The Tesla Model 3 was the No. 3-selling new car in the UK in August, finishing behind the Ford Fiesta and Volkswagen Golf.
It’s the first time a full-electric car has been in the UK’s overall ranking of top 10 selling models.
The UK is Europe’s second-largest car market after Germany.
With sales of 2,082 Model 3s, the Tesla model was ahead of the Ford Focus at No. 4 and the Mercedes-Benz A class, which rounded out the UK top five last month.
Tesla Model3 (Image: Wikimedia/Carlquinn)
The success of Tesla’s smallest model pushed the UK’s electric car sales up by 337 percent in August to 3,147 units. The overall UK market was down 2 percent.
The record was hailed by European green lobby group Transport & Environment. “Tesla Model 3 was the third best-selling car of any brand. Reminder: We are in 2019, not 2025…” the group tweeted.
The Model 3 was Europe’s best-selling electric car in the first six months with sales of 37,227, figures from market researcher JATO Dynamics show. The Renault Zoe was second at 23,914 followed by the Nissan Leaf.
Hyundai has joined IONITY’s ranks of car manufacturers in a bid to “open a new era” of high power charging (HPC).
A joint venture between BMW, Ford, Daimler and Volkswagen, IONITY was launched in 2017 with the aim of establishing and operating a HPC network along the main highways in Europe.
The firm’s 350kW chargers hit the UK in May as part of a partnership with Octopus Energy for the installation of 40 charging stations, supplied with renewable energy.
IONITY also penned a deal with Extra MSA Group, which owns and operates part of the UK’s motorway network, for installations at eight service stations.
Thomas Schemera, executive vice president and head of product division at Hyundai, said:
“I am confident that our work with IONITY will open a new era of high power charging experiences, where charging will be seamless and easier than refueling for our customers.”
Study finds EVs are less polluting even after taking battery production into account
Battery electric vehicles in the UK produce half the CO2 of a traditionally fuelled car, even when their battery production is taken into account, according to new research.
A study from Imperial College London has found that the increased use of renewable and low-carbon energy generation in the UK means that, on average, charging an EV produces just a quarter of the CO2 emitted by a petrol or diesel engine.
Taking into account the production of an EV’s battery as well the CO2 emissions associated with charging it over its lifetime, the study found an EV’s CO2 contribution was around half that of an equivalent internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle.
It also suggested that the “decarbonising” of the UK’s electricity supply could reduce their environmental impact further.
The concerns of the average electric-car buyer are starting to look more like those of any other car buyer. Their biggest worry? How much the cars will cost.
Range anxiety, how far an electric vehicle (EV) can travel before needing to be recharged, has topped the list of prospective EV buyers’ concerns for years. And it remains one, especially for those unfamiliar with the technology. But in August, a survey by Autolist, an online car marketplace, ranked range and price in a dead heat (about 40%) as the most important factors concerning buyers. Recharging time and the proximity of charging stations followed as top considerations.
Range anxiety has faded into the rearview mirror for luxury car owners as well. According to another recent Autolist poll, among those deciding between Tesla’s Model S and Porsche’s electric Taycan, range wasn’t even a factor. Instead, brand reputation, performance, charging networks, and styling topped buyers’ list.
Part of the reason for reduced fears is that EVs are shipping with more potent battery packs capable of covering 300 miles or more per charge. The $79,000 Tesla Model S (before tax incentives) promises a 370-mile range, while the 2020 Porsche Taycan ($130,000 estimated) is expected have a range of least 300 miles per charge.
Oil consumption continues to rise in the U.S. and around the world, but as electric vehicles keep growing as a percentage of vehicle sales, there will ultimately be a tipping point on multiple fronts.
The first will be manufacturers investing in more EVs to ultimately overtake internal combustion engines, which is happening today from Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) to General Motors (NYSE: GM) to Porsche.
The bigger tipping point will be a peak in oil consumption that the world will (likely) never look back from. We don’t know when peak oil will happen, but given the cost reduction of EVs and the focus on reducing emissions around the world, it’s only a matter of time.
EV sales are still booming
There’s no question that Tesla has led the EV revolution the last decade, and it’s helping drive the industry’s growth. According to the website Inside EVs, Tesla has already sold 99,525 Model 3, S, and X vehicles in the U.S. through July 2019, and total U.S. EV sales across all manufacturers were 176,174 thru seven months of 2018, a 14.5% increase from 153,854 a year ago.
Global electric vehicle sales were 1,105,405 in the first six months of this year, a 46.9% jump from 752,690 a year ago. It’s this growth on a global level that’s going to lead to that tipping point.
No matter where you look, EV sales are going up. And in 2020 and 2021, there will be even more options coming to the market from Porsche, Ford, Kia, Mini, and many more.
Contrary to modern revisionist history, electric cars are not a recent innovation.
The original idea of vehicles powered by an electric motor dates back to the turn of the century – that is, when the 19th century turned into the 20th century.
Between then and now, the interest and innovation in electric vehicles (EVs) have ebbed and flowed. Practicality and curiosity propelled early development. Real-world events such as the Arab Oil Embargo of the 1970s sparked renewed interest in technologies that did not rely so heavily on foreign oil.
Electric Car Line-up (Image: Go Ultra Low)
Today, the boom is fueled by those same considerations, with one critical indigent drawing interest from everyday consumers – affordability.
With new battery technologies improving reliability, practicality, and scalability, electric vehicles are a growth industry.
Growth Spurt
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, 50,000 electric plug-in vehicles (PEVs) were purchased in 2012. In 2018, that number jumped to 400,000.
Globally, the EV market closed 2018 with 1.5 million units sold. By 2025, forecasts expect sales to exceed 10.5 million units.
It’s clear that after a history marked with fits and starts, EVs are no longer just a fad. As the chorus of fans get louder, and sales worldwide continue to increase, it’s clear that EVs are here to stay.
But what’s driving this rebirth of electric cars? What are the vehicles like and how do they compare with conventional, gas-powered automobiles. Which companies are ahead of the EV curve with models currently available to purchase?
It’s Just a Car…Or Is It
Inside and out, EVs, from an atheistic standpoint, offer little distinction from their internal combustion engine (ICE) powered siblings. They’re still cars, and that distinction includes the fundamental traits that have come to identify our primary mode of transportation.
The differences though become starkly apparent when you power up an EV and take it for a drive. The contrast proves even sharper once you account for the change in lifestyle and driving habits that inevitably come when switching to an EV.
Let’s examine three central attributes that make electric cars unique within the automobile segment.
The BMW i8 will be discontinued in April 2020 and to mark the occasion BMW has built a special edition, limited to just 200 units globally
BMW has announced it will cease production of the i8 next year. To mark the occasion, the German brand has built a special edition version of the plug-in hybrid sports car, called the i8 Ultimate Sophisto Edition. Limited to just 200 units globally, the run-out special edition will be available from November 2019 in both Coupe and Roadster body styles.
BMW i8 in Sophisto Grey (Image: T. Larkum)
The BMW i8 Ultimate Sophisto Edition features a set of lightweight, copper-coloured 20-inch alloy wheels, gloss black brake calipers, transparent rear light lenses and fresh gloss black trim for the tailgate. Its bodywork is finished in exclusive “Sophisto Grey Brilliant Effect” paint, which is accented by a range of copper highlights.
Inside, the limited edition BMW i8 features a pair of leather sports seats, an Anthracite- coloured headliner, a head-up display and a Harmon Kardon stereo system. It also comes with a pair of unique treadplates, stamped with the ‘Ultimate Sophisto Edition’ logo, as well as a numbered plaque for the centre console.
The limited edition BMW i8 features the same plug-in hybrid powertrain as the standard car, which comprises a turbocharged 1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol engine and an electric motor, producing a combined output of 369bhp and 570Nm of torque. Its performance is identical, with a 0–62mph time of 4.4 seconds and a top speed of 155mph.
The future is not looking bright for oil, according to a new report that claims the commodity would have to be priced at $10-$20 a barrel to remain competitive as a transport fuel.
The new research, from BNP Paribas, says that the economics of renewable energy make it impossible for oil to compete at current prices. The author of the report, global head of sustainability Mark Lewis, says that “renewable electricity has a short-run marginal cost of zero, is cleaner environmentally, much easier to transport and could readily replace up to 40% of global oil demand”.
The oil industry faces a disruption on the same scale as that which has hit the European utilities sector over the last decade, he adds.
The sun sets on drilling (Image: Pexels)
The report, Wells, Wires, And Wheels… Eroci And The Tough Road Ahead For Oil, introduces the concept of the Energy Return on Capital Invested (EROCI), focusing on the energy return on a $100bn outlay on oil and renewables where the energy is being used to power cars and other light-duty vehicles (LDVs).
“For a given capital outlay on oil and renewables, how much useful energy at the wheel do we get? Our analysis indicates that for the same capital outlay today, new wind and solar-energy projects in tandem with battery electric vehicles will produce six to seven times more useful energy at the wheels than will oil at $60 per barrel for gasoline powered light-duty vehicles, and three to four times more than will oil at $60 per barrel for light-duty vehicles running on diesel,” says Lewis.
As automakers race to electrify their model lineups, the competition to stand out has never been greater.
Luckily, thanks to electrification, the opportunities to develop new designs are abundant. But if automakers want to succeed, designers need to seize these new opportunities and start developing the cars of the future.
Car companies have followed the same evolutionary design path for decades. Now, with electric cars, everything is changing quickly.
Without an internal combustion engine and a fuel tank, there are new design possibilities to explore. In most passenger vehicles, there is a large engine under the front hood and a fuel tank that takes up space somewhere under the vehicle. While there is, of course, a need for battery and electric motor placement in EVs, designers are not locked into this traditional framework and are able to package the batteries and motors differently.
ZOE Cab autonomous vehicle (Image: Renault)
When approaching design for this new era, automakers must introduce revolutionary cars, not evolutionary cars.
Automakers have a history of trying to make their electric cars “look like an EV.” For some reason, many thought an electric car needed to look “different” — and the result was often ugly. Historically, both the media and the general public have expressed distaste for electric car designs that stood out because they were electric, as opposed to just being a well-designed vehicle.
Recently, other brands have come along and proven that what people wanted in an electric car was good design without this niche “electric car” flare. There are several premium car brands right now achieving success with classic car designs for their electric models.
But this new look will be more aerodynamic and futuristic. These cars will need less front air intake and won’t need a grill on the front at all, since there is less need for airflow to cool the engine, and the designs will be more efficient in a quest to preserve battery life. There will be fewer big SUVs and more crossovers, sedans and fastbacks. But amongst all of this exterior adaptation, the interior of the car must also evolve.
In the interior, the screen and voice control become the main concerns, due to strong demand for connectivity. Gone are so many of the gauges needed to monitor a gasoline engine. The idea of a driver’s interior as a pilot’s cockpit with hundreds of switches and buttons is gone. More important to the consumer is the screen and the technology it offers. Brand expression will primarily come through user experience and digital design and less through the interior materials.
Kia introduced the plug-in hybrid versions of the Ceed Sportswagon and the new XCeed. The PHEV versions of the station wagon and the crossover model, which will be available from the beginning of 2020, are based on Hyundai-Kia’s already known tech.
The key data with a 1.6-litre petrol engine, a 44.5 kW electric motor and an 8.9 kWh battery make it clear that the drive train of the Kia Niro PHEV (or Hyundai Ioniq PHEV) is used in both compact PHEV models. The biggest difference: Since the two Ceed derivatives have a lower standard consumption, provisional measurements show a purely electrical range of up to 60 kilometres.
Kia Ceed Sportwagon PHEV and XCeed PHEV (Image: Kia)
The combined fuel consumption is between 1.3 and 1.4 litres, with Kia predicting electricity consumption of 10.4-12.2 kWh/100 km (Ceed Sportwagon) and 10.5-12.2 kWh/100 km (XCeed) respectively. These are, however, values that were determined according to the WLTP but calculated back to the NEDC. Kia did not communicate the pure WLTP values. The same applies to the range.
The hybrid drive with its system output of 104 kW and a maximum torque of 265 Newton metres accelerates the Kombi Ceed Sportswagon to 100 km/h in 10.8 seconds and the XCeed to 11.0 seconds. The electric motor continues to sit between the petrol engine and the six-speed dual-clutch gearbox.
