Auto & Car Blog

Filed under: Etc., Green Culture, Green Daily

Photo by Daquella manera. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0.

Yesterday morning at the LA Auto Show, Nate Holden, a retired LA City Councilman and California State Senator held a press conference on electric cars. Well, that was the plan, anyway. I went to the place where the conference was supposed to happen (and at the right time, too), but couldn’t find anyone. I called the press contact but got no answer. And now, a day later, Google news has got no record of such an event taking place.

So, why write about something that didn’t happen? Well, because it should make for some good discussion. Known as a controversial political figure, Holden had planned a pretty scathing event that was to lash out against a bailout and against the American auto manufacturers in general while offering strong support for mass-production of electric cars, according to a release that arrived before the non-event. Holden believes that “General Motors, other U.S. automakers and the oil companies committed sabotage against the American people and the environment.” Read the whole thing after the jump and imagine what could have been.

Continue reading LA 2008: Nate Holden’s electric car non-conference

LA 2008: Nate Holden’s electric car non-conference originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Thu, 20 Nov 2008 19:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Green Culture, Green Daily

Following in the footsteps of our friend Andrew Angellotti, another teenager has taken it upon himself to convert a vehicle to fun on electric power on his own time. This time, the story revolves around 17-year-old Lucas Laborde, who took an old Bradley GT II kit car and put in about 150 hours to swap the engine for an electric motor and a set of batteries providing 96 volts. Luke’s father bought him the $5,000 vehicle on eBay and then spent another $5,700 on the parts needed to make it run on electricity, according to the AP. One problem he had was that the 640 pounds worth of lead-acid batteries caused the frame to warp and the doors to not close. The windshield wipers don’t work yet and the car has a top speed of just 45 miles per hour, but it’s clear from the article that none of these shortcomings make Luke any less proud of his work. Congrats, and if anyone’s got pictures, send ‘em in.

[Source: AP via Green Daily]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, European Union, UK, Paris Motor Show

It’s pretty easy to see more than just a passing resemblance between the new Izis from Wallyscar, which is now being shown at the Paris Motor Show, and another famous vehicle. Like the original off-roading Willys, the Izis features body-on-frame architecture and a very small gasoline engine. In the case of the Izis, that engine comes from Peugeot and displaces 1.4-liters, good enough for 75-horsepower, just a bit more than the 60 horses of the classic Willys Go Devil engine.

The Izis is street-legal in Europe, as its Peugeot engine is fully Euro 4-compliant, though the vehicle has a Euro NCAP rating of only two stars. It also has a very short wheelbase and sits well above the ground. Early Jeeps with similar dimensions were more than a bit ‘tippy’ on the street, as were some early Jeep-like cars from Suzuki and Daihatsu. Having never piloted in Izis, we can’t really comment on how it handles, but we bet it’d do rather well off the beaten path.

An electric version is also said to be available. No information on specifications are provided other than a suggested electric-only range of 90 kilometers, or about 56 miles. That’s plenty for some fun-in-the-sun off-roading or for daily transportation for city-dwellers.

[Sources: AutoMotoPortal, Wallyscar]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Chrysler, USA

If you want an electric car with some serious style, you could either fork over a ton of dough for an electrically-converted DeLorean or you could convert an older muscle car of some sort. We advise the latter. Take the early ’70s Chrysler A-Body, like the Plymouth Duster, for example. It’s relatively lightweight, has lots of room for batteries and has the easy-to-convert front engine, rear-wheel drive architecture with a full frame. Perfecto! And, you can even see an example of the work done rather nicely in a blog format.

Electricity storage comes by way of 26 six-volt Trojan T-125 batteries wired up to deliver 156 volts to the Netgain Warp 9 DC motor. A Logisysystems controller is capable of sending 550 Amps to the motor, which should make this machine move pretty smartly. The original three-speed manual transmission has had its clutch and flywheel removed and the motor is mated up. Batteries are now being installed. Check out all the progress here.

[Source: Electric Mopar via CarDomain]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: Green, Tech, Chevrolet, GM

At a press conference on Thursday, shortly after announcing plans for a new engine plant in Flint, Michigan, General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner said his employer, “should be able to put to good use its portion of a $25 billion government loan package.”

Wagoner goes on to say he’s concerned about the details of the plan but hopes the package is expanded to include all gas-saving technologies, not just electric cars. Which is understandable, considering GM has already invested a great deal of money into the Volt and would logically welcome financial assistance in investigating other fuel-saving methods. Then again, the Volt may just yet turn out to be classified as an electric car by the EPA, as the California Air Resources Board just did.

Wagoner was also pleased to hear about the Senate’s approval of a $7,500 tax credit for buyers of electric vehicles. The tax break is something the company has been lobbying for since May, and would certainly help to get the Volt’s price tag closer to the original $30k estimate and hopefully allowing the General to sell the estimated 60,000 units we once heard.

[Source: The Associated Press via Yahoo Finance]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Africa, Paris Motor Show

Optimal Energy is the latest company to announce that they are unveiling a new electric car at the Paris Motor Show this year and it’s one that should definitely impress. Coming all the way from South Africa, the Joule may very well be the world’s most practical electric car to date as well as one of the more stylish. Although it has been shown to a handful of journalists there haven’t yet been any published photos but it has been described as “an uncluttered mix of a Renault Scenic and a Citroen Picasso.” The Minister of Science and Technology, Mosibudi Mangena, had a chance to drive it last week and he called it “simply gorgeous.” If that’s not convincing enough, consider that the designer of this compact 6-seater is Keith Helfet who, while he worked for Jaguar, impressed many sets of eyes with the XJ220 and the F-Type Concept.

Of course, when it comes to all-electric cars, the range is of utmost importance and the head of the company, Kobus Meiring, has said that two lithium ion battery packs will move the Joule for 400 km (248 miles). Plugged into a 220 volt power source, a full charge is achievable in 7 hours. The body, said to be a mix of plastic and composites, sits on a steel space frame and is described as spacious and versatile. It has taken the company over two years to reach this point and it hopes to begin production by the end of 2010. If they can achieve the targeted retail price of R200,000 ($24,618), they should have a real winner on their hands. We’ll be watching.

[Source: IOL]

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Pacific Region

Now that Tesla has tested the waters, some other not-as-well known companies have announced that they, too, would like to explore the electric supercar waters. Bolwell, makers of the Nagari revival in Australia, are the latest to throw their names into the ring. Like Tesla, the company is reportedly not interested in going the hybrid route - just as well considering that making two distinct sources of power work together is pretty tough, even for the big auto manufacturers. So far, no word on where the company would propose to get its motors or batteries. This fact, in addition to the fact that the firm’s first model, which will be powered by a V6 internal combustion engine sourced from Toyota, has not yet gone up for sale, means that it could take a little while to see an Nagari EV on the streets. Oh well, we are never against the idea of more electric carmakers.

[Source: Auto Fiends]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Chrysler

Click the Dodge Zeo for a high-res gallery

As has become the custom in recent years, Chrysler unveiled a trio of concept vehicles at last January’s Detroit Auto Show. This years designs all had one thing in common: electric drive. The Jeep Renegade and Chrysler EcoVoyager were both range extended EVs while the Dodge Zeo was a pure battery electric design. This month, Chrysler is finally launching sales of its first hybrids but co-president Jim Press told a media gathering on Tuesday that three new electric drive prototypes would be shown to dealers at a meeting later in September. Press didn’t give any indication of when the vehicles would go on sale but did say that plug-in hybrid vehicles are the first priority with new platforms being developed with electrification in mind. Press also told the Motor Press Guild meeting that Chrysler still has access to the Daimler’s technology and that the company is working with several different battery suppliers.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req’d]
Photos Copyright (C)2008 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, European Union, Paris Motor Show

The Pininfarina / Bollore electric car project was said to be “going as planned” despite the tragic death of Andrea Pininfarina. who was overseeing the operation around which the Italian design company was being financially restructured. Addressing a press conference, Bollore head Vincent Bollore attempted to calm any fears saying, “We are in the condition to produce at industrial levels.” Paolo Pininfarina was chosen to replace his brother and also reaffirmed the company’s restructuring intentions last month.

Pininfarina buiilt the BlueCar (pictured above) for Bollore battery subsidiary Batscap in the recent past to showcase the firm’s energy storage solution. Although the BlueCar never went into production, it seems Bollore is serious about this new project to the extent that it is already attempting to secure large amounts of lithium from one of the world’s richest reserves of the mineral in Bolivia. A Bollore executive told reporters at today’s conference that they would begin taking orders for the car next summer. The company is estimated to be capable of producing about 10,000 batteries a year. If everything is truly on schedule we should expect to see the new design at the Paris Motor Show in October. We hope it’s a little sexier than their previous collaboration.

[Source: Reuters / Usine Nouvelle]

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, AutoblogGreen Exclusive, Zap, Chicago Auto Show

Don’t think that I didn’t drill the on-site ZAP representative for any information about the ZAP\Lotus APX collaboration, but, alas, he knew nothing. Is it just vapor-ware? The jury is still out on that one, hopefully more information will be coming in the next few months. Not all was lost, however, as I did come away with a gallery of high-quality images of ZAP’s current production models. As you may know, they already have a series of three-wheeled vehicles for sale, including a four-door, a truck and a little Segway-like scooter. I took pictures of them and you can see them in all their electric-only glory here.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD Step behind the curtain at Ford Motor. Experience the documentary first-hand.

Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: Green, Tech, Nissan

Just-Auto is reporting that Nissan has approached electronics giant NEC to work on new lithium-ion batteries together. This would certainly help Nissan in its goal to add more hybrid and fuel cell cars, as well as an all-electric within three years.

As you may recall, Nissan has been borrowing its hybrid technology from Toyota and announced that it would like to do an in-house hybrid in the near future. Next came the announcement that a plug-in would be on its way in the next three years. This partnership between NEC and Nissan would cover the development, production and marketing of the batteries. It looks like a joint venture factory will also open sometime in 2010. In the rush to take advantage of new breakthroughs in battery technology, cozying up to NEC seems like a particularly shrewd move for this Japanese automaker.

[Source: Just-Auto, sub req]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Read the rest of this entry »