Details of the Biden administration’s $174-billion proposal to boost EV adoption are slowly beginning to leak out. According to a Transportation Department email message seen by Reuters, the plan calls for $100 billion in new consumer rebates, $15 billion to build 500,000 new charging stations, $20 billion for electric school buses, $25 billion for zero-emission… Read more »
Tag: The Vehicles
Japanese consortium agrees on standardized swappable batteries for e-motorcycles
The Swappable Battery Consortium for Electric Motorcycles, a joint project of Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki and Yamaha, has reached an agreement to standardize swappable batteries for electric motorcycles in Japan. Since its 2019 inception, the Consortium has been formulating standards for mutual-use swappable batteries and their replacement systems, in order to encourage the adoption of electric… Read more »
Hino speeds production timeline for its Class 4-8 electric trucks
Hino Trucks, a subsidiary of Toyota, is accelerating the production timeline for its suite of battery-electric vehicles. The new Class 4-8 electric trucks are now slated to go into low-volume production in Q4 2022 and full production by the end of 2023. The company originally planned to have its BEV range in production by 2024,… Read more »
GM to build electric Silverado pickup at Factory Zero in Detroit
Chevrolet’s upcoming Silverado electric pickup truck will be built at the company’s Factory Zero assembly plant (the former Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly Center, now retooled for the exclusive production of battery-electric vehicles). GM plans to deliver more than 1 million electric vehicles globally by 2025. Thanks to its new Ultium Platform, along with modern virtual development tools… Read more »
New study says commercial truck electrification is within reach
It’s been a long haul for electric trucks—pilots have been going on for over a decade, but fleet operators are just beginning to put in serious orders. Battery costs are often cited as a barrier to faster adoption, but a new analysis concludes that a lack of appropriate policies around adoption incentives, charging infrastructure, and… Read more »
ZeroAvia raises $24 million in new funding, speeds development of 50-seat zero-emission aircraft
ZeroAvia is developing hydrogen-fueled powertrain technology to replace conventional engines in commercial aircraft. The company has successfully completed flight tests of electric aircraft in the US and in the UK, and expects to achieve commercialization for its hydrogen-electric powertrain as early as 2024. (See our interview with CEO and founder Val Miftakhov, who makes a… Read more »
Chinese phone maker Xiaomi rings into booming EV market
Everybody wants to get into the EV racket—Chinese hopefuls include search engine provider Baidu, e-commerce giant Alibaba and ride-hailing app DiDi Chuxing. Even vacuum cleaner vendor Dyson set out to suck up some coins from the electric carpet before conceding that it couldn’t see a way to commercial viability. The latest entrant to the crowded… Read more »
Extreme E brings electric racing to the Saudi Arabian desert
If Formula E is a dignified ambassador for electric performance, Extreme E is an in-your-face wild beast (but with a green conscience). Custom electric off-road SUVs tear through some of the harshest and most vehicle-punishing terrain on the globe. Extreme E’s first race, the Desert X Prix, took place on April 3 and 4, on… Read more »
Tesla Q1 deliveries blow past forecasts, set new record
Tesla turned in a delightful delivery report for the first quarter (dated April 2 to head off the skeptics). The figures—180,338 vehicles produced and 184,800 delivered—represent a new all-time quarterly record, a 110% year-over-year increase, and a beat of most of the forecasts—the average of analysts’ estimates was around 177,000. The fat figures are the… Read more »
Tesla selling EV credits to VW in China
It now appears that Tesla has been selling EV regulatory credits on three continents, and ironically Volkswagen, the legacy automaker that seems to be the most serious about electrification, has emerged as the latest buyer. Tesla has made a tidy little side business out of selling EV credits to automakers that couldn’t (or chose not… Read more »
