Electric Vehicle - Nissan Leaf vs. Mitsubishi i-MiEV endurance race

The people of The Mew Motion here in the Netherlands have done a little endurance test with a Nissan Leaf and a Mitsubishi iMiev. The aim was not to get the biggest distance as possible with these <a href="http:///www.myhev.com">electric vehicles</a>, but to see what the range would be under normal conditions. The test was performed at the Dutch racing track at Zandvoort (so perhaps it was not really normal performance, but racing performance instead?).

Check out the video below, they have made it available in English as well and see how both cars perform around the track:

Electric Vehicle - Glimpse BMW’s Slick, Sexy Electric Future

"I love it when a plan comes together!", seems very much applicable to the electric vehicle program from BMW. Dubbed under the i-brand (does Apple know of this by the way?), the first two releases will be the all electric i3 city vehicle and the hybrid i8. Both would qualify still as the 'Ultimate driving machine' associated with the other BMW models. 

The price tag seems a bit steep, though it is from a premium brand and contains lots of the more expensive materials to construct cars with, being carbon fiber. On the other hand, I always thought the i3 and the i8 would not be for sale, but for lease/rent only? ("Screwed, glued & rented"?).

As a little bonus I've included an interview with Richard Kim, the designer for BMW's i-brand.

If you have details concerning the financial side of these cars I'd love to hear; leave a comment or contact me through Twitter / Linked In.

Twitter: @my_hev

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Glimpse BMW’s Slick, Sexy Electric Future
http://www.wired.com/autopia/2011/11/bmw-i-drive-electric-vehicles/

“This was a dream project in 2008,” vehicle exterior designer Richard Kim told us. “We had the opportunity to reinvent and redefine the car.”

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- Roelof

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Electric Vehicle - Electric Rolls-Royce Phantom 102EX – Drive Reviews

Rolls Royce has put their electric vehicle prototype out on the road for testing. It is the most luxurious, heaviest battery hauling vehicle out there at the moment, weighing just over 3000 kg! 

Earlier on Rolls also announced their partnership with HaloIPT, to enable wireless charging of their luxury vehicle. Recently HaloIPT was acquired by QualComm, but I hope the relation with Rolls still stands. 

A nice test vehicle to see where the Rolls are going to, where Rolls says to skip hybrids and go straight for electric, a wise decision in my opinion.

Electric Rolls-Royce Phantom 102EX – Drive Reviews
http://www.bmwblog.com/2011/11/12/electric-rolls-royce-phantom-102ex-drive-reviews/

The 6.75-liter V-12 was replaced by a massive 71-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery housed within the aluminum spaceframe. Rolls-Royce is using large-form NCM pouch cells, or lithium-nickel-cobalt-manganese-oxide to be exact. Due to its experimental nature, the 96 cells are separated into 5 modules (38-, 36-, 10-, 8-, and 4-cell units) and arranged in such a way that the overall battery takes on the shape of an engine and transmission.

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- Roelof

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Electric Vehicle - 4 German EVs Head-to-Head

Nothing as exciting as a little competition, especially between electric vehicles. This nice post linked below summarizes and compares four German EVs to see what they have in common and what the differences are.

Which of these four would you pick? I think I'd go for the BMW i3 here, I'm a big fan of the work BMW is doing with their i3 and i8. 

German Electric Car Battle: Audi A2 v BMW i3 v Benz B-Class E-Cell v VW Golf Blue eMotion
http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1066009_german-electric-car-battle-audi-a2-v-bmw-i3-v-benz-b-class-e-cell-v-vw-golf-blue-emotion

One very clear message: German carmakers are taking electric cars seriously. Finally.

Both Audi and BMW unveiled electric-car concepts that are thinly disguised versions of models that will go into production in 2013 and 2014. Mercedes-Benz showed a range-extended electric version of its new B-Class compact hatchback, and Volkswagen again showed its Golf Blue eMotion prototype electric car.

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- Roelof

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Electric Vehicle - Nissan handing out 400 Quick Chargers in Europe

Quick Charging is seen as one of the viable solutions to allow longer trips with an electric vehicle in a reasonable time. To promote their Leafs, Nissan is providing a quick charge solution and giving 400 of them in Europe to strategic partners. A great example which will probably lead to more quick chargers being installed, enabling cross European trips in your EV.

I'm a little surprised to see it will be an AC/DC Quick Charger, though it is understandably to facilitate for Renaults vehicles from their alliance point of view. The only other reason I can think of is to be ready for whichever technology will become the standard in the future. Also looking at the current discussions on the SAE standards, the 'Tesla-plug' and the technologies applied in the rest of the world (where CHAdeMO is dominating in my opinion), it might be smart for Nissan to be able to bet on more than one option.

Nissan accelerating rollout of EV quick charge network in Europe by giving away 400 stations
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2011/11/nissanqc-20111108.html

The QC stations are also ‘AC-ready’ to support the arrival of EVs from Alliance partner Renault designed to 43kW AC quick charge standards. The Renault-Nissan Alliance is promoting infrastructure deployment based on AC-DC Mix Quick Charger strategy.

The move follows an agreement between Nissan and five of Europe’s leading utility and EV infrastructure supply companies to speed up the provision of the latest quick chargers developed by Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., which are less expensive—up to half the previous price—and smaller than before. The target is to have a network of quick charge stations across Europe with several thousand units in place by the end of 2012 and tens of thousands by 2015.

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- Roelof

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Electric Vehicle - The 800-1600km EV Battery is in the Lab

For all the money being poured into the electric vehicle industry, the most is going to develop better batteries. With a current range averaging around 160 km on a full charge, the latest developments in the lab show a hint of the Lithium-Air technology enabling a 800-1600 km range on a full charge. While the technology is still in full development and not ready to be applied to a commercially available vehicle, it will make the question of range anxiety obsolete.

Though I would not recommend driving the 800 km in one go, having such a battery available does raise the question if you would want to charge it along your trips. With such a huge capacity you could use a current state fast charger to regain roughly 20% of your capacity during one of your regular breaks on such a long trip.

The Lithium Air UltraBattery Makes Progress
http://electric-vehicles-cars-bikes.blogspot.com/2011/11/lithium-air-battery-makes-progress.html

Metal air batteries are at this date, the mountain top goal of energy density. At a low of 5 times the energy of an equivalent standard lithium battery, a point needs made. Many will surmise that the battery at market would be 1/5th the size. That would suggest the same number of cycles in a time period. But if costs are down for an air battery such that the capacity is 5 times then the cycles would be 1/5th as often – making the lifetime 5 times longer as well. The choices aren’t going to get easier, but they are getting simpler.

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Electric Vehicle - 700 BMW Active E for lease

The second stage of the BMW electric vehicle program is on its way; the first stage was the Mini E, now is the BMW 1 Series converted to the Active E. A good looking car with a nice set of specs, and some promising statistics, also be sure to check out the 'swooshing' video below.

The only pity I think is it will only be available in the USA to my knowledge, if you happen to know of any EU pilots being done, I'd love to hear about it. Feel free to contact me on Twitter, Linked In or via the comments, your help is much appreciated.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/B1vof6y5MAY

The queue starts for 700 BMW Active E leases [video]
http://electric-vehicles-cars-bikes.blogspot.com/2011/10/queue-starts-for-700-bmw-active-e.html

The first such trial was for the electric Mini Cooper, the Mini E, which leased for $850 per month. Those Minis provided key development information and most have since been returned to BMW.

The Active E lease will be available for a limited number of customers in the metropolitan areas surrounding Boston, Hartford, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, San Diego, and Sacramento.

(via Instapaper)

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- Roelof

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Electric Vehicle - Tesla Model S - For Sold Out?

The Model S Tesla was revealed and everybody is positive about this electric wonder on wheels (or a "unicorn" as Tesla's Elon Musk has also referred to it). This electric vehicle boasts many impressive specs; it can seat 7, has an impressive speed and acceleration and great handling. The super-sized iPad in the front allaws for a myriad of functions for entertainment and vehcle control purposes.

The only thing that is not to be liked about it? It is already sold out! In another interview Elon Musk has mentioned that the production of next year (about 6500) have all been sold already in advance. 

Hard not to be impressed with the Tesla Model S
http://www.hybridcarblog.com/hard-not-to-be-impressed-with-the-tesla-model-s/

I mean what kind of station wagon offers a coefficient of drag of just .22? That’s just unbelievably brilliant, especially for an EV that is going to offer twice the EV range — 160 miles – of today’s plug-ins, as its base model. The high end model will offer a whopping 320 miles. That’s just ridiculous.

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Tesla's Musk Says Model S Sold Out

Always good to see Elon talk so enthusiasticly about my passion; electric vehicles. Go check this out and try the (free) Bloomberg TV+ for iPad app while you're at it.

Sent from Bloomberg TV+ for iPad

Watch this http://mobile.bloomberg.com/share/video/00MHF4MjqOBzgLUZfJ4m9F91kjdGzwMQ

Tesla's Musk Says Model S Sold Out
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla Motors, says the electric car maker will turn a profit in 2013

Download the FREE Bloomberg TV+ iPad app from http://itunes.apple.com/app/bloomberg-tv/id460459302&mt=8

Article: 50 Companies Team to Create Open Source EV

An open source electric vehicle is not something I read about everyday. This one was constructed with a total of 50 different industry and science partners, a great feat in itself to come up with such a vehicle with so many participants in just 12 months. 

Congratulations to all who are involved on this job well done, hope to see this go to larger scale production and hit the streets.

50 Companies Team to Create Open Source EV
http://www.wired.com/autopia/2011/10/meet-the-one-modular-ev-created-by-fifty-companies/

The StreetScooter is a $7,000 EV with a 74 mph top speed and an 80-mile range. It relies on leased batteries and uses a heat pump for heating and air conditioning, and shipping company DHL has already ordered 3,500 of them — but the most interesting thing about the vehicle is how it came to be.

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- Roelof

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Electric Vehicle - Nissan develops 10-minute electric car charger

Charging an electric vehicle can take a long time if you have to wait for it, though most studies suggest that most of the consumers will charge their vehicles while at home or work and charge their car in the 90% of the time they don't use it.

Fast charging is another option, where untill now you could get 0-80% charge in under 30 minutes, Nissan has developped a technology that will take just 10 minutes. It might be a while before we see this to become common technology in the EV industry, but we're bound to see this, or a competing technology, surface and smoothen our longer EV rides.

Nissan develops 10-minute electric car charger
http://electric-vehicles-cars-bikes.blogspot.com/2011/10/nissan-develops-10-minute-electric-car.html

The breakthrough reportedly came by changing the electrode inside a capacitor from carbon to tungsten oxide and vanadium oxide to improve power, reports Asean Automotive News.

Batteries charged using the updated system were complete in ten minutes, with no significant effect on storage capacity or voltage, the reports said.

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Electric Vehicle - Audi Introduce Electric Vehicle Wireless Charging @ Frankfurt

Another brand is exploring wireless power transfer to charge up their electric vehicle. After Rolls Royce's partnering with Halo IPT, also Audi understands the potential of this technology.

With special <a href="http://www. inductrophy.com">races</a> being organized (by for example Hotroad ) and also taxi and bus applications being promoted by numerous parties, we might have our future highways a lot sooner than many dare dream.

Audi Introduce Electric Vehicle Wireless Charging @ Frankfurt
http://electric-vehicles-cars-bikes.blogspot.com/2011/09/audi-introduce-wireless-charging.html

The charging process begins automatically when the EV drives onto the plate. The alternating magnetic field of the infrastructure side induces an alternating current across the air gap in the secondary coil, which is integrated into the vehicle. This current is rectified and fed into the vehicle’s electrical system, where it charges the battery or powers consumers such as the heater. The alternating field is only generated if the vehicle is standing over the plate and thus poses no danger to people or animals.

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- Roelof

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Electric Vehicle - Battery technology: Highly charged

A nice promising breakthrough in the electric vehicle batteries, where the rate at which a battery can be recharged is greatly improved. From 0-90% in 2 minutes seems within reach at an increased cost of 20-30% of the battery.

The technology increases the area of the battery that is used in the (electro)chemical reactions, thus allowing a larger amount of electrons and ions to travel. Currently it is only applied on the cathode. Dr. Braun is currently looking into applying it to the anode of the battery as well, so expect another improvement there.

Great stuff!

A Nissan Leaf battery, charged to 90% in 2 minutes? It might be just around the corner...

Battery technology: Highly charged | The Economist
http://www.economist.com/node/18437910

The battery-maker’s dilemma is that the recharging rate depends on the area of contact between electrolyte and electrode. A thin, sandwich-like arrangement, in which cathode, electrolyte and anode are close together, can thus be discharged and recharged rapidly. However, this speed comes at a price. The amount of energy a battery can store depends on the volume of its electrodes, so a thin battery does not last long. What is needed is a way to increase contact area without sacrificing volume. And that is what Dr Braun has found. Moreover, his solution looks suitable for mass production.

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Electric Vehicle - Automated Highway Driving

While this technology is not limited to an electric vehicle, there are some added benefits if it would be applied on EVs. ( detailed <a href="http://www.myhev.com/electric-vehicle/electric-vehicles-the-gadgets-on-your-next-car">here</a> )

Some nice progress from BMW as well in this area, where in highway conditions the autonomous car can overtake slower vehicles and give way to vehicles looking to merge in on the highway. A nice road ahead with developments still, keep an eye out for these guys.

BMW: Automated Highway Driving
http://www.bmwblog.com/2011/08/30/bmw-automated-highway-driving/

“This is an entirely new situation and experience for the driver – it is a strange feeling handing over complete control of the car to an autonomous system. But after a few minutes of experiencing the smooth, sovereign and safe driving style, drivers and passengers begin to relax somewhat and  trust the independent system,” says Nico Kämpchen, Project Manager for Highly Automated Driving at BMW Group Research and Technology.“ Nevertheless, the driver is still responsible for the situation at all times and must constantly keep an eye on traffic and the surroundings.”

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Electric Vehicle - Rice University develops Solid State Supercaps

A nice breakthrough in super capacitors brings this technology another step closer to making it into our next electric vehicle. Supercaps are great at supplying a lot of power in short bursts, but lack the ability to supply power for longer durations. Research aims to either get batteries with higher possible (dis)charge rated, but also on supercaps with a higher energy density so they can hold more charge for a longer period. The future battery, or energy storage may be a hybrid in itself, combining battery and supercap properties alike.

Rice University team develops new solid-state supercapacitors with high energy and power densities
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2011/08/rice-20110823.html

“All solid-state solutions to energy storage will be intimately integrated into many future devices, including flexible displays, bio-implants, many types of sensors and all electronic applications that benefit from fast charge and discharge rates.” —Dr. Robert Hauge

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Electric Vehicle - How an Electric Motorcycle Made Record Time

News from the world of the two-wheeled electric vehicle, there's a new record set on the track and it just blew the competition away. What a bit of tuning in the software can lead to becomes clear in this story, but also people becoming more and more aware of the technology.

Q&A: How an Electric Motorcycle Made Record Time
http://www.wired.com/autopia/2011/08/record-lap-time-proves-electric-motorcycles-are-for-real/

There’s nothing coming up right now and I’m bummed because I wanna ride the bike because it’s such a fun bike to ride. I like using analogies to compare things, but I can’t because there’s just nothing really like it out there. It’s not the novelty or the newness of it, it’s just how easy it is to ride and the way the power comes on. There’s no shifting with your feet or hands and you have a lot of time just to worry about riding the bike. You’re not worrying about the gearing and all the other things that go with gas bikes.

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- Roelof

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Electric Vehicle - 32.1 million electrified vehicles in 2025

The numbers of the electric vehicle on the roads are slowly increasing. Currently there are about 1600+ Tesla Roadsters on the roads, globally. In the Netherlands there are 109 Nissan Leafs driving around. Today I came across this report predicting 32 million electrified vehicles, global. That includes hybrids as well. 

Obviously such numbers are not the goal in itself, but do provide insight in how positive the providers of these predictions are of EV (and hybrid) success.

Worldwide sales of electrified vehicles to hit 32.1 million in 2025
http://green.autoblog.com/2011/08/05/worldwide-sales-of-electrified-vehicles-to-hit-32-1-million-in-2/

Fuji Keizai breaks down its 32.1-million unit figure like this:
- Standard hybrid vehicles: 13.86 million
- Plug-in hybrids: 11.48 million
- Pure electric vehicles: 5.75 million
- Fuel cell vehicles: 1 million

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Electric Vehicles - Renault concerned about silent electric F1 cars in the pit lane

The F1 is adopting a lot of typical electric vehicle technologies, or is it the other way around? Under discussion at the moment is to have F1 cars drive fully electric in the pit lane, but Renault sees a small problem: the lack of sound.

in similar discussions, not related to F1, but to normal electric vehicles, the general solution is to add sound to the car when it is in "EV-mode"; easy enough, also for an F1 car.

Renault concerned about silent electric F1 cars in the pit lane
http://green.autoblog.com/2011/07/26/renault-concerned-about-silent-electric-f1-cars-in-the-pit-lane/

the pit lane is the only spot on the track where people and cars meet – often in very close proximity – with mechanics out in the open and team strategists running between their team’s garage to the pit wall

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Electric Vehicle - Discoverers of graphene bring graphene-based electronics a step closer

One technical area where we can still greatly improve the electric vehicle is in the battery department. One promising technology sofar is called graphene, a material build up of a sheet of carbon. What make graphene so special then? It is only one atom thick! For an impression refer to the image attached to this post.

Graphene is said to have great mechanical strength, but also in conductivity. This last property makes interesting for electronics, but alsofor batteries. In a battery it can help increase the rate of charging (or discharging, but that has not really been a big issue yet). Keep an eye out for more news on this material.

Discoverers of graphene bring graphene-based electronics a step closer
http://www.gizmag.com/graphene-based-electronics-a-step-closer/19329/

“Although the exciting physics which we have found in this particular experiment may have an immediate implementation in practical electronic devices, the further understanding of the electronic properties of this material will bring us a step closer to the development of graphene electronics,” said Professor Novoselov.

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Electric Vehicle - GM and ABB provide Second Life for Volt battery packs

The batteries used in an electric vehicle can get worn during the use over many years, or extensive driving. Experts still debate about when a battery is to be called 'not good enough for an EV' and the value of such used batteries.

One way to improve the economics of this is to use the used EV batteries as a powet buffer in the energy grid, for which GM and ABB are now running a demonstration project. In the future, your old car battery might help you out during power outages, or just shave peak loads in the grid and save you money. The Second Life for batteries is upon us!

GM and ABB demonstrate prototype of Volt battery pack grid re-use application
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2011/07/gmabb-20110721.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+greencarcongress%2FTrBK+%28Green+Car+Congress%29

Earlier this year, General Motors signed a definitive agreement with ABB Group to identify joint research and development projects that would reuse Chevrolet Volt battery systems, which will have up to 70% of life remaining after their automotive use is exhausted. (Earlier post.) Using Volt battery cells, the ABB and GM team is building a prototype system for 25-kilowatt/50-kWh applications, about the same power consumption of five US homes or small retail and industrial facilities.

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