So GM and Tesla are not the only ones that will be fighting for the affordable long range EV. Nissan has a head-start over both of them in the affordable pure-EV market space and they are not going to give it up easily.
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
150 Mile Nissan Leaf?
Ever since I bought my Nissan Leaf in 2011, I have been on their survey list. They send out occasional questionnaires. What do you like, what could be better... The usual stuff. However, this last survey had several questions about a Leaf with 150 miles. How much extra would you pay for double the EPA rated range, how fast do you expect it to charge... Here is one example:
A survey question is far from a product commitment, but it shows that Nissan is thinking about their next gen longer range EVs.
So GM and Tesla are not the only ones that will be fighting for the affordable long range EV. Nissan has a head-start over both of them in the affordable pure-EV market space and they are not going to give it up easily.
So GM and Tesla are not the only ones that will be fighting for the affordable long range EV. Nissan has a head-start over both of them in the affordable pure-EV market space and they are not going to give it up easily.
Fuel Cells: More than you ever wanted to know in 11 parts
Sunday, January 26, 2014
I tried a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. Here’s what it was like.
I tried a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. Here’s what it was like.: "Building a station takes just $1 million-$2 million, according to Santucci. So that's no problem. It's the gas that's expensive. Even in the Los Angeles area, it's priced as high as $5 a kilogram. Much of the cost is linked to transporting and storing the stuff in liquid form; unless the distribution point is relatively close to the pipeline, you're going to have to pay through the nose."
$28.59 Million for 20 Fuel Cell refilling stations
http://www.energy.ca.gov/contracts/PON-12-606_NOPA.pdf
This money could have installed more that 1400 CHAdeMO stations.
This money could have installed more that 1400 CHAdeMO stations.
Plug-in Vehicles Sale Continue to Grow
As more plug-in vehicles come to market and prices continue to drop, so does the public’s appetite to change from conventional fuel vehicles to cars w/ cords. Earlier this week Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz highlighted the fact that PEV sales doubled in 2013 over 2012 and that the Energy Department is investing nearly $50 million more to improve fuel efficiency in vehicles, including nearly $30 million for PEV technologies(1).
The graph above illustrates that plug-in vehicles’ rate of sales is actually higher than the rate of growth hybrids experienced in the same time period after their market introduction.
via the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Saturday, January 25, 2014
Why My Next Vehicle Will Be A PHEV SUV
My family and I live a typical Northwest lifestyle. A normal day's driving includes school drop-off, errands, commuting... We go skiing a few times per year in the winter and we go camping a couple of times each summer. To do all this driving, we currently have three vehicles: a Nissan Leaf, a Toyota Prius, & a Honda Passport SUV.
Having this spectrum of vehicles to choose from is nice. The Leaf is 100% electric and is the daily commuter. The Prius gets great mileage and is used for school drop-off and errands. The Passport is idle most of the time, but when we need 4WD in the snow or we need the horsepower to pull our pop-up camper, it is our go-to. With an electric, a hybrid, and an SUV we can select the vehicle that best fits our needs for any given task.
We have three vehicles, but only my wife and I drive. So what we need is a vehicle that can cover all of these use-cases: hauling; long drives up the mountain or into the woods, treks to Seattle or Southern Oregon... and be able to handle daily errands and commuting without burning gas (by running on electricity instead).
Sounds impossible right? A single vehicle that is an electric, a hybrid, and an SUV all rolled into one. Well, I can't walk up to a dealership and buy one today, but that may be changing soon. Over the next couple years here are a few of the vehicles that might fit the bill:
We would trade in both the Passport and the Prius for this new PHEV SUV. We would keep the Leaf as a daily commuter.
I am sure that many of my EV loving friends are wondering why the Tesla Model X is not on the list of candidates. I like the idea of having an EV and a PHEV in our family fleet. This gives us the flexibility to use gas if/when we need to for those long trips out into the woods or to crank up the heater to full blast going over the mountain without worrying about range. For us, I think the combination of a fully electric car and a plug-in hybrid SUV will be just right.
Maybe by early 2015 when I plan to start shopping, I'll reconsider. I certainly plan to test drive the Model X :)
Having this spectrum of vehicles to choose from is nice. The Leaf is 100% electric and is the daily commuter. The Prius gets great mileage and is used for school drop-off and errands. The Passport is idle most of the time, but when we need 4WD in the snow or we need the horsepower to pull our pop-up camper, it is our go-to. With an electric, a hybrid, and an SUV we can select the vehicle that best fits our needs for any given task.
We have three vehicles, but only my wife and I drive. So what we need is a vehicle that can cover all of these use-cases: hauling; long drives up the mountain or into the woods, treks to Seattle or Southern Oregon... and be able to handle daily errands and commuting without burning gas (by running on electricity instead).
Sounds impossible right? A single vehicle that is an electric, a hybrid, and an SUV all rolled into one. Well, I can't walk up to a dealership and buy one today, but that may be changing soon. Over the next couple years here are a few of the vehicles that might fit the bill:
- Mitsubishi Outlander Plug-In Hybrid SUV
- BMW X5 Plug-In Hybrid SUV
- Range Rover Plug-In Hybrid SUV
- Volvo XC90 Plug-In Hybrid SUV
- Volkswagen CrossBlue Plug-In Hybrid SUV
- Bentley Plug-in Hybrid SUV
- Ford C-Max Energi PHEV
- Mitsubishi Montero Plug-In Hybrid
We would trade in both the Passport and the Prius for this new PHEV SUV. We would keep the Leaf as a daily commuter.
I am sure that many of my EV loving friends are wondering why the Tesla Model X is not on the list of candidates. I like the idea of having an EV and a PHEV in our family fleet. This gives us the flexibility to use gas if/when we need to for those long trips out into the woods or to crank up the heater to full blast going over the mountain without worrying about range. For us, I think the combination of a fully electric car and a plug-in hybrid SUV will be just right.
Maybe by early 2015 when I plan to start shopping, I'll reconsider. I certainly plan to test drive the Model X :)
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
Test Drive the ELF
The West Columbia Gorge Chamber of Commerce would like to invite you to test-drive an innovative pedal-electric hybrid vehicle called the “ELF”.
The ELF is made by the Organic Transit company. They are looking establish a manufacturing presence in Portland area.
Wood Village Mayor Patricia Smith will sponsor and attend the event.
Registration: Send an email to testdrive at organictransit.com with "Portland" in the subject line.
We hope to see you there!
For more info about the ELF and Organic Transit, here is a TEDx talk by the CEO:
The ELF is made by the Organic Transit company. They are looking establish a manufacturing presence in Portland area.
Wood Village Mayor Patricia Smith will sponsor and attend the event.
- Time: 10:15AM Welcome / 10:45AM to 4:00PM Test-Driving
- Date: Saturday January 25th
- Location:
- McMenamin’s - Edgefield
- 2126 SW Halsey St, Troutdale, OR 97060
- Parking lot West of the Power Station
Registration: Send an email to testdrive at organictransit.com with "Portland" in the subject line.
We hope to see you there!
For more info about the ELF and Organic Transit, here is a TEDx talk by the CEO:
Fuel Cell Future Unlikely or Inevitable? Part 11 - Conclusion
This is the 11th and final entry of my fuel cells treatise.
We have looked at hydrogen production, storage, fuel cells, & infrastructure. We also examined business models and political aspects.
There is nothing impossible about fuel cells. Everything needed to put them on the road, is possible today. Possible and feasible, however, are two different things.
Today, H2 production is energy intensive and expensive. Fuel cells are expense and evanescent, non-durable items. There are promising technologies that could greatly increase the efficiency of H2 isolation and reduce the cost of fuel cells.
Until these breakthroughs happen, the expenses will relegate fuel cell vehicles to little more than concept cars and media enticements.
Although nearly all auto companies are spending some level of R&D money on both fuel cell and battery electric technologies, they are generally split into either those that are supporting fuel cells (Toyota, Honda, Hyundai) and those supporting plug-in vehicles (Nissan, GM, BMW, Mitsu, Ford, VW...).
As plug-in cars gain in popularity, those auto companies that are not in the plug-in camp will attempt to frames themselves as being a technological leader by being on the forefront of the next big thing. Given this, I expect to see more fuel cell hype over the next 5 years.
Yet, despite the expected hype, I don't expect to see any real action to create a viable H2 infrastructure.
Rather, by 2018 the auto companies in the fuel cell camp will license, acquire, or develop plug-in vehicle technologies to meet fuel economy and emissions goals. All the while, they'll be justifying away their sunk costs as something that will pay off in 5 to 10 years.
Perhaps I won't phrase it as brashly as Elon did, but in the end, I am siding with him on this one. H2 is not the future of personal transportation. Fuel cells will continue to make promises; while the range for battery electric cars will continue to increase and the recharge time will continue to decrease. This will leave fuel cells as a solution looking for a problem and finding none.
Fuel Cells: More than you ever wanted to know in 11 parts:
Part 1 - Intro
Part 2 - H2 From Natural Gas
Part 3 - H2 from Water
Part 4 - Hydrogen Infrastructure
Part 5 - Storage
Part 6 - Fuel Cells
Part 7 - How Soon?
Part 8 - A Foot in the Door for H2
Part 9 - So Why the Hate?
Part 10 - Tin Foil Hats
Part 11 - Conclusion
We have looked at hydrogen production, storage, fuel cells, & infrastructure. We also examined business models and political aspects.
Today, H2 production is energy intensive and expensive. Fuel cells are expense and evanescent, non-durable items. There are promising technologies that could greatly increase the efficiency of H2 isolation and reduce the cost of fuel cells.
Until these breakthroughs happen, the expenses will relegate fuel cell vehicles to little more than concept cars and media enticements.
As plug-in cars gain in popularity, those auto companies that are not in the plug-in camp will attempt to frames themselves as being a technological leader by being on the forefront of the next big thing. Given this, I expect to see more fuel cell hype over the next 5 years.
Yet, despite the expected hype, I don't expect to see any real action to create a viable H2 infrastructure.
Rather, by 2018 the auto companies in the fuel cell camp will license, acquire, or develop plug-in vehicle technologies to meet fuel economy and emissions goals. All the while, they'll be justifying away their sunk costs as something that will pay off in 5 to 10 years.
Perhaps I won't phrase it as brashly as Elon did, but in the end, I am siding with him on this one. H2 is not the future of personal transportation. Fuel cells will continue to make promises; while the range for battery electric cars will continue to increase and the recharge time will continue to decrease. This will leave fuel cells as a solution looking for a problem and finding none.
Fuel Cells: More than you ever wanted to know in 11 parts:
Part 1 - Intro
Part 2 - H2 From Natural Gas
Part 3 - H2 from Water
Part 4 - Hydrogen Infrastructure
Part 5 - Storage
Part 6 - Fuel Cells
Part 7 - How Soon?
Part 8 - A Foot in the Door for H2
Part 9 - So Why the Hate?
Part 10 - Tin Foil Hats
Part 11 - Conclusion
Monday, January 20, 2014
Fuel Cell Future Unlikely or Inevitable? Part 10 - Tin Foil Hats
And yet, the hydrogen hype continues. Why? The answers offered range from the reasonable to conspiratorial.
First, the sublime: Major auto companies cannot afford to miss out on a huge technology shift within the transportation industry. They have to spend at least a portion of their R&D budget on fuel cells so as not to be left behind should it actually come into being.
On the conspiratorial side of the coin, you have auto company boardrooms that are filled with big-oil fat-cats. As racecar driver, Leilani Münter, put it "You drill for the oil, and we'll make the cars. Together, we'll make a fortune. Mawaa Haha!"
Electric cars on-the-other-hand allow you to "fill-up" in your garage. They are a disruptive technology that could send Exxon & Shell the way of Kodak & Nokia.
I mockingly called this section the Tin Foil Hats, but the money and political influence of several of the world's most profitable multinational corporations, cannot be ignored. Ensuring their interests is not a conspiracy theory, it is just smart business to protect a cash cow. #oiligarchy
To the final step in this Fuel Cell journey:
Part 11 - Conclusion
Fuel Cells: More than you ever wanted to know in 11 parts:
Part 1 - Intro
Part 2 - H2 From Natural Gas
Part 3 - H2 from Water
Part 4 - Hydrogen Infrastructure
Part 5 - Storage
Part 6 - Fuel Cells
Part 7 - How Soon?
Part 8 - A Foot in the Door for H2
Part 9 - So Why the Hate?
Part 10 - Tin Foil Hats
Part 11 - Conclusion
Sunday, January 19, 2014
The future of transportation -- as seen by a sci-fi author | VentureBeat | Gadgets | by William Hertling/FeldThoughts
The future of transportation -- as seen by a sci-fi author | VentureBeat | Gadgets | by William Hertling/FeldThoughts: "By 2025, that Nissan Leaf battery pack will cost less than $1,800, making the cost of the electric motor plus battery pack less than the price of a comparable gasoline motor. Assuming even modest increases in storage capacity, the electric vehicle will rank better on initial cost, range, performance, and ongoing maintenance and fuel costs."
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