Author: Green Car Online News

British engineering firm brings lightweight race car design to production cars

Gordon Murray Design iStream construction
British race car design company Gordon Murray Design showed off its new lightweight race car body last week at the Low Carbon Vehicle Show in England.

The company calls its body-in-white—an industry term for a car body with no components attached—iStream, and it says it's the result of a new process it patented to make lightweight racing technology easier to manufacture.

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Cutting weight can make all kinds of cars more efficient, from pure electric, to hybrids, to conventional cars. Automakers have known how to make cars lighter for a long time, but the lightweight, affordable, and easy to manufacture trifecta has been a challenge.

Gordon Murray Design said that thanks to its patented manufacturing methods, the iStream is expected to be half the weight of a comparably-sized conventional steel body at the same cost. Like the BMW i3, the iStream uses a carbon fiber reinforced body structure paired to an aluminum pan that holds the vehicle's mechanical components.

READ MORE: Carbon fiber from plants close to carbon-neutral? Scientists hopeful

Gordon Murray also released concept specs for a sports car based on the body based on the body in white.

The company says it would weigh just 1,874 pounds. Using a 220-horsepower, 1.5-liter 4-cylinder engine would give an iStream race car a power-to-weight ratio of 8.5 pounds per horsepower. With a six-speed manual transmission geared for maximum acceleration, that could give it a 0-60 time of just over 4 seconds.

Gordon Murray Design iStream construction

Reducing the weight of the body reduces the need for even heavier batteries for an electrified version and would the use of smaller, lighter brakes and other components, too.

Along with the iStream body, Gordon Murray showed a lightweight seat that the company says weighs 30 percent less than conventional seats. The seats use a tubular frame and fiberglass or carbon composite structure, and can fold for access for cars that need it.

Gordon Murray didn't specify the cost of the race car body or the racing seat.

ChargePoint commits to build charging stations for 2.5 million cars by 2025

2014 BMW i3 REx fast-charging at Chargepoint site, June 2016 [photo: Tom Moloughney]
At the Global Climate Action Summit this week in San Francisco, several companies made commitments to reducing climate change.

ChargePoint, one of the oldest electric-car charging networks in the U.S., said Wednesday that it aims to complete enough charging stations globally by 2025 to cover 2.5 million parking spots. The commitment does not include thousands of home chargers that ChargePoint also sells. Each station could cover one or two parking spots, a ChargePoint spokeswoman said.

READ MORE: ChargePoint invests in commercial charging for buses, delivery vans, taxis

According to the company's website, it currently has 45,000 charging locations across the U.S. and has begun expanding in Europe.

Setting such a goal by 2025 represents a huge challenge for the company.

ChargePoint Express Plus modular DC fast-charging system for electric cars, launched at 2017 CES

“Our commitment to deploy 2.5 million charging spots by 2025 comes as the company embarks on the most significant period of growth in our history and in the midst of a revolution in transportation,” said Pasquale Romano, president and CEO, ChargePoint. “The time for transformative change is now, and broadly distributed, substantial and immediate investments in charging infrastructure are necessary to usher in the future of e-mobility.

“We're at a huge tipping point here,” he said, “where this thing begins to accelerate very, very quickly.”

Even as the Trump Administration in Washington, D.C., begins dismantling the legal framework that incentivized electric cars, Roman said, it's a “train that has already left the station.”

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Romano said that he expects the electric-car business to grow from almost $78 billion last year to almost $128 billion by 2022.

The additional chargers from ChargePoint will help expand public charging at businesses, workplaces, apartment buildings, as well as charging for commercial vehicles such as trucks and buses.

ChargePoint recently acquired Kisensum, a data analytics firm focused on helping utilities manage power loads.

Facing increased competition, especially from Electrify America, operating under a court mandate to spend $2 billion expanding public charging in the same time frame, Romano says there is room for multiple charging networks in the industry, but he expects some consolidation.

German authorities uncover emissions-cheating collusion among diesel automakers

2014 Mercedes-Benz E250 BlueTec 4Matic
New documents revealed in a German investigation into diesel emissions cheating show that German automakers, including Volkswagen, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz may have colluded to limit the amount of emissions-cleaning AdBlue diesel exhaust fluid the cars used.

The news was reported by the German newspaper Handelsblatt on Tuesday.

The AdBlue urea solution was contained in tanks too small to last the specified distance between refills, internal company documents reveal. In one 2008 email, an Audi engineer wrote that if customers had to refill their tanks every two months, “it would be a disaster for the entire clean diesel strategy in North America…. This assessment is shared also by VW, BMW, and Daimler.” (Daimler is the parent company that produces Mercedes-Benz cars.)

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The documents were revealed as part of a criminal investigation in Germany of 39 Volkswagen executives for fraud and deceptive advertising.

An Audi presentation uncovered last year referred to a “commitment of the German automotive manufacturers at board level” to using smaller urea tanks and making them last longer.

All three automakers, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz, along with Volkswagen and its luxury division Audi, submitted documents to German regulators showing that the cars would use 0.26 gallons (1 liter), of urea fluid in 1,000 miles of driving, when it fact it would take 0.78 gallons (3 liters) of the fluid to neutralize emissions for that distance.

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The documents show email exchanges among the companies discussing a German investigation into “defeat device software” used to minimize urea consumption and flout emissions laws when the cars were driven on the road, and still meet the requirements when the cars were tested.

All three automakers, plus Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, used emissions hardware and software from German supplier Bosch, which has also been sued for its role in the scandal.

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The emissions cheating led to a historic settlement with Volkswagen that has cost the automaker an estimated $30 billion, including buying back most of the diesel models it sold in the U.S.

Bosch has settled lawsuits against it in relation to the scandal.

Class-action lawsuits are outstanding against BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and FCA.

Nio becomes first Chinese automaker to go public in US

Nio Formula E race car, EP9, ES8 and Eve concept car
Electric carmaker Nio became the first Chinese automaker to go public on the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday.

In August, the Nio [NYSE: NIO] announced that it hoped to raise $1.3 billion in its initial public offering. Trading in its opening day fell short of that at just over $1 billion.

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The company planned to used the funds to develop future electric cars for the U.S. and Chinese markets and to develop self-driving software.

Nio currently sells an electric SUV, the ES8 in China, designed to compete with the Tesla Model X.

The ES8 sells for $65,000 in China, about half what a Tesla Model X costs, and has 220 miles of range and 644 horsepower.

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Nio became one of the most promising Chinese automakers after it introduced the EP9 electric supercar in 2016, then put the ES8 SUV into production.

The company also builds a race car for the Formula E series and has plans for a second electric production car, a luxury sedan based on its Eve concept car.

Nio doesn't sell the ES8 in the U.S., but has an office in San Jose, California to work on self-driving technology and bringing its cars to the U.S.

All-wheel-drive Tesla Model 3 price hiked by $1,000

Tesla Model 3 bought [Photo by reader AH]
As Tesla continues to scramble to make the Model 3 profitable in time to begin making big debt payments in November, the company hiked the price of the all-wheel drive option on the car.

According to Tesla's online configurator, the price has increased from $5,000 to $6,000.

The change was first reported by Electrek on Monday.

Tesla factory screencap from SF Bay Area CBS video

Buyers interested in the all-wheel-drive Model 3 have been on a pricing roller coaster since the option was announced.

First, Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk announced that it would cost less than the all-wheel-drive option on the Model S: $5,000. When the company began building all-wheel drive versions of the Model 3 in May, the option cost exactly $5,000. Tesla lowered the price to $4,000 in June, and raised it back to $5,000 in August.

READ THIS: Elon Musk announces Tesla Model 3 AWD, performance Model 3 specs

On Wednesday, the company also eliminated two of the Model 3's seven color options, Obsidian Black and Metallic Silver, Musk announced in a Tweet. Buyers who want those colors can still special order them at extra cost.

Solid Black is the only color that doesn't cost extra. Other colors add $1,500 to $2,000 to the price of a Model 3.

As the company works to ramp up production to a steady 6,000 Model 3s per week, the paint shop has reportedly been a major and consistent bottleneck on the assembly line.

It has also been a major safety concern in the Tesla factory, with fires reportedly requiring responses from local emergency officials repeatedly early in the summer. Reducing the complexity of color selection can make a major difference in reducing that bottleneck.

So far, Tesla has still not announced when it will offer the short range Model 3 at the car's originally advertised $35,000 base price.

Aston Martin Rapide E details revealed beyond battery tech

Teaser for Aston Martin Rapide E due in 2019
Led by former Nissan Leaf product planner Andy Palmer, Aston Martin plans to launch a new lineup of electric cars under its Lagonda brand.

As a trial balloon, it will launch an electric version of its four-door sports sedan under the Aston Martin brand, the Rapide E.

Now the company has released more details about the car beyond its 800-volt battery pack.

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The company announced yesterday that the Rapide E will use a 65-kwh battery pack to deliver a range of about 200 miles.

The battery pack will use more than 5,600 cylindrical 18650 cells arranged in a proprietary pack sitting where the gas-powered Rapide's V-12 engine, transmission, and gas tank usually sit.

Two electric motors driving the rear axle will provide 601 horsepower and more than 700 pound-feet of torque.

Aston Martin Rapide E battery development

Aston Martin estimates 0-60 mph acceleration in less than 4 seconds and a 50-70 mph passing acceleration sprint in 1.5 seconds.

The car was engineered to maintain full power through a hot lap of the 12.8-mile Nurburgring test track in Germany, Aston Martin says it can maintain this level of performance on the street in more than short bursts.

Aston Martin is targeting similar handling performance as the gas version of the Rapide with revised spring and shock rates.

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As it announced specs for the Rapide E, Aston Martin announced that it will dedicate a new factory in St. Athan, Wales, as its hub for electric-car development and production.

“As our first all-electric production model, Rapide E will fast-track our knowledge and help us ensure the character and high-performance capabilities of our future EV models and enhance the unique qualities found in all Aston Martins as we know them today,” said Aston CEO Palmer. “Rapide E will also serve as a critical step on our path to relaunching Lagonda as the world’s first zero-emission luxury marque.”

The company plans to build just 155 examples of the Rapide E before launching into full electric production with an electric SUV from Lagonda scheduled to arrive in 2021.

Chevy recalls some Bolt EVs, Volts over supplier brake issues

2018 Chevrolet Bolt EV
Chevrolet this week recalled three to four months worth of production Bolt EVs and Volt plug-in hybrids over a potential brake issue that could increase stopping distances of the small vehicles.

The recall affects 2018-2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV and 2018-2019 Volt models sold in the U.S. and Canada.

General Motors' filing with federal regulators doesn't specify the number of cars or say when owners should begin receiving mailed notices for the proposed fixes, and Chevrolet was unable to confirm those details immediately. Affected Bolt EVs were produced between March 27, 2018 and July 17, 2018 and affected Volts were produced between March 27, 2018 and June 20, 2018.

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According to GM, rear brake pistons that were improperly chromed and tempered could leak and trap hydrogen gas in the brake lines and could lead to soft or spongy brake pedals.

The faulty brake systems could stretch braking distances of the affected models. Officials said drivers should notice the spongy brake pedal within 15 days of the vehicle's assembly. Dealers were instructed to bleed the brake system to relieve any trapped hydrogen gas.In its filing, GM said it was not aware of any crashes or injuries related to the defect.

CHECK OUT: 2019 Chevy Volt gets higher prices with more equipment

The defective brake pedals are part of a larger recall affecting Mercedes-Benz vehicles and could be related to a similar recall by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. German supplier ZF said it was aware of the issue, but in its filing GM said the supplier did not notify it that the issue could affect Chevy, Buick, GMC, and Cadillac vehicles.

GM issued the recall this week for more than 230,000 vehicles that also included Chevrolet Cruze, Equinox, Impala, and Malibu sedans and crossovers; GMC Terrain crossovers; Buick LaCrosse, and Cadillac XTS sedans.

Plug Power develops new hydrogen filling robot

Plug Power fuel cell
Filling up with hydrogen is not as easy as filling up with gas or plugging in an electric car—at least it's not yet.

To make it easier—and importantly, cheaper for businesses—Plug Power, a New York fuel-cell company, has developed a new robotic hydrogen filling station.

Plug Power GenFuel hydrogen filling station

The system is designed to work in warehouses where hydrogen-powered forklifts and other equipment can save time refueling. Plug Power says every additional second spent refueling can add up to $1,000 in costs annually for such businesses.

CHECK OUT: California now has 33 hydrogen fueling stations for 4,200 fuel-cell cars so far

Plug Power worked with the Center for Automation Technologies and Systems at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and the National Renewable Energy Lab to develop the fueling stations, using a $2 million grant from the Department of Energy.

The robotic fueling station isn't just about hydrogen-powered forklifts in warehouses, although that's expected to be the first application.

“Today, the technology can retrofit existing GenFuel sites supporting the more than 20,000 GenDrive fuel cells in the field,” said Dustan Skidmore, vice president of engineering at Plug Power. “In the future, the technology can be used in on-road fleet vehicles, autonomous guided vehicles (AGVs), and self-driving passenger cars.”

READ THIS: FedEx and UPS burn less gas to deliver boxes

Plug Power built the fuel-cell that powers the nation's first fuel-cell FedEx delivery truck in upstate New York. The truck, converted to fuel-cell power by Workhorse, fills up with hydrogen at Plug Power's Latham, New York, headquarters and has accumulated more than 3,000 miles in testing.

BMW drops diesels in favor of plug-in hybrids

2021 BMW X5 xDrive45e iPerformance
BMW is the latest automaker to eliminate diesels from its U.S. lineup, at least, and focus on plug-in hybrids and electric cars.

A BMW spokesman told Green Car Reports on Tuesday that it will drop diesels from its lineup for 2019.

“We're putting all our eggs in the PHEV basket,” said BMW spokesman Alexander Schmuck.

BMW currently sells five plug-in hybrid models in the U.S. Those include the 3-Series, 5-Series, 7-Series sedans, the X5 SUV, and the i8 coupe.

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Most of BMW's plug-in hybrids are designated by an “e” at the end of their model names, such as the BMW 330e, 530e, and X5 xDrive40e. Those models on the market today have only 14 to 16 miles of electric range, according to their EPA ratings.

Last week BMW revealed a new plug-in version of the X5 for 2021, the X5 xDrive45e, which may have up to 50 miles of electric range with larger batteries and a new engine.

Finding enough space for batteries has been a challenge in BMW's plug-in hybrids, but a company supplier recently showed a prototype BMW i3 with three times the battery capacity in the same footprint of the original, which could allow BMW to pack far more range into its plug-in hybrids.

CHECK OUT: Supplier tests compact 100-kwh battery pack in BMW i3

The new battery is expected to be used in the company's upcoming iNext electric sedan, which is due to be revealed at the end of the week.

The spokesman also said the upcoming X5 xDrive45e will use an inline-6, which will be easier for the company to meet California's SULEV clean-air standards.