It appears that the GM liason member to the Transformers 2 movie will be losing their job today? Why? See the photos here that apparently leaked that show the PRODUCTION Chevy Volt driving around. How does it look, pretty sharp. It’s very different than the original Concept Vehicle, and looks a lot more like recent Honda’s and the Scion tC, but it has very clean sharp lines still. The original video was pulled down within an hour(way to go GM Legal!), but there is another copy of it here, so click the link to check it out.
At the International British Auto Show last week, GM’s Europe head, Carl-Peter Forster, took on the avalanche of e-Flex related questions from the European media. For those who don’t already know, e-Flex is the new electric based architecture that GM is deploying first with the Chevy Volt(and European cousin, the Flextreme) that will allow a “dual fuel” option for cars with regular gas/fuel cell/natural gas/whatever on long trips, and elecric only batteries for less than 50 mile trips.
Forster posted responses to the questions from the show on a GM blog and confirmed the following:
1. e-Flex vehicles will arrive in Europe in 2011.
2. Opel/Vauxhall(UK) will be the first brand to arrive.
3. The first Opel e-Flex vehicles will be built in Detroit until European production, which appears to be the UK first, ramps up.
4. Styling will likely be closer to the Flextreme concept vehicle(see below) than the Volt, but they aren’t giving any final designs away yet.
Left out? Will it be using the same 1.4L petrol based engine that has been confirmed for the Chevy Volt production line. Our bet? It will be a smaller one, as it will save fuel further and help with the ever increasing European Union CO2 emissions requirements.
Finally, the moment has arrived!Here at the British International Motor Show this week, the Lightning Car Company has pulled back the curtain, and revealed a very very sexy looking car. Very modern and sleek, but harkens back to the curvy elegance of a classic British Aston Martin.A powerful front fascia, with a tight rounded rear end (to) boot!
So, is this basically a British version of the Tesla Roadster?Yes and no.Performance is roughly the same between the two, but the technology has some significant differences, and the car comes with much better creature comforts like electronic door entry, satellite navigation, and a generous leather package.
There are two main technology differences to speak of.First, there are no single speed transmission issues a la Tesla.The Lightning GT uses the Hi-Pa Drive motors that are located in each of the wheels, just like the Volvo ReCharge concept plug-in vehicle.This apparently gives the car better brake regeneration and superior traction control.Second, the GT sports the Altairnano based batteries called NanoSafe.While these have a lower total range (approximately 180miles) and energy density than A123 or LG/Compact Power based batteries, they are able to recharge in less than 10 minutes, and take an 80% charge in only 3 minutes.Rated for at least 10 years or 15,000 recharge cycles, this is a serious advantage over other Lithium based batteries–if you have access to industrial grade power sources.Else, it will charge at home off regular power overnight like the other slow charge capable battery formulations.Chris Dell, Managing Director for Lightning Car, says they are talking with various businesses around Britain like Tesco (the UK’s Wal-Mart) to get fast charge charging stations set up at their locations, and will let us know when there are any agreements finalized.
So, what’s the downside?Well, while it looks to be a sleeker looking vehicle than the Tesla Roadster, it is priced at £120,000 and it’s still vapor-ware, as it will be at least a year till the first one ships (and you need to put down a £15,000 deposit).So, if you have the cash burning, buy a Tesla now, then trade up to a Lightning GT when it ever becomes available. Enjoy the video clip below…
Interesting isn’t it?UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown has committed to spending 90 million UK pounds for development of clean emissions vehicles in the UK.Then, all of a sudden….GM is reversing its previous plan to build plug-in cars in the USA, and ship to Europe.It is now considering selling Opel and Vauxhall (UK origin brand) plug-ins built in Britain at the Ellesmere Port plant.
According to Bob Lutz himself(GM global Chairman), GM believes it will sell at least 30,000 E-Flex based cars in Europe it’s first year, with a goal of over one million E-Flex based cars a year worldwide by 2020.
It seems like a lot, but considering that the US alone sells over 15 million cars a year itself, it’s not as ambitious as it could be.Still its 12 years away, so specific production targets for over two car development cycles away is somewhat silly.
Gordon Brown would like to see all new cars sold in the UK to be all electric by 2020.A lofty goal indeed(read:Not going to happen), but one that could be helped quite a bit if GM does ramp up plug-ins production at the Ellesmere Port plant or others in the UK.
GM may be a slow starter, but they are in full catch up mode now. In addition to the widely publicized Volt e-Flex vehicle platform, they are putting increasing resources into other parallel paths towards electric drive vehicles.
GM already has crossovers[CUV’s] and regular cars with mild hybrids, large SUV’s with two mode hybrid systems[which they still can’t move since overpriced], and coming this fall, the Saturn Vue and some pickup trucks with the two-mode hybrid system, which is the first TRUE hybrid in GM’s hybrid engine lineup.
While speaking with Larry Nitz at the Plug-in 2008 conference, and in this blog posting below, he gave some details on the Vue hybrid status. They have switched over from the nickel metal hydride batteries on all 11 testbed plug-in Vue’s to Li Ion batteries.
The plug-in Vue is still expected to be the first production plug-in on the world market when GM releases it next year. It will have between 10-15 miles of all electric driving range on a charge, with fallback to the regular gas engine for trips beyond that.Here’s to Q4 2009 coming as fast as it can…
We spent the week at the first major Plug-In dedicated convention, Plug-In 2008, where there were several really breakthrough and novel products. So what was new? Previously, plug-in vehicle events were strictly PHEV related industry people and companies. This time—the high tech industry and utility industry was engaged and attended en masse.
The main luncheon speeches were given by Andy Grove (former Chairman/CEO of Intel Corp.), and Dr. Andy Frank (UC Davis Professor/Longtime PHEV conversion enthusiast)
Andrew Grove at Plug-In 2008
Andy Grove’s speech focused on the urgent need of both economic and national security fronts for a switch to new “Dual Fuel” vehicles, aka plug-in hybrids that can run on electricity as well as oil based. Introducing these Dual Fuel vehicles in 2010 and onwards as new models would not be enough, but that a grand vision and commitment from key players in the auto industry, research communities, and policy makers, plus retrofitting of existing cars to be plug-in hybrids, was the only way to reach these goals in a ten year period, and not decades.
Dr. Andy Frank’s speech was more of a sobering analysis of how we reached this point, the development of plug-in hybrid technology over the last three decades, and how there are still only about two hundred plug-in’s in existence right now. However, he emphasized that he was in agreement with Andy Grove’s assessment that we had reached a “Strategic Inflection Moment,” and would be moving away from Oil based transportation quite rapidly in the future.
The breakout sessions/lectures provided additional details and information that will be provided in a series of postings over the next week. For those that missed this event, don’t worry, they will be holding Plug-In 2009 in Long Beach, CA this time next year.
If you haven’t heard of it, it’s the first convention that is all about plug-ins and related hybrid technology. If you are, or plan to be in San Jose, CA next week, you should really stop by. It’s open to the public on Monday night as well for only $10 a person.
I’m amazed at how quickly these types of events are starting to pop up and grow. It’s only been a few years since the very first plug-in conversion was done from existing Prius hybrids. The knowledge and support of plug-in hybrids can only grow. See below for more details, and the speaker list/agenda.
Sure, we all know that CPI [Compact Power Inc.] has been kicking butt lately.They are rumored to be the likely winner for the production Li-Ion battery contract for the Chevy Volt. They have won large contracts with Hyundai [with Korean parent LG Chemical] recently for its upcoming hybrids. Now, another feather in their increasingly crowded cap; a deal with the US Advanced Battery Consortium aka USABC. USABC is funded by the Department of Energy and the three US domestic automakers to perform basic and advanced research on upcoming battery technology. This new $12.9 million contract will be for research into plug-in hybrid vehicle Li-Ion batteries with up to a 10 mile all electric range. With the Chevy Volt Li-Ion batteries already having a projected 40-60 miles all electric range at first use in current testing, this should not seem to be a difficult research target.
Will it be an Opel [as expected], or a Chevy?If it’s built for Europe, it’s an Opel. What else is known? Just that Carl-Peter Forster, GM Europe President, says a British Vauxhall version is planned as well. Besides a right side drive for the UK market, they will all be very similar otherwise, and the same as the States side Chevy Volt, except with a Diesel engine option as well.
When will it arrive in Europe? The article says 2012 under the Opel badge.One major buzzkill:It’s expected to carry a price premium of almost €10k over a similar gas (ICE) only based car. Ouch!Here’s to hoping that the price of Li-Ion batteries and related technology comes down fast, and governments want to provide a subsidy to get cars off all use quickly.
The buzz recently was that the Iberian tiger, Portugal, would be hitching its wagon to Project Better Place on Electric cars was only part of the story. Deciding to go right to the source, Portugal is working directly with the Renault-Nissan[R-N] group to promote and distribute EV’s, and not work through Agassi’s Project Better Place. R-N and Portugal will be working together to see how best to get the infrastructure in place for widespread use of EV’s, as well as how to make sure the market becomes mature enough to support their widespread use, and raising public awareness on why EV’s are such a great idea, and why now is the time. Gas prices anyone? R-N has stated they will be mass producing EV’s for Portugal as early as 2011. See the press release below for all the gory details:
Renault PRESS RELEASE
PORTUGAL AND THE RENAULT NISSAN ALLIANCE TO PARTNER FOR ZERO-EMISSION MOBILITY
LISBON (July. 9, 2008) – The Government of Portugal and the Renault Nissan Alliance today announced a partnership to promote zero-emission mobility across that country. The partnership was launched today in Lisbon, in the presence of Mr. José Sócrates, the Prime Minister of Portugal, and Mr. Carlos Ghosn, President and CEO of Renault and President and CEO of Nissan.
Portugal is the first partner to join the Alliance in a direct program of this type. Under the commitment of the Alliance to be the global leader in zero-emission vehicles, this initiative aims to bring together the public and private sectors to create the necessary conditions to make zero-emission vehicles a viable
and attractive solution for consumers.
Under the framework agreement signed today, the government of Portugal will focus on three core areas: 1. To jointly study with the Alliance how to create the right conditions to make electric vehicles an attractive offer for Portuguese consumers; 2. To study the infrastructure and related organizations required to create a nationwide network of charging stations for electric vehicles; and 3. To identify the most effective communication and education channels to raise awareness of electric vehicles.
The Alliance has agreed to mass market its electric vehicles to consumers in Portugal, starting in 2011. Portugal will be one of the lead global markets for the introduction of unique models of all-electric vehicles from the Alliance.
“Portugal has become a leading country in renewable energy. This agreement with Renault-Nissan will place Portugal also on the front line in terms of sustainable mobility with zero-emission vehicles. Promoting electric cars in Portugal will reduce our dependence on imported oil and will contribute to a cleaner environment,” said Prime Minister José Sócrates. “With the rising cost of oil and continuing concerns about C02 emissions, we believe the ultimate solution to sustainable mobility will be the mass availability of zero-emission vehicles,” said Carlos Ghosn. “Portugal is a recognized global leader in the development of renewable energy, and we applaud the government’s actions to make electric cars an economic reality for their citizens.”
Recent Comments