Carla Bailo, Willi Diez.
“We don’t preclude it someday.”
Carla Bailo, Nissan’s senior vice president for R&D, on plug-in hybrids. While she did not say never, she clarified that hybrids could obviously not be part of the zero emission strategy the company is currently driving forward.
greencarreports.com
“We don’t preclude it someday.”
Willi Diez, head of the Institute for automotive industry in Geislingen, Germany, has his reservations about the electric car prodigy but is impressed how far Tesla actually has come as it is now about to expand its model range.
stuttgarter-zeitung.de (In German)
“Tesla reminds me of the early days of the internet hype, when all sorts of companies were traded for billions at the stock exchange even though they had never made a penny.”
“Until 2020, we want to have 4,000 charging stations all over Austria. None shall be further apart than 60 kilometres from another.”
“Aiming at our goal to become the leading market for electric vehicles by 2020, California is a reference to us.”
Kia Soul EV presented: The Koreans took the veil off their first all-electric car at the Chicago Auto Show. The Soul EV is now officially in the run against BMW’s i3 or GM’s Chevy Spark EV and will go on sale in some states in the U.S. in autumn this year. Next to the Soul EV, Kia’s latest Optima Hybrid and Niro hybrid concept are on display.
“If every vehicle in California ran on hydrogen, we could meet refuelling logistics with only 15 percent of the nearly 10,000 gasoline stations currently operating in the state.”
“Using this technique will help make battery design much more systematic, and less trial and error.”
Say Hello to KWID: Renault unveiled its latest concept at the Auto Expo India. The sturdy chassis and the oversized wheels give the Kwid a buggy-look. The interior is inspired by a bird’s nest with wing-like doors, opening up electrically. Speaking of birds – Kwid comes with an integrated drone, which can be used for personal traffic surveillance. Powered by a petrol engine for now, Kwid is “Z.E. ready,” meaning there is space for a battery and the plug is already integrated.
“We hope the big car companies do copy Tesla. When you consider what is the fundamental good Tesla will achieve, it’s getting the rest of the car industry to move toward sustainable transport faster. I don’t know why they’re taking so long.”
Camry in new trim: Toyota will start selling its Camry Hybrid in a SE Limited Edition in the U.S. later this month. The hybrid best-seller will receive a sportier look and some interior upgrades. Being a limited edition, only 5,000 units will be build.
“We’re seeing some real softness in the overall electrified vehicle segment because of… the more affordable gas prices that are out there right now.”
“It doesn’t call into question our EV strategy.”
Brammo Empulse updated: The 2014 models of the Empulse and Empulse R electric motorcycles are now 4.5 kg less heavy, which leads to improved handling and performance figures. The refined all-electric motorbikes will become available during 2014 with prices starting at 16,995 dollars.
“A boatload of Nissan Leafs arrives in Norway each week and is sold almost immediately. It is astonishing. We did not expect this. Electric cars started as an Oslo phenomenom but they are now selling all over Norway. By the end of February we expect to be the first country in the world where 1 in 100 cars on the road are electric.”
“The high-volume production cost of fuel cells fell from 275 dollars per kilowatt in 2002 to only 51 dollars per kilowatt.”
Mahindra’s many EVs: The company has now announced to exhibit a new electric sports car concept called HALO along with its Formula E racing car at the upcoming Auto Expo in India. Furthermore, Mahindra will have a fast-charging version of the e2o (photo), the new Verito electric sedan and Maxximo electric light truck on display. The latter two are set for commercialisation at the end of this year.
Hybrid refrigerator truck: Jointly developed by Hino Motors and Denso Corp., the ‘Hino Profia’ heavy duty truck uses energy from its hybrid system solely to power its refrigeration system. The power is generated while driving or regenerated from the hybrid unit. The refrigerator truck comes with a stand-by unit that can be plugged in to keep the fridge running when the motor is turned off.