competitors - the Tesla Model Y and Ford Mustang Mach-E.

JKenH

Real world road test of Tesla Model 3 Standard Plus with LFP battery. 

I know this reviewer is a Tesla fan but I was seriously impressed with the performance on this test. Return trip 188 Wh/mile (equates to 5.3 mpk) driven normally on mainly A roads in single digit temperatures. Potential range 290 miles. Great charging speeds as well. 

OK this part of the trip didn’t include battery preheating but as an indication of how far one might go starting off with a fully charged battery it does show the strength of the LFP battery - and you can routinely charge it to 100%. 

Tesla plug over - apologies for the fanboy comments. Excuse me while I try and convince the wife this is the way to go. 

https://youtu.be/ZnD_UZ5Jurs

edit: Wh/mile. Pleased no one noticed - Eric, you having a day off?

Martyn1981

Tesla Semi's are taking a small step forward. Series production, certainly at scale, not expected till 2023, but progress from 'prototypes' to small scale 'pre-production' vehicles has begun. So a growing number of BEV trucks, at differing sizes and various roles, are rolling out now.

Pre-Production Tesla Semi Tractors Emerge From Gigafactory 1

According to Electrive, it is routine for truck manufacturers to supply a limited number of pre-production vehicles to customers well in advance of the start of series production. This gives the customers a chance to experience the trucks in daily use and provide feedback about how they perform to the manufacturer. Any deficiencies or suggested improvements can then be corrected or incorporated into the vehicles that finally emerge from the end of the assembly line. Such a collaborative process results in better products, happier customers, and higher sales.

The logical assumption is that these pre-production trucks are intended for Pepsi, the first company to place a substantial order for the Tesla Semi back in 2017 when it was first announced. Last month, Pepsi CEO Ramon Laguarta said he expected the first trucks to be delivered before the end of December. Pepsi is about to complete the installation of a Tesla Megacharger — the device that will be used to recharge the batteries in the Tesla Semi trucks — in California. Two Megachargers have been installed at Gigafactory 1 in Nevada.

Volume production of the Tesla Semi is expected to begin in 2023 at the new Tesla factory in Austin, Texas. A battery factory nearby will manufacture the 4680 cells for the battery packs that power the Semi.

Martyn1981

OK here's a fun image. And before anyone gets too excited or upset, it's just an extrapolation of BEV and ICE sale trends in the UK, so many things can happen. But it plots BEV sales reaching 50% in mid 2023. Also worth remembering that the 100% of sales (half BEV half ICE) won't necessarily be equal in volume to pre-Covid car sales, since we need to consider the impact of the Osborne Effect which could be significant (or not?)

My thoughts, for what they are worth - this seems too fast, and my brain finds it hard to comprehend, but then all our brains struggle to comprehend disruptions. Is it possible, maybe, but probably depends largely on how much ICE sales fall, to bring total sales down to a point where BEV's reach 50%, as I'm not sure supply of BEV's can grow fast enough ..... yet.

If this image or article has been posted before I apologise. Also it's months late as I only recently saw a reference to the image (from a pundit on twitter) so I tracked down an article that places it in context.

Electric Vehicles Could Be The Majority Of Car Sales As Soon As 2023

But in theory the dealership issues and chip shortage should have affected BEVs as much as any other vehicle types, and it is clear that this hasn’t been the case. Since around the middle of 2019, the trickle of electric car sales in the UK has started to accelerate. One pundit on Twitter has extrapolated the “S curve” of sales in the UK, and now reckons that in this country we will be buying more BEVs than any other type of car by mid-2023. That is barely 18 months from now.

This is very simple modelling, and there are lots of factors that could change the rate of sales. It’s probably overly optimistic. Electric cars are more expensive than fossil fuel ones for the time being, and a huge number of car sales are second hand. It will take a few years for the excellent BEVs that have arrived since mid-2019 to step down to the used market, but residual values on BEVs are very good so even then second-hand BEV prices will be relatively high.

Superscrooge

Another cut to the electric car grant

https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/cars/article-10312335/Government-slashes-electric-car-grant-40.html