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Honda shows the near-final version of its compact electric car
Honda's Urban EV concept is nearly ready to hit the road in earnest. As teased in January, the automaker has unveiled a Honda E Prototype that "previews" the production version of its city-oriented electric car. This refined version unsurprisingly includes less concept car flash (don't count on a display hiding in the front grill), but it's largely true to the spirit of the 2017 design with a glass-covered charging port on the front and cameras replacing the less aerodynamic rear view mirrors.
SEC says Elon Musk violated settlement with tweet
Elon Musk might be in hot water with regulators mere months after he reached a settlement over a financially relevant Twitter post. The US Securities and Exchange Commission has asked a judge to hold Elon Musk in contempt for allegedly violating the settlement by tweeting that Tesla would make "around 500k" cars in 2019. Musk was supposed to get approval from Tesla before social network posts that would include vital info, but the SEC claimed he directly shared "inaccurate and material" data with more than 24 million people.
Citroen's tiny EV concept is an alternative to bikes and scooters
Many automakers are designing vehicles for an era beyond car ownership, but Citroen is taking things one step further: it's envisioning a car that you'd use in place of bikes and scooters. Its newly introduced Ami One Concept is a compact (8.2ft long), all-electric "urban mobility object" that you'd use for short hops around downtown areas. The two-seater would have just a 62-mile range and a 28MPH top speed, but it would be easy to access and drive with a QR code on the handle replacing a key. You wouldn't even need a driver's license in some countries, Citroen said.
Tesla allegedly 'gutted' Model 3 delivery team with recent job cuts
When Tesla laid off 7 percent of its full-time staff in January, it might have dealt a serious blow to one division in particular. Reuters sources claim Tesla dismissed 150 of the 230 Las Vegas workers involved in delivering Model 3 units to North America buyers. Reportedly, the cuts are a response to tapering demand -- there are "not enough deliveries" to justify having that many people on hand, one tipster said. There are other delivery people in other locations, but this would still represent a significant cut.
Arcimoto starts taking orders for its three-wheeled EV
Arcimoto has started taking orders for its three-wheeled electric vehicle. The Fun Utility Vehicle (FUV) Evergreen Edition will set you back $19,900 before tax credits and rebates, which is a far cry from Arcimoto's target of $11,900, though it aims to push down the price over time.
Polestar will reveal its first all-electric car on February 27th
Polestar was hyping up its first all-electric car even before its first car of any kind was ready, but now it's finally prepared to show its hand. The company has announced that it's revealing the Polestar 2 through a live online event on February 27th at 7AM Eastern. Sorry, that means no in-person looks -- it's ostensibly to "eliminate the environmental impact" of flying people in from all over the planet, which wouldn't jive with a car that's all about eco-friendliness.
VW may open its electric car platform to competitors
Volkswagen's bid to widen the reach of its electric car platform might extend well beyond Ford trucks and vans. Company strategy head Michael Jost told Der Tagesspiegel in an interview that the company wanted to make its MEB platform a standard outside of VW Group cars. It was already in "advanced discussions" with some competitors, he added. While he didn't name those brands, Ford is already exploring further team-ups.
Elon Musk teases Tesla 'sentry mode' that captures video in 360 degrees
Elon Musk says Tesla is working on a "sentry mode" security feature that could let owners record damage and break-ins. The announcement came in response to a customer's tweet complaining of a dent to his Model 3 and suggesting a "360 dash cam feature while parked." To which Musk replied: "Tesla Sentry Mode coming soon for all cars with Enhanced Autopilot." He later clarified that the update would be available for all EVs with the Autopilot 2.5 Hardware.
Porsche claims its EV factory will be as green as the cars it builds
Porsche wants production for the Taycan to be as ecologically responsible as the electric car itself. The automaker has revealed that the Taycan factory under construction at Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen will use nitrogen oxide-absorbing facades on some parts of the building, reducing the plant's pollution. The surfaces are relatively simple constructions made from aluminum coated in titanium dioxide, but the results so far appear to be strong. In a test on a 126 square meter (roughly 1,356 square feet) area, it absorbed nitrogen oxide as well as ten trees.
Toyota and Panasonic may team up to make EV batteries
Toyota and Panasonic have explored electric car batteries before, but they're now poised to get particularly cozy. Nikkei sources claim the two will set up a joint venture for manufacturing EV batteries sometime in 2020. Reportedly, they intend to reduce the costs of the power packs through sheer economies of scale, and would supply both Toyota's Daihatsu brand as well as outside companies like Mazda and Subaru. They're also hoping to court Honda as it dives into EVs, according to the sources.
Tesla hikes Supercharger prices worldwide to reflect changing costs
Tesla's efforts to improve its bottom line go beyond layoffs and disappearing perks. Electrek has learned that Tesla is raising Supercharger rates around the world, with per kWh rates climbing about 33 percent in numerous markets. While it's still less expensive than gas (even the 36 cents per kWh in some California locations is modest), it's not quite the savings it represented in the past. According to Tesla, this is really a matter of adapting to financial realities.
VW and Ford may work together on EVs and autonomous vehicles
In the latest instance of major automakers teaming up, Volkswagen and Ford will work together on commercial vans and pickups, and they could start selling such vehicles by 2022. The companies are also exploring potential collaboration on electric vehicles, self-driving cars and transportation services.
VW will build its US electric cars in Tennessee
Volkswagen just made a major commitment to electric car production in the US. The company has revealed that it will open its first dedicated EV factory for North America at its existing facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Production won't start until 2022, but VW claimed the new plant will create 1,000 jobs. The first vehicle out of the gate will be the ID Crozz SUV, which will go on sale in the country in 2020 -- in other words, those initial models will likely come from outside the country.
Tesla will stop selling Model S and X cars with 75kWh batteries
Tesla isn't done streamlining its electric car lineup. Elon Musk has announced that his company will stop taking orders for the 75kWh versions of the Model S and Model X after January 13th. He didn't directly explain the move, but said "yes" when a Twitter user asked if Tesla was moving away from its longstanding use of battery capacity numbers to denote variants.
Infiniti unveils its electric QX Inspiration concept
Infiniti is surprisingly late to the EV game, considering what its rivals are doing and the fact that parent Nissan has been making the Leaf since 2010. It just unveiled the QX Inspiration, a concept rather than a production car, that it will show off in detail at the 2019 North American International Auto Show later in January. The vehicle design, teased last month, represents the future (and platform) for Infiniti's electrified program.
GM's EV tax credit might shrink soon
If you were thinking about buying a Chevy Bolt in the US, you might want to hop on that shortly. A Reuters source claims that GM managed to sell a lifetime total of 200,000 electric cars by the end of 2018, triggering the EV tax credit phase-out that recently affected Tesla. If accurate, you'll see the credit cut in half to $3,750 this April, drop again to $1,875 in October and disappear entirely in April 2020.
Tesla slashes EV prices by $2,000 to offset reduced tax credits
Now that Tesla's federal EV tax credit has been cut in half, it's determined to keep sales humming with a price cut. The automaker has slashed the price of the Model 3, Model S and Model X by $2,000 in the US to soften the blow of the reduced tax incentive. You still won't save as much as you would if you'd snagged the full $7,500 credit, but it could make the financial hit easier to bear. As it stands, Tesla may need this price drop -- its deliveries didn't meet market expectations.
Faraday Future comes crawling back to its main investor
Faraday Future is ending its very tumultuous year on a positive note... in a manner of speaking. The electric car startup has reached a restructuring deal with its main investor, Evergrande Health's Season Smart, that will put legal battles in the past and potentially keep the money flowing. The two sides have dropped their earlier contract, and Faraday has pulled litigation that tried to force Evergrande to cough up cash. The pact both lifts a hold on the EV maker's assets and removes limitations on its equity financing, theoretically freeing it to take on financing that just wasn't an option before.
VW's mobile quick charging station is a juice pack for your EV
Volkswagen wants to ensure you'll always have enough range to drive an electric car home after a big game or concert. The company has offered a peek at a mobile station whose 360kWh charging capacity and 100kW DC quick charging can top up as many as 15 EVs (including, of course, VW's ID cars) with an average time of 17 minutes. Instead of having to find a dedicated station after an event, you could recharge in the parking lot -- think of it as a battery bank for your car instead of your phone. And if it runs low? The organizers just have to swap it out for a fresh one.
VW's I.D. EV will deliver a 300 mile range for the price of a Golf
Volkswagen's Jürgen Stackmann has revealed a few key details about its mass-market I.D. electric car, including the range and how you'll buy one. It'll have a 550 km range by Europe's new WLTP method (345 miles), which equates to around 290 miles using more stringent EPA testing. The I.D. will also cost the same as "a modern Golf diesel," he said, which is between £19,000 and £25,000, ($24,000 to $32,000). According to Top Gear, the lower end of the price range will be for a model with a smaller battery that offers about 206 miles of range.