The Tesla Model 3 is the Usain Bolt of the electric vehicle market. It is far and away the most popular electric vehicle in the world. In fact, it had nearly 3× as many sales last year as the 2nd best selling electric vehicle (EV), and it accounted for ~4× as many sales as the 3rd best selling EV, the Nissan LEAF.
Norway, the undisputed global leader in the EV transition, hit 64.4% EV market share in January, with over 44% share for pure electrics and 20% for plug-in hybrids. This best-ever-January result was achieved before 2020 shipments of the top selling Tesla Model 3 have even arrived in the country, with the Audi e-tron (902 units) and Renault Zoe (533 units) seeing the highest January volumes.
France, the world’s 8th largest auto market, just hit 11% electric vehicle market share in January, a year-on-year growth of 4×. Meanwhile, diesel and gasoline vehicle sales crashed by ~25% year on year.
New solar energy innovations are being unveiled at Intersolar 2020 in San Diego this week, including the California launch of a concrete solar shingle, a unique under-the-panel battery storage configuration, and a single-axis tracker that can accommodate a 10% grade on undulating sites. And one forward-looking company is now buying up broken solar panels in expectation of mining the components for recycling.
The evolving technology for connecting EVs to home solar systems with battery storage is expected to be a key driver of growth in attendance and exhibition at the Intersolar North America trade show, being held for the first time under new ownership this week in San Diego.
Take a break from saving the planet and go have some fun (it’s important!) with the National Geographic reboot of Brain Games.
The most popular CleanTechnica stories last week included a top 10 list of the best things about owning a Tesla Model 3 and the worst things about owning a Tesla Model 3. (Many of the items on the lists relate to any EV, and almost all of them relate to any Tesla.) Another top story was Elon Musk’s comments in a recent interview that something akin to “alien technology” is coming. One more top story is a CleanTechnica original on getting Tesla Solarglass Roof installed.
There will be at least eight new electric vehicle models coming to Australia’s market in 2020, which will add more variety for drivers wanting to cut out their carbon emissions. The new models arriving this year include: the Audi e-tron, Porsche Taycan, Mercedes-Benz EQC, MG ZSEV, Mini Cooper SE electric, and vehicles from Volvo and Polestar. There is also a new local player, EV Automotive.
In this episode of Tesla Inside Out*, David Havasi tells us about some of the challenges (and fun) of delivering early Tesla Model S sedans to customers around the time of Hurricane Sandy in New York City (back in 2012).
Ah! To zip through Miami’s city streets in a little electric sports car, a MINI…
