Automotive – Page 41839 – I wish I had more to offer

Ford and Volkswagen to deepen ties

German group to build pick-up trucks with US carmaker and open to making electric vehicles Go to Source

Toyota urges support for PM’s Brexit deal

Toyota’s Europe boss has reiterated his support for the Prime Minister’s Brexit deal ahead of Tuesday’s key Commons vote. Dr Johan van Zyl said the deal was vital to protecting the UK car industry and would stop a damaging no deal exit. His intervention comes days after Jaguar Land Rover and Ford announced thousands of… Continue reading Toyota urges support for PM’s Brexit deal

Tesla is ahead of automakers in 3 key categories, tech money manager says

ARK Invest's Cathie Wood says these are the best tech stocks to beat the market
2 Hours Ago | 07:07

Tesla won't have a presence at this year's Detroit Auto Show but the electric-car maker is miles ahead of the competition in three key categories, ARK Invest founder and CEO Catherine Wood told CNBC on Monday.

Traditional automakers have been making sizable investments into electrifying their vehicles, but Tesla is leading the industry in battery technology, artificial intelligence and data collection, she argued.

“We believe that [the] transportation industry is going to shift wholesale to electric, and Tesla is ahead of the pack,” Wood said on “Fast Money.”

It will be hard for other producers to catch up, because it is in Tesla's “DNA,” she added.

Wood, whose tech-heavy fund finished 2018 in the green and is continuing the upward trend thus far in 2019, thinks Tesla is at a cost advantage because it produces its own batteries for the Model S, Model X and Model 3 vehicles. Other car companies need to vertically integrate, she said.

Also, the type of battery that Tesla uses gives it an additional edge over other carmakers. Tesla's vehicles operate with a lithium-ion cylindrical battery like those used in consumer electronics instead of the lithium-ion pouch batteries.

“So Tesla is riding down the consumer electronics cost curve, which is much, much lower than that lithium ion pouch,” Wood said.

“They've done an amazing thing from an engineering point of view no one else thought was possible. That puts them way ahead of the game,” she said.

Wood said she expects other car manufacturers will turn to Nvidia for brain power but criticized the chipmaker's “design cadence.”

“Everybody else will use Nvidia, but their design cadence is more like 3-5 years,” she said. “Tesla's is every year to two years, so completely different dynamic.”

Tesla, Wood said, has also collected billions of miles of data from its own customers and continues to gather more than a billion miles each quarter. Google parent Alphabet's Waymo comes in second, with about 200 million miles worth of data, she added.

“That's what powers an autonomous vehicle, and that's where we're going,” Wood said.

Glasses give sight to the legally blind, opening eyes to the broader potential of making tech accessible

[embedded content] LAS VEGAS ― More than 180,000 people attended CES to see the latest in consumer technology. From autonomous suitcases to a laundry-folding robot, there were many wacky gadgets making headlines throughout the week. But some of the most cutting-edge products at the show were designed for people with disabilities, demonstrating how the tech industry is increasingly… Continue reading Glasses give sight to the legally blind, opening eyes to the broader potential of making tech accessible

Electrify America Will Implement Plug&Charge

Plug&Charge enables automatic authentication and billing Electrify America and Hubject announced collaboration on charging interoperability and “Plug&Charge” technology, that will allow people to pay for their electric vehicle charging simply by plugging in their vehicles. The solution utilizes global standard ISO 15118, which needs to be first implemented in the cars (according to Hubject, already… Continue reading Electrify America Will Implement Plug&Charge

Samsung SDI Reveals EV Battery Future, Plus Roadmap To Solid State

5 H BY MARK KANE Samsung SDI brings its latest battery tech to Detroit Samsung SDI is present at the NAIAS in Detroit. It will present its latest offer of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles. The company presents cells from 37 to 78 Ah capacity. Samsung says that the general trend is to increase the… Continue reading Samsung SDI Reveals EV Battery Future, Plus Roadmap To Solid State

Infiniti QX Inspiration concept sets design direction for brand’s electric future

Follow Bengt

[% } %]

Volkswagen will make electric cars in Tennessee, at expanded plant

Follow Bengt

Left to right: Volkswagen ID, ID Buzz and ID Crozz concepts
Volkswagen today announced that it would use Chattanooga, Tennessee as its North American base for assembling electric cars.

The decision to expand its Chattanooga facility means that many, if not all, of the vehicles that will be sold in the U.S. under Volkswagen’s new electric vehicle initiative will also be built in the U.S., not Mexico.

DON'T MISS: VW plans 27 electric cars by 2022 on new platform

Speculation began earlier in the fall as to where Volkswagen might set up shop to assemble its vehicles built on its modular electric platform, termed MEB. In September Volkswagen said that it was giving Chattanooga, where the U.S-market Passat sedan and Atlas SUV are currently made, serious consideration as one of 16 electric-vehicle manufacturing “e-locations” that will support a global ecosystem eventually capable of making a million VW Group electric vehicles per year.

At that point it hadn’t ruled out Mexico, and the massive manufacturing and logistics base it already has at Puebla. In a follow-up interview at the LA auto show in November, Volkswagen of America CEO Scott Keogh told Green Car Reports that “we’re holding those conversations now.”

CHECK OUT: Will Volkswagen's electric Microbus be made in the USA?

One of many pieces of information Volkswagen didn’t yet reveal is how many electric vehicles it intends to produce annually at Chattanooga. The move involves an $800 million investment and will bring 1,000 jobs to the plant, according to Volkswagen, with additional jobs at suppliers.

This push already includes a plant in Zwickau, Germany that’s being revamped to produce MEB vehicles starting in 2019. VW will add two assembly facilities in China in 2020 and two others in Germany in 2022.

Volkswagen ID Crozz concept

Volkswagen’s first vehicle on the platform for the U.S. market will be based on the ID Crozz, a compact crossover model, slated to arrive next year—before the Chattanooga plant is ready for electric-car production.

The Chattanooga plant expansion is to produce electric vehicles in 2022—which also happens to be when the electric revival of the Microbus, based on the ID Buzz concept, is due.

Enterprising Tesla Model 3 Owner Adds Automatic Trunk & Frunk Opening

Electric Cars
Electric Car Benefits
Electric Car Sales
Solar Energy Rocks
RSS
Advertise
Privacy Policy

Cars

Published on January 14th, 2019 |

by Kyle Field

Enterprising Tesla Model 3 Owner Adds Automatic Trunk & Frunk Opening

Twitter
LinkedIn
Facebook

January 14th, 2019 by Kyle Field

i1Tesla was one of the first YouTube channels to show how to upgrade the frunk struts on the Model 3 to stronger ones that gave it enough oomph to open the frunk all the way with just the tap of the button on the app. Now, he’s released a new YouTube video that shows the process he followed to accomplish the same for the trunk, though it requires a bit more effort and a few more parts.

The Model 3 swept onto the electric vehicle (EV) scene with a promise of delivering a long range, affordable EV. Though, Tesla has admittedly had delays in actually delivering on the $35,000 Standard Range version of the Model 3. Part of trimming down the feature set of its more luxurious siblings, the Model S and Model X, to reach the more affordable price point was to remove some of the more glamorous features, like automatic trunk opening and closing at the touch of a button.

To add a similar set of functionality to the Model 3 trunk, or at least to get it to open automagically, i1Tesla tried a variety of replacement struts to get it to open by itself, but found that none of them actually had the strength needed to lift the much heavier trunk lid up at the mechanically disadvantaged angle that the struts are set at in the Model 3.

To give it the kick needed to lift the trunk up the first few inches, he started experimenting with springs mounted on the shaft of the struts. A few spring sets and a few bucks later, he landed on a set of replacement struts and springs that gave the trunk the right amount of pop to open up at the touch of a button from the app.

The new combination gives Tesla Model 3 owners the information they need to get the same one-touch opening functionality they have enjoyed with their frunks for a few months on the trunks. It’s not going to change the world, but it’s nice to have options to make owning a Tesla that much easier. I know I have enjoyed the one-touch opening of my frunk since installing the strut upgrade a few weeks back.

If you’re looking for a one-stop shopping solution for the frunk kit, our friends over at EV Annex have put together a quick auto-opening frunk strut kit for the Tesla Model 3 that comes with the upgraded struts and instructions to install them. It was one of the easiest upgrades I’ve done on a car and I would put it on par with changing out a license plate frame if not even a little easier.

If you enjoy the content here on CleanTechnica and are looking to purchase a new Tesla, feel free to use my referral link (here).

About the Author

Kyle Field I'm a tech geek passionately in search of actionable ways to reduce the negative impact my life has on the planet, save money and reduce stress. Live intentionally, make conscious decisions, love more, act responsibly, play. The more you know, the less you need. TSLA investor. Tesla referral code: http://ts.la/kyle623

Advertise with CleanTechnica to get your company in front of our readers.

CleanTechnica Clothing & Cups

The GAC Entranze EV concept debuts

The GAC Entranze EV concept debutsBuy PhotoThe Entranze electric concept vehicle from Chinese automaker GAC is revealed during the North American International Auto Show at Cobo Center in Detroit on Monday, Jan. 14, 2019.
None

The Entranze electric concept vehicle from Chinese automaker GAC is revealed during the North American International Auto Show at Cobo Center in Detroit on Monday, Jan. 14, 2019.
Buy PhotoDancers perform before the reveal of the GAC Entranze concept.
None

Dancers perform before the reveal of the GAC Entranze concept.
Buy PhotoThe wraps come off the Entranze.
None

The wraps come off the Entranze.
Buy PhotoThe GAC Entranze EV concept vehicle drives onto the stage. The three-row vehicle can seat seven.
None

The GAC Entranze EV concept vehicle drives onto the stage. The three-row vehicle can seat seven.
Buy PhotoThe GAC Entranze EV concept features large, see-through sliding doors.
None

The GAC Entranze EV concept features large, see-through sliding doors.
Buy PhotoDesigners ditched traditional thinking and worked on the interior and exterior to create a coastal architecture-inspired flow that blurs the indoor and outdoors.
None

Designers ditched traditional thinking and worked on the interior and exterior to create a coastal architecture-inspired flow that blurs the indoor and outdoors.
Buy PhotoAs a result, the Entranze features patio-inspired sliding glass doors and a panoramic roof.
None

As a result, the Entranze features patio-inspired sliding glass doors and a panoramic roof.
Buy PhotoThe GAC Entranze concept vehicle is the first concept vehicle from GAC's North America design studio in California.
None

The GAC Entranze concept vehicle is the first concept vehicle from GAC's North America design studio in California.
Buy PhotoFoldable rocker panels serve as steps and also as a bench for outdoor seating.
None

Foldable rocker panels serve as steps and also as a bench for outdoor seating.
Buy PhotoMore than 90 percent of the vehicle's interior are made from environmentally sustainable materials such as cork.
None

More than 90 percent of the vehicle's interior are made from environmentally sustainable materials such as cork.
Buy PhotoInside, a wave-inspired instrument panel in front of the first-row bench gives way to OLED screens on both sides instead of a single screen in the middle.
None

Inside, a wave-inspired instrument panel in front of the first-row bench gives way to OLED screens on both sides instead of a single screen in the middle.
Buy PhotoAt a panel with media following the unveiling of its Engtranze EV, Guangzhou Automobile Group Motor Co. said it hopes to enter the U.S. market in the first half of 2020.
None

At a panel with media following the unveiling of its Engtranze EV, Guangzhou Automobile Group Motor Co. said it hopes to enter the U.S. market in the first half of 2020.
Buy PhotoPontus Fontaeus, executive design director of the GAC advanced design department in Los Angeles, talks about the GAC Entranze EV concept vehicle during the introduction.
None

Pontus Fontaeus, executive design director of the GAC advanced design department in Los Angeles, talks about the GAC Entranze EV concept vehicle during the introduction.
The GAC Entranze concept vehicle features patio-inspired sliding glass doors and a panoramic roof.
None

The GAC Entranze concept vehicle features patio-inspired sliding glass doors and a panoramic roof.
The interior of the GAC Entranze concept vehicle.
None

The interior of the GAC Entranze concept vehicle.
The steering wheel of the GAC Entranze concept vehicle.
None

The steering wheel of the GAC Entranze concept vehicle.
Replay1 of 162 of 163 of 164 of 165 of 166 of 167 of 168 of 169 of 1610 of 1611 of 1612 of 1613 of 1614 of 1615 of 1616 of 16AutoplayShow ThumbnailsShow Captions Fullscreen
None

The Entranze electric concept vehicle from Chinese automaker GAC is revealed during the North American International Auto Show at Cobo Center in Detroit on Monday, Jan. 14, 2019.