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New York gets its first solar EV charging station, you can't use it
What do you do when you've got two disused shipping crates, some photovoltaics, and a couple buckets of toxic green paint? Why, you make a solar electric vehicle charging station, the first in New York as it happens. It was created by Beautiful Earth Group, which whipped up this self-contained charging station to juice the company's car, a similarly painted BMW Mini E that just so happens to fit nicely inside -- so long as you don't want to open the doors too wide. About three hours charges the little sucker up for its maximum range of 100 miles, which ought to be just enough to get you out to the Hamptons. Not that you'd want to go there this time of year. Update: We searched for an earlier solar station and came up empty, but vyper0 commented to let us know that this is indeed not the first for NY state, just the first for NYC. There was one installed out on Long Island earlier this year, which would mean you could not only get out to the Hamptons, but get back!
Kepler Motion brings 800bhp using dual-engine hybrid magic
Since we're already on the topic of fairy dust, how about a new all-wheel drive supercar that can purportedly thrust you from nought to sixty in 2.5 seconds? New startup Kepler Motors is about to unveil its first vehicle and its ambition is nothing short of staggering. Employing a 550bhp Ford Ecoboost petrol engine to drive the rear wheels and a 250bhp electric motor for the front pair, this machine also comes with a carbon fiber chassis and carbon ceramic brakes to really make the theoretical numbers look ridiculous. Of course, it's still only a concept for the Dubai International Motor Show, but production plans are already set for 2011. You'll just have to make sure to be among the 50 richest people interested in owning one, because that'll be the entire production run.
Toyota's plug-in Prius hybrid goes into testing across the globe, on sale in 2011
Good news, everyone! The target date for Toyota's Prius plug-in hybrid (PHEV) is slightly less out of reach than the 2012 window we heard prior: according to Autoblog, it's now set for late 2011 and the price is deemed "affordable." Back to the present, as a tease to the world at large, the company's planning to produce and ship just under 600 of the models over the next six months. That breaks down to around 230 for Japan, 200 for Europe, and just 150 for the 'States. Government agencies, corporations, and universities are the primary recipients, and interestingly, half of those Euro-bound cars are going straight to Strasbourg, France. The only catch is that it looks like the autos will be sticking with its flashy, hyper-blue paint job -- not that we mind one bit, but we can see that bugging a few people out.
Chevy Volt to get iPhone, BlackBerry apps
They may not let you actually drive the car James Bond-style, but it looks like there will be some apps for the iPhone and BlackBerry launching alongside the Chevy Volt, with apps for other devices apparently also a possibility. That word comes from Chevrolet's soon-to-be-retiring VP Brent Dewar, who unfortunately had little to say about the apps themselves, but did briefly flash the above slide during a presentation at the LA Auto Show last week. The apps will apparently let you control when the car charges, however, and even include integrated real-time features from OnStar, which should include things like electricity rates from utility companies by the time the Volt rolls out. [Thanks, Dave]
Think Electric returns from the brink, begins production of Think City two-seater
Norway's Think Electric may have managed to attract some backing from GE in early 2008, but it looks to have quickly ran out of cash after that, and was forced to completely shut down its operations about a year ago. Well, kids, dreams do come true -- or production lines can be started again, at least -- and after securing some funding earlier this year, the company has now announced that its two-seat Think City electric vehicle is now back on track for a release by the end of the year. That initial production run will apparently consist primarily of 2,300 cars that have already been pre-ordered in Europe, but Think Electric says it also plans to begin selling the car in the U.S. sometime next year, and license its electric power train to other automakers looking for a readymade option.
Capstone's CMT-380 hybrid supercar does 150MPH with batteries and a jet engine
Step aside, Tesla -- we've just spotted the hottest Earth-lovin' supercar since the Lightning GT. Shown off to wide-mouthed onlookers at the LA Auto Show this month, the Capstone CMT-380 prototype is an automotive beast unlike anything we've ever seen. Rather than mixing batteries and a conventional engine, this whip combines the former with a diesel / biodiesel-powered microturbine, which is -- for all intents and purposes -- a jet engine. Reportedly, the car can reach 60MPH from a standstill in just 3.9 seconds, hit 150MPH before being cut off by the electronic limiter, cruise 80 miles on battery power alone and drive from Idaho Falls to Spokane on just a single tank of fuel. It's being bruited about that the company is considering flipping this bad boy into the production line, but with an estimated asking price north of $200,000, there's sufficient evidence to think that the volume here would remain relatively low. Hit up Autoblog Green's gallery of shots from the show floor below, but only if you love peering at high-resolution images of stealthy, sexy things.
Some Geek Squads to start driving plug-in Mitsubishi i-MiEVs
With the amount of use Chuck gets out of his "Nerd Herd" mobile, plus our own anecdotal sightings of Geek Squad vehicles around town (see what we did there? Science), we'd say that they're ripe for EV replacements, and what better than the hard-to-pronounce i-MiEV from Mitsubishi to do the job? As announced at the LA Auto Show on Thursday, a few Best Buy Geek Squad locations in California are getting access to the cars in January, with minimal fleets that will expand to the other stores over a few years. For now it's going to be an experiment, and primarily urban, but we like where this is headed. As in, "not to our house, because we're perfectly adept at setting up a wireless network, thanks."
2011 Chevrolet Volt gets taken for a test drive
The Chevy Volt is one vehicle we can really get behind. It's hard not to be a little excited over it -- we have, after all, been watching its development for quite a long time now. The electric car gets an impressive 230 miles per gallon in the city (and, all shaky rating practices aside, that's nothing to scoff at). Autoblog Green's just taken one of Chevy's 80 IVER pre-production prototypes for a little spin, and they seem to have come away pretty impressed with the car. They report that the brakes are better than most hybrid vehicles, and said that when the engine does kick in after the battery's depleted, they didn't even notice it until they stopped and heard it running quietly. It was a short spin, so they weren't able to gauge, for instance, whether the car can actually pull the full 40 miles per battery charge that Chevrolet claims it gets, but check out their full, detailed observations at the Source link.
Chevy Volt shows up at fast food joint, practices lines for LA Auto Show
You might've seen the Volt make a guest appearance on the futuristic Surrogates movie already, but now Chevy's taking the opposite approach by looking toward the past to promote its PHEV. Bob's Big Boy fast food restaurant in California got treated to a surprise visit by a production model of that most bodacious Chevrolet, and as you can see above, it doesn't look horribly out of place seated in among its elders, a 1969 Camaro and an Impala SS. Joining in the weekly classic car meetup hosted by the restaurant, this appearance was a prelude to the production Volt being shown off at the LA Auto Show, which kicks off this coming Friday. So if you wanna see it, you can either attend the event or wait for the car to roll up at your nearest Wendy's.
Top Gear team builds EV, shows how complex car production really is
The presenters of Top Gear, among the finer specimens of British television talent (Dr. Gregory House being another), were this past week engaged in designing and building an electric vehicle purportedly intended to compete with the likes of the Chevy Volt. Set a time limit of a mere 18 hours, they produced the marvel of rushed engineering and shoddy workmanship you see above. The Hammerhead Eagle i-Thrust (believe us, you'll have no reason to remember the name) was even put through its paces by Autocar magazine, whose video "review" can be found after the break. We won't spoil the details for you, but if you want a conclusion, this one's pretty unequivocal: "there's a really good chance you could kill yourself" riding in this car.
Tesla Motors IPO coming 'any day' now, says report
Word on the street -- and by that we mean Reuters -- is that Tesla's looking to go public with the company "any day." The luxury electric car make, whose Roadster still goes for a cool $109,000, would be the first US auto company to offer an IPO since Ford way back in 1956, says MSNBC. Quite a notable event, indeed, but earlier comments by Tesla investors (via Autoblog Green) suggest "any day now" might be any time between now and September 2010.
Mavizen's electric bike hits 130 MPH, ships with Linux and WiFi
Mavizen, the manufacturing arm of the TTXGP (the Time Trials Xtreme Grand Prix -- a race for zero-emissions motorcycles) has just announced the TTX02 at this year's SEMA. A shining example of "EVs as consumer electronics" (the buzz-concept going 'round the electric vehicle scene) this guy is being billed not as a bike, but as a development platform -- shipping not only with a chassis and drivetrain, but with an open source Linux OS, web server, USB-based system bus, and WiFi connectivity. If you're looking to give the gang from Mission Motors a run for their money at the next TTXGP, hit the read link -- about $41,000 will get you in the game. Videos after the break.
Tesla Roadster keeps on rollin', goes 313 miles on single charge
What could be a better feeling than beating a world record? Beating your own world record. The Tesla Roadster has put an extra exclamation mark on its world-conquering single-charge antics by raising the bar from 241 miles back in April to an even more impressive 313 this week. As you can see in that homemade "world record" sign above, that's 501 kilometers in metric terms, or pretty much the exact distance between Paris and Amsterdam. The Global Green Challenge in Australia -- where this feat was achieved -- allows only production battery-powered vehicles to compete, meaning that the new record is down to driver skill on the part of one Mr. Simon Hackett, and not some newfound techno mojo. Kinda makes those long recharge times seem like less of a burden, no?
Aptera 2e three-wheeler deemed a car by the DoE, eligible for funding
For a time, it looked Aptera might be missing out on the US Department of Energy's funding bonanza for energy-efficient vehicles due to its car's three-wheeled nature, but it looks like President Obama has now had the final say on the matter, and signed legislation that makes both two-wheeled and three-wheeled vehicles eligible for the same funding as their four-wheeled counterparts. Of course, that doesn't yet mean that Aptera will actually receive any funding, and the legislation doesn't have anything to do with safety regulations, where the 2e is still classified as a motorcycle by the Department of Transportation. For its part, however, Aptera says that it'll be filing another application to meet the updated requirements, and it still insists that it'll hit "volume production" of the car sometime in 2010, and get it on the road for between $25,000 and $40,000.
Dell and Envision Solar refashion parking lot into clean energy farm, EV recharge station (video)
Dell has added a shiny new feather to its cap today with the announcement of a freshly completed Solar Grove renewable energy installation. The system is composed of 512 solar panels, which provide shelter for 56 cars, and are capable of harvesting 131,000 kWh of energy per year. This power will be primarily used in the adjacent Round Rock HQ, but CleanCharge stations will also be available should you wish to juice up your electric vehicle on Mother Nature's finest. No matter how much Dell might have splashed out to bring this integration together, we can't help but suspect that the smug satisfaction of getting free energy -- both in pecuniary and ecological terms -- must be priceless. Video awaits after the break.
Honda's timeless Super Cub motorcycle showcased with a touch of EV
The world's best-selling motorcycle of all time (60 million as of May 2008) is dipping its gears into the EV industry. Honda unveiled this week at the Tokyo Auto Show an electric version of its Super Cub motorcycle. Seeing as the gas-based equivalent can already get over 300 miles per gallon, we wonder just how more efficient this new concept could be. Honda reps told Wired it's a concept designed "to be just as functional and convenient" as its brother bike, so if it does reach mass market, we're holding out hope it also maintains that low price point.
Tesla Roadster Sport gets taken for a test drive, photo shoot
Like the Tesla Roadster but think it's just not expensive enough for you? Then fear not, person we'd like to get to know, 'cause the Tesla Roadster Sport is here complete with a $19,500 premium over its less sporty counterpart. Thankfully, according to the lucky folks at Autoblog Green, you will get quite a few bonuses for that extra cash, including an improved 0-60 time of 3.7 seconds, a new suspension that can be set to one of ten different settings and, perhaps most importantly, a new set of black-finish forged wheels (paired with some Yokohama ADVAN A048 tires) that'll ensure no one mistakes it for a "low end" Tesla. Be sure to hit up the read link below for Autoblog Green's full report, not to mention plenty of pics inside and out.
IBM kicks off Battery 500 Project to boost EV range, 500 miles or bust
Electric cars certainly can look nice and promise big things, but the ones we can actually buy today rarely top 50 miles of range. Those promised for the next few years probably won't break 100, and they're not going to find wide success until things get a lot better in that department. That's the initiative of IBM's Battery 500 Project, bringing together a number of the brightest minds in anode/cathode tech to boost battery storage density by a factor of 10. The focus is on lithium-air technology, which uses nanoscale semiconductors and an open design relying on the air around us for collecting positive ions. About 40 brains are involved in the project at this point, and we think their work is of vital importance. So, if you would, please stop posting funny things on the internet until they've come up with a solution. We'd like them to be able to focus completely without any LOLcat distractions. [Via Slashdot]
e-WOLF e2 seeks to electrify, succeeds
Woah. Looks like the Shelby Aero finally has some competition on its hands in the EV supercar stakes. Weighing in at less than 2,000 pounds, but generating north of 736 pound-feet of torque, the e2 should be, uh, kinda fast, while claims of a half hour charging time and a 187-mile cruising range are just too stupefying to contemplate. Power is stored in 84 lithium-ion battery packs from CERIO, and unleashed via four 134-horsepower motors -- one for each wheel. If you liked e-WOLF's e1, but thought it needed a dash of spicy Lamborghini-inspired styling and the acceleration to reach 60 miles per hour in less than four seconds, well here's your answer. Production is set for 2011, and you can ogle the car's rear end after the break.
Google working to make electric vehicles charge more efficiently
The idea to make plug-in electric vehicles charge more efficiently and reduce strain on the grid is hardly a new one, but it looks like none other than Google thinks it can do things better, and it's now reportedly doing some "preliminary work" in the area. As you might expect with all things "Google" and "preliminary," however, there's virtually a complete lack of details at the moment, with the company's director of Climate Change and Energy Initiatives, Dan Reicher, only going so far as to say that it has "done a little bit of work on the software side looking at how you would write a computer code to manage this sort of charging infrastructure." As Reuters notes, however, this isn't the first time Google has dabbled in the electric vehicle waters, with it previously forming a partnership with Toyota and Ford back in 2007 to test some gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles converted into plug-ins that run mostly on electricity, which Google says it has been testing "pretty intensely" over the last few years.
