Monthly Archives: August 2017

Electric car sales in sharp rise as diesels run out of gas

August 28, 2017Electric Cars, News, Reviews and CommentJo

SCOTTISH motorists are turning in increasing numbers to all-electric and hybrid vehicles as uncertainty reigns over the future of petrol and diesel cars that are due to be banned from 2040.

Electrical charging ports are installed in some of the big cities

Latest official figures show a 64.9 per cent surge across the UK in new registrations of Alternatively Fuelled Vehicles (AFVs) to the end of last month – when the Government announced the policy – as drivers invest in the latest environmentally friendly technology.

There were 437 sales of either all-electric, hybrid or plug-in vehicles last month, compared to just 193 in the same month of 2016 north of the Border – with 3,684 new registrations of such models so far in 2017. Scottish Motor Trade Association (SMTA).

The vehicles now account for a record 5.5 per cent of the British new car market share with 70,000 registered already this year.

Diesel model sales are continuing to plummet amid uncertainty over possible higher taxes, or even bans on them being allowed into big towns and cities, because of the health impact, particularly on young children, of the nitrogen oxide (NO2) gases they give off.

New diesel car registrations fell by 20 per cent, and by three per cent for petrol models, across the UK in July, according to figures from the The Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders (SMMT) .

In Scotland, sales of diesel cars were just 4,440 last month, down by 1,214 on the same month in 2016, with petrol sales down by 744 compared to July last year, said the SMTA.

Sandy Burgess, SMTA chief executive, who said uncertainty over the Government’s Brexit plans was also weighing on drivers’ minds, urged the Government to provide “clarity” over its plans for diesel and petrol cars.

Garage forecourts are struggling to shift diesel models, despite the fact the latest models are equipped with cleaner, more efficient ‘Euro 6’ engines,= Mr Burgess said:

“We are experiencing a drop-off in consumer and business confidence and there is no doubt this is having a knock-on effect on demand in the new car market.

“Our Government must act quickly to clarify the position on the use of our current vehicles and, of course, share its intentions on Brexit.”

Number of electric car charging points in London to double in 2018

August 28, 2017Charging, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and CommentJo

The prospect of thousands of electric cars driving round London’s streets came a step closer today as Sadiq Khan announced a £4.5 million investment in 1,500 new charging points across the capital.

Sadiq Khan announced a £4.5 million investment in 1,500 new charging points PA

Transport for London and the capital’s town halls will roll-out the new green charging infrastructure – which will almost double the number of points – over the course of 2018.
It comes after the Government last week announced a ban on sales of petrol and diesel cars from 2040 to help tackle the country’s toxic air problem.

But Mr Khan, environmentalists and some motoring experts accused it of falling short of what is needed to deal swiftly with toxic air — which is blamed for a death toll of about 9,000-a-year in the capital alone.

The chosen boroughs – 25 of London’s 32 – will each receive up to £300,000 of government cash to install the standard charging points, which take between four and eight hours to charge a family car, in residential areas.

Town hall officials will now identify sites where charging points could be installed. Some of the cash could be spent on new approaches such as using lamp posts as the base and power supply for charge points, which would be cheaper and quicker to roll out with less impact on the streetscape.

They believe the scheme will help motorists without access to off-street parking to make the switch from polluting vehicles to zero-emissions ones more easily. More money will follow next year if the scheme is successful.

The new points will be in addition to the network of 150 rapid charge points for taxis and commercial fleets that TfL is installing by 2018.

Mr Khan, who wants all new road vehicles driven in London to be zero emission by 2040, said:

“This substantial investment in electric charging points will make a real difference, making electric vehicles an easier and more practical option for Londoners across our city.

“We have a bold ambition to make London’s transport system zero emission by 2050, and working with boroughs to roll out more charging infrastructure is a vital part of making this a reality.”

The money for this tranche of charging points comes from the Government’s Office for Low Emission Vehicles’ ‘Go Ultra Low City’ scheme.

Volkswagen Passat GTE Estate long-term test review: first report

August 28, 2017Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, Passat GTE, VolkswagenJo

A plug-in hybrid load-carrier sounds like it should be a frugal, refined and practical antidote to the hassles of everyday life. Will that be the case here?

We’re all for diversity around here. Among the current 30-odd cars on the fleet, we have a V-twin three-wheeler, a petrol V8, a tri-turbo diesel V8, a petrol W12, an EV, a parallel hybrid, two hydrogen fuel cell cars, a petrol-electric sports car and now this, the plug-in hybrid Volkswagen Passat GTE Estate.

Those last six cars are interesting because they represent a disproportionate 20% of Autocar’s long-termer lineup – disproportionate because for now the real-world percentage of alternatively fuelled vehicles on our nation’s roads is much lower.

Diversity, then, and pioneering the future of motoring – whatever that may turn out to be. And I suppose it’s worth asking if that future is going to be one in which the plug-in hybrid prevails, and it’s a question to which I hope to find an answer or, more likely, several answers, depending on your point of view. I already have a feeling, you see, that this car is going to cause some head-scratching.

We’re pretty well acquainted with the Passat GTE. We’ve already road tested it, albeit in saloon guise, and subjected it, as an estate, to a comparison test, and the car has scored a solid four stars on each occasion. This Passat uses the Volkswagen Group’s increasingly familiar petrol-electric set-up of a 1.4 TSI petrol engine, here making 154bhp, mated to a 113bhp electric motor and driving through a six-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox. It’s good for 0-62mph in a claimed 7.6sec, which isn’t exactly slow.

The electric motor is powered by a 9.9kWh battery, which takes about two and half hours to fully charge via a wall box charger (at the office) or four and a half hours via a three-pin domestic plug (at my house). The battery lives under the rear seats and reduces fuel tank capacity from the 66 litres of a regular Passat to 50 litres.

You can have your Passat GTE in regular form, which comes quite well equipped, or in Advance trim, which is much more generous. We’ve gone for Advance, which includes VW’s Discover Navigation Pro with an 8.0in touchscreen, adaptive cruise control, emergency braking, a panoramic sunroof and a fully configurable 12.3in-wide TFT instrument display. To that, we’ve added metallic paint, Dynamic Chassis Control (DCC, or switchable suspension settings to you and me) and the tech-tastic Driver’s Assistance Pack. We’ve also got ‘St Tropez’ leather trim.

Climate change to cause humid heatwaves that will kill even healthy people

August 27, 2017Energy and Climate ChangeJo

If warming is not tackled, levels of humid heat that can kill within hours will affect millions across south Asia within decades, analysis finds

Climate Change Impact in Africa (Image: iPhoto)

Extreme heatwaves that kill even healthy people within hours will strike parts of the Indian subcontinent unless global carbon emissions are cut sharply and soon, according to new research.
Even outside of these hotspots, three-quarters of the 1.7bn population – particularly those farming in the Ganges and Indus valleys – will be exposed to a level of humid heat classed as posing “extreme danger” towards the end of the century.

The new analysis assesses the impact of climate change on the deadly combination of heat and humidity, measured as the “wet bulb” temperature (WBT). Once this reaches 35C, the human body cannot cool itself by sweating and even fit people sitting in the shade will die within six hours.

The revelations show the most severe impacts of global warming may strike those nations, such as India, whose carbon emissions are still rising as they lift millions of people out of poverty.

“It presents a dilemma for India between the need to grow economically at a fast pace, consuming fossil fuels, and the need to avoid such potentially lethal impacts,”

said Prof Elfatih Eltahir, at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the US who led the new study.

“To India, global climate change is no longer abstract – it is about how to save potentially vulnerable populations.”

Heatwaves are already a major risk in South Asia, with a severe episode in 2015 leading to 3,500 deaths, and India recorded its hottest ever day in 2016 when the temperature in the city of Phalodi, Rajasthan, hit 51C. Another new study this week linked the impact of climate change to the suicides of nearly 60,000 Indian farmers.

Aussies Are More Interested In Solar Batteries Than Ever

August 27, 2017Energy and Climate Change, Energy Storage, News, Reviews and CommentJo

With electricity prices on the rise and an uncertain future ahead for Australian electricity, it’s not surprising that more and more Aussies are looking at the option of home batteries. What is surprising is just how fast the market is progressing — batteries are rapidly coming down in price and the numbers suggest they aren’t just for early adopters anymore.

Tesla Powerwall display (Image: T. Larkum)

Before the Tesla Powerwall burst onto the scene less than two years ago, batteries were seldom considered an option for houses with solar panels, unless they were remote or off-grid. Powerwall installer Natural Solar says that only 2-3 per cent of customers even asked about batteries prior to 2015. “Since adding Tesla Powerwall to our energy storage range, the volume of consumer enquiries for battery power and Tesla Powerwall specifically has grown to more than 95% of customers,” explained Natural Solar CEO Chris Williams.

Even the difference between the first, somewhat experimental Powerwall and Tesla’s newer, bigger, better Powerwall 2 is clear. Williams sums it up quite succinctly when he says that the original Powerwall buyers were the early adopters, while their experiences have helped the Powerwall 2 hit the mainstream.

“This is exciting,” Williams said, “as it represents the typical Australian household and consumer, who are making educated decisions based on financials and are trying to offset the skyrocketing electricity bills expected to increase by 20 per cent in the coming weeks.”

While the Tesla brand has something to do with it, there are other reasons Australians have become so interested in powering their homes via batteries. Australian energy retailers recently announced an impending increase on the price consumers pay for electricity — in some places astronomically. On July 1, South Australia will overtake Denmark in having the world’s most expensive electricity. With some new Powerwall 2 customers expecting their power bills to come down to almost nothing, it’s not surprising to see more and more people looking to make that leap.

South Australians in particular have even more motivation to install batteries, in the wake of the state-wide power failures that happened last year. Demand in South Australia has increased by 300 per cent compared to the rest of Australia with 98.5 per cent of those wanting a power back-up in case of further instability. It’s not just households either — commercial enquiries for Natural Solar have seen an 800 per cent increase, with businesses wanting the option to keep their doors open and their lights on even when the grid is down.

Tesla Model 3 doesn’t have a key – and seven other things we learned

August 27, 2017Electric Cars, Model 3, News, Reviews and Comment, TeslaJo

Elon Musk’s new mass market-aimed electric car has no directly visible speedometer, comes in two battery versions and isn’t a bad option for a sleep.

lon Musk revealed Tesla’s Model 3 is unlocked by a smartphone and doesn’t have a traditional key or fob among a host of other details at the delivery event for the first 30 mass-market electric cars over the weekend.

As the Model 3 enters what Musk called “six months of manufacturing hell” as Tesla ramps up production to meet the more than 500,000 pre-orders, one of the most surprising titbits is that there is no traditional key to open and start Tesla’s mass-market electric car hope.

Instead, would-be buyers of the $35,000-plus five-seat electric car will have to unlock the car with their smartphones over Bluetooth. The car will detect the owner’s smartphone – almost all modern smartphones made in the last three years supports Bluetooth – and automatically unlock, ready to start and go.

Should the battery on your phone run flat, which is a very real possibility in the days of increased use for everything from music, cameras and now keys, Tesla has a backup in the form of an NFC key card that is apparently thin enough to store in a wallet.

Press the card against the car’s B-pillar to unlock it and place it between the seats on a special spot to be able to start the car. It’s designed for valet use, but should be good to get into the car and at least charge your phone so you can properly unlock the Model 3 and go.

But the key-less design wasn’t the only thing we learned over the weekend …

1. Two battery versions

The minimalist interior of the Model 3. Photograph: Reuters

The Model 3 will come in two versions. The $35,000 base model has a battery with a 220-mile range, does 0-60mph in 5.6 seconds and has a top speed of 130mph. It can be “supercharged” to 130 miles of range in 30 minutes and charges at a rate of 30 miles per hour via a 240V, 32A home charger.

The range-extended version, which costs $44,000, will travel up to 310 miles per charge, reaches 60mph in 5.1 seconds and a top speed of 140mph. It will reach a charge of 170 miles in 30 minutes attached to a supercharger, and charges at a rate of 37 miles per hour with a 240V, 40A home charger.

The more expensive Model 3 with the longer range is currently being produced, with the cheaper version to be produced at a later date. A high-performance version of the Model 3 will also be available sometime in the middle of next year, according to Musk.

2. There are no instruments, just a 15in touchscreen in the middle

The 15in touchscreen is the only display in the cabin. Photograph: Reuters

There’s no speedometer, battery gauge or anything else directly in front of the driver. Instead there’s a large, 15in touchscreen in the middle of the dash, which displays a virtual instrument cluster along with mapping, entertainment and cabin controls.

The Model S has a 17in touchscreen in the middle of the dash, but it is in mounted in a portrait orientation compared to the Model 3’s landscape orientation.

Live Or Work On A Busy Road? The Truth About Noise Pollution

August 26, 2017Energy and Climate Change, News, Reviews and Comment, PollutionJo

Studies conclude there are very real health risks from noise pollution – but EVs are bringing the quiet.

While we’re all aware of the term noise pollution, most of us regard it as just an irritant we have to put up with. The construction site near the office, the busy road near the children’s school, the flight path roaring overhead – such noise, we tell ourselves, is the price we pay for living in densely populated environments like cities.

Yet we might not be quite so complacent if we were more aware how bad noise pollution is for our health. For example, did you know that people living with an average of 55-80 decibels a day are more likely to suffer from high-blood pressure and cardiovascular ailments due to stress? Or that noise over 45 decibels at night can interfere with our sleep patterns, meaning we function less effectively during the day?

Such effects were confirmed in a recent study by Imperial College London, which analysed data from 144,000 adults, reinforcing evidence from the World Health Organisation, which rates noise pollution as the second largest environmental cause of health problems after air quality.

Road Traffic is the main culprit

The vast majority of noise pollution in Europe is caused by vehicular traffic on our roads – about 70 percent of it, according to European Environment Agency (EEA) statistics. Around 100 million people on the continent are subject to road traffic noise in excessive of 55 decibels, with more than 32 million exposed to over 65 decibels, while a good night’s sleep is not possible for around 50 million Europeans because of noise levels.

Concerning though these statistics are, a major solution is already with us – electric vehicles (EVs). As well as being hugely beneficial when it comes to air pollution, EVs produce nowhere near the same level of noise as gas-guzzling vehicles.

Energy supplier Ovo launches tariff for electric vehicle drivers

August 26, 2017Charging, Electric Cars, News, Reviews and Comment, Ovo EnergyJo

LONDON, Aug 1 (Reuters) – British electricity and gas supplier Ovo Energy has launched a new tariff aimed at drivers of electric vehicles, hoping to tap a growing market days after Britain announced a ban on the sale of new diesel and petrol cars from 2040.

Ovo Energy’s EV Everywhere tariff offers customers a two-year fixed energy rate that also includes free membership of the POLAR network of charging stations over that period.

Electricity consumption by electric cars is expected to rise as consumers opt for more environmentally friendly transport and the cost for batteries used in the cars falls.

Britain said last week it would ban the sale of new diesel and petrol cars from 2040 in an attempt to reduce air pollution.

Ovo estimates Britain will have at least one million electric vehicles on its roads by 2022, up from about 110,000 now.

“Mass adoption of electric vehicles will completely revolutionise the energy sector,”

said Ovo Energy CEO Stephen Fitzpatrick, who set up the energy company in 2009.

Users of Ovo Energy’s new tariff will receive electricity from renewable energy sources, guaranteed by certificates proving its origin. The company said it was only Britain’s third energy tariff targeted at electric vehicles.

Green energy company Ecotricity and renewable energy supplier Good Energy also have tariffs for electric car users.

Alongside the tariff launch Ovo also announced two acquisitions: electric vehicle charging point installer ChargedEV and electric vehicle technology research company Indra Renewable Technologies.

Ovo declined to disclose financial details of the deals.

The independent supplier made its first acquisition earlier this year when it bought U.S. smart grid startup VCharge. (Reporting by Karolin Schaps; editing by Jane Merriman)

Source: REUTERS

Renault-Nissan Alliance Cumulative Electric Vehicle Sales Approach 500,000

August 26, 2017Electric Cars, Leaf 30kWh, News, Reviews and Comment, Nissan, Renault, ZOE Z.E. 40Jo

Renault-Nissan Alliance, after the acquisition of Mitsubishi, is now approaching 500,000 cumulative all-electric car sales – more than any other automotive group.

The Renault-Nissan Alliance includes also Mitsubishi Motors Corporation

At the end of June 2017, the Alliance counter stands at 481,151 units (some 130,000 more than year ago).

The biggest impact on the number comes from the Nissan LEAF and Renault ZOE.

The number doesn’t include plug-in hybrids – of which, new Alliance partner Mitsubishi has sold over 130,000 copies of the Outlander PHEV.

Renault-Nissan Alliance CEO Carlos Ghosn with Renault ZOE and Nissan LEAF For COP21

“Cumulative sales of electric vehicles by the companies also rose significantly to 481,151 units, reaffirming the Alliance’s role as the leading electric car manufacturer for the mass-market segment.

The increase was driven primarily by demand for the Nissan LEAF and the Renault ZOE, which remains the #1 EV sold in Europe, and Mitsubishi’s i-Miev.”

Renault-Nissan Alliance is now aiming to become industry’s number-one automotive sales group for full year 2017.

Total Renault-Nissan Alliance increased in the first six months of 2017 by 7% to 5,268,079 million.

The newly updated Renault ZOE is the best selling EV for Europe so far in 2017

Here is list of Renault-Nissan Alliance brands (excluding joint ventures in China):

Renault (includes also Dacia, Alpine and Renault Samsung Motors)
Nissan (includes also Infiniti and Datsun)
Mitsubishi

And list of plug-in models:

Renault ZOE
Renault Kangoo Z.E.
SM3 Z.E.
Nissan LEAF
Nissan e-NV200
Mitsubishi i-MiEV and other MiEV family in Japan
Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV

There is also Renault Twizy – a heavy quadricycle.

Source: InsideEvs

I spent three minutes inside Tesla’s Model 3 — and I’m still thinking about it a day later

August 25, 2017Electric Cars, Model 3, News, Reviews and Comment, TeslaJo

The raucous crowd had dwindled to a few dozen hangers-on. The international reporters had returned to their hotels, and Tesla’s billionaire chief executive, Elon Musk, had disappeared into his sprawling Fremont, Calif., factory about an hour earlier.

Tesla’s Model 3 rollout was essentially over, but in a nearby parking lot where the first test rides of the electric car were being offered, the night’s enthusiasm had yet to wane.

In almost any other circumstances, a silent, three-minute ride around a poorly lit factory parking lot that barely cracked school-zone speed limits would’ve been a laughably underwhelming experience. But for many riders, myself included, this time was different.

One spin in the Model 3 just wasn’t enough. Journalists, factory workers and their family members, and random revelers on hand to celebrate returned to the back of the line over and over again as if the understated electric sedan were a futuristic carnival ride.

“That was fantastic,” one man said as he got out of the car. “Can we take pictures?”

“Can we do it again?”a woman asked.

It’s quite likely that the effusive reactions were at least partly influenced by Tesla’s sustained PR campaign. Company handlers had been force-feeding attendees a diet of Model 3 exuberance for several hours in the form of mesmerizing videos, splashy lights, upbeat dance tracks and free drinks – giving people the feel of having an exclusive backstage pass to the automotive future.

“This is the world’s first mass-market electric vehicle,” we were told. “You, my friend, are experiencing history!”