Japanese startup Terra Motors officially debuted its electric tuk-tuk (a type of three-wheeled passenger vehicle common in Asia), a tricycle that costs just over $6,000 U.S. and gets 31 miles on a 2 hour charge. The electric vehicle stands at the opposite end of the spectrum from something like the Tesla Model S Roadster, and for good reason: it’s designed to be affordable for emerging markets in… → Read More
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. and 4R Energy Corporation announced today that the two companies have developed and installed a new EV charging solution that combines renewable solar energy and high capacity lithium-ion batteries. The system was recently installed for testing at Nissan’s global headquarters in Yokohama, Japan.
The system uses the solar cells to collect the energy and a large lithium-ion… → Read More
Today, electric motorcycle makers Brammo revealed that the company will add new electronic transmission technology, and a redesigned motor, clutch and gear shift to its lineup, that will make its motorcycles perform more like their gas-powered predecessors.
The first incorporation of this technology into the company’s product lines will be into Brammo’s new, not-yet-in-production Engage and… → Read More
A Santa Cruz-based electric motorcycle manufacturer, Zero Motorcycles, raised another $2.4 million in private equity, according to a new SEC filing.
Earlier this month, California’s Scotts Valley Police Department started using the company’s Zero DS bikes in urban patrols. According to a company press statement, its Zero DS has a range of up to 50 miles (80 km) and is highway legal, safe for… → Read More
Hertz Rent A Car is set to offer electric vehicles at an hourly rate starting December 15th in New York City, with expansion of the service to San Francisco, Washington D.C., London, up to 50 college campuses in North America, and markets in Texas and China by the end of 2011.
For what it calls the ConnectByHertz “car sharing” service in Manhattan, the company aims to make 20 electric vehicles… → Read More
Today, General Electric (GE) offered details about its committment to encourage the widespread adoption of all-electric vehicles. The company plans to walk the walk with a purchase of 25,000 electric vehicles by 2015, including an order for 12,000 Chevy Volt vehicles in 2011 from General Motors (GM), a GE business partner.
Within the next three years, GE expects to generate up to $500 million in… → Read More
Here comes another spoof on the Mac vs. PC ad campaign, this one promoting electric vehicles over combustion engines. Plug In America, an advocacy organization that wants to reduce the United States’ dependence on petroleum, created the electric vehicle hype spots and calls them public service announcements.
The first of the seven PSAs include talent from the film Who Killed The Electric Car. One… → Read More
Bryan Hansel, chief executive of Smith Electric Vehicles U.S., spoke with TechCrunch this week about how he is convincing American corporations to try electric trucks, and some of the challenges the company faces as it scales to meet the demand it’s been working so hard to create.
But the CEO almost disdains the word “green.” His company, headquartered in Kansas City, Mo. sells all-electric… → Read More
Nissan‘s Leaf is almost ready to be picked. The company announced its all-electric car will be available to buy as early as December, but only for those in California, Washington, Oregon, Arizona and Tennessee. Other parts of the country will have to hold their horsepower a little bit longer.
Nissan chose to release to those five states first because they’re home to the EV project, the world’s… → Read More
The electric sports car scene is heating up with Porsche‘s confirmation of a new all-electric sports car based on its Boxster. The company is conducting daily tests of three research cars to study battery systems and electric drive components.
Porsche President and CEO Michael Macht said in a statement that Porsche will “definitely be offering electric sports cars in the future,” but that the… → Read More
The Car Charging Group, Inc. (CCGI) this weekend announced a partnership with LAZ Parking in New York and New Jersey to begin outfitting its facilities with smart, electric vehicle charging stations.
The Miami-based CCGI installs and maintains electric vehicle charging stations in government-owned lots, and at commercial sites like shopping malls, hotels, stadiums and corporate parking garages. … → Read More
Brammo‘s electric motorcyle, the Enertia, is about to get some faster, stronger siblings. The company’s new Empulse Trio line will feature bikes that can take you an average of 60, 80 or 100 miles on a full charge at speeds of up to 100 miles per hour. The Enertia, in comparison, can only travel about 40 miles on a full charge.
“We found there was a range anxiety issue with the 40-mile range,”… → Read More
Ford‘s 2011 Focus Electric will run on Compact Power Inc.’s lithium-ion battery, the company announced today. The batteries will initially be made in South Korea at CPI’s parent company, LG Chem, with plans to start manufacturing at a new $300 million site in Holland, Mich. in 2012.
The Focus Electric will be a full battery electric passenger car made at Ford’s Michigan Assembly Plant, which used… → Read More
Things are looking good for the Volt. Chevy said that the first pre-production Volt rolled off the line yesterday. Of course, that doesn’t mean that you can buy one yet, but it’s still a pretty huge deal. For the future! → Read More
I’ve been quite fascinated by electric car firm Better Place since I read up on how the company was founded by former SAP executive Shai Agassi in the excellent book ‘Start-up Nation’, which tells of Israel’s historical entrepreneurial DNA and tech success stories.
Basically, Better Place aims to reduce global dependency on petroleum through the creation of a market-based transportation… → Read More
When I say DIY, I mean he DIY’ed, not necessarily that you can DIY. This 22-year-old college student took a Kawasaki ninja frame, stripped it down, and with help from his electrical engineer father, built a pretty damn amazing electric motorcycle. → Read More
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