3p Contributor: Steve Puma
Recent Articles
Tata Motors’ Air Car: Which Way Does the Wind Blow?
It seems like every few months, we get wind of another vehicle that is supposed to be powered by compressed air. The Mini Cat Air Car, from India-based Tata Motors, seems almost too good to be true. Tata Motors is India’s largest automobile company. It is the leader in commercial vehicles, and among the top three in passenger vehicles.
Designed by an ex-IndyCar™ engineer, the Mini Cat utilizes compressed air to move its motors’ pistons, claims zero tailpipe emissions, and an extremely low cost to run. Is it the real deal, or a lot of hot air?
Hunter Lovins on Green Vehicles: Sustainability is High Performance
Sustainability Guru Heads Up an Exiting Day of Alt-Vehicle Fun, at Northern California Racetrack
Sustainability leader L. Hunter Lovins is well-known for her love of horses, and her ubiquitous 10-gallon hat. It just so happens that she also has love affair with a completely different kind of horsepower: the kind generated by noisy creatures with wheels.
Yes, it’s true: your favorite cowgirl-slash-environmental-activist-extraordinaire is a motor-head speed-freak! (She’s raced motorcycles, cars, and even snowmobiles.) But, according to Ms. Lovins, she is, in no way an oxymoron, or a hypocrite. Speaking at last Thursday’s Accelerating Sustainable Performance Summit, Lovins said, “Sustainability is about higher performance.” (a common theme of books like Braungart & McDonough’s Cradle to Cradle, and Lovins’ own Natural Capitalism.) She went on to note that higher performance is what motorsports is all about.
Aptera in Need of Wings: Company Refunds All Customer Deposits
Hot on the heels of the meltdown of Green Vehicles, yet another electric vehicle start-up is showing signs that it may not make it to the finish line. Carlsbad, California-based Aptera Motors announced today that it is refunding all customer deposits taken for its unique-looking, 2-seat, 3-wheeled, Aptera 2e electric vehicles. The announcement comes only a few weeks after the company had secured another $2.5 million in funding.
In 2009, Aptera captured headlines and imaginations, as a competitor in the Progressive Automotive X-Prize competition. The company’s model 2e vehicle, with its sleek, aircraft-like design, claimed fuel efficiencies well over the equivalent of 200 miles per gallon, along with an ultra-strong, lightweight, body that would meet Federal safety standards for regular, four-wheeled cars at around $30,000.
Hundreds of EV Drivers Urge Costco to Keep Chargers
Plug In America, a very vocal, electric vehicle (“EV”) advocacy group, has issued an “action alert” to its members, after Costco Corporation announced that it would be removing its EV charging stations in California. “Costco corporate officials have told Plug In America that the company has decided not to participate in the California Energy Commission grant program,” said Plug In America co-founder Marc Geller.
Since Sunday morning (8/14), 735 EV drivers and supporters nationwide responded to the alert, sending emails to James Sinegal, CEO of Costco, urging the company to stop removing EV charger stations in California and instead, upgrade them at no charge to Costco, through a state grant program.
Ford and Sunpower Team Up on Solar Power System for Focus Electric Drivers
As Phil Covington reports above, Ford and SunPower Corp. have teamed up to offer customers a rooftop solar system, called “Drive Green for Life” which aims to provide Ford electric and plug-in hybrid vehicle customers with enough clean, renewable energy to offset the electricity used to charge their vehicle(s). The system should cost approximately $10,000, after Federal, state and local rebates.
“Under the ‘Drive Green for Life’ program, Ford Focus Electric owners can reduce their total cost of ownership by generating enough energy from their high efficiency SunPower rooftop solar system to offset the electricity required to charge the vehicle at night,” said Mike Tinskey , Ford director of Global Vehicle Electrification and Infrastructure. “It’s an eco-friendly solution that perfectly complements our plug-in products and other green initiatives.”
In addition to the Focus Electric, the SunPower rooftop solar system will be compatible with the C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid electric vehicle Ford is rolling out in 2012. SunPower leads the industry, with more than 400 dealers in the U.S., and can support the initial Focus Electric roll out in all 19 markets.
EV Manufacturer Green Vehicles Files for Bankruptcy
According to the Monterey County Weekly and Examiner.com, electric car startup Green Vehicles has closed its doors, only months after announcing a partnership with Leyden Energy, and relocating to Salinas, CA, from their headquarters in San Jose. The failure of Green Vehicles is a major setback for Salinas, which seeks to position itself as a manufacturing hub for the Valley’s emerging cleantech industry. The city stands to loose at least $235,000 in incentives paid to the company, and is seeking to have those monies repaid.
Apparently, Green Vehicles has been having severe cash flow problems for some time. This, in spite of the fact that the California Energy Commission (“CEC”) had awarded the company a $2.1 million grant, and “had ranked the company as the top applicant, among 23 start-up competitors, in 2010.” [Disclosure: SABA Motors, employer of this author, was one of the 23 start-up applicants, who competed for the same grant money that was awarded to Green Vehicles, under the California Energy Commission's Alternative and Renewable Fuel & Vehicle Technology Program (AB 118). SABA Motors was not a grant recipient.]
In April, the Weekly obtained Salinas city emails and was first to report that the company was months in arrears and trying to barter a car for what it owed. Once word of the Weekly article reached Leyden Energy’s executives, that company pulled out of its agreement with Green Vehicles.
Major Solar Installation Unveiled to Thousands of Fans at NASCAR Race
As NASCAR fans excitedly prepared for Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350, with its almost unending stream of activities and entertainment, there was something decidedly different in store for them: a major solar installation and the first funded with private investment at a raceway (Pocono Raceway’s publicly-funded installation was completed in August of last year). Infineon Raceway, in partnership with Panasonic, has been working diligently, for months, to bring forth the racetrack’s vision of becoming a lightning-rod for sustainable practices, in auto racing.
By leveraging the impressive marking reach, demographics, and good will, of American motorsports, this Infineon/Panasonic initiative has the potential to educate and inspire Americans, about the true potential of sustainability, in a big way. it will do this, by turning, upside-down, what most see as an oxymoronic contrast: auto racing and sustainability.
Zipcar Golden IPO’s Dark Lining: a $50 Million Blunder by Underwriters
On April 13th, Zipcar, the well-known, and wildly popular, car-sharing company, was celebrating a key milestone in every start-up’s growth: a very successful initial pubic offering (IPO) of its stock, to the tune of $180 million raised. By the next day, the company’s stock was up to $28 per share, a rise of 60%, over its initial price of $18 per share.
To most, this would seem like a pretty amazing day for everyone involved. However, as Business Insider’s Henry Blodget points out, this was not the case. Although a huge jump in stock price is great for institutional investors, who will earn the difference in price, when their Zipcar stock is re-sold, it means that the company missed over $50 million in potential earnings from their sale of stock!
Blodget accuses Zipcar’s underwriters, Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan, of “wildly underpricing the deal, and selling Zipcar’s stock to institutional clients, way too cheaply,” which is a staggering display of either ineptitude or outright cronyism on behalf of those investment banks.
The Story of Stuff Team Takes on Citizens United v. FEC , Corporate Citizenship
There is not a single U.S. Government policy issue that makes my blood boil more than “corporate citizenship.” In case you are not familiar with the concept, corporate citizenship is a legal doctrine, under which corporations are perceived to have many of the same Constitutional rights as flesh-and-blood American citizens.
The somewhat obscure issue came to the attention of many Americans, last year, when, in a case known as CITIZENS UNITED vs FEC, the Supreme Court ruled that Corporations have the same right to free speech that all U.S. citizens do, and that neither Federal, State, nor local governments can restrict the amount of money that corporations can spend on political advertising.
The crisis of corporate influence over American democracy is the latest subject of award-winning “Story of Stuff” filmmaker, Annie Leonard, who on March 1st released an animated short, The Story of Citizens United v. FEC: Why Democracy Only Works When People Are in Charge. The 8-minute film, which you can view below, or at storyofcitizensunited.org, places corporate influence—not bad politicians—at the heart of Americans’ low confidence in the political process.
Using Biomimicry, DARPA Creates Hummingbird-Like Spy Drone
The Nano Hummingbird — Ain't He Cute?
If I had to pick a favorite U.S. Government agency, TheDefense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), would be it. It has a cool-sounding name and has worked on fascinating projects such as the Internet, developed GPS, held the über-cool DARPA Grand Challenge, and is currently working on interesting tech, like the ominously-named DARPA Silent Talk (which is, believe it or not, soldier telepathy!)
On first glance is DARPA’s latest invention is less threatening than Silent Talk: a tiny spy drone, called the Nano-Hummingbird. In a very direct application of biomimicry principles, the video- and audio-equipped, remotely-controlled drones, look and fly like real hummingbirds, and are therefore extremely hard to detect. The spy devices’ potential military uses are numerous, but could also be used for things like search-and-rescue, and disaster relief.
Of course, the news has barely hit the Internet, and many are already afraid that these “spy devices” will be the end of privacy as we know it. While the widespread use of these devices potentially has huge implications for society, I believe that, ultimately, the net effect will be positive. Read on, to find out why.
Navistar’s eStar Electric Truck is an Ideal Urban Delivery Vehicle
Commercial EV news has taken a back seat of late, with all of the hype surrounding the Chevy Volt, the Nissan Leaf, and other recent additions to the consumer market. However, it is almost certain that most of the growth in the adoption of electric vehicles will come from fleet buyers, especially those with large numbers of delivery vehicles. There is good reason for this: EVs help fleet managers control their costs, while, at the same time, providing numerous additional benefits, such as zero pollution, lower noise, and less downtime due to maintenance. This is why a large number of companies are attempting to capture a piece of this lucrative market.
One of these is Navistar International Corporation, whose affiliates produce, among other things, International® brand trucks. Navistar recently signed a joint venture with Modec Limited of the UK to create the Navistar-Modec EV Alliance. The joint venture will produce Class 2c-3 all-electric commercial trucks for sale in North, Central and South America.
The first product of this joint venture is the eStar all-electric commercial truck, which, according to Navistar, is a “purpose-built” vehicle, designed from the ground up to operate on electric power. The eStar can achieve a range of 100 miles on a full charge, while carrying up to a 4,000 pound payload, and has a number of other interesting features (read on to learn more).
Plug In America Releases Final Three PSAs (Video)
Still shot from Plug-In America's PSA, "Military"
Plug-In America, the nation’s leading electric vehicle advocacy group, has released three more PSAs, the last of a recent awareness campaign that humorously highlights the benefits of EVs, while taking some light-hearted jabs at gasoline-powered cars. The release of the videos was timed to coincide with President Obama’s State of the Union address.
“President Obama and Congress have taken significant steps to incentivize plug-in vehicles,” said Plug In America Legislative Director Jay Friedland. “We urge even bolder actions to sustain this vital new technology, which will help our economy in these challenging times.”
The three new spots each spotlight a benefit of plug-in vehicle transportation. “Military” looks at the high cost of protecting America’s petroleum assets; “Therapist” analyzes range anxiety; and “Tow Truck” extols the superior safety of plug-in vehicles.
Continue on to see the new videos. I think they are pretty funny!
Chevy Volt Released: Efficiency & the Big Question
There is no question that General Motors has a lot riding on the 2011 Chevrolet Volt: it is the first new vehicle model to be delivered (on GM’s 100th anniversary), since the company filed for Chapter 11 reorganization in 2009, with significant help from U.S. taxpayers. Not only is the Volt a huge opportunity for “New GM” to prove that American automakers are still relevant, it is also an opportunity for the company to make good on its promises to deliver competitive alternative-fuel vehicles. In the latter department, GM will have its work cut out for it: Toyota’s Prius is way out in front, Nissan’s Leaf appears to be an excellent product, Ford has announced an all-electric Focus, and numerous others will soon to be available.
So, it was no surprise that the San Francisco stop on the Volt’s cross-country press blitz was held at the amazing Cavallo Point Lodge and included a 100-mile test drive through some of the most gorgeous scenery that the Bay Area has to offer (nothing like a spectacular view of the Golden Gate bridge, or lunch at Nick’s Cove, to generate some good will). Fortunately for General Motors, the Volt makes an excellent impression all by itself. I don’t think that anyone was more surprised that yours truly. Although there are some lingering questions, the Volt is a solid car and should prove to be a worthy addition to the growing list of EV offerings.
Battery Swapping Won’t Work for Ford, But it Doesn’t Matter…
According to this FastCompany article, Ford Motors is not too keen on the notion of designing its future electric vehicles to be compatible with battery-swap infrastructure, such as that developed by Better Place. Sue Cischke, Ford’s vice president for Sustainability, Environment and Safety Engineering, was quoted as saying, “For Ford, it doesn’t seem to be a solution that makes sense.” The main bone of contention with battery swap is that, in order to work, it requires automakers to settle on battery standards that are compatible with the swapping machinery.
BetterPlace, whose robotic battery switch stations “can swap out depleted EV batteries for fresh ones in two minutes,” maintains that this is will not be the case. Company spokesperson Julie Mullins claims that “From day one, accommodation of multiple battery types has been a core engineering requirement for our battery switch stations. We have made significant R&D investments to develop a toolkit/adapter in our battery switch stations that can anticipate and supply different battery types for different vehicles with different battery-to-vehicle connection mechanisms.”
After the break, I’ll explain that, even if BetterPlace were correct about the battery type disagreement, there are still several other reasons why swap stations will likely achieve only limited market penetration, and may ultimately be a very short chapter in the unfolding EV saga.
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