Battery Electric Vehicle News / Enjoying the Transportation Revolution

Martyn1981

michaels said:

Think it is a win for Tesla as various charger grants depend on it being open access and a standard - so if they get other manufacturers using it then it can be declared a standard rather than proprietary...

Yeah, that's a good point. And maybe Tesla will accelerate their SC expansion in the US, to reflect more users. With Ford's EV sales, and additional users, (around 5-10% of US EV sales, v's ~60% for Tesla) they could use any monies from Ford to expand the system by (say) 40%pa instead of 33%. And similar increases if others choose to copy Ford.

Need to consider monopoly/monopolistic situation, but with Tesla churning out SC's at a fraction of the cost of other manufacturers, then it could lead to better coverage for non Tesla EV's.

Martyn1981

Interesting twist on the BEV idea - here's the idea of an electric trailer to reduce fuel consumption for a diesel truck. It's actually got a decent amount of battery and power ...... if it comes to market. The trailer does weigh more (~4,000lbs) so that would reduce carrying capacity for max weight loads, but I think recent stats for the US (and Europe), were that about 85% of loads are volume limited, not weight limited.

Range Energy’s Electric Trailer Could Redefine Cargo Hauling

Range Energy, a start-up specializing in powered trailers for the trucking industry, debuted its 53-foot full-scale electric trailer, RA-01, at the Advanced Clean Transportation (ACT) Expo earlier this month. The RA-01 is designed for various purposes, including yard operations and reducing the load on a semi-truck’s diesel engine while hauling cargo, according to the company.

The trailer has a battery pack with a capacity of 200 kilowatt-hours. Its e-axle generates 350 kilowatts (476 horsepower) and a little over 10,300 pound-feet of torque (14,000 Newton meters). The company said the battery can charge fully in 10.5 hours with 19 kW AC charging, while 350 kW DC fast charging can do the same in just 45 mins.

JKenH

German car makers join the race to avert a Brexit ‘cliff edge’ disaster for EVs

Mercedes and VW add their voice to calls to delay the post-Brexit ‘rules of origin’

Mercedes and Volkswagen have this week joined other car marques in calling for the EU to delay the introduction of new rules that will hit cross-border trade with Britain.

Under new “rules of origin” that will come into force from January, 45pc of the value of an electric vehicle (EV) must originate from either the UK or European Union.

Cars that fail to achieve this threshold will be hit with a 10pc tax if shipped to the EU from Britain, or vice versa. The industry fears that the massive price hikes will crush sales, warning that jobs would be lost without action.

Now Mercedes joined the calls, becoming one of the first major German manufacturers to publicly speak out.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2023/06/04/germany-brexit-rules-origin-electric-vehicles/

Martyn1981

May's results are out for car registrations. BEV's are doing OK, compared to last year, but not looking great, so to speak. Hopefully the figures will improve each month, as they've tended to do. My rough annual guestimate, is that PEV sales towards the end of each year will hopefully be about 10% x the year, so towards 30% for 2023.

Car Registrations

michaels

WE do no longer seem to be seeing the classic 's-curve' or if we are it is a very shallow one.  Not sure if this is as a result of demand or supply constraints. 

Do we have any data on the current relative costs of production?  A few years ago there was a lot of talk of 'parity' when battery prices declined to a certain level. 

Recently we saw a model Y at about 40k - how much would an ice equivalent cost?  Pretty hard to say as Tesla is not a traditional luxury brand (BMW x4 and Merc GLC are similar size and profile) so what is the correct ICE comparator?

Martyn1981

This news potentially undermines the argument for an ICE, a HEV, and for including an ICE in your PHEV. Also helps to resolve the charging issue for some, whose properties aren't suitable.

A Toyota EV drove 1,200 miles without stopping to charge thanks to electric roads with wireless charging

Electreon, an Israeli startup founded in 2013, is developing electric roadways that can charge moving vehicles wirelessly, potentially eliminating the need for lengthy pit stops or plugging in. To demonstrate the tech's potential, Electreon drove an electric Toyota for 1,207 miles straight on a test track that had its wireless charging coils embedded under the asphalt.

For the demonstration, Electreon drove a Toyota Rav4 Prime — a plug-in hybrid model, not a full EV — for 100 hours straight, only stopping to switch drivers. Electreon's invisible, underground charging tech kept the SUV's battery topped up as it circled the track at around 30 mph, Ezer said. 

The Toyota's gas engine never kicked in to lend a hand, and Electreon didn't need to pull over to charge. Moreover, only 25% of the track was electrified. According to Ezer, even at highway speeds, an electric road can deliver more energy than a vehicle consumes.

Coastalwatch

Last weekend saw us travel in the Leaf to Bournemouth, four up and with a Nor Easterly making for a wind assisted journey of two hundred miles with one stop for charging en route. Pulling up in the hotel car park some five and a half hours later the screen showed 5m/kW or 200W/mile. No doubt aided by some conservative speed settings and that favourable wind assistance.

Had to confess to being concerned that the forecast for the return journey featured windspeed and direction almost identical to that on the first leg, so a head wind in this case. I followed similar speed settings, with just the one stop for charging car and discharging bladders. Having reset consumption rate prior to leaving out, then upon arrival home I was surprised to find it read the same 5m/kW figure as in the first leg.

The only explanation I can offer is that temperatures on the first journey were slightly cooler, ie starting the first leg, 6.30 am at 8 degrees C while the second commenced at 8am and 12C.

Couldn't help but notice the increasing numbers of EV's on the road these days, possibly more noticable now due to the green flash showing on number plates but thankfully they had all very generously steered clear of charging points we had pencilled in.

Martyn1981

Yet more BEV buses headed for UK roads.

150 Double-Decker Electric Buses From Volvo Headed To UK

One of the largest double-decker electric bus orders in history just went down in the UK. Stagecoach, one of the UK’s largest coach and bus operators, has ordered 150 electric double-decker electric buses as well as 39 single-decker electric buses from Volvo Buses. This is the largest electric bus order Volvo Buses has ever received.

Martyn1981

I guess GM didn't have a choice after Ford 'did a deal' with Tesla. So they too are going to be using the Tesla superchargers in the US, and their vehicles wil be NACS compatible (North American charging standard (Tesla type)). 

Should solve, or at least greatly help with the rapid charging problems in the US for GM BEV owners.

GM Joins Ford In Using Tesla Superchargers

Build a better mouse trap and the world will beat a path to your door, according to an old business adage. Tesla built a better mousetrap — its Supercharger network which is constructed around the company’s proprietary “North American Charging Standard.” Recently, Ford announced it would begin installing NACS hardware in its electric cars sold in North America by 2025, which would allow its customers to use the Tesla Supercharger network. Now, General Motors has also climbed on the Tesla bus.

CNBC reports that GM will begin installing the NACS charging port used by Tesla instead of the current industry-standard CCS charging port in its EVs starting in 2025. With Ford and GM now solidly in the NACS camp, that will put pressure on other EV manufacturers like Stellantis, Volkswagen, Mercedes, BMW, Volvo, Hyundai, Kia, and others to adopt the Tesla technology in North America.

Martyn1981

Title caught my eye, but wasn't expecting it to be quite as electric as it is. A BEV cruise ship (small(ish)) for 500 passengers, recharged at ports, and also using solar panel sails.

My silly thought, not an article fact, but as it suggests the majority of Norway's leccy comes from hydro, then it did occur to me that it would be a water powered, water borne vessel, nice.

This electric cruise ship will use three giant retractable solar panels to power it at sea

Its first electric cruise ship, due out in 2030, will combine 60 MWh battery packs with several industry firsts to harness wind and solar while at sea for a truly zero-emission experience.

For example, the company plans to include three retractable, autonomous sails with added solar panels. The wing rigs are designed to enhance aerodynamics, pulling in air currents at up to 50 meters for added propulsion.