Tag: Electric vehicles

Uber Said to Be Developing Self-Steering Bikes and Scooters

Scooter Clutter Bike and scooter sharing companies have been cluttering the streets of major cities around the world for some years now. And not everybody’s happy — when they’re not returned to a charging station, they can quickly become a nuisance to pedestrians. But if the latest reports are to be believed, those scooters and bikes… Continue reading Uber Said to Be Developing Self-Steering Bikes and Scooters

If you can charge them, they will come; Maryland plans 5,000 EV chargers

Chevy Bolt EV fast-charging at EVgo station before trip across Maryland [image: Brian Ro]
Maryland plans to deploy a new tool in the race to get automakers to sell more electric cars in states outside California: The state plans to install 5,000 electric-car chargers across the tiny state.

Last week, the state's public utilities commission approved a proposal by four of its largest utilities to install the 5,000 chargers in an effort to sell 300,000 electric cars in the state by 2025 and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent below 2006 levels by 2030. That's a lot of chargers for the nation's ninth smallest state.

Maryland is one of nine states (soon to be 10) that have joined California in requiring automakers to sell zero-emission cars—plug-in electric and fuel-cell models—in the state.

DON'T MISS: Why Electric Cars Are Rare Outside CA: Arcane 'Travel Provision' Rule (2015)

So far, most sales of those models have been concentrated in California, though a change in the law last year is expected to require automakers to bring more cars to the other 8 states in the Northeast this year.

In response, the states have banded together to promote electric cars and to build infrastructure. One of consumers' main objections to electric cars is that they can't find a place to charge them, and even electric car owners complain of finding too many public chargers occupied or out of order. More charging infrastructure is a key factor in selling more electric cars.

CHECK OUT: More support for electric cars than knowledge or interest, Northeastern study finds

Maryland's plan calls for installing Level 3 fast-charging stations along highways where there are currently gaps in charging coverage for electric-car drivers, as well as subsidizing installation of chargers in workplaces, homes, and apartment buildings.

In return for Maryland electric ratepayers covering the cost of installation, the utilities are required to implement time-of-use electric rates to reduce charging costs for electric-car drivers, and give rate-payers a way to cut costs further. The utilities will also offer rebates to customers who install smart chargers that can communicate with the utility to find the most affordable, effective, and cleanest time to charge.

In announcing the decision, Maryland Public Service Commission Chairman Jason Stanek said, “Today’s decision not only ensures that charging infrastructure will support Maryland’s transition to electrified transportation, but also maximizes the benefits of smart charging while minimizing cost impacts to ratepayers.”

BMW plans to tone down styling of its electric cars

BMW i Vision Dynamics concept, 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show
To stand out, or not to stand out. That is the question many electric automakers are asking as electric cars transition from being something new and different to being just another drive system for all types of cars.

Among the most recognizable electric-car designs are those that stand out from the crowd: The original Nissan Leaf, the Toyota Prius Prime, the BMW i3.

CHECK OUT: 2019 BMW i3 to get bigger battery with 153-mile range

Now electric cars are going more mainstream, according to an October interview with BMW styling director Adrian van Hooydonk in the British publication Autocar, so there's no reason to make them look so different.

“BMW customers want a dynamic car, whether it is a battery-electric vehicle or not,” van Hooydonk told Autocar. “So there’s is increasingly less reason to make these kinds of cars look different.”

READ THIS: BMW Vision iNext electric concept redefines German luxury flagship

It has been a long-running debate among designers of hybrid and electric vehicles. People buy cars to make a statement, just as they might buy a jacket or shoes. Early hybrid and electric car buyers wanted their support for the environment, or at least their reduced petroleum consumption.

Driving an ordinary-looking car didn't accomplish that. Onlookers had no reason to strike up a conversation to ask why they were driving it.

BMW Vision iNext concept

BMW's change of heart is another sign that electric cars are moving beyond early adopters to more mainstream buyers—known as the “early majority,” among marketers. The early majority accepts that early adopters have proven a technology, and wants to establish that it is now mainstream.

Building good-looking, but mainstream, cars with electric powertrains accomplishes that goal.

DON'T MISS: All-electric BMW i4 to be production version of i Vision Dynamics concept

BMW executives have announced that instead of building completely separate designs for electric cars—such as the i3 and i8 with their carbon-fiber chassis and aluminum floor pans—the brand will work to develop electric versions of all of its primary cars, such as the upcoming 2020 iX3 SUV, which is an electric version of the X3, and the 2019 Mini Cooper S E, an electric version of the standard Mini hatchback.

Other upcoming BMW electric-car concepts show a mixed approach. The luxurious and nominally self-driving Vision iNext luxury SUV, which could inspire a production model in about 2022, is all harsh angles, with odd wings and big pillarless glass. It will definitely stand out on the road.

BMW's Vision Dynamics concept is a sleek four-door sedan that previews the company's next electric car (after the iX3 and the Mini Cooper S E), an electric version of the elegant-looking but relatively mainstream 4-series. It will also stand out on the road—but for its elegance, not just its brash, indifferent, difference.

Toyota and Panasonic to jointly make electric-car batteries, explore solid-state tech

Panasonic Li-Ion EV battery
Toyota has been a laggard in the race to transition to electric cars. The company was an early leader in fuel-efficient hybrids, but has since focused on developing fuel-cell vehicles, and executives have expressed skepticism about electric cars and lithium-ion batteries.

Now in an effort to accelerate its move to electric cars, the company may be pairing up with the largest manufacturer of lithium-ion battery cells in the world for electric cars, Panasonic. Panasonic also supplies batteries for Tesla, built at the giant Nevada Gigafactory that the two jointly own.

CHECK OUT: Lithium-ion vs. nickel-metal hydride: Toyota still likes both for its hybrids

The Nikkei Asian Review reported Sunday that the two companies plan to set up a joint battery manufacturing plant in 2020 to produce batteries for more than 5.5 million electric cars. Reuters followed with another report of the venture, citing a source of its own.

Under the venture as it's been reported so far, Toyota will own 51 percent of the factory, and Panasonic will own the rest. Batteries produced at the factory will supply not only Toyota but also companies that have signed on as partners with Toyota to develop electric cars. These include Mazda and Subaru.

Akio Toyoda, President, Toyota and Kazuhiro Tsuga, President, Panasonic

Honda also sources electric-car batteries from Panasonic, and Nikkei reports that the companies hope that they can also sell the new batteries to Honda.

READ THIS: Panasonic says solid-state batteries are still 10 years off

Toyota and Panasonic will also reportedly work together to develop next-generation solid-state lithium-ion batteries, which are expected to provide increased range with less weight and cost for electric cars. They could also be less flammable to improve safety.

Toyota has been working to find other chemistries that would be useful for electric cars. It announced in 2017 that it plans to put solid-state battery tech into a production vehicle in the early part of the next decade.

DON'T MISS: VW is planning to build 15 million electric vehicles

The two companies signed an agreement in 2017 to explore the tie-up that Nikkei reported this week.

Toyota has set a goal to sell 5.5 million electric cars by 2030. That still lags behind Volkswagen, the world's second-largest automaker after Toyota. Volkswagen has announced plans to build 10 million vehicles a year by 2027.

More about Byton, tamer BMW electrics, Toyota batteries, more chargers: Today’s Car News

Byton M-Byte concept
BMW says it plans to make its electric cars look more mainstream to move beyond sales to early adopters. Toyota and Panasonic could be teaming up to produce electric-car batteries and solid-state technology. And Maryland approves plans for 5,000 electric-car chargers to attract more electric cars to the East Coast. All this and more on Green Car Reports.

The three electric cars that Byton is developing are designed more to appeal more to passengers than drivers, the brand's chief engineer told Green Car Reports. Other than their 48-inch cross-dash screen and advanced interface, they'll take advantage of off-the-shelf EV parts from top suppliers.

BMW says its upcoming electric cars won't stand out as much, with more conventionally attractive styling to appeal to more mainstream buyers.

Toyota might be teamed up with Tesla-supplier Panasonic to develop and build new batteries for electric cars, as the world's largest automaker begins its transition to electric cars.

In an effort to attract more electric cars, Maryland has approved a plan for the state's utilities to install 5,000 new electric-car chargers, including Level 2 chargers and Level 3 DC fast chargers along highways.

Google Maps has announced that the software will now display speed-limit information in Android Auto to help drivers keep track between signs as they use the system's navigation function.

Finally, after setting a world's record climbing Pike's Peak, Volkswagen plans to take its electric ID R race car to the famous German Nürburgring race track to challenge the lap record there.

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Jaguar I-Pace outsells all other cars in the Netherlands in December

Tax changes can have great effects on car sales. In Belgium, new fiscal deductability rules taking effect on January 1st 2018 prompted thousands of buyers to sign an order form for a (premium) plug-in hybrid in December. A similiar phenomenon has manifested itself in the Netherlands last month: Dutch company car drivers hurried to the… Continue reading Jaguar I-Pace outsells all other cars in the Netherlands in December

The Tesla Model 3 is finally approved for European roads

Tesla can now deliver Model 3 vehicles to European customers. The automakers midsize sedan was recently granted approval from RDW, the Dutch regulator and European authority tasked by Tesla to approve the vehicle for European roads. The approval comes just ahead of the vehicle’s European introduction next month. Right now, it’s been reported that a… Continue reading The Tesla Model 3 is finally approved for European roads

Tesla will need to make cheaper Model 3s by the second half of 2019

James Glover II | Reuters
Elon Musk

Tesla needs to get cracking on a cheaper car.

The electric vehicle maker said Friday it plans to cut about 7 percent of its workforce, which by the last company headcount would equal about 3,100 jobs. The plan is to cut costs and get closer to making the $35,000 Model 3 the company has been promising since it first unveiled the car in 2016.

Right now the cheapest Model 3 available is the midrange rear-wheel-drive model, which starts at $44,000. A long-range all-wheel-drive model starts at $51,000, and the performance model starts at $63,000.

The sales boost from the $7,500 U.S. federal tax credit is running out, and that stands to hurt demand in the United States.

One of the primary reasons for the job cuts is the fact that the cars Tesla makes are still “too expensive for most people,” CEO Elon Musk said in an email to employees announcing the reductions.

For now, Tesla has Europe to lean on, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives told CNBC. The company began allowing European reservation holders to configure their Model 3 orders in early December and plans to begin delivering some versions to the region by next month.

Tesla was not available for comment.

“If you think about the trajectory, the first half of 2019 is really Europe coming onboard,” said Wedbush analyst Dan Ives. That strength in demand will likely offset relative weakness in demand in the U.S., in large part to the waning tax credit and Tesla's relatively high prices. “But then ultimately in the second half you need the mid-range Model 3 to really start to kick in.”

Toward the end of 2018, Tesla finally seemed to have pulled itself out of the “production hell” it had been submersed in since it began Model 3 production in the summer of 2017.

With the company clearing Musk's stated goal of producing 5,000 Model 3s per week, Tesla began focusing on reducing costs and improving efficiency. Tesla's third-quarter results were surprisingly strong, making good on Musk's expectation that Tesla would be profitable and cash flow positive from the second half of 2018 onward.

There is still debate on Wall Street over whether Tesla will need to raise capital in the next 12-18 months, Ives said, adding that he thinks there is about a 30 to 35 percent chance the company will need to return to markets for cash. Tesla does have about $1.5 billion in debt due in 2019 — one tranche due in March and another in September.

Read more: Here's what every major Tesla analyst had to say about the cuts.

WATCH: How taxpayers have boosted Elon Musk and Tesla

How taxpayers have boosted Elon Musk and Tesla
10:06 AM ET Mon, 22 Oct 2018 | 07:43

Tesla has $920 million in debt that’s coming due — and it could wipe out a large chunk of its cash

Tesla shares fall after layoff announcement — Five analysts on what's next
2:47 PM ET Fri, 18 Jan 2019 | 06:39

Tesla has a billion dollar debt coming due, and it could wipe out nearly a third of the company's cash if the stock price doesn't improve.

About $920 million in convertible senior notes expires on March 1 at a conversion price of $359.87 per share. But Tesla's stock hasn't traded above $359 for weeks. If the shares are about $359.87, then Tesla's debt converts into Tesla shares. If not, Tesla will have to pay the debt in cash.

Tesla reported cash and cash equivalents of $3 billion at the end of its September quarter. The company continues to reveal pressure to maintain profitability, and announced Friday it would cut 7 percent of its full-time workforce.

Shares fell more than 10 percent Friday following the announcement to trade around $310 per share.

Musk said during the company's third quarter earnings call that Tesla plans to honor the original maturation date.

“The current operating plan is to pay off our debts and not to refinance them but to pay them off and reduce the debt load and overall leverage of the company,” Musk said at the time.

Tesla had previously notified bondholders they could be paid out in a 50-50 mix of cash and common stock, according to Bloomberg. But if the stock doesn't recover above $359 — a gain of 16 percent from Friday's intraday price — by the conversion date, Tesla won't have a choice.

Correction: Tesla reported cash and cash equivalents of $3 billion at the end of its September quarter.

WATCH: Tesla is laying off workers. Here's what investors need to know.

Tesla is laying off workers. Here's what investors need to know.
8:44 AM ET Fri, 18 Jan 2019 | 05:26

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