Category: Automotive

FCA boss: Next Challenger to use electric boost, skip 700-hp supercharged V-8 – Motor Authority

You better get them while they last, folks, as the next Dodge Challenger looks like it’s going to be a very different beast to the car on sale today. That’s the word of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Mike Manley, who took over following the sudden death of his predecessor, Sergio Marchionne, last July. “I think… Continue reading FCA boss: Next Challenger to use electric boost, skip 700-hp supercharged V-8 – Motor Authority

RIVIAN ANNOUNCES $700M INVESTMENT ROUND LED BY AMAZON

February 15, 2019 – Rivian has announced an equity investment round of $700M led by Amazon. The investment comes on the heels of Rivian’s reveal of the all-electric R1T pickup and R1S SUV at the LA Auto Show last November. Starting with a clean sheet, Rivian has developed its vehicles with adventurers at the core… Continue reading RIVIAN ANNOUNCES $700M INVESTMENT ROUND LED BY AMAZON

IT IS HAPPENING…. THE FIRST GBS TRACK DAY OF 2019 IS CONFIRMED…..

After two very successful and enjoyable GBS track days last year at Rockingham and Silverstone we are pleased and excited to confirm the next GBS Track Day will be happening on Friday 29th March at Donington Park on the National circuit. This Track Day event is via MSV Track Days and is £179 but they… Continue reading IT IS HAPPENING…. THE FIRST GBS TRACK DAY OF 2019 IS CONFIRMED…..

BP invests in Chinese charging platform PowerShare

BP Ventures has invested in Powershare, a Chinese provider of integrated hardware and software for EV charging, during a Series A funding round. PowerShare offers an online platform that connects drivers, charge point operators, and power suppliers. The company’s cloud-based system allows power suppliers to continuously monitor the power demand from vehicles and balance it… Continue reading BP invests in Chinese charging platform PowerShare

Commentary: Toyota Corolla Hybrid ad brags about not plugging in

2017 Toyota Prius Prime, Catskill Mountains, NY, Nov 2016
In Toyota's latest ad for its new Corolla Hybrid in Britain, it's 2002 all over again.

The ad shows the new Corolla Hybrid (in non-U.S. hatchback form) bypassing all kinds of road transportation alternatives from different eras—from a stagecoach and an early brass-era car to 1950s hot rods and, finally—an electric car plugged in and charging by the side of the road.

It's clearly a dig at plug-in cars, reliant on battery power and electric motors to get around. Plug-ins are even more popular in Britain, with its high gas prices, than they are in the U.S.

Yet Toyota is the company that paved the way for modern electric cars, the first to take electric propulsion seriously when it introduced the Prius in 2000 (and in 1998 in its home market.)

When it debuted, the original Prius, and especially the second-generation that followed in 2002, was the first vehicle that revealed a hidden market of millions of buyers who hungered to do better by the Earth. Along the way, as more and more people became familiar with it, the Prius demonstrated to drivers that electric power is smoother and quieter than gas.

Many Prius drivers wanted nothing more than to be able to plug in to maximize the number of miles they could drive on “nicer” electricity.

READ THIS: Toyota Corolla Hybrid rated 52 mpg: Why Toyota says it won't cannibalize Prius sales

Of course, electricity is also far more efficient and cleaner than gasoline—as the Prius amply demonstrated by trouncing the fuel-efficiency estimates of similar compact economy cars such as the Corolla. That's what Prius buyers love.

Even ordinary electric cars, however, such as the Nissan Leaf, from one of Toyota's longest-standing competitors, get almost double the fuel-economy rating of even the best versions of the Prius.

Yet, even as it demonstrated the market for driving on electricity, Toyota became famously skeptical of cars that used more electricity—and even less gas—by plugging in.

CHECK OUT: Follow-up: In the end, I bought a Toyota Prius Prime plug-in hybrid

When Toyota introduced the second-generation Prius for 2003 and captured the environmental movement's attention, it seemed to think buyers would be skeptical of plugging in. Prius ads at the time touted that “you never have to plug it in,” as if that were a feature, and buyers might be terrified of a car that needed electricity to run. That may have been fair in an era when few people had experienced electric cars, and almost none knew how they might charge one.

The company famous for responding to its buyers' demands later dragged its feet in introducing a plug-in version of the Prius, which it first discussed in 2007 and showed in 2008. Toyota didn't introduce the first Prius plug-in until 2012—two years after an independent company began selling thousands of unauthorized conversion kits—and even then, it had only 11 miles of electric range. A 2014 ad for the car showed the Prius Plug-In Hybrid…not plugging in.

It took until 2016 for Toyota to introduce the Prius Prime, with a realistic 25 miles of electric range—after five years of losing sales to the Chevrolet Volt plug in hybrid and a new crop of all-electric cars, including the Leaf.

DON'T MISS: Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid Ad Shows Driver…Not Plugging In

Toyota executives made all kinds of excuses along the way about the cost, emissions, and “inconvenience” of electricity, and how Americans' driving cycles didn't favor electric driving. Meanwhile, in Japan, Toyota engineers, with subsidies from the government, focused on developing fuel-cell vehicles, and the company has now sold a few thousand fuel-cell Mirais in California.

If the Prius proved anything, it was that using an electric motor and battery to offset the worst inefficiencies of an internal combustion car was not only extremely effective, it should be the minimum best practice for any new car model.

Now that electric car sales are booming and the Prius Prime makes up more than 30 percent of Prius sales, it's disappointing to see Toyota falling back on that old trope that charging is inconvenient and ineffective in its latest ad for the Corolla Hybrid. And that market of millions of buyers who want to do right by the environment have already begun looking elsewhere.

Shell Acquires sonnen!

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Batteries Published on February 15th, 2019 | by Kyle Field
Shell Acquires sonnen!TwitterLinkedInFacebookFebruary 15th, 2019 by Kyle Field

Shell is diving off the deep end into energy storage with the acquisition of 100% of Germany energy storage and solution provider sonnen.
The acquisition builds on Shell’s investment into the company last year through its Shell Ventures arm and shows that Royal Dutch Shell sees an energy future that is not dependent on its current portfolio of oil and gas products. Acquiring one of the leading energy storage solution providers gives Shell a platform through which it can explore the potential of stationary energy storage and, more importantly, leap to the cutting edge of intelligent energy storage products.

sonnen’s ecoLinx product line, which was unveiled in the back half of last year, brought revolutionary new integration into the entire home. The energy storage hub allowed homeowners to not only control the energy flowing into and out of their home, but thanks to their breakthrough integration with Eaton’s smart breakers, also provided granular control over individual circuits within the home.
Shell acquiring sonnen opens up a much larger piggy bank of funding that could allow sonnen to scale that technology into new geographies and into new markets.
“Shell New Energies is the perfect partner for helping us grow in a market that is expanding rapidly,” said Christoph Ostermann, CEO and co-founder of sonnen .”With this investment we’re excited to help more households to become energy independent and benefit from new opportunities in the energy market. Shell will help drive the growth of sonnen to a new level and help speed up the transformation of the energy system.”
For two CleanTechnica interviews with Ostermann, see: “sonnen — the utility of the future?” and “sonnen’s Global Energy Solar Leadership” for the text summaries or watch the videos below.

The real secret sauce with sonnen is its ability to innovate beyond just the hardware. Building a smart energy storage appliance is neat and noteworthy, but sonnen has demonstrated its ability to innovate beyond the box and has shaken the foundations of the industry with its disruptive innovations in neighborhood energy storage and whole home energy storage that includes smart automation technology.
For example, when the system detects that a storm is rolling in, it automagically charges the battery up to full capacity, to give the homeowner as much power as possible in the event of a storm-induced power outage. If the power does go out, the system then automatically throttles down energy usage on non-essential circuits in the home to maximize the value of the stored energy for the homeowner.
The intelligence sonnen brings to the table is the true differentiator, with only Tesla competing on a similar level with its class-leading energy storage solutions. This innovation has led sonnen to stretch beyond the home, bundling its network of energy storage products into a virtual power plant that allows sonnen to move from playing with energy storage in the home to buying and selling grid services to large multinational grid operators.
After its early investment in the company last year, Shell clearly saw the writing on the wall for renewables and the potential that sonnen’s breakthrough solutions have in the flexible, dynamic electrical grid of tomorrow.
Shell has recently been on a tear, with investments in renewable wind energy through direct investments in offshore wind farms, joining the Global Wind Energy Council, and partnering with wind startup Makani. It also jumped into electric vehicle charging with its acquisition of Greenlots and Europe’s giant NewMotion EV charging network.
The writing is on the wall that the world is on a course for disaster thanks to catastrophic climate change, and Shell is gearing up to not just talk about the transition away from fossil fuels, but to lead it.

About the AuthorKyle 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.

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Implement the Future of Charging

Get your copy of the CharIn Implementation Guide The Berlin-based association “Charging Interface Initiative e. V.” (CharIN) is launching our comprehensive implementation guide for Plug&Charge based on ISO/IEC 15118. The guide makes it easier for all market players to implement Plug&Charge and will speed up the widespread usage of this helpful technology. The guide features… Continue reading Implement the Future of Charging

Check Out This Anti ICE-ing Tesla Supercharger Device In Taiwan: Video

2 H BY STEVEN LOVEDAY How can Tesla and other companies with public charge points help EV drivers? Here’s how! We’ve heard a ton lately about ICE car drivers occupying EV charging spots (and more specifically Tesla Superchargers). This may be by mistake or due to laziness or flat-out on purpose. Nonetheless, this is not… Continue reading Check Out This Anti ICE-ing Tesla Supercharger Device In Taiwan: Video

ABB To Supply Fast Chargers To Petrol Retailer In Poland

5 H BY MARK KANE Another day, another petrol retailer is switching to fast charging PKN Orlen, a major Polish oil refiner and petrol retailer, is launching a charging infrastructure project. The plan is to install 150 fast charging stations at selected fuel stations on select transit routes across Poland and within the largest cities. According… Continue reading ABB To Supply Fast Chargers To Petrol Retailer In Poland