Category: News Site

Suzuki Celerio and Baleno axed from UK sale

Suzuki has confirmed it has discontinued its two cheapest models –  the Celerio city car and Baleno supermini – in the UK in a revamp of its product line-up.  The Skoda Citigo and Honda Jazz rivals are still visible on the company’s UK site, but a spokesman said that from the end of this month, no… Continue reading Suzuki Celerio and Baleno axed from UK sale

Google Maps adds biking and ridesharing options to transit directions for multi-mode commutes

Google is introducing combo navigation directions that pair ridesharing and biking options with transit guidance. Starting today, when you search from directions using Google Maps and select the ‘transit’ tap, you’ll see ridesharing options included when the nearest station is a bit further than most people might expect to go on foot. Similarly, you’ll also… Continue reading Google Maps adds biking and ridesharing options to transit directions for multi-mode commutes

A review of 14,756 rides found Uber and Lyft taking a much bigger slice of drivers’ fares than they say they do

A Jalopnik analysis of 14,756 ride fares from Uber and Lyft drivers found the ride-hailing apps to be taking a bigger bite out of drivers’ fares than they say they do. The amount of money Uber and Lyft skim off drivers’ fares is referred to as the “take rate,” and it has been a point… Continue reading A review of 14,756 rides found Uber and Lyft taking a much bigger slice of drivers’ fares than they say they do

Polestar Starts Production Of Polestar 1 PHEV In China

Polestar has become an OEM and launched production of the Polestar 1. Polestar 2 is coming in early 2020. Polestar has officially launched production of its first model – the performance plug-in hybrid Polestar 1 – at the all-new production center in Chengdu, China. Customer deliveries are expected to be on schedule and should start… Continue reading Polestar Starts Production Of Polestar 1 PHEV In China

ProLogium And NIO Join Forces On Solid-State Batteries For EVs

NIO is interested in ProLogium solid-state battery cells and MAB (Multi­Axis Bipolar) packs Solid-state battery company ProLogium Technology has announced a partnership with Chinese electric car manufacturer NIO to jointly develop next-generation batteries for EVs. The two set the short­ term goal of creating a prototype car with ProLogium solid-state battery pack – MAB (Multi­Axis… Continue reading ProLogium And NIO Join Forces On Solid-State Batteries For EVs

India: Bike taxi startup Rapido raises $55.5m funding led by WestBridge

Bike taxi startup Rapido has raised around ₹400 crore in a round led by WestBridge Capital. New investors that have participated in this round include Alibaba’s BAce Capital and Shunwei Capital, along with existing investor Nexus, according to regulatory filings with the MCA, sourced from Paper.vc. This investment continues to mark the trend of investor… Continue reading India: Bike taxi startup Rapido raises $55.5m funding led by WestBridge

EVgo and Electrify America team up to make chargers more accessible

Finding a fast charger in the U.S. just got a lot easier for a lot of electric-car drivers.

Two of America's largest fast-charging networks announced an agreement Thursday to allow each other's users to charge at their charging sites without signing up for new memberships or payment plans.

Electrify America and EVgo agreed to a roaming partnership that will allow members of either service to charge at any EVgo or Electrify America charging station.

Each of the networks already has individual agreements with the nation's other largest networks, ChargePoint and Greenlots.

Electrify America DC fast chargers in Gulfport, Mississippi

Together they make up at least 42 percent of the DC fast chargers in the U.S. and 60 percent of the total fast-charging locations, according to data from the Department of Energy's Alternative Fuels Data Center. The others are split among Tesla (with 52 percent of the total fast chargers in 22 percent of locations), and six smaller networks.

That means that drivers of EVs other than Teslas are have a widespread network in many ways on par with Tesla's Superchargers that they can use to top off their batteries.

Unlike Tesla's Supercharger network, however, EVgo chargers are concentrated in and around cities—where EVgo points out that most EVs drive—rather than along highways between cities where the chargers could allow drivers to make longer trips between cities, as Tesla's Superchargers do.

Electrify America 350 kw chargers at Home Depot in Chicopee, Mass.

Electrify America, a division of Volkswagen, was founded under the settlement agreement over Volkswagen's diesel emissions cheating, and is required to install such highway charging stations. So far, however, it has only completed the first of four phases of a 10-year rollout plan.

Roaming “interoperability” agreements are becoming more common, making it easier for electric car-drivers to use a wider variety of chargers.

This has led to a spate of recent announcements—many using the “One-Step Plug & Charge” label—including between Greenlots and Electrify America and ChargePoint and Blink.

Polestar opens its own factory to build flagship plug-in hybrid

Volvo’s Polestar electric performance vehicle brand is, step by step, asserting itself as a standalone automaker. And two of the largest leaps yet were announced by the brand today.

One of them is that Polestar’s first production facility, in Chengdu, is now open and making the Polestar 1, a sleek high-performance plug-in hybrid sport coupe.

Polestar is planning to deliver a first-year allocation of 200 Polestar 1 vehicles for the North American market later this year at a pre-order price of $155,000. Polestar calls the 600-horsepower, carbon-fiber bodied 1 to be the most exclusive electrified vehicle to be manufactured in China.

Polestar production facility and customer experience center – Chengdu, China

The production facility itself is claimed to be one of the most environmentally responsible car factories in China, with a goal of achieving LEED Gold status for holistic sustainability and energy-saving practices. It includes an adjacent customer experience center, with a test track and covered atrium showcasing a panoramic view out over the factory floor.

“Here in Chengdu we are not only manufacturing a premium hybrid-electric performance car,” said Thomas Ingenlath, the CEO of Polestar. “We have also created an inspirational manufacturing environment, a great place to work and visit. It truly reflects the Polestar brand.”

The Polestar 2, a model that will directly rival the Tesla Model 3, will be made in Luqiao, China, beginning in early 2020. A related Polestar 3 will compare to the Tesla Model Y.

Polestar 2

The second big announcement accompanying the factory start is that Polestar has been given a World Manufacturing Identifier, which inserts space from both Volvo, with which it shares some engineering resources and strategic decisions, and Geely, its parent company.

Depending on how the political drama plays out surrounding potentially high tariffs placed on cars made in China, that space from Volvo might not entirely be a good thing. Volvo Cars has inaugurated a U.S. assembly plant in Charleston, South Carolina, that can produce up to 150,000 vehicles annually and will create about 4,000 jobs over several years.

Being treated as a separate automaker will however help Polestar with respect to the federal EV tax credit. Even after Volvo delivers 200,000 eligible plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles, Polestar buyers will still be able to claim the full $7,500.

Can power napping solve electric car charging challenge?

STUTTGART, Germany (Reuters) – Automakers around the world are pushing hard for new networks that can charge electric cars fast. In Europe, some power companies and grid operators are testing whether it might be smarter and cheaper to move into the slow lane. An electric car parks next to a charging station in Ostfildern near… Continue reading Can power napping solve electric car charging challenge?