Automobile News

Chrysler LLC has added two models to its portfolio of electric vehicles, the Jeep Wrangler and Patriot. This portfolio has been growing at a fast pace. In the Patriot, Chrysler has effectively combined the small petrol engine with the electric vehicle technology ENVI. This combination provides the vehicle with an overall range of 400 miles and an electric only range of 40 miles.

The range of forty miles comes with zero fuel consumption and zero emissions. According to Chrysler LLC’s Advance Vehicle Engineering vice president and ENVI president, Lou Rhodes, Jeep Patriot EV joins their already extended ENVI portfolio of vehicles driven on electricity. He said that these achievements of Chrysler Engineering was a standing proof of what is possible through the Chrysler developed technology.

Integration of electric technology into the most compact SUV of the industry goes on to highlight the social responsibility shown by Chrysler, said Rhodes. Prototype of the Wrangler EV reveals that it is a two wheel drive and a model that is range extended. Efforts are however on by Chrysler to develop electric motors in-wheel and a four wheel drive to showcase their electric-drive technological skills and capabilities. The overall range and drive of the Wrangler EV is similar to that of the Patriot EV. Previously, Jeeps, 4 x 4s, and SUVs were considered the antithesis of environmentally friendly vehicles, but this new development clearly changes that perception. Now electric Jeeps will clearly not be rally racing off road any time soon, or be found in games like Jeep Thrills, but the advancement is still a welcome one. Lou Rhodes says in a market where consumers are looking to explore completely the environmental potential, Jeep Wrangler ideally brings to them an electric drive that is clean and fuel efficient.

Tags for this article: chrysler, electric, suv

British sports car makers Lotus and Ginetta have recently announced that they are looking forward to expanding their business sphere in the current year by building road-going electric cars. The announcement has generated a mixed response and there are many who are against this move, especially in case of Ginetta who is a total novice concerning the logistics behind the production of the announced cars.

Lotus is in a better proposition to deliver goods, as the Hethel-based outfit has already been rolling chassis for the Tesla Roadster, known as the ‘leccy Elise’, apart from building the Dodge EV for Chrysler, codenamed ‘leccy Europa’. It theregore appears a bit logical for Lotus to take the next step in the direction of expanding the company wings.

Regarding the recent developments, Lotus Chairman Michael Kimberley, while speaking to Financial Times asked the discerning public not to be taken aback when they see the company’s electric model, which he added will be launched shortly. He also expressed the hope that the model will unveil the latent potential that lies with electric vehicle technology.

Critics have however derided the tactics of the company saying that the new models are nothing, but a comparatively poor version of some range-extended vehicle like the Chevy Volt or Fisker Karma, and in no way accepted as a purely electric plug-in as per the Tesla. There are also claims doing the rounds that the new versions take the concept from a forthcoming car by the name Evora, and you shouldn’t be surprised if it goes to even earlier models for inspiration, like the Geneva Motor Show held in March.

Mercedes has come up with a novel concept in the form of its latest zero-emission car that can be powered by three different propulsion systems. The car takes inspiration from the B Class hatchback, and its electric motor can be energised by the batteries alone, or by a battery pack recharged by a fuel cell generator, or even from batteries whose range can be inflated by an external combustion system. The point here is that in each of the above cases the batteries are water-cooled lithium-ion, while the electric motor produces an inspiring 93bhp and 236lb ft of torque which powers the front wheels.

The Blue-ZERO concept exploits the possibilities thrown open by the sandwich construction of the B Class, which has been generating a lot of buzz due to its unobtrusive nature as far as passenger and luggage space is concerned. Moreover, the model is also a trendsetter of a sort for its low centre of gravity. Drivers should also love the crash performance meted out by the car which assisted by its unique design and layout. All the three models can reach speeds of up to 62mph in a matter of seconds, while the top speed is regulated at 93mph to improve battery life.

The mode when run on pure electric E-Cell has a range of 120miles which can be extended to an astounding 248miles in F-Cell form by the fuel cell generator.

This latest development shows Mercedes’ intent to promote low emission vehicles and from 2009 onwards the company will operate a small fleet of experimental hydrogen fuel cell vehicles to get acquainted with the various issues confronting the concept. While energy efficiency is admittedly important for everyday household products, like the energy efficient A class Hotpoint FF4DK fridge freezer, it is far important for your car, in terms of saving both money and the environment. Mercedes, it seems, has recognised this. The company, in fact, has completed all the formalities to introduce its first series of pure electric cars come 2010.

Electric car manufacturers are having a very difficult half this year as unit sales continue to plummet to new levels. Going by statistics, electric car sales have come down drastically to just 156 against a healthy 374 for the same period last year, a staggering decline of 58%.

The turnaround happened only a few months after Nice Car Company, one of London’s two electric car distributors, had taken over reins as the administrator.

It may be mentioned that Nice, set up by ex-Lotus colleagues Julian Wilford and Evert Geurtsen in 2006, had been selling an all-electric version of the French-made Aixam Mega. There were also plans on its part to expand the existing range by the end of the year by selling a Chinese-made two-seater called MyCar and five-seat MPV called the Ze-O.

The plans however, now appear to be a distant reality provided the given circumstances. Meanwhile, administrators are being called up by the stake holders to provide the logic behind the emergence of such a situation. Top selling brands like Going Green are also facing the heat with comparatively reduced sales.

Going by a conservative survey there are around 1,100 all-electric cars plying the UK roads. Many of the owners turned electric to take advantage of a policy that exempted electric cars from congestion charges and allowed parking congestions.

The nemesis of this infant market turned out to be Ken Livingstone’s plan to exempt standard petrol and diesel cars with sub-120g/km CO2 emissions. So we will have to wait awhile before the electric car is as prevalent as the electric toothbrush. Even though the plan in question was later scrapped, it had already done enough to lure away potential customers.

Mercedes-Benz has decided to give a definitive thrust to their insatiable experimentation on different models with their decision to unleash the company’s first hybrid version, the S-Class flagship sedan early next year.

The model, identified by the name S400 BlueHYBRID, will be powered by a modified version of the 3.5-liter V6 that has been in vogue in the standard S350 European-market sedan. The modified version, according to company sources, has proved to be a great asset in the final analysis as it has remarkably improved the engine’s efficiency. Moreover, it has been connected with an electric motor, the necessary control equipment, in addition to a compact lithium ion battery. All of the above is more than sufficient for powering any onboard gps navigation, in car entertainment, or car speaker stereo systems as well.  The arrangement thus more or less resembles a conventional S-class as seating and cargo capacity are left untouched.

The hybrid version has some innate advantages over its contemporaries as for instance, in the case of say the big Benz, it captures braking energy and provides additional boost, apart from providing a substantial amount of instantly available torque. The car lacks on an electric-only mode, but nevertheless has a stop/start system which by default will kill the petrol engine when the car is rolling to a stop, and not turn it on again until it gets back underway.

Performance wise the model has managed many a rave reviews, especially for its environment friendly traits. Statistically, it emits CO2 at a rate of 190 g/km which is a significant drop of 20% from the standard, petrol-only S350. It also gives you the benefit of better mileage, as it consumes gas at a rate of 7.9 litres per 100 kilometers.

Electric cars seem like the new hot trend. Gordon Brown is saying the country should completely switch to them by the year 2020, and electrically powered sports cars, like the Tesla Roadster, or even the 500 horse power SSC Ultimate Aero EV, are showing people just how powerful the technology can be. Even so, the technology still has some notable drawbacks, such as expense or time spent charging the battery, that are preventing it from completely and immediately taking over the auto combustion engine world. However, one car currently being presented at the British Motor Show in London, might at least put one of these concerns to rest.

The Electric Lightning sports car, from the Lightning Car Co., was unveiled yesterday at the British Motor Show. Aside from its high performance, a key feature of the car is the battery technology it employs, which is actually quite revolutionary. Most electric sports cars, or indeed all electric cars, use lithium-ion technology, the same as is commonly found in mobile phone batteries. The Electric Lighting on the other hand, makes use of new and far more efficient lithium-titanate battery technology. In fact, the new battery technology is so efficient that the entire car can be charged in a matter of minutes (no more than 10 minutes), while drivers of ordinary electric cars typically have to charge their vehicles overnight or at least wait for many hours. This vast improvement in charging time completely eliminates one of the inconveniences associated with the electric car, namely, the time it takes to charge.

Such an innovation clearly gives the Electric Lightning an advantage over its competitors and, should the technology prove to be reliable, will probably be the future of electric cars. Of course the company themselves assert that the technology has been tested and is full-proof. Should this in fact be true, then we can get excited over a huge innovation in the electric car industry and look forward to faster charging cars in the future.

Out of control petrol prices have ignited discussions regarding alternative energy sources and the future of petrol powered cars. Indeed, as we mentioned in an earlier article, electric hybrid cars are massively gaining popularity, and many companies, like Tesla Motors or SSC, are even developing electrically powered high performance sports cars. Apparently the British government has now recognised the need for solutions to high priced petrol and decided to embrace the electric car. PM Gordon Brown envisions changing the way Britons drive and hopes that by 2020 nearly all new car sales will either be electric or hybrid models.

Of course, how does the government hope to achieve this rather dramatic goal requiring huge changes in both the behaviour of car buyers and car manufacturers? The British government hopes to give consumers enough incentives and reasons to opt for an electric car, which should lead to a general shift in the type of cars people drive. Among the incentives being considered, one of the most prominent and innovative is the idea of providing customers with electric cars in the same manner as people purchase mobile phones. Essentially, you will get the car for free after signing up for a long term contract, and then pay off the car through the contract. In the case of electric cars, instead of a contract based on the amount of minutes or text messages one can use, this contract will be based on the amount of miles one drives.

The plan does, however, face a number or apparent difficulties and drawbacks that would realistically prevent the goal of a large scale shift to electric vehicles. For starters, the technology for pure electric cars currently only has a range of about 100 miles before the electric battery needs to be recharged. This limitation could quickly become an inconvenience for many drivers, especially those with long commutes to work. Another problem is obviously securing the necessary amount of funding needed to undertake such a massive project, and finally the last concern is whether this method would indeed prove less expensive or more environmentally friendly that petrol driven cars. Nevertheless, even petrol powered automobile fanatics like ourselves agree that electric cars will definitely play a prominent role in the future.

Electrically powered super sports cars are currently the favourite goal for many small car manufacturers. The American company Shelby Super Cars (SSC) wants to gain some attention through their announcement of a new model with up to 1000 HP. The Ultimate Aero EV should come onto the market in the beginning of 2009 and at first only possess an electric engine with 368 kW/ 500 HP; but later it should add an additional engine to double its performance. The battery technology is said to be truly revolutionary: according to the company, the power accumulator only needs to be charged after a few years of use.

The technical feasibility of such a car remains in doubt, but SSC is clearly appealing to a new trend. After the Californian company Tesla began building their own super fast electric sports car despite multiple delays, other companies are following suit with similar models. LCC already introduced an electric model at the London Motor Show with 700 horse power, and Fisker wants to build a luxurious Gran Turismo with a hybrid engine.