Prepare for claims of “Tesla killers” from Maserati in the mainstream media, as FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne awkwardly proclaimed that the brand would produce an electric vehicle around 2020 in an earnings call on Thursday.
Waymo’s self-driving Chrysler Pacifica minivans have been tested extensively in extreme heat since stress testing began around a year ago, the company has revealed.
To be more specific, much of the heat testing has taken place in Death Valley — where temperatures can climb to more than 130° Fahrenheit, roughly hot enough to melt roads.
The self-driving Chrysler Pacifica minivans being used for testing by Waymo (Google) recently underwent their “first emergency vehicle testing day” — with the Chandler, Arizona Fire & Police Department — according to recent reports.
Whimsy seems to be the watchword for commercials advertising hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles right now. A few days ago, Hyundai started airing a pair of delightfully amusing ads featuring ordinary citizens singing a song that begins, “I’d like to buy a hybrid car but I’m not sure it’s for me.” It then shows a series of folks like construction workers, court reporters, dog groomers, and karate instructors. In 60 seconds, the ads destroy all the common misconceptions about hybrid cars.
The much anticipated (in the world of electric vehicle news anyway) Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid has now gone into full production, according to recent reports.
As their name suggests, the folks at Plugin Cars have an agenda. They like cars with plugs. Recently, they published a plug-in hybrid guide for people interested in buying or leasing a PHEV. It is so well done, I decided to share it with our readers as a primer on how to go about selecting the right plug-in hybrid for their needs. Author Brad Berman groups his suggestions into four categories. Let’s unpack each one and see what we can learn.
2016 was a pretty huge year for cleantech, but I think it was more like a foundation-laying year, whereas 2017 and 2018 will be the breakout years in which we start seeing the walls of the beautiful cleantech transition that foundation is going to support. (Building-integrated solar PV walls with EV charging plugs, of course.)
Engineers at Fiat Chrysler have calculated the total environmental impact of the new Pacifica Hybrid and determined that over 120,000 miles, it is 31% more environmentally friendly than its sibling, the internal combustion powered Town and Country minivan.
2017 is shaping up to be the year that the affordable EV goes big, with the much anticipated Chevy Bolt and the updated Renault Zoe (with its breakthrough 400 km range) rolling out en masse, as well as the competitive and perhaps widely available Hyundai IONIQ, Toyota Prius Prime, and Chrysler Pacific Hybrid (PHEV). And that’s not even mentioning what is due in the second half of 2017 (hint: Tesla Model 3).
Waymo, previously the self-driving tech arm of Google X but now independent, will begin testing its new self-driving Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivans on public roads by the end of the month.
