The Inflation Reduction Act, which also includes the reform of the EV tax credit, has now passed the House of Representatives after the Senate and is expected to be signed by President Joe Biden in the coming days. The new eligibility requirements will make most electric models ineligible for the tax credit.
After the package was repeatedly reduced in the Senate in numerous rounds of negotiations, the vote in the House of Representatives was considered a formality due to the majority ratios there. The same applies to the final signature of US President Biden. Even in its greatly reduced scope, the climate-related expenditure of 369 billion US dollars is the largest climate package ever passed in the USA.
For the tax credit on the purchase of an electric car, the changes are massive – it remains at the maximum $7,500 subsidy amount, but the requirements to qualify for the full subsidy have been tightened enormously. And the requirements will continue to increase in the coming years. The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, whose members include the US corporations GM and Ford, as well as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and Hyundai-Kia, estimates that 70 per cent of BEVs and PHEVs will no longer be eligible for subsidies as early as 2023.
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The first ever, zero emission bus fleet for Leeds is being prepared to enter service in a multi-million pound investment by First Bus in partnership with the West Yorkshire Combined Authority and Leeds City Council.
The nine Yutong E10 electric vehicles (EV) will be supplied by Pelican Coach & Bus, a family-owned engineering company based in Castleford, which has a 100-year history in transport and is the exclusive distributor in the UK for the Chinese-made buses.
Electricity charging infrastructure for the fleet is nearing completion at First’s Hunslet Park depot in the city.
The equipment and installation are being managed by Zenobe Energy, a tech start-up that entered the market four years ago and is already one of the largest independent owners and operators of battery storage, with some 160MW of contracted storage assets and around a 20 per cent market share of the EV bus sector.
A battery energy storage system (BESS), including two giant Tesla batteries – 390kW and 498kWh, will support the power requirements including fleet charging and grid services. The BESS is powered by the grid but returns electricity to support the grid when charging the buses.
Leeds Zero Emission Bus (Image: Yorkshire Evening Post)
The total investment in the fleet and infrastructure is £7.3m and includes £1.7m funding from the Department of Transport’s Ultra-Low Emission Bus Scheme (ULEB) which First West Yorkshire secured in 2019 with the support of the combined authority.
Simon Carlisle, engineering director of First West Yorkshire, said: “This is the first phase of our plan to bring zero emission buses into our fleet operations to further benefit the cleaner air ambitions of Leeds.
“We have worked closely with our local authority partners and leaders in their fields in Pelican and Zenobe Energy to combine vehicle, battery and charging technology that heralds a new era in public transport from our Hunslet depot.”
He added: “The engineering team have embraced the challenges required for running electric vehicles compared to traditional combustion engine technology and I am immensely proud of what they have achieved so far.”
The Yutong E10 boasts innovative battery technology on-board which stores energy generated when applying the brakes. It also has fully electric air conditioning, seat-sited USB charging points and LED-powered headlights, indicators and interior lighting.
The bus can travel 200 miles on a single charge and is estimated to save 45 tonnes of carbon a year compared to a Euro 6 diesel engine.
Ian Downie, Pelican’s head of Yutong Bus UK, said: “It is with great pleasure that we can deliver these state-of-the-art zero emission vehicles to First Bus.
“The passenger experience will be second to none, with smooth driving and quiet interiors. It is a real demonstration of First’s commitment to the environment that these vehicles will soon be in operation in Leeds.”
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Fuel Included recently delivered its first example of the Nissan Leaf electric car. Though it was not the first one sold, it was the first one collected from a set due to be delivered at about the same time.
It was collected by its proud new owner, Emma of Hemel Hempstead, from her local Nissan dealership, Glyn Hopkin of St Albans. We are grateful to Ben York, the electric sales specialist there, for his professional handling of the sale.
The New Car’s Keys are Handed Over (Image: FuelIncluded.com)
Emma chose the Leaf from our range of electric cars as the right combination of price and size for her family.
Emma Prepares to Drive Away (Image: FuelIncluded.com)
Trevor Larkum, Managing Director of Fuel Included Limited, was there to hand over the car keys. He said:
“We are very proud to turn over this new Leaf to Emma. We know it will provide her with years of trouble-free service while saving her fuel costs and helping the environment.”
Tesla Motors Inc., of Palo Alto, California announced in the early hours of 1st April the launch of its latest electric car safety system, causing its share price to rise substantially as soon as the stock market opened, Fuel Included (http://fuelincluded.com/news/press-release/) can exclusively reveal.
Tesla has been in the forefront of many safety developments since the launch of its original Roadster and has enhanced them significantly during the development of the Model S. In NHTSA safety testing in 2013 it achieved a 5 star rating, and it did the same in 2014 in the European NCAP system. Following some issues with collisions with road debris the Model S was the first car to be retrofitted with a titanium undershield. At the end of 2014 it was announced that any Model S manufactured from September 2014 would get auto-pilot features including automatic steering, adaptive cruise control and lane departure warning.
The latest Tesla safety system solves a known susceptibility of electric cars to water ingress into the electrical systems. It builds on earlier work begun by other manufacturers. One of the earliest of these was developed by Mercedes-Benz (part of the Daimler group) for its Smart ForTwo Electric Drive. This protected the vehicle from water ingress even during a heavy rainstorm. It was ground-mounted, however, which limited its use to the owner’s home.
Smart Car Rain Protection System (Image Credit: M. Stanley/TrendHunter.com)
When Toyota followed up the success of its Prius hybrid with the launch of the Prius Plug-In electric car it produced an enhanced rain protection system. Like the Smart system it was deployed to shield the car’s electrical systems from water ingress but unlike that system it could be transported in the car. Therefore at any time that it was required the driver was able to pull over and deploy the system without the need to return home to shelter.
The Tesla system, however, is significantly more advanced than any previous system. It is fully integrated into the Model S and can be deployed at speed without restriction. Its umbrella configuration allows it to fully protect the car’s electrical system from even a powerful rainstorm.
Toyota Rain Protection System Deployed on a Prius Plug-in (Image Credit: WITHCOMBEM/Photobucket.com)
In one impressive step forward Tesla has demonstrated that it can achieve the ‘holy grail’ of deploying an electric car that can be driven in severe environmental conditions. In this way Tesla has become the first electric car manufacturer to eliminate ‘rain anxiety’.
Automatically Deployed Tesla Rain Protection System (Image Credit: FuelIncluded.com)
Those familiar with the company’s plans have suggested that Tesla may build on this success by adding a kite-deployed conductor to the next-generation Model X and so produce an electric car that can charge itself in a thunderstorm.
Many drivers looking to get a new car are considering a plug-in – either an all-electric car or a plug-in hybrid – but are reluctant to make the change. A new business, Fuel Included, specialises in supplying electric vehicles and helping drivers through the transition.
The process begins with an ‘orientation’ session at a local dealer which includes a walk-around of an electric car. Then comes a test drive in the car – this always goes very well as the quiet, smoothness and performance of an electric vehicle never fails to impress. After this, most drivers are sold on the idea of upgrading to electric power, though they may decide for reasons of range that they want a plug-in hybrid (with a backup petrol engine) rather than a pure electric.
Even after the car is ordered, Fuel Included provides help and support. This is primarily in four ways. Firstly, by helping to arrange the installation of a suitable charge point in the customer’s home – usually either in the garage or on an outside wall.
Secondly, advice is provided on a suitable electricity supply tariff (taking into account the costs of overnight versus daytime charging, and any opportunities for using renewable energy). Thirdly, Fuel Included applies on the customer’s behalf for an appropriate selection of access cards for public charging points. Typically this covers at least one nationwide rapid charger network and one standard speed network.
Finally, throughout the ordering and delivery stage, and then during the first 6 months of ownership, Fuel Included provides help through a dedicated email and telephone support service. There is also useful additional information on its website (http://FuelIncluded.com).
Trevor Larkum, Managing Director of Fuel Included, puts it in this way:
“Drivers who change to electric find there was never anything to worry about. As is well known, most drivers who have gone electric can never be comfortable returning to driving a noisy and polluting car, and themselves become enthusiasts ready to persuade friends and family to make the same switch.”
With this kind of encouragement and help any driver can be confident of a smooth and painless transition to electric driving.
You can now buy a new car just like a mobile phone with all expenses covered, including fuel, on a simple monthly tariff.
A new business, Fuel Included, has launched with the striking motto ‘Fixed Cost Motoring – Take control of your car – Take control of your life’. It is offering a completely new and unique way to drive a new car or van. You choose from a range of brand new plug-in vehicles (plug-in hybrids and all electrics) on lease, and the monthly cost includes the price of the electricity and vehicle tax.
There is a wide range of cars to choose from, including the Volkswagen Golf GTE, BMW i3 and i8, Mercedes B-Class, Nissan Leaf, Renault ZOE and Mitsubishi Outlander. New cars that will be available soon are the Audi A3 e-tron, Kia Soul EV and VW Passat GTE.
Fuel Included gives help to its new plug-in customers with telephone and email support, plus arranges the installation of a home charge point and provides public charge point access cards. It is primarily an online business (at FuelIncluded.com), supplying the cars through the customer’s local car dealer. However, it also arranges events where the public can get to see and test drive new plug-in cars.
Dr Trevor Larkum, Managing Director and CEO of Fuel Included, said:
“The vehicles we supply have very low or zero emissions and so have a very low carbon footprint. By buying your next car from us you’re not just saving money – you’re also saving the climate.”
