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News Archive
Saturday, June 25, 2005
PLUGGED-IN Hybrid Tantalizes Car Buffs
News from Los Angeles Times
A Southland company comes up with a system that lets Toyota's Prius burn even less gasoline by connecting it to a regular electrical socket. In a standard Prius, a battery pack is charged by the vehicle's own gasoline engine and with electricity produced by the brakes. The car's all-electric mode is fairly limited because the Prius uses its gas engine except at very low speeds. Most owners get 45 to 55 mpg. [Greg Hanssen] can drive his Prius in an all-electric mode for 35 miles at up to 35 ... Hanssen, 38, and his partner, Pete Nortman, 48, are electrical engineers who got their start in the electric vehicle movement. ...
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Friday, June 24, 2005
ITI steers £5.2m into EV projects
News from the Scotsman (Edinburgh, Scotland, UK)
by Douglas Friedli
TECHNOLOGY for the next generation of electric vehicles will be developed in Scotland following a £5.2m investment by the agency set up to develop innovation in energy.
The Intermediary Technology Institute for Energy has revealed the first two projects which it will fund, just over a year after it was set up by the Scottish Executive to identify market opportunities and commission research.
The Aberdeen-based agency, headed by chief executive Tony Amor, is the last of the three new ITIs to reveal how it will spend part of its £150m budget over 10 years.
A source at the institute said the pace of deals was likely to increase, and that it would reveal "six to eight" new projects in the next 12 months.
ITI Energy will spend £4m on a scheme to modify mobile phone-type batteries for use in cars and laptop computers in collaboration with Qinetiq, the former defence research agency, and St Andrews University.
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Wednesday, June 22, 2005
AN electric-powered superhero who loves delivering pizzas
News from Minneapolis Southwest Journal (Minneapolis,MN)
Behind the restaurant, Naked Wes unplugs and plugs his electric delivery vehicle into a power outlet before and after heading out. One word above the back door seemed to say it all: "Groove."
The gizmo has a bubble-like door that opens upwards and closes downwards, like the iconic DeLorean in "Back to the Future." However, it has three wheels and seats just one person, with a spot in back of the chair for pizza orders.
As far as looks go, the car, which is partly plastic and canvas, could be a cross between a Ford Model T and a helicopter (one that you'd put quarters in to activate). Naked Wes drives it through all seasons, but the gizmo can't withstand icy conditions or too much rain, he says.
Naked Wes has the necessary motorcycle endorsement on his license so he can drive the gizmo. It rises to about 40 mph at most and can only run about 30 miles before running out of power. Further, potholes affect it like kryptonite affects Superman. While driving it, "my biggest job is to avoid potholes," Naked Wes said.
He also has to be wary of manholes and bumps. Still, the gizmo allows him to be an aggressive driver since he can go into spaces where regular cars fear to tread. Other drivers usually see him and he's only been sideswiped once.
Despite its earth-friendliness, the electric car demands a lot of upkeep. For example, two-thirds of the Galactic fleet is currently out of commission -not so good for the tiny cars that cost $10,000-$14,000, Bonahoom notes, adding that the manufacturer just went out of business.
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Wednesday, June 08, 2005
DaimlerChrysler's Bionic 70 mpg Concept Car
From Treehugger:
Inspired by the boxfish, DaimlerChrysler's new concept car is a super-aerodynamic (drag coefficient of 0.19, while the Toyota Prius is 0.26 and a model of the boxfish gets the high-score of 0.06) diesel 4-seater that gets 70 mpg (US) while exceeding the most stringent European emission regulations (now imagine a diesel-hybrid version!). The engine is a 2.0 liters 103 kW/140-hp diesel. Even more impressive is how the concept car only used 2.8 liters per 100 kilomters during a test at a constant speed of 90kph (56mph), which translates to 84 mpg (US). More pictures below..."
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Thursday, June 02, 2005
Electric truck sparks curiosity
News from CanWest News Service (May 31, 2005)
by Shannon Lee Mannion
Allan Poulsen, a software design manager who lives and works in Kanata, Ont., says he would bike to work if it weren't for the winter cold and summer sunburns.
Still, he wants to be friendly to the environment, so he bought a 1996 Ford Ranger XL pickup and had it converted to run on electricity.
"For my kids, I want to do my part," the father of two young children said.
Poulsen's truck, named Sparky by his family, was among the vehicles on display at the Electric Vehicle Council of Ottawa's EV Expo last week at the Canada Science and Technology Museum.
Modified by Rick Lane of REV Consultants at a cost of about $20,000, the Ford has an electric motor in place of the original gasoline engine, and 22 golf cart batteries in its bed. They allow a range of 50 kilometres between charges, given a speed of 60 kilometres an hour.
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Wednesday, June 01, 2005
Welsh car team pioneer electric dream
From icWales (Jun 1 2005)
Imagine an electric car that produces hardly any noise, no air pollution, and is as fast as a Ferrari. It might become a reality in the near future, thanks to a revolutionary new motor designed by an enterprising team in Wales.
If the IMP motor meets expectations, it could usher in a new age of rapid, clean, electric transport. As well as high performance vehicles, there are plans for a battery-powered family car with a range of hundreds of miles."
[...]
The motor is revolutionary in that it contains no bulky permanent magnets. Instead it relies on transmitting electric pulses across up to seven rotors, arranged in different phases. These are "fired up" in turn, much like the pistons of an internal combustion engine.
Continue reading icWales the full article.
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