First Images Appear of Tesla Structural Battery | 19 Jan 2021

On today’s podcast:

• Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV Prototype Towing
• Pandemic Chip Shortages Are Shutting Down Automotive Production
• First look at Tesla’s new structural battery pack
• Scania’s commitment to battery electric vehicles
• Miami-Dade Starts Transition To Electric School Bus Fleet
• Vermont had the highest number of public EV chargers per capita in US in November 2020
• Xpeng releases autonomous features for highway driving
• Nissan Qashqai engines detailed: e-Power hybrid
• Rimac C_Two First-Year Production Run Sold Out
• McDonald’s now offering delivery direct to Tesla Supercharger

 

Show #967

 

Good morning, good afternoon and good evening wherever you are in the world, welcome to EV News Daily for Tuesday 19th January. It’s Martyn Lee here and I go through every EV story so you don't have to.

 

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MERCEDES-BENZ EQS SUV PROTOTYPE TOWING

"A prototype of an SUV version of the upcoming all-electric Mercedes-Benz EQS was recently seen in Germany, when towing a trailer during tests. We don't know much about this vehicle, beside that it's based on the Electric Vehicle Architecture (EVA) platform (just like EQS, EQE and EQE SUV" says InsideEVs: "For sure it will be a large, luxury SUV, with a target range of up to 700 km (435 miles) in the WLTP test cycle. With trailer, we would expect maybe 200-250 miles. The EQS to be launched this year, but even this model is still undercover. If the EQS to be the first all-electric Mercedes-Benz EQ model in the U.S., then the SUV version has a chance to be the second."

 

https://insideevs.com/news/466933/mercedes-eqs-suv-prototype-towing-spy-video/

 

PANDEMIC CHIP SHORTAGES ARE SHUTTING DOWN AUTOMOTIVE PRODUCTION

"Advanced electronics have weaved their way into the modern car, from engine to infotainment and climate control to the buttons now sprinkled throughout the passenger cabin. The gains in amenity and efficiency can’t be sniffed at, but it leaves manufacturers reliant on semiconductor suppliers to get cars out the door. Over the past year, it’s become much more complicated — with many automakers having to slow production in the face of integrated circuit shortages that can be traced back to Spring of 2020" says the Hackaday.com website: "Automakers were forced to scale back production as factories closed to avoid spreading the deadly virus. This meant slashing orders with suppliers, particularly as the just-in-time nature of modern automobile production means there’s little to no space to warehouse excess parts in factories. Tier-one supplier Bosch have noted the shortage is particularly acute in parts used for engine and transmission control units."

 

https://hackaday.com/2021/01/18/pandemic-chip-shortages-are-shutting-down-automotive-production/

 

FIRST LOOK AT TESLA’S NEW STRUCTURAL BATTERY PACK

"Electrek obtained the first picture of Tesla’s new structural battery pack with a honeycomb architecture that will power its future electric vehicles. Currently, Tesla builds battery packs by combining cells into modules, which when put together form a battery pack. That battery pack is installed into the vehicle platform. The difference with this new concept is that Tesla is not using modules and instead builds the entire battery pack as the structural platform of the vehicle" according to electrek: "The structural battery pack is expected to be first used in the Model Y that is going to be built at Gigafactory Berlin and in the new Model S Plaid. The image shows the battery pack without the new 4680 cells in them – showcasing the honeycomb design of the pack"

 

https://electrek.co/2021/01/19/tesla-structural-battery-pack-first-picture/

 

SCANIA’S COMMITMENT TO BATTERY ELECTRIC VEHICLES

The rapid development of electric solutions for heavy duty vehicles includes the fast advancement of battery technology in respect of energy storage capacity per kg. Charging time, charging cycles and economics per kg are improving rapidly. This means these solutions will become more cost effective, primarily in repetitive and predictable applications. They will gradually overtake Scania’s industry-leading fossil and biofuel powered solutions in most transport applications.

 

The company has already launched a fully electric truck as well as a plug-in hybrid truck. In a few years’ time, Scania plans to introduce long-distance electric trucks that will be able to carry a total weight of 40 tonnes for 4.5 hBy 2025, Scania expects that electrified vehicles will account for around 10 percent or our total vehicle sales volumes in Europe and by 2030, 50 percent of our total vehicle sales volumes are expected to be electrified.ours, and fast charge during the drivers’ compulsory 45-minute rest.

 

https://www.volkswagenag.com/en/news/2021/01/scania_commitment_battery.html

 

MIAMI-DADE STARTS TRANSITION TO ELECTRIC SCHOOL BUS FLEET

"Miami-Dade County Public Schools has made the decision to convert its fleet from diesel buses into an electric fleet. This push was driven by Holly Thorpe, a middle school student who used her science fair project to convince the school board that this switch was necessary." says CleanTechnica: "Superintendent Alberto Carvalho shared the good news with Thorpe that the district was applying for federal grant money from the $2.8 billion settlement fund that was a result of the Volkswagen Dieselgate scandal. “We’re finally going to turn the yellow school bus green,” Thorpe said. “Transportation is the largest source of greenhouse gases. Electric school buses are essential for the health of students and drivers.”

 

https://cleantechnica.com/2021/01/18/miami-dade-starts-transition-to-electric-school-bus-fleet/

 

VERMONT HAD THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF PUBLIC EV CHARGERS PER CAPITA IN US IN NOVEMBER 2020

"The number of public electric vehicle (EV) chargers across the country has been growing. As of November 2020, Vermont had the highest number of public chargers per capita with 114 EV chargers per 100,000 people, followed by the District of Columbia (81) and California (72), according to the US Department of Energy (DOE)." according to Green Car Congress: "Twenty-one states and the District of Columbia had more than 20 chargers per 100,000 people."

 

https://www.greencarcongress.com/2021/01/20210119-doefotw.html

 

XPENG RELEASES AUTONOMOUS FEATURES FOR HIGHWAY DRIVING

"The new autonomous driving feature will allow the company’s flagship P7 sedan to automatically change lanes, speed up or slow down, overtake cars and enter and exit highways." says CNBC: "Xpeng’s NGP is a challenge to Tesla’s autonomous driving system called Autopilot. The highway driving feature will be available on the premium version of the P7 and available to customers in China only."

 

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/01/18/chinese-electric-carmaker-xpeng-releases-driverless-features-to-rival-tesla-.html

 

NISSAN QASHQAI ENGINES DETAILED: E-POWER HYBRID

"Nissan has detailed the upcoming third-generation Qashqai small SUV’s two new engine options, including a ‘self-charging’ series hybrid called e-Power." says CarsGuide: "The e-Power powertrain combines a 140kW/330Nm electric motor with a 115kW 1.5-litre naturally aspirated four-cylinder petrol engine, but only the former drives the Qashqai’s front wheels, with the latter instead responsible for charging its ‘high-output’ battery." “This means the engine can always run within its optimal range, leading to superior fuel efficiency and lower CO2 emissions compared with a traditional internal-combustion engine,” according to Nissan. energy is also recouped via regenerative braking, with the e-Power even featuring the all-electric Leaf small hatchback’s more aggressive ePedal functionality, which enables one-pedal driving in 90 per cent of scenarios."

 

https://www.carsguide.com.au/car-news/2021-nissan-qashqai-engines-detailed-e-power-hybrid-option-headlines-new-kia-seltos-hyundai

 

RIMAC C_TWO FIRST-YEAR PRODUCTION RUN SOLD OUT

"Rumors that the Rimac C_Two is completely sold out have been circulating around the internet since the Croatian company revealed the all-electric hypercar in 2018. However, that’s not completely true. Rimac CEO Mate Rimac took to Facebook yesterday to dispel those rumors with some much-needed context. However, in confirming that the C_Two wasn’t sold out fully, he did admit that the car’s first year of production was completely allocated for." reports Motor1: " the company has had the goal of having the car’s sales be 12 months ahead of its production, which is an amicable goal because the company has yet to reveal the production version or the car’s official name. The CEO also clarified in his post that “sold” to Rimac means that a dealer has ordered the model, though Mate has no concerns about selling the 150 examples the company plans to produce. Rimac will reveal the production version and the car’s official name “soon,” according to Mate’s post. "

 

https://www.motor1.com/news/467170/rimac-c-two-sold-out-467170/

 

MCDONALD’S NOW OFFERING DELIVERY DIRECT TO TESLA SUPERCHARGER

"While work continues at Firebaugh to convert an adjacent building into a convenience store and coffee shop, McDonald’s is taking advantage of its proximity to North America’s largest Supercharger to offer Tesla owners a unique service." sayts Drive TEsla CAnada: "Located directly next to the massive Supercharger station, the fast-food restaurant is now allowing customers to “Recharge with McDonald’s, while you recharge your Tesla.” Spotted by Raul on Twitter, Tesla drivers can place an order using the McDonald’s mobile app. Instead of entering a curbside number, you can enter your Supercharger stall number to have your order delivered directly to your car."

 

https://driveteslacanada.ca/news/mcdonalds-firebaugh-tesla-supercharger-delivery

 

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