April, 2009

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Ford Fusion Hybrid 1,000 Mile Challenge Car Sets Record with 1,445 Miles on Single Tank of Gas; Averages 81.5 mpg

Green Car Congress

Drivers trained in mileage-maximizing techniques such as smooth acceleration and coasting to red lights were able to wring 1,445.7 miles out of a single tank of gas during a fund-raising effort in Washington, DC that concluded today. They did it by averaging 81.5 miles per gallon in an off-the-showroom floor, non-modified 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid, nearly doubling its EPA rating.

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Electric Car Motors: Horsepower

Electric Cars are for Girls

For electric car motors, the first question is usually "Horsepower?

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Greenius To Corporate Carbon Producers: You’ll Pay & You’ll Like It

Creative Greenius

Last month your Creative Greenius weighed into the issue of carbon cap and trade on the TerraPass Footprint website. I offered my take on an article entitled: “ Hacks and Handout-Seekers Hate Obama’s Climate Plan “ If you’re not familiar with TerraPass Footprint this is a great opportunity to check them out. But even if you don’t, I’d like to share my take on carbon cap and trade vs carbon taxes with you after the jump… .

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Andrew’s High School Electric Hyundai

Revenge of the Electric Car

Say hello again to one of our guest bloggers, Andrew Grin. I just got my electric car back from the shop (for some minor work) and I decided to shoot some video because of the beautiful spring weather. Fully Electric Hyundai Tucson from Island Grin on Vimeo. Tags: EV Videos Inside Track hyndai tuscon.

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How serious is Norway about climate change? So much that its streetlights self-dim

emissions global warming Norway climate change carbon dioxide youtube lighting

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Honda Kills CNG Home FuelMaker

Plugs and Cars

Honda has pulled the plug on its wholly owned subsidiary Fuelmaker, which made the device for home CNG (compressed natural gas) vehicle refueling, calling a loan, and throwing Fuelmaker into receivership. All Fuelmaker employees were abruptly fired without severance or warning, and given just a few hours to gather up their belongings and leave the premises.

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Taking a Vacation

Open Source Civic EV Kit

It's been over a month since I've blogged about the Civic and people have started to ask where I've been. I'm still commuting (even with a blown charge detector) and the car has 1500 miles on it. Several events have happened with the Oregon Electric Vehicle Association (of which I'm the Chair) and I also went on vacation. At the end of march, I went on an amazing backcountry adventure, skiing the Wapta Traverse with a 45 pound pack on with Randonee' skis.

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More Trending

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Hypermiling: Drive Like a Girl

Electric Cars are for Girls

Hypermiling is the trick to getting the maximum range out of your electric car's battery pack. Ready to play?

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Meet Your Next Car At Plug-In 2009

Creative Greenius

Last year’s Plug-In 2008 gave attendees an insider’s advantage on the Plug-In technology that will quickly replace today’s obsolete, planet-killing fossil fuel centric cars. Creative Greenius readers were right there with me as I live blogged from the event: Top Ten Things I Learned At Plug In 2008. Day 3 At Plug In 2008. Electrifying Day At Plug-In 2008.

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Driving Nissan’s Trial EV

Revenge of the Electric Car

Photo by Antuan Goodwin, from the CNET Article: Test-driving the Nissan EV-02 electric car. I got invited to go to Dodger Stadium this afternoon to test drive the Nissan EV. This wasn’t the final car, but the finished drivetrain in a Nissan Cube. I was assured it would be very close to the actual feel of the car though, and given the similarity of the Cube in weight to the final EV (the Cube was about 200 lbs heavier I was told), the ride should be comparable.

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FT: EV subsidies a waste

Plugs and Cars

Yesterday's Financial Times had a great companion piece to the idiocy in today Post. The UK announced a £5000 incentive for EV beginning in 2011. After recognizing that the intent of such a subsidy is to "encourage early adopters of the technology, helping electric car manufacturers achieve economies of scale," author Richard Pike suggests a reason to oppose it is that "it would cost more than £150bn to subsidize Britain’s entire car fleet," a proposal no one has made.

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Faurecia and Accenture partner on products and services for connected and autonomous vehicles

Brief

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Planning to Replace the EV Components

Open Source Civic EV Kit

In a month or so, I'll be getting a beta-test motor controller from Synkromotive which will have a variety of programmable features as well as more power. Since I'm replacing the controller, I looked into replacing the other components with off-the-shelf items that might work better than the current Belktronix system I have. Here's the plan: - replace the controller with the programmable Synkromotive unit - replace the optical potbox with the original Civic TPS (throttle position sensor) - repla

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Israeli Microturbine-Based Range-Extended Electric Vehicle Startup Lands $12M Series A Round

Green Car Congress

Drawing of the proposed advanced microturbine. Source: ETVM Click to enlarge. ETV Motors Ltd. (ETVM), an Israeli start-up developing a range-extended electric vehicle (REEV) technology combining a novel dual-power micro-turbine and a new high-voltage lithium-ion battery chemistry, has closed a US$12-million Series A investment round. The round was led by The Quercus Trust of Newport Beach, California.

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Chevy Volt: I Feel So Much Better Now

Electric Cars are for Girls

Before I learned the Chevy Volt was designed to treat "range anxiety", I didn't know we had it. Thank goodness there's a cure!

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FUEL now playing in Long Beach

Creative Greenius

Tags: Saving Energy Sustainability Yes We Can! carbon producers climate change electric cars environment fossil fuels greenwashing plug-in cars renewable energy solar power FUEL Long Beach.

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ExxonMobil announces 6th oil discovery offshore Guyana with Ranger-1; Guyana may move from non-producer to regional powerhouse

Oil

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Tesla Model S Launch

Revenge of the Electric Car

The ‘Revenge’ team was out in strength recently to film the launch of Tesla’s Model S in Los Angeles. Check out the photos below to see the Model S — and our team in action. This SlideShowPro photo gallery requires the Flash Player plugin and a web browser with JavaScript enabled. Tags: Events Tesla Model S.

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WashPost: Volt Caused GM's woes

Plugs and Cars

Charles Lane is a member of the editorial page staff of the Washington Post. Here are some gems from his screed against the Volt, and electric cars in general, in today's paper: "GM wouldn't be in quite so deep a hole if it had not sunk a billion dollars, and much of its corporate reputation, into a not-very-realistic plug-in electric hybrid vehicle known as the Chevrolet Volt.

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Researching a Paint Job

Open Source Civic EV Kit

One of the downsides of a home-EV conversion is that most of them don't have air conditioning. The AC tends to suck precious power from the battery and adds extra weight to the car while taking up space that could be used for batteries. Thus, it's often best to get a white (or light colored) donor vehicle to repel the sun's rays during the summer. The conversion vehicle I purchased is dark metallic blue, which get's really hot inside, even on a mild day in the sun.

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Magneti Marelli and Flybrid Systems Collaborate on Flywheel Capacitor for KERS

Green Car Congress

Italian motorsport electronics specialist Magneti Marelli and UK high-speed flywheel specialist Flybrid Systems are collaborating to develop a new energy storage solution for Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems (KERS). The new product is targeted to be a high-power electrical storage system for hybrid racing cars capable of deep depths of discharge with no performance degradation and a long service life.

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Right Size AC Motor for an Electric Car

Electric Cars are for Girls

Is there a simple way (formula) to estimate the correct size for a 3-phase AC induction motor for an EV conversion given the weight of.

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Time for Earth Day Green Drinks

Creative Greenius

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The UK’s first 4 seater ‘all electric’ production car

Green Cars News

The Electric Car Corporation Plc (ECC) today announced the launch of the UK’s first 4 seater, ‘all electric’ production car. The launch coincides with the Government’s announcement to support and subsidise electric car use and their commitment to make the UK ‘a world leader’ in producing and exporting electric cars.

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Goodbye GM, Hello Tianjin-Qingyuan Electric Vehicle Company?

Plugs and Cars

I write a monthly column for the Electric Auto Association newsletter, Current EVents. Here's my April column. As March came to a close, the Obama administration found GM and Chrysler’s restructuring plans “not viable.” GM CEO Rick Waggoner was pushed out and the company got sixty days to get its act together. Chrysler was told to consummate with Fiat quickly or else.

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Total Invests in Series D Round of Butanol and Renewable Hydrocarbons Company Gevo

Green Car Congress

Oil and gas major Total has invested an undisclosed amount in the series D round of advanced biofuels company Gevo. Gevo was founded in 2005 by Drs. Frances Arnold, Matthew Peters and Peter Meinhold of the California Institute of Technology. The company is focused on the development of advanced biofuels and renewable chemicals based on isobutanol and its derivatives.

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Automakers Still Targeting Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles for Long Term Sustainable Mobility

Green Car Congress

Despite the current enthusiasm for electric vehicles (EVs), hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) will be an important component of the vehicle mix in 2050, according to panelists from Nissan, Toyota and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in a conference session at the SAE 2009 World Congress in Detroit. Dr. Kev Adjemian, Senior Principal Engineer/Senior Manager - Fuel Cell Laboratory, Nissan; Justin Ward, Advanced Powertrain Program Manager, Toyota; and Keith Wipke, Senior Engineer, N

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Developing Fords EcoBoost Combustion System

Green Car Congress

Configuration of the 3.5L V6 EcoBoost Combustion System. A 6-hole fuel injector is mounted between intake ports. The spark plug is at the center of the chamber. The piston has a shallow bowl designed to ensure stable combustion during engine cold-start operations. Source: Ford. Click to enlarge. Ford’s turbocharged, gasoline direct injection EcoBoost engines are targeted to play a significant near-term role in Ford’s efforts to reduce fuel consumption by enabling downsizing.

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Report: Honda, Toyota Earning Profits on Hybrids

Green Car Congress

The Nikkei reports that Toyota and Honda are both making estimated profits of about ¥300,000 (about US$3,100) each on every hybrid they sell, similar to what they make on small, gasoline-engined vehicles. If Honda sells 200,000 Insight hybrids worldwide in the first year of its release, the company would generate sales of more than 350 billion yen [US$3.6 billion].

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$300 Million for US Clean Cities Fleet Programs

Green Car Congress

The US Department of Energy will award $300 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to state and local governments, and transit authorities to expand the US’ fleet of clean, sustainable vehicles and the fueling infrastructure necessary to support them. This funding adds to the $11 billion already announced by the Department of Energy to bolster state and local government energy efficiency programs and weatherize low-income homes.

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DENSO Develops Exhaust Gas Temperature Sensor With Improved Temperature Detection Accuracy

Green Car Congress

DENSO extended the length of the probe and developed a vibration-resistant structure to support it. Click to enlarge. DENSO Corporation has improved the temperature detection accuracy of its newly developed diesel exhaust temperature sensor. The new sensor, which is located in front of the diesel particulate filter (DPF) and used to control temperature for DPF regeneration, helps reduce harmful diesel emissions and improves fuel efficiency by enabling more precise control of aftertreatment syste

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Capacity Launches Pluggable Series Hybrid Electric Terminal Tractor

Green Car Congress

Capacity of Texas has introduced a Pluggable Hybrid Electric Terminal Tractor (PHETT). The PHETT is a charge-sustaining series hybrid that utilizes a 40 hp constant rate generator to supply power, reducing fuel consumption by 60% and audible db by 30%. The PHETT. Click to enlarge. The PHETT incorporates a 225 hp (168 kW) 3-phase AC traction motor that develops 1,376 lb-ft (1,865 N·m) of torque and 220V single-phase 40 amp on-board grid-charging system.

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BMW Introduces New Entry Level X3 xDrive 18d Sports Activity Vehicle; 6.2 L/100km

Green Car Congress

BMW has introduced a new entry-level version of the BMW X3 Sports Activity Vehicle for European markets. The X3 xDrive 18d features a 2.0-liter four-cylinder diesel that produces 105 kW (143 hp) and offers combined cycle fuel consumption of 6.2 L/100km (38 mpg US), with CO 2 emissions of 165 g/km. The X3 xDrive 18d. Click to enlarge. Maximum torque from the 2.0 liter engine is 350 Nm (258 lb-ft), and the new X3 accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 10.3 seconds, with a maximum speed of 195 km/h (121

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Genomes of Two Strains of Micromonas Algae Show Surprising Diversity

Green Car Congress

Transmission electron micrograph of one of the smallest known eukaryotic algae, Micromonas. Credit for TEM: A.Z. Worden, T. Deerinck, M. Terada, J. Obiyashi and M. Ellisman (MBARI and NCMIR). Click to enlarge. Scientists from two-dozen research organizations led by the US Department of Energy (DOE) Joint Genome Institute (JGI) and the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) have decoded the genomes of two strains of the photosynthetic algal genus Micromonas , highlighting the genes enab

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Hyundai Nuvis Concept Powered by Hybrid Blue Drive Architecture

Green Car Congress

The Hyundai Nuvis. Click to enlarge. Hyundai introduced its Nuvis concept crossover vehicle at the New York International Auto Show. The Nuvis, which Hyundai said hints at future-generation crossover design that blends attributes of a tall urban car and a premium utility vehicle, is powered by Hyundai’s Hybrid Blue Drive architecture, with lithium polymer battery technology from LG Chem. ( Earlier post.).

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Nestlé Waters Converts Lift Trucks from LPG to Hydrogen Fuel Cells

Green Car Congress

Nestlé Waters North America has installed 32 Plug Power GenDrive hydrogen fuel cells, purchased in 2008, in its materials-handling fleet at their Dallas, Texas bottling facility. As a result, Nestle Waters has converted its entire fleet of sit-down counterbalanced lift trucks from internal combustion (IC) engines powered by liquid petroleum gas (LPG) to Yale class I electric lift trucks powered by GenDrive power units.

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GM: Putting 1M Plug-ins on the Road Will Require a Plug-In Ecosystem

Green Car Congress

In a conference call organized by GM, Tony Posawatz, Chevrolet Volt and Global Electric Vehicle Line Director; Mark Duvall, Director of Electric Transportation, EPRI; and Bob Hayden, Clean Transportation Advisor, Department of Environment, City and County of San Francisco described the nature and role of the “plug-in ecosystem” required to support one million and more plug-ins on the road in the US.

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