Electric Car News (Too Much!!)

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Been missing these? Most of the stories below come from sister sites EV Obsession and Gas2, but there are a lot of others as well. Scroll through the headlines below and click any that grab your attention. (Maybe save this for the weekend, though… there are a lot here.)

Electric Car Shopping: Chevy Volt vs Nissan LEAF vs Ford C-Max Energi

There was a time when I biked almost everywhere I needed to go. However, the serious lack of safe bicycle paths has me driving to work about 8 or 9 miles or 16 round trip — and jaunts to a few other places are also part of my regular schedule. After being car free for a while, I have never actually made peace with gassing up in the reliable, aged Toyota I currently use. So, what about some online electric car shopping — say, comparing a Chevy Volt vs Nissan LEAF vs Ford C-Max Energi? Is it time to go electric?

Ferrari Chairman: Apple Will Make An EV

It’s a bit hard to tell at this point how serious Apple actually is about bringing an electric car all the way to market. The company could, after all, simply end up selling its research and technology if it ends up deciding that following through all the way wouldn’t be worth it financially.

Nissan Expects 10% Of Car Sales To Be EVs Soon

The Japanese automaker Nissan Motors is gearing up for what it expects to be big changes in the industry over the coming years. The company is expecting for electric vehicle sales to climb to the point that they comprise roughly 10% of the company’s total sales in the near future, based on comments made recently by an exec.

GM Adding Second Shift To Chevy Volt Line

The Chevy Volt production line at GM’s Detroit-Hamtramck facility will soon be getting a second shift, and 1200 new jobs are set to be added, according to recent reports. The assembly line in question is actually responsible for 5 different models — the Chevy Volt plug-in hybrid (PHEV), the Cadillac ELR, and 3 others.

Orlando Enterprise Adding 14 New Chevy Volts To Rental Fleet

The city of Orlando, Florida — already home to one of the largest electric vehicle rental fleets in the US — is now set to become home to 14 new Chevy Volt rental cars, according to recent reports.

2016 Chevy Volts Now Arriving At Dealerships In California

Those who can’t stop salivating at the thought of the 2016 Chevy Volt, may be happy to hear that deliveries have begun, with various dealerships in California already starting to receive stock.

Aston Martin Reveals Electric Rapide In London As Part Of Chinese President’s Visit

As part of a creative summit organized by the UK government to accompany the visit of the President of The People’s Republic of China, Xi Jinping, Aston Martin recently unveiled an all-electric concept version of the Rapide S 4-door sports sedan.

Bond Villain’s 200 mph Jaguar Shows Electric Cars Can Be Menacing Too

Bond villains have always been interesting characters: sophisticated, intelligent and supremely well-equipped with futuristic and cutting-edge toys. Aptly, the new official car of evil, a Jaguar C-X75 driven by henchman Mr Hinx in the latest Bond movie Spectre, is as advanced as it gets.

Cadillac CT6 PHEV Being Tested In Baltimore

A fleet of Cadillac CT6 plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) is being tested on the East Coast, going by recent comments on an online electric car forum.

Ecotricity & Nissan Campaigning For Official EV Charging Station Signage In UK

The owner of one of the largest electric vehicle fast-charger networks in Europe, Ecotricity (the owner of the Electric Highway), is now campaigning for the UK government to create official road signage for charging stations, according to recent reports.

Electrovaya & Litarion Unveil New 40 Ah Lithium-Ion Battery Cell

The battery technology company Electrovaya, in concert with its wholly owned subsidiary Litarion GmbH, recently announced the release of a new 40 Ah lithium-ion battery cell — dubbed the “Litacell LC-40” — according to recent reports.

ZF Group Combining Electromobility Activities Into E-Mobility Division

All electromobility related activities undertaken by the German technology firm ZF Group will begin operating as part of a newly created E-Mobility division starting in 2016, according to recent reports.

Cold Weather Driving Tips For EV Owners

Some manufacturers won’t tell you this, but electric car range can drop by as much as 30% in the winter. Here are some cold weather driving tips for EV owners that may save you from being stuck by the side of the road some cold day in January.

Tesla Model S 70D Review (Exclusive)

I’m really eager to test the Model S 70, 70D, 85, 85D, P85D, 90, 90D, and P90D back to back in one day… but that is clearly a fantasy, and I wouldn’t be surprised if not a single individual has ever done that. With so many variations, I’m sure my senses would turn to mush anyway… and the ludicrous torque wouldn’t help. At the least, it was nice to compare the 70D to the P85D, even with several months in between the test drives.

Will Tesla End Up Pulling The Autopilot Function Due To Owner Misuse?

I’m sure that many of our readers have by now seen some of the videos posted to YouTube and elsewhere showing some Tesla owners being perhaps a bit careless in their use of the new autopilot function. Going by these videos, does it seem too much of a stretch to say that someone will eventually cause a bad accident this way costing people their lives?

“Hidden Cost of Tesla Ownership?”

Never in a million years did I think I would own a car costing into the 6 figures. In fact, I dismissed such expensive vehicles as unnecessary when I could still drive a really nice car for half that price. I’ve always appreciated cars but never considered myself a “car guy” or fanatic over any particular brand. All that changed when I discovered Tesla and I officially became a fanatic the day I placed my order. I now own this amazing vehicle and piece of technology and can appreciate (and justify, to an extent) the cost it took to acquire. And I appreciate it every second.

Why Tesla Needs No Ads

DreamWorks Animation’s CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg says his Model X saved his life. Tonight he thanked Elon Musk.

A few days ago, a California family narrowly escaped death when a large bio-weapon, specifically a tree, attacked their car.

Folks, is it any wonder Tesla doesn’t need normal advertising?

Auto Deploying Side Mirrors in V 7.0

I hadn’t seen anyone mention this as now a feature. I have a very narrow garage opening and have to close my mirrors when I go in and out of my garage. My usual morning routine consists of closing the mirrors to back through the door, and forgetting to open them until I hear the wind hitting them once I am driving down the road. Today after I had finished backing out of the garage, when I switched from reverse to forward the side mirrors opened themselves. I am very happy with all the continued tweaks.

70D Performance Testing, 0-60 in 5.01

Lutz Knows What’s Best For Tesla

The latest in TeslaMondo’s “Father Knows Best” miniseries comes as a shock. Why would Bob Lutz write such a gloom ‘n doom opinion piece on Road&Track? He says Tesla’s retail model will never work, and Model X has a “compromised” structure because of those doors, and cheap gas is sapping Tesla’s business, and Tesla desperately needs to cut costs.

Journalists “Assault” Tesla Gigafactory Employees While Trespassing

A new blog posting on the Tesla website has revealed that just last Friday there was an incident at the company’s Gigafactory construction site involving two journalists apparently trespassing and then assaulting a Tesla security employee (safety manager) that tried to detain them.

Tesla Valet Service Goes POOF!!!

Let me start you off with a riddle: How do you open the door on a $100,000 car? The answer: well, it depends on where you live. This statement may seem ridiculous for owners that live/work close by a service center. However, if you live more than 25 Miles/KM from a service center, the answer has become much more expensive.

Tesla Autopilot Vs Competition

I understand that there are quite a number of threads discussing Tesla’s AP both in investor section and elsewhere. But I specifically wanted to discuss Tesla’s Autopilot functionality vs competition.

A Flight Instructor Teaches Tesla Autopilot

With 40 years of experience as a flight instructor, let me show you how I’d teach the Tesla Autopilot to a flight student. Work with me and we’ll get you flying solo soon.

Tesla Autopilot Version 1.01 Coming Soon

The Tesla Autopilot software has only been available for about a week and already the company says an improved version 1.01 is coming soon. That’s amazing.

Should Tesla Move M3 Reservations to a Realistic Time Closer to Actual Release?

After the X delay debacle, should Tesla (after showing the car next spring) not accept reservations until it’s actually closer to release? We know it’s a few years off. Tesla will know when it’s probably 4-6 months out and could open reservations then. I feel like building up 30,000+ reservations for a car from the general public isn’t exactly fostering goodwill, especially if it has delays like the X.

Tesla Model 3’s Shape Revealed?

Tesla Chief Technology Officer JB Straubel recently gave a talk at the University of Nevada – Reno where a number of newsworthy comments were made. Amongst the comments though were also a number of slides showing various things.

Mainstream Review Of Tesla P90D Makes You Cringe A Bit

Sometimes the mainstream media’s representation of Tesla makes you cringe a bit — though I suppose that something similar could be said about Tesla fanboy behavior from some of the blogosphere as well. On that topic, the Washington Post recently did a review of the Tesla P90D that, while not terrible, did make me cringe a bit a couple of times.

Are Car Buffs That Don’t Like Tesla “Nostalgia Weenies”?

A question that probably doesn’t come up in many people’s minds often, but that’s still fairly interesting, is the one of why Tesla doesn’t garner more interest from many so-called “car buffs”. Given the incredible performance of offerings such as the Tesla P90D Model S, why aren’t those that otherwise worship at the high-performance automobile altar salivating?

Toyota vs. Tesla – Can Hydrogen Fuel-Cell Vehicles Compete With EVs?

Toyota is hoping to take a leaf from the Tesla playbook, and encourage an ecosystem of fuel cell suppliers and hydrogen fueling stations. But is this just the fossil fuel economy repackaged?

Swiss Tesla Model S Sales Top Combined Sales Of Mercedes S-Class + BMW 6-Series + Audi A7

Of the many markets where the Tesla Model S is now selling quite well, the market in Switzerland stands out as a particularly interesting example. I was actually a bit surprised recently to find out that sales are booming to such a degree there that the Model S actually outsold the combined sales of the Mercedes S-Class, the BMW 6-Series, and the Audi A7, during the months of January-September 2015.

Stephen Colbert Talks About The Tesla Autopilot Upgrade (Video)

The popular (recently installed) Late Show TV host Stephen Colbert (formerly of The Colbert Report and The Daily Show) recently had a segment on his show discussing the recent Tesla autopilot software update. The segment covers the general topic of autonomous cars a bit, in addition to a sequence about Tesla.

Everything You Need To Know About Tesla Autopilot – And More!

Less than 24 hours after Tesla started downloading its Version 7.0 software to Model S cars throughout North America, Barnacules Nerdgasm (not his real name!) took his friend’s Model S P85D for a 30-mile drive with the Tesla Autopilot enabled to see what all the fuss was about.

Why Does Tesla Often Seem To Promise More Than It Can Deliver?

Why does Tesla (CEO Elon Musk in particular) often seem to promise more than it seems able to deliver? Why are the company’s deadlines so often not met?

Is Tesla’s Referral Program Illegal In California?

Tesla’s vaunted referral program (which allows current Tesla owners to profit from referral sales) may not have long for the world — if the Californian Department of Motor Vehicles gets its way anyways.

Who Is Offering The Best Insurance Rates For Teslas?

As the title says….

Tesla Finance: Production X Leasing Details & Top-Tier US Bank Financing Rates

During “Alpha Release” :redface: of the Tesla Leasing and Tesla Lending “Apply online” links on Friday, I called Tesla Finance to inquire about the leasing money factor and residuals, and the top-tier financing rates for various terms. They appear to be the same/similar to Model S. Here they are. Note this was as of 10/23/2015. I repeated them back for confirmation and told the rep I’m going to share it on TMC. However, I take no responsibility for accuracy and you should definitely call Tesla Finance yourself at 1-650-681-6789 for confirmation when you configure your X.

NYT Article Raises Questions About EV Charging Availability? Or Is It All Just Hype?

A recent article from the New York Times made some interesting points about electric vehicle charging station availability, or the lack therefore of, that probably bears discussing here.

Forbes Article Bashes Electric Cars….

Ah, Forbes-y Forbes-y…

Dramatic Changes for Season 2 of Formula E (w/ Video)

Starting next year, the regulations of Formula E will loosen up a bit, allowing each team to develop their own unique electric motors and drive trains.

This 2WD Electric Ruckus Will Take You Anywhere

Ever since its debut over a decade ago, the utilitarian Honda Ruckus has been a favorite of fashion-conscious commuters and customizers everywhere- but the little 50cc runabout didn’t have a ton of power or torque. As a consequence, the Honda Ruckus never really caught in the off-road scene– but now, a Canadian electric mobility specialist called Daymak has launched the impressive “Beast” 2 wheel electric ATV … and it is absolutely the go-anywhere, 2WD electric Ruckus Honda should have built!

Mission Motorcycles Files for Bankruptcy

Mark Seeger, the CEO of Mission, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on October 15, 2015. Neither Mission Electric nor Mission Motorcycles remains in business.

Mission Motorcycles CEO: Apple’s Poaching Of Engineers Contributed To Bankruptcy

In a rather interesting recent interview, the CEO of the Californian electric motorcycle company Mission Motorcycles placed some of the blame for the company’s recent troubles on Apple. The CEO stated that the tech giant’s poaching of its engineers contributed directly to the company’s decline and subsequent bankruptcy.

Technical Review Outlines Challenges For Both Batteries And Fuel Cells As Basis For Electric Vehicles

In an open-access invited review for the Journal of the Electrochemical Society, Oliver Gröger (earlier post), Volkswagen AG; Dr. Hubert A. Gasteiger, Chair of Technical Electrochemistry, Technische Universität München; and Dr. Jens-Peter Suchsland, SolviCore GmbH, delve into the technological barriers for all-electric vehicles—battery-electric or PEM fuel cell vehicles.

Geli & BMW Receive 2015 Energy Storage North America Innovation Award

The 2015 Energy Storage North America Innovation Award was recently presented jointly to Geli and BMW owing to the two companies’ efforts to integrate second-life electric vehicle batteries into micro-grid systems at the BMW Group Technology Office, according to a recent email sent to EVObsession.

Ford Expanding Workplace EV Charging Infrastructure

Ford Motors will be expanding its current workplace electric vehicle charging program in the US and Canada — with 20 new charging stations now set to be installed in the near future — according to recent reports.

Electric Jet Ski Is Zero Emissions Fun

Engineering students at the University of Western Australia have created an electric jet ski that makes no noise and no pollution. They should get an award!

Electric Skateboards Can Use Bike Lanes In California Following On Newly Signed Assembly Bill

Riders of electric skateboards in California will now (beginning January 1st) have unrestricted access to bike lanes, following on the signing into law of Assembly Bill 604 by Governor Jerry Brown, according to recent reports.

Morgan EV 3 Piloted By Fully Charged In New Video

The Morgan EV 3 — a Morgan Motor Company electric prototype version of the Morgan 3-wheeler — was recently piloted by the folks over at Fully Charged, making for a bit of an interesting watch.