Author: Andy Williams

Toyota and Oncor Electric Delivery have agreed to collaborate on a pilot project around vehicle-to-grid (V2G), a technology that allows vehicles to flow energy from their battery back onto the electric grid. The effort will be led by Toyota’s Electric Vehicle Charging Solutions (EVCS) team, marking an important first collaboration with a public utility for Toyota in the U.S. around Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs). The results from the research will allow Toyota and Oncor to be better prepared to support the broader EV charging ecosystem in the United States. Further, these efforts will allow Toyota to elevate the customer experience…

Plug Power to purchase up to 75 Nikola Tre hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles for green hydrogen delivery. Plug Power order Nikola Tre FCEV for over the next three years, with the first trucks being delivered in 2023. The Nikola trucks will help to deliver green hydrogen to customers in North America as part of Plug’s commitment to advancing the decarbonization of energy. The acquired FCEVs will be paired with Plug’s liquid hydrogen tankers, which are recognized as market-leading trailers manufactured with unprecedented over-the-road payloads. The Nikola Tre fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) is a hydrogen-powered cabover for longer or…

Honda is leveraging advanced virtual reality (VR) technology to develop future products ranging from the full-electric 2024 Honda Prologue to the rugged, all-new 2023 Honda Pilot TrailSport. VR has quickly become a critical tool for Honda designers in the development of future mobility products. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic travel restrictions threatened the ability of Honda designers to collaborate with engineers on the design of the all-new Prologue. The styling team in the Honda Design Studio in Los Angeles leading Prologue’s design accelerated the use of VR to bridge the divide among its global design and development teams.…

Recently, McLaren Applied launched its newest electric scooter through its subsidiary, Lavoie, called Lavoie Series 1. Made of automotive-grade magnesium and weighing approximately 16.5 kg, the e-scooter is equipped with McLaren’s patented one-touch Flowfold system. Regarding power, the Lavoie Series 1 is equipped with a battery that is claimed to have a range of up to 31 miles from just two hours of charging via a domestic three-pin plug. The electric scooter also features a lighting system featuring a rear light to illuminate the rider, while a deck mounted spotlight is configured at the front to ensure road visibility. The…

StoreDothas already achieved all its planned milestones for 2022 and remains firmly on track for its 100inX strategic technology roadmap. Announced this year, the roadmap will see the delivery of mass-produced battery cells capable of 100 miles of range in five minutes of charge by 2024, 100 miles in three minutes by 2028, and 100 miles in two minutes by 2032. This year has been a critical one for StoreDot. While achieving ground-breaking fast charging performance, it has rapidly expanded its business, its global partners and footprint, and its portfolio of connections with global automotive manufacturers. In collaboration with its…

SOLiTHOR who is at the forefront of next generation solid-state lithium batteries has entered into a 10-year contract with Punch Powertrain NV – global pioneers of innovative transmission systems solutions for combustion, hybrid and electric vehicles – to establish a European Centre of Excellence for solid-state lithium batteries at its site in Sint Truiden, Belgium.  The contract gives SOLiTHOR 3,000 sq. metres of plant site, owned by the investment company, LRM which has excellent facilities including test rooms that are built to a very high standard and are ready for immediate use. SOLiTHOR will move into the plant in January 2023 and…

MINOR FIXES This release contains minor bug fixes and improvements. FULL SELF-DRIVING (BETA) SUSPENSION For maximum safety and accountability, use of Full Self-Driving (Beta) will be suspended if improper usage is detected. Improper usage is when you, or another driver of your vehicle, receive five ‘Forced Autopilot Disengagements’. A disengagement is when the Autopilot system disengages for the remainder of a trip after the driver receives several audio and visual warnings for inattentiveness. Driver-initiated disengagements do not count as improper usage and are expected from the driver. Keep your hands on the wheel and remain attentive at all times. Use…

Sion Power announced plans to expand its existing manufacturing operations in Tucson, Arizona. The planned expansion site is the 111,400-square-foot building at 6950 South Country Club Road. The expansion is expected to be complete by 2026 and create over 150 jobs. New jobs will primarily be engineering, skilled technicians, and other manufacturing-related positions. The overall economic impact of the expansion is $341 million over the next five years. Sion Power’s headquarters will remain in its nearby location at 2900 East Elvira Road, doubling its footprint. Sion Power chose to expand because of its rich history, access and the availability of…

Nissan will launch a new electric sports car at the end of this decade. The car, which is named the Nismo Electric Sport Car, is predicted to be a replacement for the Nissan GT-R. “We have a very important vision in Europe, which is a new car. The UK is a strategic and special region for us, especially for car performance. So we will introduce an attractive model to the UK market under the Nismo brand,” said Nissan CEO Takao Katagiri. Nissan has not announced when it will launch the Nismo Electric. Many have speculated that Nissan is not in…

Volkswagen is delaying plans to build a gigafactory for electric car batteries in eastern Europe after 2022 due to the economic situation and high energy prices in the region. “Volkswagen AG and its battery company PowerCo are continuously evaluating suitable sites for their next gigafactory in Europe,” said the automaker. “There is no pressure to act as we take some more time for decision-making in the light of current circumstances,” he said. “At present, there is no impact on planned start of construction or start of production.” The European Union is concerned about the investment exodus to the United States…

Hyundai is working with technology company SomaCap to create a new technology that allows car owners to open doorknobs by simply waving their hands. The movement required is not just waving your hands. The car owner can later determine a special movement that is indeed a special identity so that the car door opens. The sensor made by SomaCap will later be installed on the door handles of every Hyundai car. The sensor will be able to detect the presence of the car owner within a certain distance. The sensor will then open the door automatically if the presence of…

The latest appearance of the Fisker Ronin has arrived on the company’s website page. The four-door convertible render offers a new look and is claimed to have the furthest range of any production electric vehicle. The rendering shows the Ronin from a front angle. The Ronin has a light strip that wraps around the front. Rendel pictures show no Ronin grille, but it appears that the front bumper has air intakes. The Ronin has the low profile and big wheels like most electric vehicles on the market today. The Ronin has a dihedral front door that opens in the renders,…

Apple on Wednesday (7/12/2022) confirmed that it would delay the launch of its electric car until 2026. Quoted from Carscoops, the plan was postponed because Apple felt that the presence of an electric vehicle without a steering wheel and pedals was not possible at this time. As is well known, Apple is eager to produce electric cars with level 5 autonomous technology, but this technology cannot be implemented because there is still a lack of EVs with similar technology plus material prices which are relatively expensive. Therefore, the technology giant based in Cupertino, United States will postpone the targeted EV…

Formula E has completed the race schedule which will take place in 2023. With Portland, the United States as a complement. New York’s regular Brooklyn Street Circuit is undergoing renovations at Red Hook Cruise Terminal, so New York will not be able to host next season. After a World Motor Sport Council meeting, it was confirmed that Portland would hold its 12th series race on June 24. In addition, the schedule on May 20 will be removed so that in a season there are only 16 races. It also emphasized that Formula E eliminated Seoul, Korea due to repairs to…

The demand for electric cars continues to increase every year and Mercedes-Benz wants to continue to satisfy the needs of customers who want electricity. The German automaker has been building electric luxury vehicles for several years and plans to offer an electric alternative for all models in its lineup by 2025. They are moving fast towards the zero-emissions vision that Mercedes-Benz achieves for the future, and to support that, they have just opened the world’s first dedicated electric car dealership Mercy, located in Japan. The new store is a black, two-story building located in Yokohama, just south of Tokyo. Mercedes…

Lexus is developing a manual transmission simulation for future electric cars. This technology wants to give the excitement of a traditional car by changing its own gear but in a modern electric car. Takashi Watanabe, Chief Engineering of Lexus Electrified, said the idea for a manual transmission in an electric car arose when engineers discussed what they liked about traditional cars or internal combustion engines (ICE). Indeed, electric cars have constant torque from the moment you step on the gas pedal, but the presence of this technology will make you feel happy while driving. In fact, this project could be…

Tesla Semi finally began to be distributed to its customers on December 1, 2022. Pepsi became the first company to use this electric truck created by Elon Musk. There was some new information that was obtained when this truck was launched, especially from the propulsion side. Power-wise, Tesla claims the Semi has three times the power of a diesel truck in its class. This power can make the Semi accelerate from 0-96.5 kph in 20 seconds while carrying a full charge. The Tesla Semi can carry loads of up to 37 tons one way. Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, said…

The Polestar 2 has earned the coveted five-star safety rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The Polestar 2 is the only electric car in the current test round to earn five stars in each category. Achievements make this electric sedan one of the safest new cars on American roads. This is a win for the Swedish brand, following reports of some major power outages earlier this year. “Building on last year’s 5-Star EuroNCAP rating, we are happy to announce that Polestar 2 has also received the benchmark 5-star rating from the NHTSA in the United States,” said…

Xiaomi hasn’t unveiled its first electric vehicle yet, but the technology giant from China has ambitions to become one of the world’s largest electric vehicle manufacturers The Chinese tech giant founded Xiaomi Automobile in September 2021 with an initial investment of $1.39 billion and has been hard at work developing electric vehicles 14 months since. Although so far known as an electronics company far from the automotive industry, Xiaomi founder Lei Jun via his Twitter account said the company he leads targets selling more than 10 million vehicles annually. “The manufacturing threshold of EVs has been dramatically lower compared to…

VinFast held a ceremony to mark its first batch of exports of smart electric vehicles including 999 VF 8s to international markets. This event is a remarkable milestone in the history of Vietnam’s automotive industry as Vietnamese-branded electric cars have officially entered the global market. The first batch of 999 VF 8s has been exported to the United States. This batch was transported by the Silver Queen – a Panamanian charter ship – and is expected to arrive in a California port (USA) about 20 days after deporting from MPC Port in Hai Phong, Vietnam. The first VinFast customers in…