Volkswagen

Auto manufacturers collaborate on harmonized EV fast charging solution

Audi, BMW, Daimler, Ford, General Motors, Porsche and Volkswagen have agreed to support a harmonized single-port fast charging approach for use on electric vehicles in Europe and the United States.

Modular 'micro-mild' hybrid technology - reducing CO2 emissions

Incremental manufacturing cost is €50-60 for every 1 per cent reduction in CO2 emissions compared with the €200-500 per cent typical for full hybrids. Further value enhancements are possible if the automotive industry were to standardise around the proposed 48 volt power networks developing in Europe.

Struggling Chinese e-taxi rollout

In mid 2011, Reuters reported that, even with government support and the popular support of e-taxi customers, challenges remain for electric vehicles such as the e-taxis to gain broader acceptance and widespread use. In China, charging stations are few and far between, repair shops are hard to find and the pure electric cars used as taxis are costly. Even after generous government support, the Shenzhen e-taxi costs 80% more than the Volkswagen Santana that is a typical taxi on the streets of Shenzhen.

Electric Vehicle Range Extenders - Rival Approaches

Led by the Japanese and with Hyundai of Korea, the Europeans and the Americans coming up fast, we are in the decade of the hybrid vehicle, with much more being spent on them than on pure electric vehicles. This is because traction batteries alone cannot affordably provide sufficient range in most of the large applications by land, sea or air.

Impressions from Plug In 2011 USA

We attended the Plug In 2011 event in Raleigh North Carolina last week. In contrast to the successful IDTechEx event }}Electric Vehicles Land Sea Air | http://www.idtechex.com/electric-vehicles-europe-11/}} event in Stuttgart Germany, this had the more typical focus of cars. Organised by the Electric Power Research Institute and with many prestigious sponsors, it was a great success with over 600 attending on a given day excluding the public openings.

Electric vehicle range extenders - a large new market

This article shares some of the research in the new IDTechEx report, {{Range Extenders for Electric Vehicles | http://www.idtechex.com/research/reports/range-extenders-for-electric-vehicles-2011-2021-000276.asp}}. We are in the age of the hybrid electric vehicle which is strongly outselling the pure electric vehicle in market value though not in numbers over the next decade.

BASF and Dow move further into EV technology

The world's largest chemical company is either BASF of Germany or Dow Chemical of the USA, depending on how you make the measurement. Both have been belatedly but strongly entering the electric vehicle business with materials and participation in device manufacturing joint ventures.

Goodbye 100 mile range electric vehicles

150 miles range is the new benchmark for affordable electric vehicles: the 100 miles range of today's pure electric vehicles will quickly become an embarrassment.

Volkswagen steps up its use of plug-in hybrid technology

At the 32nd International Vienna Motor Symposium, the Chairman of the Volkswagen Group, Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn, announced that the Volkswagen Group will be going into production with a range of important models with plug-in hybrid technology starting in 2013/14.

Audi R8 e-tron: A look inside the development workshop

The first all-electric Audi will be built at the Neckarsulm site, with a small production run of the R8 e-tron sports car to hit the roads in late 2012.

Energy harvesting for automotive applications

Energy harvesters do not necessarily make sense in all potential applications where a battery is replaced.

Electric Vehicles - But Not As We Know Them

Today's electric family cars are useless in telling us anything about the future. The design and adoption of electric vehicles is subject to sudden change driven by surprising factors. The unique event "Electric Vehicles - Land Sea Air" in Stuttgart, Germany is alone in looking at the big picture in order to clarify what is really going on.

China to lead the EV era

China is expected to become the first nation to broadly commercialise electric vehicles for regular, personal use, a recent report suggests. With significant governmental support, vast lithium supplies and a rapidly growing economy, China is likely to beat the United States in the EV race.

Spike in electric vehicle sales predicted in major cities

Recent research conducted by a global management consulting firm predicts a sharp rise in electric vehicle purchases leading into 2012, expecting sales in New York to account for 16 percent of new buys. Hybrid and pure electric vehicles are also expected to account for 9 percent of new vehicles in Paris and 5 percent in Shanghai.

In-wheel electric motors gain market share

In-wheel motors were popular in cars over 100 years ago because they did not intrude into passenger space. An example is shown below. However, they were expensive and they adversely affected the ride and steering. One motor seizing could sometimes lock a wheel.

La Poste receive first electric delivery vans

In 2008 a number of EV manufacturers turned their attention to France where a contract was offered for the production of 500 electric vans for the national postal service La Poste. One of the forerunners competing for the contract was PSA Peugeot Citroen with their pure electric vans based on the Peugeot Partner Origin and Citroën Berlingo First.

Volkswagen reveals its latest Super Efficient Vehicle

Volkswagen recently unveiled its new two-seater diesel-electric hybrid concept car at the Qatar Motor Show in Doha. The XL1 claims to be the world's most efficient car.

Electric vehicles in India - Part two

A consortium led by micro gas turbine company Bladon Jets recently secured investment from the UK Technology Strategy Board to develop an Ultra Lightweight Range Extender (ULRE) for next-generation electric vehicles.

Think attracts Japanese investment

This month, Japanese manufacturer Itochu has made an initial $5m investment in Think, expanding their partnership to market and distribute the Think City model and drive system in Asia.

Germany catching up in electric vehicles

Germany is the strongest trading nation in Europe with the broadest and deepest automotive activity. However, the strategy of the German government and its automotive industry has been deeply flawed.