Eideard

One nagging issue with electric vehicles is range. While today’s lithium-ion batteries are much better than yesterday’s nickel-metal hydride batteries, they still don’t offer enough energy storage to take an EV much further than 100 miles without a lengthy recharge. Even if the Li-ion batteries were up to the challenge, there is still the awkward problem of where to pack 1,000 pounds (or more) of bulky storage cells into a vehicle’s chassis.

IBM thinks it has a solution with a promising new lithium-air battery. According to the technology giant, a typical Li-air battery cell has a theoretical energy density more than 1,000 times greater than today’s industry-standard Li-ion battery cell. Even better, Li-air batteries are one-fifth the size and they offer a lifespan at least five times as long.

So, what has been holding IBM back? It appears that there was a problem with the the original Li-air automotive application, as frequent recharging cycles compromised battery life. However, the engineers have recently found alternative electrolyte compounds that look very promising. The team’s goal is to have a full-scale prototype ready by 2013, with commercial batteries on sale by the end of the decade.

Bravo! I’m afraid we’ll have to replace my wife’s decades-old Volvo before an affordable EV is actually available on the car lots of New Mexico. But – I keep watch on projects like this, anyway. Maybe, we’ll get the opportunity to buy one, yet.

 
Even though Nissan sneaks in the tiniest dig at the Chevy Volt at the end – an outstanding commercial aimed at the fossil fuel junkies.

Can’t wait to show this to my dentists.

Ford Fusion Hybrid

The General Services Administration (GSA), which oversees two-thirds of the 600,000-plus vehicles in the U.S. government’s fleet, is looking to save millions of dollars per year at the pump by bolstering its use of fuel-efficient vehicles. The 35,000 vehicles ordered by the GSA so far in 2011 consume 21 percent less fuel than the vehicles they replaced, according to the agency. The average miles-per-gallon rating of the U.S. government’s fleet of vehicles now stands at 23.4, up from 19.1 in 2010.

The Detroit Three are expected to reap most of the benefits of the government’s purchases. GSA administrator, Martha Johnson, says that, “We will be depending on innovative technologies and products coming out of Detroit to help us achieve these goals, and I am confident that American automakers will continue to rise to the challenge…”

This year, approximately 22,000 of the 35,000 vehicles ordered by GSA were advanced technology vehicles (i.e., electric vehicles, hybrids, flex-fuel capable automobiles and plug-in hybrids). Over the past two years, the government has more than doubled the number of hybrids in its 600,000-plus vehicle fleet.

Of course, we could elect a Republican government and move the fleet back to Hummers and Buicks.

The plug-in hybrid Chevy Volt, made by General Motors, and the all-electric Nissan Leaf save on fuel , but the size and weight of their battery packs add significant crash protection as well.

“The Leaf and Volt’s extra mass gives them a safety advantage over other small cars,” Joe Nolan, chief administrative officer of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said on Tuesday.

The closely watched group, underwritten by insurance companies, crash tested the two first generation 2011 plug-ins that were introduced late last year as the ultimate for consumers in fuel economy.

Both earned top safety ratings, an early validation for experts who say automakers do not have to sacrifice safety for better fuel economy, that advanced technologies can achieve both…

“What powers the wheels is different, but the level of safety for the Volt and Leaf is as high as any of our other top crash test performers,” Nolan said…

The Volt and the Leaf are classified as small cars but their battery packs raise their weight closer to mid-size and larger ones…

The findings also contrasted with a lackluster Volt endorsement earlier this year from Consumer Reports on efficiency. I don’t know any experienced, savvy auto geeks who consider Consumer Reports to be anything other than incompetent, opportunist.

GM said the review was hasty. I’d say sleazy – with CR’s mind made up in advance.

This article doesn’t take the time to note special consideration made for first-responders in the very different designs of these two cars. Fire and police departments around the world have taken the time to add a bit of extra training to be certain they are prepared to deal with the much larger batteries in these critters. The manufacturers have added incident power cutoffs to aid in safety.

Late last year, Nissan unveiled its “Approaching Vehicle Sound for Pedestrians” (VSP), a technical name for the noise-adding system found on the automaker’s Leaf electric vehicle. Introduction of a pedestrian warning system on near-silent vehicles like the Leaf has been the subject of much debate, but with the U.S. House and Senate passing a measure that requires hybrids and plug-in vehicles to emit an audible sound to warn pedestrians, these noise-making setups will soon become standard on all electric-drive autos sold in the U.S.

However, over in the UK, the Nissan Leaf’s pedestrian warning system has reportedly been deemed illegal, forcing the automaker to either remove or disable it.

A Nissan spokeswoman told The Northern Echo that…an intermittent beeping noise is fitted as standard to commercial vehicles such as buses and lorries, but UK law states that the sound must be capable of being disabled between 11:00 pm and 6:00 am. The audible system on the Leaf did not allow for that to be done, so the beeping sound is being removed entirely before the cars can be driven on roads in the UK.

How many things are wrong with this silly-ass situation?

And consider our friends at Nissan who can’t figure out how to put in an inline switch which turns the stupid noisemaker on or off at the driver’s whim. I suppose that is yet another rule from Congress. To stop us independent drivers from exercising our own minds and choosing between horns and beepers.

A video with no commentary – adjust it for 720p HD and enjoy full screen

Japanese automaker Nissan has unveiled its eco-friendly transport ship: the 21,000-ton City of St. Petersburg. Thanks to its unusual design, which features a semispherical prow that’s claimed to reduce wind resistance by up to 50 percent compared to a conventional vessel, the City of St. Petersburg is expected to cut annual fuel usage by 800 tons, which will reduce CO2 emissions by 2,500 tons.

The ship has room to haul up to 2,000 vehicles and will hit the waterways to transport cars and trucks to Northern Europe and Russia from the automaker’s factories in the United Kingdom and Spain. In a fitting move, starting in 2013, the City of St. Petersburg will transport battery-powered Leafs from the Nissan’s plant in Sunderland, UK. Hop the jump to catch a pair of videos that showcase Nissan’s City of St. Petersburg.

21st Century roll-on, roll-off auto transport for 21st Century EV automobiles.

With more and more students and universities getting into the fight for establishing a new land speed record for battery electric powered vehicles, we are likely to receive more and more news like this one here.

For now however, a team of students from the Ohio State University leads this race, after their battery electric vehicle smashed the records on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah.

The streamliner in question is called Buckeye Bullet and it managed to run at averages speeds of 495 km/h (307 mph), way faster than the previous record of 395 km/h (245 mph) set in 1990s by Pat Rummerfield in his White Lightning.

Although not yet certified by the International Automobile Federation, such an outcome is expected over the next few weeks. Pat Rummerfield already admitted his record has been broken and congratulated the team…

Buckeye Bullet is powered by a 600-kilowatt lithium-ion battery pack sourced from A123 Systems. The battery packs contains 1600 compact lithium-ion batteries just like the ones used in laptops.

They’re already preparing to break their own record. I expect they will.

Disclaimer: I own enough shares in A123 to power my iPad.

Automotive technology is evolving at a dizzying pace, and training the next generation of car engineers is no longer confined to traditional classrooms and textbooks. Real-world, hands-on experience is crucial and that’s why collegiate engineering competitions like the EcoCar Challenge are more important than ever before. The 2010 finals have just ended and [Motorweek] we were proud to take part in the judging, so let’s tally up the results.

EcoCar is a three-year competition in which 16 North American college teams were challenged to improve the emissions and fuel economy of a compact GM crossover vehicle while retaining all of its utility, safety and performance.

Teams were allowed to design their own drivetrain architectures, and chosen technologies included full-electrics, plug-in hybrids, fuel cells, and extended range electric vehicles…

After a year of modeling and simulation, teams were given their vehicles for year two, and have worked ever since on implementing their designs. But the students also had to think real-world in terms of packaging their components, fit and finish, drivability and consumer acceptance…

All these kids are top-notch engineers already, even before they’ve graduated. But what we’re doing is giving them experience with the latest tools and techniques, plus a very long-term disciplined process that we give to them and their schools so that they can have a three-year experience doing something really big…

After a grueling week of testing, Mississippi State University claimed top honors for 2010. Their Biodiesel extended-range electric vehicle achieved fuel economy equivalent to 118 miles per gallon while also achieving the fastest acceleration and autocross times and the cleanest tailpipe emissions. Congratulations also go to Virginia Tech for 2nd place, and Penn State in 3rd position.

But the EcoCar Challenge doesn’t end here. Year Three of the competition is when teams must show full component integration in a near-production-ready vehicle.

Bravo! To the students and sponsors together and separately. This kind of hands-on experience is invaluable. And, frankly, the competition seems to be turning out some interesting drive trains.

Not only did Ford reveal the all-electric version of the Transit Connect Electric at the Chicago Auto Show this week, but they also pulled the electric vehicle (EV) into the snowy Chicago streets and allowed us to take it for a quick spin. After our five minutes behind the wheel, we can say that, if your company needs a sensible delivery vehicle that doesn’t have to travel all that far each day, then this should be your electric van of choice. Well, depending on how much these vans will cost, a number we won’t get until later this spring.

The most noticeable thing about the Transit Connect Electric is that this is a fully realized EV. Based on a very popular model – the standard gasoline and diesel Transit Connects have sold around 655,000 units since going on sale in Europe in 2003 and the van won the North American Truck of the Year after its introduction here in 2009 – the Transit Connect Electric feels like a utility car, electric or otherwise, should feel. Ford and its partner on the project, Azure Dynamics, have created a winner.

From what we can tell, the Transit Connect Electric will operate like any other Transit Connect, except that running costs should be far lower than versions that burn CNG or gasoline (or, in Europe, diesel fuel)…

The logistics of building the Transit Connect Electrics look like this. The bodies will be built in Turkey and shipped as rolling chassis to southeast Michigan. There, in a city and plant to be announced later, they will be upfitted with the Force Drive powertrain by Azure…Azure is buying the vehicles from Ford and doing the EV powertrain work themselves, so it will fall to Azure to actually sell the vans…

One of our local electronic geniuses has the first of the turbo-gasoline models in town. He’s averaging ab’t 26mpg. On a typical day, he travels too far for the EV version of this critter.

He loves everything about it. It replaced a truck that averaged 14 mpg. What he might consider – that you will see when you RTFA – is the CNG/LPG version designed for taxis. Since our local public transit buses are powered by natural gas, we already have CNG filling stations in town.

It’s been less than a month since Simon Hackett set something of a electric vehicle distance record in his Tesla Roadster, driving 501 km across the hot and flat Australian outback with the windows up and the air-con off. Now comes news that the dedicated enthusiasts of the Japan EV Club have decidedly bested that mark and are seeking Guinness Book of Records status for their own 555.6 km run. Club founder Tadashi Tateuchi battled terrible traffic and hilly Japanese terrain as he drove a super-sweet electrified Daihatsu Mira Van from Tokyo to Osaka.

The nicest part, of course, is that records like this will be surpassed on a regular basis as we continue to move towards a range of sensible personal transportation.