A few new details about Tesla’s upcoming ‘affordable’ electronic vehicle came out of a talk the company’s founder and CEO Elon Musk gave last week, and Electrek has the key takeaways from the event. Musk shared info around what we can expect from the upcoming mass market ‘Model E’ from the electric car-maker, and those details suggest we’ll see a car with… Read More
If you’ve ever been to a touristy locale, you’ve likely seen flocks of tourists riding Segways—the electric, two-wheeled, lean-steered, (dorky) personal transporters. There are two major problems with them, though: They’re very expensive, and they’re very heavy. But a small company called Inmotion may have just solved those problems. I got to zip around the sidewalk outside this year’s CES on one of InMotion’s SCVs, and I had way more fun than I should have.
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Hybrid and electric cars have gone pretty mainstream. But it’s hard to get a sense of whether the charging infrastructure
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New York City’s iconic (and sometimes terrifying
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Three members of the Palo Alto city council have reportedly proposed a change in the city’s building code that may require new houses to have electric vehicle chargers built-in. Palo Alto Online News reports that city Mayor Greg Scharff, Vice Mayor Nancy Shepherd and council member Gail Price have recommended these changes to be made so that Palo Alto’s reputation as a “national leader in green technology” is further bolstered.
When the proposed changes to the building code come in effect, they won’t apply to houses that have already been built. They’ll make it mandatory for new houses to be wired with the required infrastructure to support electric vehicle charging. The council was told that it would only cost $200 to make the house EV ready during construction, whereas it would cost between $1000 to $2000 to retrofit them after they’ve been built. The ordinances put forward for this purpose have already been unanimously accepted by the Palo Alto city council, but they’re yet to be fully drafted and will still need to be voted on before they’re officially made part of the building code. Palo Alto already has a robust electronic vehicle culture, it is also home to Tesla Motors, one of the biggest players in the electric car market.
Palo Alto Might Make Electric Vehicle Chargers Compulsory For New Houses original content from Ubergizmo. 
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If there are two things in this world that folks just do not respect, it’s the US Congress and the obscene amounts of torque that an electric engine can produce. And like its two-wheeled brethren
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Wireless charging is convenient and is the way forward to meet the challenge of keeping electric vehicles charged. Qualcomm is putting its wireless charging platform through real-world tests by experimenting its Halo Wireless Electric Vehicle Charging (WEVC) technology with a fleet of 50 vehicles in London that includes Delta Motorsport Delta E4 Coupé and Renault’s Fluence ZE EV.
As with most wireless charging technology, WEVC uses inductive charging technology. The installation will require a copper coil in a pad to be installed on the ground and a second pad to be installed on the vehicle. Energy is then transferred between the two pads. To quote Qualcomm’s marketing director Joe Barrett, “Simply put, WEVC works in the same way as an electric tooth brush, only on a larger scale”.
WEVC system can potentially make EV batteries smaller which can be charged faster and more frequently. This can lead to price reduction of EVs and increased adoptions.
“A good example is taxis or car share,” says Barrett. “Taxis can’t plug in and plug out all the time while moving along a taxi line, so wireless is ideal.”
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Automatic Driving Assistant Provides Money-Saving Tips Based On Driving Behavior, Personal Hovercraft Now Seats Two,
[CeBIT 2013] Today at CeBIT, I met with Alix Bowman and Rob Cotter from Organic Transit, the green transportation company behind ELF, an innovative solar / pedal hybrid vehicle. This egg-shaped tricycle can be powered by an electric engine when needed or using pedals just like a bicycle.
The durable shell comes fully equipped with lights, signals and mirrors just like a car, and the battery pack can be recharged using the solar panels located on the roof top (see photo in the gallery) or by plugging in to a wall outlet. Note that the battery was not plugged when I saw ELF on the showfloor at CeBIT (see the electrical cable unplugged in the picture).
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Toyota i-Road Personal Mobility Concept , Urbee 2 To Cross Country On Just 10 Gallons Of Ethanol,
We already know from our own experience that the Tesla Model S is a driver’s car, with acceleration and handling you wouldn’t expect from a big and quiet luxury sedan. There’s still nothing like a drag race to help settle the matter. Automobile has pitted the upscale EV against one of its more conspicuous rivals, BMW’s M5, with performance results that might surprise those who would expect a 500HP, twin-turbo V8 to regularly come out on top. While we won’t spoil the full results of the showdown video after the break, let’s just say that even the M5’s relatively wide torque band can only do so much when the Model S’ electric motor is always at its peak. BMW’s car may be better overall for those who want to travel long distances outside of certain routes, or to enjoy a burly exhaust note — but there has to be a certain thrill for Tesla drivers who know they can hang with the speed kings while helping the environment.
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Tesla Model S squares off against BMW M5 in drag race, gives EVs extra street cred (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Oct 2012 10:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Shai Agassi has guided Better Place’s vision of swap-and-go battery stations for electric cars since it was founded five years ago, but now he’s stepped down as the firm’s CEO. Evan Thornley, who helmed the organization’s Australian efforts, has taken up the mantle of global chief executive officer, while Agassi will continue his role as a board member. As the Wall Street Journal notes, the changing of the guard comes at a time when the company has been spending cash faster than it’s generating revenue thanks to the construction of battery swap stations. Idan Ofer, Chairman of the Better Place Board of Directors sees this as “a natural point in the company’s evolution to realign for its second chapter and for the challenges and opportunities ahead.” Something tells us they wouldn’t mind if future chapters are filled with more swappable batteries than Superchargers.
Continue reading Better Place founder Shai Agassi steps down from CEO post
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Better Place founder Shai Agassi steps down from CEO post originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 03 Oct 2012 23:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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