Audi increases upfront expenditure for electric mobility; €12B by 2024

Audi AG plans an outlay of approximately €37 billion for research and development expenditure and investment in property, plant and equipment over the next five years (2020 to 2024).

The current planning reflects a significant improvement in investment and cost discipline, as well as the strong prioritization of investments in electric mobility. The manufacturer is planning an upfront expenditure of €12 billion solely for electric mobility—more than ever before.

The Audi Transformation Plan (ATP), launched two years ago, is freeing up the necessary funds. Since the start of the program, the ATP has already contributed €4 billion to earnings. Furthermore, measures taken in the context of Audi.Zukunft are to free up approximately €6 billion for future investments by 2029.

With our Consistently Audi strategy, we are accelerating our roadmap towards electrification. Our investment planning takes this into account. At around €12 billion, we will spend more than ever before on electric mobility by 2024.

—Alexander Seitz, Board of Management Member for Finance, China and Legal Affairs at Audi AG

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By 2025, the Audi Group intends to have more than 30 electrified models in its product range, 20 of which will be fully electric. Audi intends to achieve about 40% of its worldwide unit sales with all-electric and hybridized automobiles by then.

In order to achieve the rapid scaling of electric mobility, Audi is working with Porsche to develop the premium electrification architecture (PPE) for large electric cars; the Modular E Drive System (MEB) is being developed together with Volkswagen. The cross-brand architectures will enable high Group synergies to be utilized in the future.

In order to finance the high investment required to realign the business model, the company launched the Audi Transformation Plan (ATP). This earnings-improvement program is to free up a total of €15 billion for future investments by 2022. The ATP has already contributed more than €4 billion to operating profit since it was launched.

With the ATP, we have significantly improved our spending discipline and our focus on investment. The course has been set for Audi to return to an operating return on sales within the strategic target corridor of 9 to 11 percent in the medium term.

—Alexander Seitz

Measures have already been identified for 80% of the program.

Audi.Zukunft, a fundamental agreement reached on 26 November between the company’s management and the employee representatives, will also make a crucial contribution towards ensuring Audi’s long-term competitiveness. The agreement includes the market-oriented optimization of strategic production capacities at the two German plants and socially responsible workforce adjustments.

The agreement strengthens new job profiles in apprenticeships and further training and extends the employment guarantee until the end of 2029. At the same time, the Works Council and the company’s management have agreed to cut up to 9,500 jobs until 2025.

The reductions will take place along the demographic curve—in particular through employee turnover and a new, attractive early-retirement program. An equivalent percentage staff reduction will take place in management.

Nonetheless, Audi will continue to recruit in the coming years. The company plans to create up to 2,000 new expert positions in areas such as electric mobility and digitalization. Those appointments will be made on the principle of internal before external candidates.

The measures agreed upon within the framework of Audi.Zukunft are expected to have a cumulative positive impact on earnings of approximately €6 billion by 2029, which is to be available for investments in the future.

BMW Group to build future MINI E vehicles in China with Great Wall Motor

The BMW Group and Great Wall Motor have launched a new joint venture—Spotlight Automotive Limited—and are building a joint plant in China, where the BMW Group will produce future fully-electric models of its MINI brand.

The plant will have a standard capacity of up to 160,000 vehicles per year, which will require around 3,000 employees after the ramp-up phase. Both partners will together invest around €650 million (more than five billion CNY). The construction phase is planned for 2020 to 2022.

In summer 2018, the 50:50 joint venture agreement was signed in Berlin in the presence of Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

As well as production, the innovative joint venture model also includes joint development of battery-electric vehicles in the world’s largest market for electromobility.

The joint venture envisages production of future electric MINI vehicles, as well as several models and brands for Great Wall Motor. Following the launch of the brand-new first-generation fully-electric MINI, which will be built at Oxford and come to market in the first quarter of 2020, this is another important step towards the MINI brand’s electrified future.

MINI Plant Oxford, which recently built the 10 millionth car since the brand’s launch in 1959, will remain the heart and home of MINI manufacturing, while the Spotlight Automotive joint venture will provide additional capacity and flexibility.

Zhangjiagang was chosen as the location of the Spotlight plant because of its solid supplier network, skilled workforce and good infrastructure. Jiangsu is also one of the leading provinces for finance, education and technology.

The BMW Group is firmly committed to continuing its successful cooperation with established sales structures and channels in China. The joint venture will not be creating an additional sales organization in China for future electric vehicles. Every joint venture partner will use their own sales channel for their specific brands.

The BMW Group is already a leading supplier of electrified vehicles. By the end of 2021, the company aims to have more than one million fully-electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids on the roads worldwide.

At that point, the BMW Group will offer five fully-electric production vehicles. Alongside the BMW i3, which saw demand increase by approximately 20% so far this year, production of the fully-electric MINI will also begin at the Oxford plant (UK) this month.

More than 78,000 customers have so far expressed an interest in the MINI ELECTRIC. In 2020, production of the fully-electric BMW iX3 will begin at the Shenyang plant (China), followed in 2021 by the BMW iNEXT, which will be built at the Dingolfing plant (Germany). The BMW i4 is also due to go into series production at the Munich plant in 2021.

By 2023, the company will already offer 25 electrified models—more than half of which will be fully electric. Flexible vehicle architectures, which allow a model to be driven fully electrically, as a plug-in hybrid or with a combustion engine, form the basis for this, as well as a highly flexible production system.

Hyundai Motor previews HDC-6 NEPTUNE fuel-cell-electric truck concept and trailer

Hyundai Motor Company (HMC) released the first rendering images of its concept for a hydrogen-powered fuel cell electric truck, HDC-6 NEPTUNE.

Known for its leadership in fuel cell technology with integrated capabilities for the passenger and commercial vehicle markets, HMC will debut its latest commercial truck concept during this year’s North American Commercial Vehicle Show in Atlanta.

In addition, Hyundai Translead (HT) will also reveal its eco-friendly, high-performance refrigerated concept trailer solution, HT Nitro ThermoTech.

Supporting the company’s vision for a zero-carbon-emission fuel-cell truck, Hyundai’s name for its concept—HDC-6 NEPTUNE—recognizes the Roman god of the seas, Neptune, symbolizing the hydrogen-powered natural elements of the sea: the largest potential source of hydrogen fuel on Earth.

We have cemented the fuel cell technology leadership positon in the passenger vehicle sector with the world’s first commercially produced fuel cell EV and the second generation fuel cell EV, the NEXO. With the introduction of HDC-6 NEPTUNE, in addition to the road-proven Xcient fuel cell truck, we expand our technology leadership into the commercial vehicle sector by unveiling our vision of how fuel cell electric trucks can resolve the environmental equations of widely used commercial vehicles and our commitment to create a decarbonized society.

—Edward Lee, Head of Commercial Vehicle Business Division at Hyundai Motor Company

In addition to HDC-6 NEPTUNE’s unique construction, fuel-cell system and advanced in-cab technology, its modern design draws inspiration from the streamliner railway trainsets of the 1930s with its Art Deco function-driven style. Similarly, the HDC-6 NEPTUNE design team found new ways to combine both form and function to create an entirely unique new solution within the commercial vehicle industry.

Hyundai’s commercial offerings include trucks from Class 2 to Class 8 and buses which are manufactured in three international plants and currently sold in 130 countries around the world since 1970s.

Groupe Renault introduces fuel-cell range extenders into its light commercial electric vehicles

Groupe Renault is extending the range of its electric light commercial vehicles with hydrogen fuel cells. Renault KANGOO Z.E. Hydrogen will be available at the end of 2019 and Renault MASTER Z.E. Hydrogen in 2020.

Tested since 2014, Groupe Renault’s hydrogen technology was developed in partnership with Symbio, a Groupe Michelin subsidiary.

The vehicles are equipped with a range extender fuel cell providing electric and thermal power of 10 kW, increasing the range of Renault MASTER Z.E. Hydrogen and Renault KANGOO Z.E. Hydrogen to more than 350 km (217 miles).

Another advantage of hydrogen is that charging takes just five to ten minutes. Hydrogen responds to the requirements of professionals not yet to be fulfilled by electric vehicles, notably for their long-distance travel needs.

Expected in first-half 2020, Renault MASTER Z.E. Hydrogen will triple the range from 120 km to 350 km and will be available in van (two versions) and chassis cab (two versions). Equipped with two hydrogen tanks located under the car body, the vehicle will gain in versatility with no compromises on the load volume from 10.8 m³ to 20 m³ with a reasonable additional weight of 200 kg.

From the end of 2019, Renault KANGOO Z.E. Hydrogen will boast the best real-life range of any electric van on the market at 370 km (230 miles) (vs 230 km.143 miles WLTP with Kangoo Z.E.). With a load volume of 3.9 m³, despite a reasonable additional weight of 110 kg, this vehicle will be available in France at €48,300 ex. VAT (including the battery purchase and not including ecological bonuses).

Groupe Renault considers hydrogen electric light commercial vehicles particularly suitable for the intensive needs and uses of professionals in large urban areas up to the periphery of cities: transport and logistics, urban deliveries and multi-technical services, municipal and local authority services, express and special mail.

Hyundai Motor Group develops world first active shift control for hybrids

Hyundai Motor Group has developed the world’s first Active Shift Control (ASC) transmission technology. The innovation optimizes transmission efficiency by monitoring gear shifts 500 times per second, precisely adjusting the transmission rotation speed to for faster shift times. The new technology will premiere in the upcoming Hyundai Sonata Hybrid and eventually benefit other upcoming Hyundai and Kia hybrids.

ASC applies new control logic software to the Hybrid Control Unit (HCU), which then controls the electric motor to align the rotational speeds of the engine and transmission to reduce gear shift time by 30%. The technology also delivers smoother gear changes despite quicker shift times.

The development of world’s first ASC technology is a remarkable innovation which incorporates precise motor control to automatic transmission. It will not only save fuel but also provide a more fun driving experience for our customers.

—KyoungJoon Chang, Vice President and Head of Powertrain Control System Group of Hyundai Motor Group

Conventional hybrid vehicles do not have torque converters in order to further improve fuel economy as torque converters lose energy during the process of transmission. Although fuel efficient, such a system also requires longer shift times to ensure smoother gear changes.

ASC technology allows the hybrid’s electric motor to also take control of gear shifts by applying new software logic to the Hybrid Control Unit (HCU) to mitigate issues with slower shift time. The HCU monitors the rotational speed of transmission with a sensor installed inside the electric motor at 500 times per second to quickly synchronize the rotational speed with that of engine.

With the synchronization, shift time is reduced by 30% from 500ms to 350ms. This not only improves hybrid vehicle’s acceleration performance and fuel economy, but also durability of the transmission by minimizing friction during gear shift.

BYD, Toyota jointly to develop battery electric vehicles for Chinese market

BYD Company Ltd. and Toyota Motor Corporation have signed an agreement for the joint development of battery electric vehicles (BEVs). The two parties will jointly develop sedans and low-floor SUVs as well as the onboard batteries for these vehicles and others with the aim to launch them in the Chinese market under the Toyota brand in the first half of the 2020s.

BYD was founded in 1995 as a battery business and has grown into a total energy solution company, manufacturing not only electrified vehicles but other products such as large-size energy storage cells. Core parts for electrified vehicles such as batteries, motors and power electronics are among the products that BYD develops in-house.

In 2008, BYD became the first company to sell mass production of plug-in hybrid electrified vehicles (PHEVs). Since 2015 onwards, BYD’s sales of BEVs and PHEVs have been ranked first in the world for four consecutive years.

Since the launch of hybrid electric vehicle production in 1997, Toyota has become a pioneer of electrified vehicle development, and accumulated a rich array of technologies and experience in the development, production, and sales of electrified vehicles.

In terms of BEVs, Toyota is now developing a wide range of vehicles, from pedestrian-zone (or walking-area) BEVs to ultra-compact two-seater BEVs, as well as conventional-size passenger vehicle BEVs, among others.

Toyota has already announced its plan to gradually have more than 10 BEV models available worldwide by the first half of the 2020s, starting with a rollout in China in 2020.

Going forward, BYD and Toyota will make use of the electrified vehicles, and battery development technologies they have acquired through their market introductions and will work together to further develop BEVs that are attractive to customers and in further promoting their widespread adoption.

Toyota Expands Battery Supply With CATL Deal

As it gradually moves to begin selling more plug-in and electric cars, Toyota is widening its net to secure more batteries. 

Japan's largest automaker signed a deal this week to buy batteries from Chinese suppliers Contemporary Amex Technologies (CATL) and BYD. The agreement adds to a January deal Toyota signed to buy batteries from Panasonic.

All three deals go beyond simple battery supplies. Toyota will work with the three battery suppliers on everything from developing new solid-state batteries to building out systems to recycle the batteries they produce.

Toyota executives have said in the past that they don't believe lithium-ion batteries are the best solution for electric cars, and that they expect better chemistry to emerge to make electric cars more affordable, reliable, and safer.

With the electric-car market looking set to expand dramatically in the next few years, Toyota and other automakers that have stood on the sidelines are scrambling to ramp up their own supply chains to begin producing EVs.

Toyota announced in June that it is developing its first dedicated electric-car platform, potentially for a mid-size SUV, in conjunction with Subaru.

Executive vice president Shegeki Terashi told reporters in Japan last month that the company expects half of its sales by 2025 to come from hybrids, electric-cars, or plug-ins, according to a Reuters report.  "There may be a gap between the amount of batteries we can produce, and the amount of batteries we may need,” he said at the time.

ZF develops dual-lens camera for commercial vehicles; launches in 2020 with integrated ADAS technologies

ZF has developed the Dual-cam two-lens camera specifically designed for the commercial truck market and to be used in concert with other ZF ADAS technologies. The camera features ZF’s longitudinal and lateral vehicle control expertise combined with Mobileye’s advanced EyeQ4 processor.

Part of ZF’s S-Cam4 family of automotive-grade cameras, the Dual-cam is designed to help meet varying global regulatory requirements and delivers advanced functions such as Traffic Sign Recognition, Lane Keeping Assist and Centering and object and pedestrian detection to enable Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB).

ZF dual-cam image

To help ensure these technologies work effectively on commercial trucks a second lens is necessary for some of these advanced functions. For example, for pedestrian AEB in some instances a standard mono-camera with a 52-degree field can limit the ability to detect pedestrians or other vulnerable road users with enough time to actuate the brakes and help avoid or mitigate accidents for larger trucks in complex environments.

—Dan Williams, head of ADAS and autonomy for ZF Commercial truck applications

Having a second lens also enables redundancy for Level2+ functions—if one lens becomes blinded or non-functional the second lens helps ensure the camera can still operate due to multiple optical paths.

ZF’s camera technologies feature best-in-class optical performance and an enhanced fusion envelope. When combined with a full suite of the company’s ADAS technologies such as forward looking and corner radar, automated functions such as lane change assist, and traffic jam assist are enabled. These functions can form the basis for technologies such as truck platooning to make long haul trucking safer and more efficient.

ZF has a long history of commercial truck ADAS supply for major European truck makers, and will launch an advanced ADAS system for a major Japanese manufacturer in 2020. The launch will include ZF’s first application for its Image Processing Module where camera images will be processed in a separate unit from the camera housing.

Global BMW Group electrified vehicle sales pass 400K mark

In May, cumulated BMW Group electrified sales topped the 400,000 mark with a total of 406,756 fully-electric and plug-in hybrid models delivered to customers since the BMW i3 first went on sale in November 2013.

Five and a half years after it was launched, demand for the iconic BMW i3 continues to grow with global sales in May up 40.0%.

Overall sales of BMW Group electrified vehicles grew by 9.8% in May, as customers show increasing interest in low emissions mobility.

Deliveries of the plug-in hybrid BMW 2 Series Active Tourer quadrupled in May and sales of the electrified BMW 5 Series increased by 40.4%.

Sales of the plug-in hybrid MINI Cooper S E Countryman ALL4 in May were almost three times as high as the same month last year.

By the end of next year, the BMW Group will have introduced ten new or updated electrified models and by the end of this year, the company expects to have a total of half a million electrified vehicles on the roads.

Honda provides some detail on chassis and powertrain for Honda e EV

Honda’s new compact electric vehicle, the Honda e, is the first Honda to be built on a dedicated EV platform, designed from the ground up to deliver excellent Honda driving dynamics.

The Honda e platform has been developed with a focus on urban environments to offer a rewarding, responsive driving experience. The battery is positioned at a low level under the floor, and centrally within the wheelbase of the car, affording a 50:50 weight distribution and low centre of gravity for optimal handling and stability.

Power from the high-torque electric motor is delivered through the rear wheels, enabling steering precision even at high acceleration.

The platform offers a combination of ride comfort and agility. The four-wheel independent suspension is engineered to offer stability in all conditions, a smooth ride and responsive handling. Elements of the suspension components are forged aluminum to reduce weight and benefit performance and efficiency.

When combined with its compact size and short overhang, the Honda e delivers next-generation small car agility to make city driving enjoyable and tight maneuvers in urban environments effortless.

For continued ease of use and charging flexibility, the 35.5 kWh Lithium-ion battery can be charged using either Type 2 AC connection or a CCS2 DC rapid charger. Combined with a full range of more than 200 km, the fast-charge capability of the advanced powertrain will deliver exceptional usability to meet the demands of everyday commuting providing 80% charge in 30 minutes.

Designed with a focus on simplicity and usability, the Honda e charging port is integrated into the hood, with LED lighting visible through a glass panel to illuminate the port for the driver and highlight the battery charging status. The positioning of the charging port allows easy access from the front of the car or from either side. Displays on the dual touchscreens inside the car present the current level of battery charge, while a drivetrain graphic charts the current power flow and the regeneration and recharging status.

The battery pack is water-cooled to maintain an optimum thermal state therefore maximising the efficiency of the battery and charge state, while also ensuring its size and weight are minimised so that it does not compromise cabin room.

Honda’s new compact electric car is a key part of the brand’s latest electrification commitment to feature electrified technology in 100% of its European sales by 2025. Presented in prototype form at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show, the first Honda production battery electric vehicle for the European market will make its mass production debut later this year.

Honda has already received 31,000 expressions of interest, and customers can make a reservation for priority ordering online in UK, Germany, France and Norway or register their interest in other European markets on the Honda national websites.

Tesla Model Y Electric Range Just 8-10% Less Than Model 3, Says Musk

As a crossover, a drop in range compared to the Model 3 is to be expected.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk says the range of the Model Y will be up to 10% less than the Tesla Model 3 due to its shape and weight.

In that same Ride The Lightning podcast that brought us news of the $50,000 Tesla pickup truck and the insane performance of the upcoming Tesla Roadster, we learn some information in regards to the Model Y.

In discussing the Model Y, Musk stated:

“We tried to make the car as similar to the [Model 3] as possible except in the case where a change was necessary to achieve SUV functionality…[all] while still having a low drag coefficient and not increasing the frontal area too much.”

According to Musk, the net result is a range loss of only 8-10%, as compared to the Model 3. Not bad for a vehicle that can seat up to 7 in a pinch.

More Tesla News

 Tesla Pickup Truck To Be Priced Below $50,000, Makes Ram Seem Puny

 

 New Tesla Roadster Images Emerge

While Tesla’s Model 3 sedan is a runaway success, the coming Model Y sport-utility vehicle could eventually out-sell it. Planned to debut later in 2020, it will be based on the Model 3 and start at $39,000 with a 230-mile battery range.

Unfortunately, the base model won’t be available until 2021. Tesla will initially sell costlier versions of the Model Y at launch, with a range of between 280 and 300 miles and priced up to $61,000.

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New York City Clean Air Taxi rules are successful in cutting emissions and reducing air pollution, https://www.mailman.columbia.edu/public-health-now/news/clean-air-taxis-cut-pollution-new-york-city-study to a new study by researchers at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and Drexel University. Between 2009 and 2015, the legislation more than doubled the fuel efficiency of the fleet of 13,500 yellow taxis, leading to estimated declines in air pollution emissions. The findings are published in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology. The scientists report that overall fuel efficiency of the medallion taxi fleet climbed from 15.7 to 33.1 mpg, and corresponding estimates of nitric oxide (NO) and total particulate (PMT) exhaust emissions declined by 82% and 49%, respectively. They also found these emission reductions were associated with decreases in concentrations of pollutants in the city’s air. Introduced in 2006, Clean Air Taxi legislation mandated that at least 9% of new medallions for yellow taxis be set aside for hybrid or compressed natural gas vehicles, and incentivized the purchase of low-emission taxis by extending the allowed period of models classified as “clean air” by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Clean Air Taxi laws do not regulate the city’s 100,000 for-hire vehicles such as Ubers and Lyfts which are governed by separate laws and regulations. The past decade has seen steady improvements in the quality of air in New York City, and clean-air taxis appear to be one contributing factor. —Dustin Fry, MPH, a researcher at Drexel University Dornsife School of Public Health The researchers created maps to measure taxi traffic intensity across the city and used inspection and trip data to approximate taxi-related exhaust emissions of two major sources of air pollution: nitric oxide and particulate matter. They then used New York City Community Air Survey data collected at more than 100 monitoring sites across the city to estimate the impact of these changes. The biggest effect was seen in Manhattan neighborhoods with a high density of yellow taxis—not in low-income and outer borough areas with elevated rates of respiratory illness. The authors say this finding suggests other policies are needed to make meaningful advances in improving respiratory health. This study provides evidence that air pollution legislation can have real impact. Even though overall, yellow taxis account for a small proportion of vehicular miles traveled on New York City’s streets, in midtown they account for almost half. Similar regulations targeting other vehicles could make an even bigger difference. —co-author Frederica Perera, PhD, professor of environmental health sciences and director of Translational Research at the Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health Additional authors include Marianthi-Anna Kioumourtzoglou, Christian A. Treat, David Evans, Kimberly R. Burke, Daniel Carrion at the Columbia Mailman School and Columbia University Irving Medical Center; and Loni P. Tabb, Gina S. Lovasi at Drexel University Dornsife School of Public Health. The research was conducted in collaboration with the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and was financed by National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) and the Environmental Protection Agency (P50ES09600), the NIEHS Center for Environmental Health in Northern Manhattan (P30ES009089), the John and Wendy Neu Family Foundation, and the Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller Foundation.

New York City Clean Air Taxi rules are successful in cutting emissions and reducing air pollution, https://www.mailman.columbia.edu/public-health-now/news/clean-air-taxis-cut-pollution-new-york-city-study to a new study by researchers at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and Drexel University. Between 2009 and 2015, the legislation more than doubled the fuel efficiency of the fleet of 13,500 yellow taxis, leading to estimated declines in air pollution emissions. The findings are published in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology.

The scientists report that overall fuel efficiency of the medallion taxi fleet climbed from 15.7 to 33.1 mpg, and corresponding estimates of nitric oxide (NO) and total particulate (PMT) exhaust emissions declined by 82% and 49%, respectively. They also found these emission reductions were associated with decreases in concentrations of pollutants in the city’s air.

Introduced in 2006, Clean Air Taxi legislation mandated that at least 9% of new medallions for yellow taxis be set aside for hybrid or compressed natural gas vehicles, and incentivized the purchase of low-emission taxis by extending the allowed period of models classified as “clean air” by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Clean Air Taxi laws do not regulate the city’s 100,000 for-hire vehicles such as Ubers and Lyfts which are governed by separate laws and regulations.

The past decade has seen steady improvements in the quality of air in New York City, and clean-air taxis appear to be one contributing factor.

—Dustin Fry, MPH, a researcher at Drexel University Dornsife School of Public Health

The researchers created maps to measure taxi traffic intensity across the city and used inspection and trip data to approximate taxi-related exhaust emissions of two major sources of air pollution: nitric oxide and particulate matter. They then used New York City Community Air Survey data collected at more than 100 monitoring sites across the city to estimate the impact of these changes.

The biggest effect was seen in Manhattan neighborhoods with a high density of yellow taxis—not in low-income and outer borough areas with elevated rates of respiratory illness. The authors say this finding suggests other policies are needed to make meaningful advances in improving respiratory health.

This study provides evidence that air pollution legislation can have real impact. Even though overall, yellow taxis account for a small proportion of vehicular miles traveled on New York City’s streets, in midtown they account for almost half. Similar regulations targeting other vehicles could make an even bigger difference.

—co-author Frederica Perera, PhD, professor of environmental health sciences and director of Translational Research at the Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health

Additional authors include Marianthi-Anna Kioumourtzoglou, Christian A. Treat, David Evans, Kimberly R. Burke, Daniel Carrion at the Columbia Mailman School and Columbia University Irving Medical Center; and Loni P. Tabb, Gina S. Lovasi at Drexel University Dornsife School of Public Health.

The research was conducted in collaboration with the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and was financed by National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) and the Environmental Protection Agency (P50ES09600), the NIEHS Center for Environmental Health in Northern Manhattan (P30ES009089), the John and Wendy Neu Family Foundation, and the Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller Foundation.

Tesla Pickup Truck To Be Priced Below $50,000, Makes Ram Seem Puny

The target starting price is even lower.

This is a real shocker. In fact, it's a bit hard to believe.

According to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the upcoming Tesla truck will have a target price of under $50,000. This seems an impossible figure given the fact that other Tesla products (aside from the Model 3) start at a price that's much higher. However, Musk stated this in a recent Ride The Lightning Podcast:

 “You should be able to buy a really great truck for $49k or less.”

Musk added that the capabilities of the Tesla truck will be unmatched, though its appearance might be a bit over-the-top for a typical truck buyer. 

If that price turns out to be true, then yes indeed the Tesla truck will beat the Rivian R1T and electric trucks from Ford and others, too.

More Tesla Truck News

 New Tesla Electric Pickup Render Is Bold, Reminds Us Of Ram Truck

 

⠀ Tesla Model P Pickup Truck Rendered To Life

In the past, Musk commented on the abilities of the Ram truck, stating that it'll be more or less toy-like compared to the Tesla truck. Range of the Tesla truck is expected to be around 500 miles. The unveiling is set for sometime later this year.

In top-level trim, it should boast a range of between 400 and 500 miles, possibly more. As one might suspect, it will be all-wheel drive with a motor for each axle. Musk also noted that the suspension will dynamically adjust according to its load. Being electric and a truck means it will have lots of torque. While we can't say how much, exactly, we can point out that Musk once tweeted that it could tow 300,000 pounds.

Regarding the look, there's been any number of renders of a possible Tesla truck produced over the past couple of years, but we've yet to see the actual truck to really have an idea of what it will look like, though Musk does say it'll have a certain sort of sci-fi appearance.

Hyundai Motor introduces electric double-decker bus

In Seoul, Hyundai Motor unveiled an electric double-decker bus—a first of its kind for Hyundai, and part of the company’s effort to help reduce traffic congestion and air pollution.

The all-new electric double-decker bus is being shown at the ‘Land, Infrastructure and Transport Technology Fair’ held in Korea, co-hosted by Hyundai and the national Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, lasting from 29 to 31 May.

To develop the company’s first electric double-decker bus, Hyundai worked for 18 months on a project supported by the Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport, which began in 2017.

The bus allows up to 70 passengers—11 seats on the first floor and 59 seats on the second floor—1.5 times as many passengers as compared to that of a regular bus. Through the implementation of two fixed-in-space wheelchairs, an automatic sliding ramp and low floor design, the double-decker bus secures added accessibility for disabled and mobility impaired passengers.

As part of the company’s effort to increase efficiency and to reduce vehicle emissions, Hyundai equipped the all-new bus with a 384 kWh water-cooled high-efficiency polymer battery, with a maximum 300 km (186 miles) driving range on a single charge. A full charge can be completed in 72 minutes.

The large electric double-decker bus is 12,990 mm long and 3,995 mm high. It runs on an independent suspension system in the first driving axle for a more comfortable ride, and a 240 kW wheel motor axle combined with a motor in the second axle that minimizes loss of electricity. A rear-wheel steering system works in coherence with the steering system of the first axle, optimizing steering performance.

Various advanced safety features are also equipped on the bus to ensure the safety of the passengers:

• Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC) helps identify the driver’s intended driving direction and maintain the vehicle in control.
• Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist (FCA) uses the car’s front-facing camera to help detect an imminent collision and avoid impact or minimize damage by braking autonomously.
• Lane Keeping Assist (LKA) helps prevent accidental lane departure by sensing road markings.