Looking considerably more car-like than previous development shots the exciting new Porsche 918 Spyder protoype has begun formal trials with the target to deliver the first production vehicles to customers before the end of 2013.  The 918 is a two-seater spyder made from CFRP (carbon fibre reinforced plastics) it features two electric motors which alone provide 200 hp, combined with the 4.6L V8 engine this becomes 770 hp enabling a sub-three-second 0 - 100 kph (62 mph) and a top speed over 325 kph (200 mph).  In purely electric mode top speed is limited to 150 kph (93 mph) and range just 25 km (15 miles).   More »

One additional nugget of news from Tesla's quarterly letter to shareholders: "We recently signed an agreement with Daimler to create an entire electric powertrain for a new Mercedes-Benz EV, thus formalizing the joint effort kicked off in Q4 last year. This program is expected to exceed in value the sum of all powertrain agreements signed in Tesla history." To be clear this is the extension of an ongoing relationship between Tesla and Daimler (owners of the Mercedes-Benz marque) that could be worth more than $280 million (according to Chief Financial Officer Deepak Ahuja). More »

Tesla had two items of good news for those on the Model S waiting list.  When first announced the range from the 85 kWh battery (the best specification) was expected to be 300 miles, however development improvements have meant that in final testing the Model S (with this larger battery) is achieving around 350 miles at 55 mph and 250 miles at 70 mph (the faster you go the less efficient the car is due to aerodynamic losses).  Better still, in city traffic (averaging around 20 mph and making full use of regenerative braking) you can expect to get over 400 miles of range.  Telsa note that these tests were carried out with climate control turned off, with it on expect a 10-15% reduction in range.  The second piece of positive news comes from its quarterly letter to shareholders, Tesla now expect to deliver the first customer Model S cars next month (June 2012), a full month earlier than expected having now manufacturered 50 beta and 30 release candidate vehicles.  Tesla expects to deliver 5,000 Model S sedans by the end of 2012. Reservations have so far topped 10,000. More »

Back in July 2010 Brammo revealed the Empulse electric motorcycle, at the time the intention was to deliver the same performance as a typical 600 cc.  Back then Brammo were expecting to ship in 2011, well, it's taken a little longer than that, the design has changed, power is down and the price has gone up but the end result looks good anyway.  The new Empulse and Empulse R are said to be the product of many months of R&D with riders and dealers which have lead to an electric motorcycle which not only looks great and goes like a modern 400 cc but also has a 100 mile range and can be charged at a rate of around 30 miles of per hour (from a J1772 Level 2 outlet - 240 V).  The Empulse weighs in at 200 kg and has a 1.5 m wheelbase (4 ft 10 in).  The water cooled motor has a peak output of 40 kW (54 hp) and 63 Nm (46.5 ftlb) of torque, it drives a six speed gearbox for a top speed of 100 mph (160 kph).  Range from the 10.2 kWh lithium-ion battery pack is a mixed bag; 120 miles in the SAE City Riding Test (variable speed; 19 mph average), 56 miles in the SAE Highway / Constant Speed Riding Range Test (70 mph sustained) and 77 miles in the SAE Highway Commuting Cycle (50% City, 50% Highway).  The Empulse and Empulse R will cost $16,995 and $18,995 respectively and are expected to ship (hopefully) beginning with the Empulse R in July this year. More »

While not the most exciting electric vehicle announcement of the last twelve months the second generation Toyota RAV4 EV will undoubtedly prove popular (if you call 900 units a year popularity) amongst the EV faithful who shed a tear when Toyota stopped selling the first generation RAV4 EV in 2002.  The all new RAV4 EV features a Tesla powertrain and battery, will weigh 1829 kg (4032 lbs), gets to 60 mph in 7 seconds and should get 100 'real-world' miles (160 km) of range from its 41.8 kWh battery.  Toyota are quoting a six hour charge time using a 240V / 40A charger.  The partnership between Tesla and Toyota started back in May 2010 with the announcement of collaboration on electric vehicle development, a couple of months later they announced the joint development of the RAV4 EV, in February 2011 the first 30 RAV4 EV test vehicles hit the road.  The Canadian produced RAV4 EV will have an MSRP of $49,800 when it goes on sale this summer (US only). More »

You won't have heard of Rimac Automobili before but the ambitious Croatian automotive startup is intent on producing the worlds first ground-up electric supercar, a vehicle which can reach 100 kph (62 mph) in under three seconds and has the equivalent of 1088 hp from its four in-wheel motors.  The Concept_One which when displayed at the Frankfurt Motorshow seemed to be little more than an interest concept has recently hit the track and 'shredded some tires' (see video above).  You'll need deep pockets to appreciate this beast, $980,000 to be precise and production of the Concept_One will be limited to around 88 units with first deliveries in 2013. More »

Last year we reported that the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) were proposing a combined AC/DC EV charging connector and standard.  That appears to have come to fruition at the Electric Vehicle Symposium with the new SAE standard AC/DC connector and charging standard which promises charge times as short as 20 minutes (high power DC).  This new standard has been agreed by the big German and US car makers (Audi, BMW, Chrysler, Daimler, Ford, General Motors, Porsche and Volkswagen) but leaves them at odds with Nissan and Toyota who have both championed (and utilized) the Japanese CHAdeMO DC charging standard (typically 50-60 kW output).  This new standard enables charging up to 500 V with a maximum current of 200 A (up to 100 kW), connectors should appear on cars in 2013. More »

From the department of we-didn't-see-that-coming comes the A6 L e-tron concept with an 80 km (50 mile) electric-only range (at 60 kph; 37 mph).  The electric motor provides 70 kW (95 hp) power backed up by a 155 kW (211 hp) 2.0 turbo petrol engine.  Launched at the Beijing Auto Show Audi clearly state this car is "specifically designed to fulfill Chinese needs".  The Chinese market do love their long-wheelbase (perhaps beacuse owners prefer to be driven than to actually drive) and Audi confirm that the A6 L is their bestselling model in China (it's produced in China as part of a joint venture with FAW).  It'll be interesting to see when this concept becomes a reality and if it'll be available anywhere other than China. More »

IBMs 'Battery 500' project was set up in 2009 with the target of producing a battery which would provide a family-sized electric car a 500 mile (800 km) range (or essentially 5-10x the capacity of todays batteries).  The game-changing battery works by absorbing oxygen from the air, the reaction of this with the lithium-ion generates electricity, considerably more than a typical lithium-ion battery.  The absorbed oxygen is released when the battery is charged.  Up until now it's been a labs-only project but IBM clearly feel now is the time to think commercially and have announced two new materials partners in Asahi Kasei (produces separator membranes for lithium-ion batteries) and Central Glass (producer of battery electrolytes).  IBM are still cautious however that it'll be sometime between 2020 and 2030 before we see it in a production vehicle. More »

While it won't be powering any electric cars anytime soon Hitachi's new compact high-efficiency 11 kW axial-gap motor is perhaps a glimpse into a rare-earth-free electric drive future.  Axial-gap motors work by having the stator and rotor arranged as two discs facing each other and do not require the use of magnetic material (such as neodymium and dysprosium), instead they have an iron-based amorphous core. Not only is it rare-earth magnet free but the new motor is also about 5% more efficient than traditional motors at around 93% which means it fulfills the highest standard IE4 efficiency guideline a set out by the IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission).

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