Electric car
Archived Posts from this Category
Mississippi team wins EcoCAR challenge
Posted by admin2 on 01 Jun 2010 | Tagged as: Biofuel, Electric car
A team of Mississippi State University students won this year’s EcoCAR challenge.
The competition, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, gives engineering students the chance to design and build advanced vehicles that demonstrate leading-edge automotive technologies. The teams re-engineer a vehicle donated by General Motors to minimize its fuel consumption and emissions, while maintaining its utility, safety and performance.
Nissan breaks ground on electric battery plant
Posted by admin2 on 29 May 2010 | Tagged as: Electric car
Nissan began construction of its factory that will produce batteries for its electric car, the Leaf, in Smyrna, Georgia on May 26th. The plant will have a capacity of up to 200,000 battery packs a year.
What’s in the pack? 48 modules, each with four cells (so, 192 cells total) arranged in a big square. The part that sits under the real seat is a little taller than the rest, as the modules are stacked vertically while the other modules lay horizontal under the front seats and floor. The entire pack weighs around 600 pounds and contains around 9 pounds of lithium. How will people use the Leaf? Find out Nissan’s expectations after the jump.
Solar-powered electric bike lots open in Japan
Posted by admin2 on 17 Mar 2010 | Tagged as: Electric car, Solar
Sanyo, maker of the Eneloop electric hybrid bicycles, has opened two outdoor electric charging stations for these bikes.
These lots, installed in the city of Setagaya at Keio Line Sakurajosui Station and Tokyu Den-en Toshi Line Sakurashinmachi Station, each contain solar panels on the roof used to “generate sufficient power to recharge the batteries of a total of 100 ‘eneloop bike’ units and illuminate the LED parking lot lights. Sanyo says that by combing these solar panels with the lithium ion battery systems found at each station, it allows for “recharging the electric hybrid bicycles without any commercial power source, even at night or on a rainy day.” These large battery systems also sport “AC power outlets that can be used to power external equipment during an emergency” and a DC charger to enable “photovoltaic energy generated and stored in DC (direct current) to be used directly and effectively without AC (alternative current) conversion.”
Chevy Volt will not be E85 compatible
Posted by admin2 on 20 Feb 2010 | Tagged as: Electric car
General Motors’ 2011 Chevy Volt hybrid-electric car will not be compatible with 85% ethanol blends. However, GM still plans to make future Volt models E85-compatible.
Tom Stephens, GM vice chair for global product development, called for more government support of ethanol and a need for more E85 stations during his Tuesday speech at the Renewable Fuels Association conference in Florida. Stephens mentioned that early editions of the 2011 Chevy Volt may not be E85 compatible, several news outlets have reported.
Solar-powered electric vehicle charging station opens in Brooklyn
Posted by admin on 18 Dec 2009 | Tagged as: Electric car, Solar
New York’s first solar electric vehicle charging station opened in Brooklyn on Wednesday, December 16th.
The charging station, which is located in Red Hook, Brooklyn, is meant to only charge BMW’s Mini E, which uses entirely electric power, states a press release. Allotted charging time takes approximately three hours for the Mini E.
The Wheego: a solid electric car
Posted by admin on 08 Oct 2009 | Tagged as: Electric car
The Wheego is a neighborhood electric vehicle (NEV) that comes in at under $19,000.
During the drive, regenerative braking does recapture some of the energy that was used to make the car go. The regen braking in the Wheego is incredibly soft, especially compared to the one-foot drivability of the Tesla Roadster. We were able to coast for a full block from over 20 mph and still needed to tap the brakes at the stop sign. The Roadster won’t let you do that and we kind of like keeping out foot off the brakes. You can’t get going any faster than 25 mph in the Whip, at least not in California, and pressing the brakes is somewhat heartbraking. There are nine states where NEV laws allow the Whip to top out at 35 mph, and Korchin did bring up the issue of changing California’s laws to allow NEVs to go faster in the Golden State with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger when he stopped by the Wheego booth during AltCar 2009.
Toyota to launch second dedicated hybrid
Posted by admin on 05 Oct 2009 | Tagged as: Electric car
The Sai, Toyota’s second dedicated hybrid, will go on sale in Japan on October 20.
Featuring a more powerful engine than the Prius (a 2.4-liter gasoline engine compared to the 1.8-liter in the Prius), the Sai will look similar to the Lexus HS 250h (pictured) and will be based on the same underpinnings. Lexus has been selling the HS 250h in Japan since July and in the U.S. for a few weeks.
Leno’s new show to feature green cars
Posted by admin on 08 Aug 2009 | Tagged as: Electric car
Jay Leno’s new show may feature celebrities racing green cars.
One idea for a recurring comedy bit includes a ‘green-car challenge,’ in which celebrities would race electric or hybrid cars. Tom Cruise has already asked whether he could do some practice runs before competing, Leno said. (The host told him practice runs are forbidden.)
MIT working on fast-charging electric car
Posted by admin on 28 Jul 2009 | Tagged as: Electric car
MIT’s Electric Vehicle Team is working on an electric car that would rival gasoline models.
The team’s goal is to build an all-electric car with similar performance capabilities of gasoline-only counterparts, which includes a top speed of about 161 kph, a family sedan capacity, a range of about 320 kilometers and the ability to recharge in about 10 minutes. They hope to complete the project, which they chronicle on their blog, by the third quarter of 2010.
Plug-in cars should be charged overnight
Posted by admin on 06 Jul 2009 | Tagged as: Electric car, Wind
Ideally, plug-in vehicles should be charged overnight so as not to overload the national electric grid.
Rate design to encourage off-peak charging, coupled with time-of-use rates, and smart grid/advanced metering initiatives, would facilitate favorable charging behavior,” it said.
