Tuesday, April 23, 2019

Hyundai Motor Group introduces industry-first smartphone-based EV performance control technology; blockchain

Hyundai Motor Group has developed smartphone-EV pairing-based performance adjustment technology which allows users to customize primary functions through a smartphone application—an industry-first innovation.
Drivers can use this technology to adjust seven performance features including the maximum torque output of the motor, acceleration and deceleration abilities, regenerative braking capacity, maximum speed limit, responsiveness, and energy use on climate control.
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As electric vehicles continually expand their market share, especially in rental or car-sharing industries, the new technology will allow drivers to use their custom settings in whichever electric vehicle they drive by downloading their profile from the server.
The application provides optimized settings for a designated destination by analyzing the remaining distance and electric energy requirement. It can also accommodate sportier driving by recommending tailored performance settings.
Beyond the driver’s seat, users can share their customization settings online as well as try out other users’ custom settings. Customers can also apply recommended settings by Hyundai based on the condition of roads, from country roads to the city center or mountain ranges.
Hyundai Motor Group will utilize blockchain technology to prevent security issues while users upload and share their custom settings on the server.
In the process of uploading and sharing custom settings, the system encrypts major performance parameters in a blockchain network by creating new data blocks and stores them in the distributed data storage system to block unauthorized manipulation.
Hyundai Motor Group’s smartphone vehicle pairing-based performance adjustment technology is possible due to electric vehicles’ distinctive properties which set them apart from combustion engine vehicles.
Zero-emission vehicles offer unique freedom to modify the drive experience because altering performance doesn’t change the carbon footprint. As such, electric vehicles provide drivers more leeway in applying such technology.
As Hyundai Motor Group is planning to deploy 44 eco-friendly models by year 2025, including 23 electric vehicles, we see the potential of technologies and services inherent in non-combustion vehicles. By developing paradigm-shifting mobility technology like this one, we will continue to strive to improve user experience for electric vehicles customized to individual preferences.
—research fellow JeongSoo Eo from Hyundai Motor Group
The Group expects to implement the technology in future Hyundai and Kia vehicles.

Toyota, Kenworth, POLA and CARB unveil next-gen heavy-duty fuel-cell truck; ZANZEFF

Toyota, Kenworth, the Port of Los Angeles and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) unveiled the first of Toyota and Kenworth’s jointly developed fuel cell electric heavy-duty trucks during a special event held at the Port of Los Angeles.
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The new generation zero-emission truck expands on the capabilities of Toyota’s first two Project Portal Proof-of-Concept trucks through enhanced capability, packaging, and performance while offering an estimated range of more than 300 miles per fill, twice that of a typical drayage trucks average daily duty cycle.
Toyota and Kenworth will deploy a total of 10 trucks as part of the Zero and Near-Zero Emissions Freight Facilities Project (ZANZEFF) (earlier post), hauling cargo received at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, throughout the LA Basin.
Toyota is committed to fuel cell electric technology as a powertrain for the future because it’s a clean, scalable platform that can meet a broad range of mobility needs with zero emissions. The ZANZEFF collaboration and the innovative ‘Shore-to Store’ project allow us to move Heavy-Duty Truck Fuel Cell Electric technology towards commercialization.
—Bob Carter, Executive Vice President for Automotive Operations Toyota
CARB has awarded $41 million dollars to the Port of Los Angeles for the ZANZEFF project as part of California Climate Investments, a California initiative that puts billions of Cap-and-Trade dollars to work reducing greenhouse gas emissions, strengthening the economy and improving public health and the environment―particularly in disadvantaged communities.
Since operations began in April 2017, the Project Portal “Alpha” and “Beta” Proof of Concept Class 8 trucks have logged more than 14,000 miles of testing and real-world drayage operations in and around the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach while emitting nothing but water vapor.
The first Kenworth/Toyota Fuel Cell Electric Truck (FCET) under the ZANZEFF project will begin drayage operations in the fourth quarter, increasing the ports’ zero emission trucking capacity and further reducing the environmental impact of drayage operations.
The latest Fuel Cell Electric truck utilizes the Kenworth T680 Class 8 model combined with Toyota’s fuel cell electric technology and is part of the ZANZEFF project. Pioneered by the Port of Los Angeles with leading support from Toyota, Kenworth, and Shell, the endeavor provides a large-scale “Shore-to-Store” plan and a hydrogen fuel-cell-electric technology framework for freight facilities to structure operations for future goods movement. The initiative will help reduce emissions by more than 500 tons of Greenhouse Gas and 0.72 weighted tons of nox, ROG and PM10.
The collaboration between the Port of Los Angeles, Kenworth, Toyota and Shell is providing an excellent opportunity to demonstrate the viability of fuel cell electric technology in both drayage service and regional haul commercial vehicle applications operating in Southern California. The performance of the 10 Kenworth Class 8 trucks being developed under this program―the first of which debuted today―is targeted to meet or exceed that of a diesel-powered truck, while producing water as the only emissions byproduct.
&mdashMike Dozier, general manager of Kenworth Truck Company and PACCAR vice president
The Port of Los Angeles, a global maritime leader with respect to zero-emission and near-zero emission technology testing and adoption, will develop the project in several phases, ultimately encompassing initiatives in Southern California, the Central Coast Area, and Merced County. The initial phase is designed to kick-start the leap to a new class of goods movement vehicles, while reducing emissions in designated disadvantaged communities.
The project phases will include:
  • Ten new zero-emissions fuel-cell-electric Kenworth/Toyota FCET developed through a collaboration between Kenworth and Toyota to move cargo from the Los Angeles and Long Beach ports throughout the Los Angeles area, the Inland Empire, the Port of Hueneme, and eventually to Merced. The trucks will be operated by Toyota Logistics Services (4), United Parcel Services (3), Total Transportation Services Inc. (2), and Southern Counties Express (1).
  • Two new large capacity heavy-duty hydrogen fueling stations will be developed by Shell in Wilmington and Ontario, California. The two new stations will join three additional stations located at Toyota’s Long Beach Logistics Services and Gardena R&D facilities to form an integrated, five-station heavy-duty hydrogen fueling network for the Los Angeles basin. Together, these stations will provide multiple sources of hydrogen throughout the region, including over 1 ton of 100% renewable hydrogen per day at the Toyota Logistics Services station to be operated by Shell, and important research and development advances at a pair of stations operated by Air Liquide, all enabling zero-emissions freight transport.
  • Expanded use of zero-emissions technology in cargo terminal and warehouse environments, including the first two zero-emissions yard tractors to be operated at the Port of Hueneme, as well as the expanded use of zero-emissions forklifts at Toyota’s port warehouse.
More than 16,000 trucks serve the Los Angeles and Long Beach port complexes—North America’s largest trade gateway for containerized cargo. That number that is estimated to grow to 32,000 by 2030. Currently, more than 43,000 drayage trucks are in operation at ports across the United States.
This announcement is an extension of Toyota’s Environmental Challenge 2050 efforts to eliminate CO2 emissions from its operations. Toyota has previously announced the construction of the Tri-Gen facility which will be the first megawatt-sized carbonate fuel cell power generation plant with hydrogen fueling in the world. The 100% renewable plant will use agricultural waste to generate water, electricity, and hydrogen that will support Toyota Logistics Services’ (TLS) operations at the Port of Long Beach.

Battery Shortages Lease to Audi e-Tron Production Delays

Building electric cars is harder than it looks.
According to a report last week in the Brussels Times, Audi is delaying the production of its planned E-tron Sportback and slowing production of its E-tron SUV following battery shortages from supplier LG Chem.
The factory that builds the e-tron has cut back from eight hours of production a day to six, and is reported to be planning to cut back from running five days a week to four, leading to a day of unemployment for workers there. The moves would cut production of the long-awaited electric car by 10,000 cars annually, from more than 55,000 to just over 45,000 in 2019, according to the Brussels Times. In the report, Audi declined to comment on the delay.
Many automakers ramping up production of plug-in hybrids and electric cars depend on LG Chem for cells, including Hyundai, Volkswagen, General Motors, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW. LG's dominance in supplying batteries to electric cars gives it power to control prices.
A report last year by Germany's Bild am Sonntag newspaper suggested that LG Chem raised prices on its batteries for the Audi E-tron by 10 percent, leading to the production shortage. Waiting lists for the car in Europe have reportedly expanded from 4-5 months to 6-7 months, as demand has also increased by 15 percent. Audi's Belgian spokeswoman Sofie Luyckx told the Brussels Times, that is "not an exceptional waiting time for an all-new Audi."
At the New York auto show last week, Audi E-tron product manager Matt Mostafaei said that the company has U.S. orders for the car, which is expected to go on sale here in May, but would not specify how many.
The delays could also be impacted by a shortage of the car's electric motors following a strike at the Hungarian factory that produces the motors.
The reports say the introduction of the E-tron Sportback, a smaller hatchback version of the E-tron SUV, has also been delayed from late this year to 2020.
Audi is planning a whole line of electric E-tron models, including the SUV, the Sportback, the e-tron GT sports sedan, a new smaller Q4 E-tron SUV, and reportedly a new E-tron GTR supercar to replace its R8 flagship, according to a new report in British auto journal Car.
If it's going to fulfill all those dreams, the company will need to secure a large and reliable source of batteries and, if these hiccups are any indication, it still might not have that.

Monday, April 15, 2019

VW Reveals I.D. Roomzz Electric SUV With 280-Mile Range

The newest addition to the I.D. range is bigger than the I.D. Crozz and has three rows.

Auto Shanghai 2019 is literally just around the corner and Volkswagen wants to be among the firsts to introduce one of its latest creations – bound to strengthen the German marque’s electric I.D. range. For the uninitiated, China is currently the largest market for zero-emission vehicles in the world.
Dubbed as the I.D. Roomzz, the all-electric SUV is bound to stir the continuously growing global three-row SUV market but with zero emissions and smart in-car technologies. It sits on the modular electric drive matrix (MEB) platform but it’s bigger than the I.D. Crozz, which was debuted in Los Angeles in 2017.
In the front cabin, the I.D. Roomzz features a digital, glass-front panel. The dashboard and steering wheel floats in front of the driver as a visual display. In combination with the I.D. Pilot mode, the I.D. Roomz concept vehicle can be driven autonomously without an active driver.
The VW I.D. Roomzz has its own version of 4MOTION technology, with two electric motors powering the front and rear axles with a system output of 225 kiloWatt (302 horsepower). This allows the electric SUV to accelerate to 100 kilometers per hour (62 miles per hour) in 6.6 seconds and reach regulated speeds of up to 180 kph (112 mph).
More importantly, the VW I.D. Roomzz is powered by an 82-kWh battery, which allows ranges of up to 450 km (280 mi) under WLTP, or 475 km (295 mi) under NEFZ in China.
VW is set to debut the production version of the I.D. Roomzz, I.D. Crozz, and the Compact I.D. in 2020, with all three models to be sold globally. On the other hand, the I.D. Vizzion sedan and I.D. Buzz will debut its production version in 2022.
Categories: Volkswagen

Musk Says Tesla Will Make Astonishing 500,000 Cars In Next 12 Months

Production to increase from 300,000 to 500,000

By the way of answering questions about the expected appreciating value of Tesla cars due to Full Self Driving capability, Elon Musk said that within the next 12 months, the company will produce more than 500,000 cars.
Of course, all of those cars will be hardware ready for fully autonomous driving and according to Tesla, soon the software update will be ready to unleash the capability. Because the update will be available only for cars with the FSD option, the price of those are expected to increase (as well as the option).
“Very much so. There are 2.5B cars & trucks on Earth. Even replacing 1% of that fleet would require making 25M vehicles per year. Tesla will make over 500k cars in next 12 months, but that’s a mere 2% of 25M or 0.02% of global vehicle fleet. Car industry slow -> demand >> supply.”
Let’s take a look at the production rate – Tesla’s 12-months rolling output was at the end of March 2019 at around 297,000, including over 206,000 Tesla Model 3. Sales during the period amounted to about 280,000.
To achieve 500,000 in 12 months, Tesla needs to produce and sell at least 125,000 cars per quarter. The automaker’s production record was 86,555 in Q4 2018. In Q1 2019 production was 77,100, including a record 29,950 Model 3.
The increase from almost 300,000 to 500,000+ requires growth of about 67% year-over-year. Assuming that the Model S/Model X will stay at around 100,000 per year, Model 3 production and sales need to double to 400,000 per year.
If Tesla does manage to produce and sell 500,000 per year, and additionally significantly increase the revenues because of the autonomous driving capability, profitability should reach high levels. The FSD option is sold for $5,000 per car and is expected to be priced higher in the near future.
Just 100,000 cars (20% of planned) with the $5,000 option for robot taxi alone would provide $500 million of revenue.
If the production growth and automation is achieved, Tesla also should not have any problems with staying in good shape (in the business perspective) until the Tesla Model Y launch to gain yet another engine of growth.


When FSD becomes reality, demand will outstrip supply, hence a rise in value for those who already own one.
Very much so. There are 2.5B cars & trucks on Earth. Even replacing 1% of that fleet would require making 25M vehicles per year. Tesla will make over 500k cars in next 12 months, but that’s a mere 2% of 25M or 0.02% of global vehicle fleet. Car industry slow -> demand >> supply.

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Rivian R1T Truck & R1S SUV Wow NYC Ahead Of Auto Show - VIDEO


Rivian impresses before the show even opens.

The New York Auto Show doesn’t officially open to the public until April 19th, but that doesn’t mean the fun hasn’t already started.
The weekend before an auto show opens is usually the real kickoff party, with manufacturers trying to get a jump on the competition, and many opt to show off their new vehicles before they hit the show floor the following week. That precisely what Rivian did with its R1T electric pickup truck and R1S electric SUV.
The Rivian R1T on display in NYC
Rivian, the upstart electric vehicle manufacturer from Plymouth, Michigan, promises to bring us “The world’s first electric adventure vehicles” held invite-only events last night in New York City. I say “events” because according to Rivian, so many people asked for invitations, that they had to hold two events, one from 4pm to 6pm, and another from 7pm to 9pm.
I know this happens to be true, because I was originally sent an invitation that said the event was from 6pm to 9pm. Then, a few days later, Rivian reached back to me to say they needed to have two events, and I had to pick one of the two time slots.
Rivian was able to secure a space on Pier 76 (a real pier on the Hudson River) directly behind the Jacob Javits center where the New York Auto Show is held. This space is normally occupied by the Classic Car Club at Hudson River, and in order to make room for Rivian, they had to move cars like a couple dozen rare cars out into the parking lot for the night.
Both the R1T pickup truck, and R1S sport utility vehicle, have a power opening/closing hood that conceals a huge front trunk. While you can certainly fit a lot of gear/luggage, etc. up there, it will probably be difficult to load & unload anything heavy, because of the height.
These events were mostly for VIPs and reservation holders; they weren’t press events where we could schedule interview time, so unfortunately nothing new was learned. I suspect if Rivian is going to announce any new news, it will be done so during the Auto Show for maximum exposure.
As you might expect, the crowd was extremely enthusiastic, and it reminded me of how it feels at Tesla events. Since most of the people in attendance were reservation holders, they were already on-board with what Rivian is doing. Plus, for most, it was their first opportunity to see the vehicles that they plunked $1,000 down on to reserve.
Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe was on hand chatting it up with many in attendance. There was a line of people waiting to say hello and ask him questions. From what I could tell, he did his best to greet as many people as he could, and give them a few minutes before moving on the next person eager to meet him.
Immediately after the event, I sat down with Alex from E For Electric to discuss Rivian on this week’s Plugged In show. Let us know what you think of Rivian in the comments below. Will they be the first to bring an electric pick up truck to market, or will Tesla or another competitor beat them to it? What do you like and dislike about the R1T & R1S?
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Wednesday, April 3, 2019

Don’t Buy it, Build it: 2 Stroke, Kawasaki Airplane - VIDEO

Like many of us, I’m sure, Harry Doskicz looked at a malaise-era Kawasaki 2 stroke snowmobile and thought, “I bet that engine would make a freakin’ kickass airplane.” Once he had that Earth-shattering realization, though, Harry did something you and I did not: he built it.
Harry helped build the experimental Kawasaki-powered airplane you’re looking at here is built around a junkyard Kawasaki engine. Even if did come from a snowmobile, however, this thing is every bit a skyfaring motorcycle. It’s got a wood-frame, cloth-covered wings, and no windows, doors, climate controls, room for passengers, or even padding on the back of the seat. This bike is as bare-bones as it gets, made from backwards tech, and it is freakin’ AMAZING!
Andy Greaser has a full interview with Doskicz (and more pictures!) over at motorcycle news site, Revzilla. It’s 100% worth the read, so go check that out, then let us know what you think of this Kawi-powered ultralight in the comments section at the bottom of the page.

Harry Doskicz’ 2 Stroke Kawasaki Airplane

Source | More ImagesRevzilla.