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Tag:

EV

Keeping up with the Green Joneses – Solar and EV Adoption

Keeping up with the Green Joneses – Solar and EV Adoption

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The most recent column on “groundbreaking innovation” Co-Exist from Fast Company was titled “If Your Neighbor Gets a Solar Panel, You’re Going to Want One Too: Whether  your neighbor has a solar installation is more likely to influence your decision than politics or income level.”

The articles’ author Ben Schiller cites studies which mapped 3,843 solar units installed in Connecticut between 2005 and September 2013. What they found was “‘considerable clustering of adoptions’ in ‘wave-like centrifugal’ patterns. When they looked at the dates of the installs, they found one decision in a neighborhood tended to lead to another.”

Pretty cool, but isn’t this old news? Back in 2005, a study in San Diego compared the influence on energy consumption between potential money savings vs concern for the environment vs peer pressure. The results clearly supported social influence, which reduced consumption by 10 percent.” Influence guru Robert B. Cialdini weighed in on the remarkably effective tactic of adding a smiley face to bills for energy reduction, which further reduced energy use: “People don’t just want to conserve energy, they want to be acknowledged for conserving energy.”

Electric Vehicle (EV) adoption also spread in clusters. Not surprisingly, EV and hybrid purchases have been most concentrated in affluent communities with early-adopter characteristics. But far more interesting and perhaps even more relevant, 50.5%  of all registrations are clustered in just three suburbs, Atherton and Los Altos (in Silicon Valley), and Santa Monica in Southern California. California has created an infrastructure for EV/Hubrids and is first in ownership, but if affluence was the defining attribute, wouldn’t EV/Hybrids be spread evenly across California’s many wealthy communities?

Now that many low- and mid-priced vehicles are offered in hybrid varieties (i.e., Toyota Camry, Honda Civic, and Ford Fusion), green social influence is moving from novelty for the affluent to smart money for the mainstream. It happened before with residential solar:  the highest concentration of Connecticut solar installations clustered in middle income, Republican-voting areas of the state.

Peer influence is also having an impact in the corporate world, where renewable energy  is replacing fossil fuels in industry clusters. Benchmarking in industries and companies – comparing your sustainability performance against your peers – leads to greater adoption of renewable energy.

As reported in the solar industry’s third annual Solar Means Business, solar installations cluster by industry, with retail leading the pack. Walmart remains the top solar user overall, spurring its leading competitor Target to move from 16th to 8th ranking with the addition of 15 new solar systems. Retailers’ large flat store roofs are well-suited to roof-top solar apps and their razor-thin margins make energy cost reduction perhaps a higher priority, but other industries are following suit. Apple, which once eschewed environmental concerns, is now fourth in solar installations. Their acknowledgement? Apple appeared first alongside Google and Facebook (their data farms run on wind power) in the Greenbiz article “Apple, Facebook, Google score in Greenpeace data center ratings.”

Peer influence, whether in a corporate or a residential setting, modifies environmental behavior. Can peer shaming work too? Freakonomics economist Steven Levitt, would argue yes. In his words: “…society actually likes it when other people get shamed. … it’s actually a really incredibly efficient mechanism for punishing people who do things we don’t like.”

Another experiment tests peer shaming empirically. San Francisco and Berkeley have both passed legislation requiring that as of March 1, 2015, gas station owners must put climate change warning labels on all gas pump nozzles. The labels say how much carbon dioxide is emitted for every tank of gas burned, saying explicitly how using gas as fuel is contributing to climate change.

Reflecting in The Guardian on a University of Minnesota study that again showed the power of social influence, Adam Corner of the University of Cardiff says, “We may currently compete through demonstrations of conspicuous material consumption, but material goods are simply a marker for social status. It’s the social status that’s important – and the markers we use to signify it can easily change.”

Article by Carol Pierson Holding.  Article originally appeared on CSRHub, appearing courtesy 3BL Media. 



November 7, 2014 0 comment
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Auto Executives: Electric Cars Will Soon Offer Range of 200 to 300 Miles

Auto Executives: Electric Cars Will Soon Offer Range of 200 to 300 Miles

written by CleanTechies.com Contributor

General Motors is working on a new pure-electric car that it expects will go 200 miles on a single charge. That’s according to Mark Reuss, GM’s global product chief, who confirmed the project last week during a presentation to investors.

As reported in Automotive News, a trade publication, two other people familiar with GM’s plans, said it would be based on the Sonic subcompact model (shown above). While Reuss didn’t offer specifics about the nameplate or timeline, the unidentified sources said an electric car based on the Sonic is scheduled for about 2017.

Today’s electric cars have the capacity for between about 80 and 100 miles per charge—except the expensive Tesla Model S, which already offers between 208 and 265 miles per charge, depending on the model.

If Reuss’s comment about a pending 200-mile EV sounds optimistic, then consider what Dr. Heinz-Jakob Neusser, chief of powertrain development at Volkswagen, said earlier this month. Speaking at a conference, Neusser said that a range of between 300 and 370 miles is possible in about five years. Until then, we should expect suite of plug-in hybrids from VW and other automakers. Plug-in hybrids are capable of combining grid-supplied energy and petroleum—an approach characterized by Neusser as a “bridge technology.”

Plug-in hybrid versions of the Golf and Passat have recently been introduced to European markets, and might come to the United States in the next couple years.

The 2015 VW E-Golf goes on sale in the U.S. (in select states) later this month. “We can look [today] to the E-Golf, which has an operating range of around 115 miles,” said Nuesser.  “I expect the next generation in 2015-17 will increase to around 185 miles, and the following step will be around 300 to 370 miles.”

If EVs can offer 200 to 300 miles on a single charge, while keeping costs in check, then the popularity of battery-powered cars will rapidly increase.

Article by Brad Berman, appearing courtesy ebay Green Driving.



October 16, 2014 0 comment
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Standards Still China’s Waterloo Where Spread of Electric Vehicles is Concerned

Standards Still China’s Waterloo Where Spread of Electric Vehicles is Concerned

written by

Electric vehicle enthusiasts here in the U.S. are all a flutter over the news that China has announced several policies aimed at creating a market for electric vehicles.

They are also excited about the news that a Chinese businessman decided to build his own charging network when he couldn’t drive his Tesla Model S from Guangdong to Beijing because of a lack of charging stations.

The businessman, Mr. Zong, bought 20 220V charging stations from Tesla and installed them at businesses on the roads to Beijing. Now he can drive to Beijing in his new Tesla, it seems. Other Tesla owners can use the chargers too, he says.

Tesla thanks him for his contribution to China’s charging network. “We welcome any efforts from the private or public sector that promotes the widespread adoption of electric vehicles,” a Tesla spokesperson here in the U.S. wrote to me in an email.

This has little significance where widespread adoption of electric vehicles in China is concerned. It may promote more sales of Telsa vehicles in China. That’s about it. The stations can’t be adapted to charge other EVs, though the press has mistakenly reported that Mr. Zong will adapt them so other EVs can use them. Per the Tesla spokesperson: “Mr. Zong did not modify the wall connectors to fit other EV brands. He installed the Tesla ones for Tesla only.”

Even if Mr. Zong had wanted to modify the connectors to fit other EV brands, he couldn’t have. Well, perhaps he could, but they might only fit one other EV brand, in one city. That’s because, despite all the stories that China puts out (and the foreign press eats up) about producing and selling millions of EVs, and about all the charging standards it has issued, and the mandates to make local governments buy EVs and install charging posts, there are still no finalized standards in China for the connector configuration, the communication standard, or DC charging. Without those, China is creating a huge problem by urging widespread adoption of EVs. Instead of a nationwide industry, it is creating many local industries.

Here’s the lowdown on the state of charging standards in China:
First, the AC standard. That’s the slower charging method, and the one that will be used most widely. Chinese voltage is already 220V (versus the common 110V and less common 240V here in the U.S.) so plugging into a wall socket gets you Level 2 charging in China.

China in 2011 released an AC standard, GB/T 20234.2-2011. GB stands for “Guobiao” or “national standard.” T stands for “tuijian,” or “recommended.” How does that really translate? China hasn’t settled on a final standard yet. The Tesla spokesperson put it well. She wrote: “It lacks definition of some important parameters, resulting in the incompatibility of EV products with different brands and charging facilities in different cities. So it is still a voluntary standard, not mandatory.”

The central government is pushing automakers in China to produce EVs. People won’t buy them without a charging network. So localities come up with their own charging station parameters including connectors and communication. Local automakers produce EVs that can use those charging stations but can’t safely charge anywhere else.

And what about that mandates that 30% of local government fleet purchases must be EVs? And that that 30% of their purchases be made from manufacturers outside their area? (Which are not new, by the way. Both were included in the policy issued in September, 2013).   Well, the EVs from outside the area won’t be able to charge on the local stations.

I talked with my old friend David Reeck, who recently retired from his post as Manager of Electrification Strategy for GM China, about the state of standards in China’s EV world. This is a man who spent years trying to rationalize China’s charging standards. Reeck is living in Oregon now, working as a consultant. He was not optimistic. “I would say by the end of the year China will realize it has really messed up,” he said.

He is especially pessimistic about the DC standards, which are the most contentious and thus the most difficult to decide. “From end of this year until about 2016 China won’t have a DC standard formalized,” said Reeck. China has a DC connector plug that it is promoting. But that lacks safety features that the European, U.S., and Japanese standards include. Also, the male and female parts on the Chinese DC connector are reversed, added Reeck.
There is disagreement among the Chinese about this standard, he says. Some figure it is safe for passenger vehicles — though perhaps not for trucks — and should be released. Others think it better to wait for a standard that works for all kinds of vehicles.

This is an argument that has been going on a long time. I attended the global EVS25 electric vehicle conference in Shenzhen in 2010 and executives from the U.S. Society for Automotive Engineers (SAE) told me at that time of their safety concerns regarding the Chinese plug standard. SAE is now working with China’s CATARC on a DC standard. But SAE declined to comment when I asked about the safety issue.

What do all these internecine battles mean for the industry? Let’s go back to Mr. Zong and his Tesla charging network. No, let’s drop Mr. Zong and just consider Tesla’s attempt to build a charging network in China. Remember, this is a company that has charging stations that only work with its vehicles. But the issues Tesla faces are those that the whole industry faces.

Tesla’s 220V charging stations in China have connectors that are based on the EU standard, which shares a communication standard with J1772, the U.S. standard. Those two are therefore compatible even if the connectors aren’t exactly the same.

When China does finalize the AC charging standard, “Tesla Model S in China will be compatible with the new GB AC standard,” said Tesla. That means all the charging stations that are installed up until then probably won’t work with future Tesla vehicles.

Meanwhile, the U.S. and Europe are moving ahead. In October of 2012, they unveiled a combined AC DC plug standard. It was created through collaboration between engineers in the U.S. and in Europe. “This new standard reflects the many hours that top industry experts from around the world worked to achieve the best charging solution – a solution that helps vehicle electrification technology move forward.” Gery Kissel, the combo plug Task Force Chairman, said. That didn’t include Chinese engineers, it seems. Or if it did, China didn’t collaborate. No, it wants to create its own DC standard.

Foreign automakers in China haven’t been sitting idly by while EV charging standards moved forward in the rest of the world. A group of foreign automakers – collectively known as the Charging Interface Initiative Asia – that includes BMW, Volkswagen Group, Daimler, Ford, and General Motors has been encouraging China to adopt a combined plug standard similar to that just adopted by Europe and the U.S..

So far China insists it wants its own standard. But in 2015, the Germans will “aggressively” demonstrate a combined China GB standard plug, says Reeck. Still, he figures China won’t have a DC standard formalized until 2016. And whether or not that will be compatible with international standards remains to be seen.



July 28, 2014 0 comment
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There’s No Reason To Wait for Next-Generation Electric Cars

There’s No Reason To Wait for Next-Generation Electric Cars

written by CleanTechies.com Contributor

The most popular electric cars available today, like the Nissan Leaf, offer a driving range of between 80 and 90 miles per charge. Many consumers view this range as insufficient—even though U.S. motorists, on average, drive less than 40 miles per day.

Some of these drivers are waiting to buy or lease their first plug-in cars, because they believe an imminent breakthrough in battery technology will soon mean greater driving distances and cheaper price tags. However, a look at new all-electric and plug-in hybrid models expected in the next year or two reveals a different story: if you’re thinking about an EV, the future is already here.

The impressive list of carmakers currently offering an EV includes BMW, Chevrolet, Fiat, Ford, Mitsubishi, Smart and Toyota. Plug-in hybrids are available from Cadillac, Chevy, Ford, Honda, Porsche and Toyota. Yes, the list of 15 or so battery-powered cars will grow in the next couple of years—but you should expect those models to have roughly the same electric driving range, and if anything, higher price tags.

That’s because the list of upcoming EVs comes mostly from luxury brands, such as Audi, BMW, Mercedes and Tesla. The two exceptions are the Volkswagen E-Golf and the Kia Soul Electric. Those are welcome additions to the EV market, but the driving range offered by these cars will remain 80 to 90 miles—with prices in line with the existing models.  They commonly sell in the mid-$20,000s after incentives, with leases available for around $200 a month.  Those are great deals for cars that are fast, quiet, cheap to fuel, and loaded with luxury features—while providing all the range you need for nearly all your driving.

The upcoming Mercedes B-Class Electric Drive, and the recently released BMW i3, simply add choices for the EV buyer, rather than transforming the market. They are stylish capable cars offering distinctive brand features—like German handling and style—for around $35,000 after incentives.

Mercedes will also add an ultra-luxurious S-Class plug-in hybrid, while BMW will put out the outrageously sporty i8 that goes 25 miles purely on electricity before using an efficient 1.5-liter engine to extend range. But these vehicles sell above the $100,000 mark. Audi will offer the more affordable A3 e-tron plug-in hybrid, yet it roughly has the same specs for all-electric range.

As usual, Tesla is the exception that proves the rule. The company stands alone with its big-battery electric vehicles capable of more than 200 miles of range. The Tesla Model X SUV is expected in early 2015—although its price tag (starting around $70,000) will be just as hefty as its current offering, the Model S. Tesla is promising a smaller sedan—to compete against the BMW 3-series—although it will realistically not be available until around 2017.

So, if you are interested in dumping the pump—and enjoying all the benefits of a car that runs on cheap domestic electricity, now is the time to give it a try. As today’s EV drivers have discovered, a battery pack with 85 or more miles of range—with the growth of public EV charging infrastructure—can satisfy all your transportation needs, except for super-long-distance road trips. And the best way to encourage development of tomorrow’s longer-range EVs is to join the 200,000 or so U.S. drivers who have already made the switch.

Article by Brad Berman, appearing courtesy ebay Green Driving.



July 23, 2014 3 comments
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GM’s Volt Reaches Half A Billion Miles in California

GM’s Volt Reaches Half A Billion Miles in California

written by EnergyRefuge.com

GM has released the results of a survey about the use of its EV model Volt, which was released in late 2010. It looked at the use of Volt by more than 300 drivers in California. The main find: more than half a billion miles have been covered, mostly gasoline-free, with the Volt.

The survey also includes good news for those who suffer range anxiety in relation to EVs. Many Volt drivers are exceeding the EPA-rated label of 35 miles per full charge and 15 percent of the drivers are actually covering a range longer than 40 miles.

And drivers are going mostly for the fully electric experience as 63 of all the driving they’ve been doing has been in EV mode. They survey also found that Volt owners who are always recharging usually cover 970 miles until they fully recharge again. Visits to a gas station are also quite rare: only once a month. They are saving on average $1,450 per year in fuel costs.

A separate, independent research carried out in the second half of 2013 found that Volt drivers who took part in the Department of Energy’s EV Project managed by Idaho National Labs totaled 1,198,114 vehicle trips. Of the total, 81.4 percent, were completed without the gasoline-powered generator being used.



June 23, 2014 0 comment
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Elon Musk Launches the Tesla-Patent Commons

Elon Musk Launches the Tesla-Patent Commons

written by Eric Lane

About six years ago, a handful of tech companies launched the Eco-Patent Commons.  This initiative to share environmentally friendly patented technologies is administered by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), a Geneva-based organization that promotes sustainability in business.

Last week, of course, Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla Motors, made quite a splash by announcing on the company blog that the EV maker would “donate” its entire patent portfolio.  To be precise, what Musk said was “Tesla will not initiate patent lawsuits against anyone who, in good faith, wants to use our technology.”

Although Musk’s move is very much in the tradition of the Eco-Patent Commons, it is more significant and likely to have a greater impact.  The significance of the brand new Tesla-Patent Commons is best understood by comparing and contrasting it with the Eco-Patent Commons before it.  This comparative analysis reveals both major relative strengths and some flaws.

The greatest distinction between the two is in the nature, quality, and breadth of the available patents.  The Eco-Patent Commons is comprised of tiny random slices of technologies developed by an eclectic mix of donating companies.  An entity that wishes to commercially exploit technology in the Eco-Patent Commons would have to locate a donated patent directed to an important innovation, and any business opportunity would have to logically flow from that patented innovation.

Commercial success in this way seems unlikely for two reasons.  First, aside from patent “troll” activity and similar secondary market business models, businesses do not flow from patents.  It works much better the other way round:  innovate, start a business around the innovation, and then, if possible, patent the innovation.

Second, the patents in the Eco-Patent Commons are those which the donating companies had little interest in exploiting themselves (or licensing to others) so the odds are slim that they are directed to important innovations that will be worthwhile for others.

Tesla’s patent portfolio, on the other hand, is large in scope, holistic in its breadth (i.e., supporting established commercial products) and presumably includes the crown jewels of the company.  Everyone knows the technology areas, product areas, and business ventures Tesla’s patents can support.  One can easily envision a number of well-defined businesses successfully selling electric vehicles, advanced batteries, and charging systems based on the freedom to operate provided by the Tesla-Patent Commons.

Keep in mind, though, that no commons can provide 100% freedom to operate.  True, if you manufacture and sell EVs, batteries, or charging systems employing innovations that are entirely coextensive with the claims of Tesla’s patents you won’t be sued by Musk.  However, these are complex technologies.  What if your EV includes Tesla-patented innovations along side other technical features patented by another less commons-y patentee with enforcement proclivities?

Perhaps the possibilities are not so limited.  Maybe instead of the need to match the features of their products to the donated patent claims, budding Tesla-tech businesses could copy the EV maker’s actual products, e.g., manufacture the Tesla Model S under another name.  After all,  the company has been around for a while and, to my knowledge, hasn’t been sued for patent infringement.  So it seems Tesla has the freedom to operate for its existing product lines.

Then the question becomes whether there are any mechanisms besides its patents that confer upon Tesla this freedom to operate.  For example, does Tesla license any of the technologies in its vehicles from other patentees?  If so, a budding Tesla-tech business might need to ask Musk if he would consider assigning the rights under any relevant license agreements to which Tesla is a party.

So the Tesla-Patent Commons is very significant, and unlike any prior (small “e”) eco-patent commons, but the commercial and legal realities of dealing with patents and positioning technological businesses to be free to operate are always extremely complex.

Ultimately, the impact of Musk’s decision may turn on to what extent other such players will be motivated to invest in manufacturing vehicles, batteries, etc. using Tesla’s patented and patent-pending technology with the obvious upside being the proven innovation that technology brings and the down side being no exclusivity, instead of investing in their own R&D and patent protection where the upside may be exclusivity and the down side may be inferior or unproven technologies.

Only time will tell, and I’m sure this author and many other commentators will be watching this closely.



June 16, 2014 2 comments
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Understanding the Proper Value of Tesla Motors

written by Walter Wang

Here’s a good article, selected from the ton of them I see, on how to analyze the value of Tesla Motors. The author argues, as many others have before, that those who ridicule Tesla’s astronomical market cap are missing the point that Tesla is more than just a “car company.”

For what it’s worth, I agree – for all the reasons laid

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January 21, 2014 0 comment
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Charging Your Electric Vehicle with Solar Energy

written by Walter Wang

Here’s a good article that analyzes the eco-friendliness of electric transportation that makes a point that I try to emphasize in my discussions on the subject: the EV “selection effect.” The vast majority of EV buyers at this point make their decision based on their interest in protecting and preserving the environment, and are extremely likely to charge their cars with solar

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July 29, 2013 1 comment
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eBay Motor Listings Are Full of Used Electric Car Gems

written by Walter Wang

Sometime in the past week, the 100,000th plug-in electric car was sold in the U.S. That means it’s only a matter of time before a vibrant market for electric cars begins to emerge. Already, we can see a few dozen used EVs on eBay Motors—so it’s a great time to evaluate what’s on sale for the electric car shopper.

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May 29, 2013 0 comment
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Measuring Efficiency in a Battery-Powered Electric Car

written by Walter Wang

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency last week issued a fuel economy rating of 119 MPGe to the Chevrolet Spark EV, making it one of the most efficient cars in the United States. The all-electric subcompact goes on sale this summer in California and Oregon. The news begs this question: What is that little “e” doing at the end of MPGe?

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April 29, 2013 0 comment
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EV Parts from eBay and Desire, Yields Stunning Electric Karmann Ghia

written by Walter Wang

David Herron, a software engineer turned automotive journalist, owns just one car: a gorgeous red 1971 soft-top Volkswagen Karmann Ghia—converted to run purely on electricity. But he doesn’t advocate that every EV shopper embark upon a conversion project.

“These days, you can go down to a Nissan

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April 9, 2013 2 comments
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If Fisker Automotive Goes Away, It Won’t Be The First Bad Idea To Do So.

written by Walter Wang

Here’s a conversation I’m having with a friend about the mess at Fisker, i.e., the departure of the company’s founder.

Craig: That’s incredible about Fisker. What do you make of all this?

Friend: It reminds me of John DeLorean in the 1980s and the movie “Tucker” about Preston Tucker in the

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March 20, 2013 1 comment
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Questioning Electric Car Battery Safety

written by Walter Wang

Electric cars may present different hazards than conventional design. Recent crash tests as well as one report of a battery fire suggest that the present car design may have to be improved. Crash tests have been carried out in the well known Euro NCAP testing center on the Volt and the Renault Fluence EV that gives

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December 2, 2011 1 comment
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How Much Will Consumers Pay for EVs?

written by Walter Wang

Recently many EV observers have been disappointed by pricing for two plug-in electric vehicles. First, the Toyota Prius plug-in announced a price of $32,760 (including destination charge), which is about $3,000

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November 14, 2011 0 comment
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