Jul 1, 2016 - 08:30 am

North America, Germany, PSA, Iran, Tesla, Toyota, Ford.

North American climate partnership: The “Three Amigos” namely Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, U.S. President Barack Obama, and Mexico’s President Enrique Peña Nieto have agreed to 50 percent clean power generation by 2025. The plan includes accelerated adoption of electric vehicles, i.e. in government fleets as well as the alignment of emission standards and regulations.
greencarcongress.com

Fossil free transport by 2030? Germany’s roads may bear mostly electric cars comes 2030, according to the Climate Protection Plan 2050. The leaked draft requires fossil-fuel emissions cuts of 45 percent for cars and 54 percent for trucks by then. Otherwise the government’s target to reduce carbon emissions by 95 percent by 2050 as was defined at the Paris climate talks will not be met.
bloomberg.com

PSA’s Push to Pass is becoming more clear as Citroën announces it would roll out an electric model by 2019 to be followed by a larger C-segment EV a year later. In total, the French firm reportedly plans to launch seven plug-in hybrids and four electric cars by 2021.
autocar.co.uk

EVs made in Iran with LG: Iranian carmaker Iran Khodro is in negotiations with LG International to develop electric vehicles for the former Persian empire. The Koreans would supply batteries, charging stations, and other components while Khodro would build up to 60,000 vehicles by 2023.
bloomberg.com

Elon Musk called out: CtW Investment Group that holds 200,000 Tesla shares demanded a more independent board as it asks to separate the chairman and CEO roles to cut Musk’s dominance. The call comes in the wake of the proposed SolarCity deal.
reuters.com, autonews.com

Recalls widen: Toyota expands yesterday’s recall now calling on another 2,87m vehicles to return to the garage for faulty fuel emissions controls, including the Auris, Corolla, Prius and Lexus CT200h. Ford is running a few recalls as well with one affecting 900 Focus Electric.
abc13.com (Toyota), cnet.com (Ford)

Aug 17, 2015 - 07:09 am

Tesla, Acura, Skoda, Iran, Bugatti, Bintelli.

Increased stock offering: Tesla plans to raise about 642.5 million dollars through a share sale, above the 500 million the electric car maker announced last week. The company will actually offer 2.7 million instead of 2,1 million shares to raise additional cash for the ongoing work on the Gigafactory and the development of its Model 3. Elon Musk plans to invest 20 million of his own money in the stock offering.
reuters.com

NSX production delayed again: Originally scheduled to start production this fall, Acura revealed that production of its hybrid supercar NSX is now scheduled to begin in spring 2016, although “trial production” has already started. Automobile reports that the main reason for the delay is the decision to add two turbochargers to the V6, which was made midway through development.
automobilemag.com, autoblog.com

Skoda SUV takes shape: The Czech carmaker is planning to launch its SUV model next year, German Auto Bild reports. The Skoda Snowman will be set on VW´s MQB platform and will be offered with five or seven seats. According to the report, Skoda also plans to launch a plug-in hybrid version.
autobild.de (in German)

Iranian EV subsidies? After the lifting of sanctions, Iran plans to invest in green technologies. Iranian Vice President Masoumeh Ebtekar indicated that the country may introduce subsidies for purchases of electric and hybrid cars and create areas in major city centers where only eco-cars are allowed. In addition, Iran wants to attract especially Japanese automakers to build plants in the country.
japantimes.co.jp

Bugatti Chiron spied: The hybrid Bugatti Veyron successor Chiron, which is said to come with 1,500 hp, was recently spotted at the Los Angeles International Airport. Meanhwhile, the production-spec body of Bentley’s SUV Bentayga has been leaked online as a scale model ahead of its official debut at next month’s Frankfurt Auto Show. A plug-in hybrid variant of the Bentayga has been confirmed for 2017.
motoring.com.au (Bugatti), motorauthority.com (Bentley)

Bintelli expands: Bintelli, manufacturer of citEcar electric vehicles as well as exclusive U.S. distributor for Bintelli and Adly Scooters, recently opened its new headquarters in Charleston, South Carolina. The new facilities include Bintelli’s production lines, R&D, sales team and warehouse.
prnewswire.com

Jun 25, 2015 - 08:55 am

BMW, Honda, Iran, Ford, Bozankaya, Zhi Dou.

BMW i5 update: According to information obtained by Automobile, the BMW i5 will come in two forms: An all-electric version will feature two electric motors with 165 kW in the front and 99 kW in the rear, while a more potent rear motor in the plug-in hybrid version will be good for about 202 kW. Production of the i5 will likely be assigned to BMW’s Leipzig plant and could start in 2019.
automobilemag.com

Honda to launch FCV in spring: Honda announced its fuel-cell vehicle for the Japanese market for March 2016. According the carmaker, the vehicle will be able to go up to 750 kilometres on one tank and cost between 7 and 8 million yen. The Toyota Mirai sells for 7.2m yen and has a range of 650 kilometres.
ajw.asahi.com, fuelcellsworks.com

Made in Iran: Iranian carmaker Khodro has teamed up with two local universities for the production of hybrid and electric cars. The first units are expected to be ready in the next three years. Moreover, the country’s government announced its plan to promote clean energy vehicles in the future.
presstv.ir

Foldable Ford e-bike: Ford has presented its new foldable e-bike concept called MoDe:Flex. It can be configured for different terrains, meaning that the battery, tyres and 200-watt motor can be swapped depending if the rider is headed for the road or the mountains. The e-bike works with an app called MoDe:Link which helps riders plan their trips, taking into consideration real-time information regarding weather, congestion, and public transportation.
engadget.com, dailymail.co.uk

New e-bus from Bozankaya: The company unveiled its electric 18 metre articulated bus Sileo S18 at the UITP World Congress. It joins the Sileo S10 (10.7 metres) and S12 (12 metres) and features a 300 kWh battery system allowing for a driving range of well over 300 kilometres.
Information per email; sileo-ebus.com (factsheet)

Mini EV for China: The Zhi Dou D2 EV hits the Chinese auto market. The electric two-seater will be sold for 49.800 yuan (8,018 dollars) after an astonishing 109,000 yuan (17.550 USD) in subsidies.
carnewschina.com

Aug 21, 2014 - 08:23 am

Iran, New Delhi, Dundee, York, San Luis Obispo.

Iran to be electrified: Apparently, the government in Tehran plans to replace most of the country’s motorbikes with 400,000 electric ones. Manufacturer will get subsidies of 300 dollars for every e-bike built. The plan also includes a ban of petrol-powered motorcycles in the capital’s centre.
tehrantimes.com, dailytimes.com.pk

New Delhi to be electrified, too: The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has issued a proposal to set up 65 charging stations across the city. Once the EV chargers are approved by the Delhi government, constructions of the stations, which are financed with the help of public private partnerships (PPP) can begin.
thehindu.com

Electric car club: The city of Dundee, Scotland, is looking at expanding and electrifying its car sharing with money from TACTRAN and Transport Scotland. The money for maintenance of the cars and operation of the scheme would come from an annual charge for the members. A business plan has yet to be agreed upon.
thecourier.co.uk

A ride around town: Electragirl travelled all the way to York to try the city’s new electric bus. While she does not travel too well on public transport – electric or not – the bus runs smoothly and silently and is charged via cable at a CHAdeMO DC fast charger.
transportevolved.com

Campus charging: By 2015, Cal Poly’s campus will feature twelve EV charging stations, paid for with a 150,000-dollar grant from the California Energy Commission. Apart from students, also travellers from the near Highway 101 and Highway 1 will be welcome to use the stations.
sanluisobispo.com

May 27, 2014 - 08:43 am

BMW, Volkswagen, Iran, Mahindra Racing, Chevrolet.

BMW electric MPV in the making: With backlogs of at least six months for the BMW i3 and i8 due to high demand, the Bavarian carmaker is already planning its next BMW i electric vehicle, according to a member of the BMW board. Other sources report that the new EV will be an electric version of a multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) similar to the new 2-series Active Tourer.
automobil-produktion.de (in German)

First details of plug-in Passat: In its eighth version, Volkswagen’s famous Passat will receive a plug-in hybrid heart. While details are scarce, the Passat is certain to have 31 miles of all-electric range and will debut at the Paris Motor Show in October.
puregreencars.com

No import tax: The Iranian government will no longer collect taxes on imported hybrid and electric cars, providing they do not have engines that hold more than 2.5 litres. Originally, the duties had been introduced to boost the local car industry. Instead, the measure led to a deterioration of quality of the Iran car market.
tehrantimes.com

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The Mahindra racing team is now complete. Karun Chandhok and Bruno Senna, two former Formula One drivers will join the upcoming Formula E Championship and make up the only Indian team. So far, six of the 20 Formula E drivers have been confirmed.
fiaformulae.com

Chevrolet Spark EV is not for everyone: Jeff Cobb from hybridcars.com put together a nice review of the 2014 Chevy Spark EV. Even though the small EV really seems to be a great car at a reasonable price, GM is only selling it in the U.S. states of California and Oregon.
hybridcars.com