Category Archives: alternative fuels

Smart Head Annette Winkler Abruptly Departs Daimler

Winkler and – struggling Smart – were (are?) part of Daimler’s confusing small car strategy and current rush to electric vehicle production. Smart lost billions of Euros for Daimler. Its only fit appeared to be as a foil against mileage and emissions regulations, allowing the owner of Mercedes Benz to continue to thrive selling gas guzzlers. Continue reading

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Drinking the Electrolyte? Audi Plans to Sell 800K EVs in 2025

This regulation-prompted strategy – searching for an advantage and customers – means every third buyer or leasee would take an e-model by the middle of the next decade – customers who have thus far shunned driving “green vehicles” at this level. During 2017 Audi sold 1.9 million vehicles globally. Do the math and that means a huge shift in the market. In the U.S. during 2017 Audi sold 227,000 vehicles. Continue reading

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Ford Smart Mobility, Zotye Ink MOU on Chinese Ride Hailing

The Zotye-Ford mobility JV will provide ride-hailing fleet operators and drivers with all-electric vehicle leasing services, data-driven fleet management solutions, in-vehicle digital services, connectivity and vehicle customization. Ford Smart Mobility is a Ford Motor Company subsidiary formed to design, build, grow and invest in emerging mobility services. Continue reading

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California Details Latest CO2 Reduction Programs

California Climate Investments will fund about 150 cleaner school buses across the state. These include zero-emission battery electric models and conventional models using renewable diesel. The year-old Rural School Bus Pilot Project, which has received $25 million in cap-and-trade funding, will buy as many as 60 of those new school buses in rural areas, reducing 10,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions. About 40 of those school buses in rural areas will be zero-emission battery electric. Continue reading

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CARB Pushes CO2 Reductions with EV School Buses

The cap-and-trade program is one of the strategies California will employ to reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that cause climate change. It is designed and implemented to for California to meet its goal of reducing GHG emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2020, and ultimately achieving an 80% reduction from 1990 levels by 2050. Continue reading

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Chinese Currents – Buick Enspire All-Electric Concept

The car is remarkable because it debuts during a trade war invoked by the Trump Administration and China, the world’s largest car market. The Chinese have expressed the desire to replace the fleet with electrified vehicles, but no standards or rules have thus far been published. Continue reading

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Ford Proxy – Shareholders Want Political Spending Info

Herein lies the potential hypocrisy problem: In 2012, the U.S. issued light duty vehicle rules strengthening GHG emission reduction standards and improving corporate average fuel economy. These rules – made working with automakers – are being challenged by Ford and other automakers. Continue reading

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3000 Mirai Hydrogen Fuel Cells Sold in California

In the ongoing attempt to describe and promote the unknown, not unlike Plato’s Allegory of the Cave applied to auto companies, Toyota Mirai, a “mass-produced” hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles, surpassed 3000 sales in the California. Continue reading

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Significant Stories, Trends of 2017. And 2018?

However, journalists staring down a blank screen, an opaque prelude to more 2018 deadlines, do not have the option to Tweet and constantly Run away from the responsibilities of the job. Here is AutoInformed on some significant automotive related stories of the 2017 year, with our wry awareness, as always, that columnists conduct their education – sometimes not perfectly informed – in public. Continue reading

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Audi e-tron FE04 to open Formula E Season in December

Favorites? “That’s hard to answer in Formula E – especially before this season, said defending champion and Audi driver Lucas di Grassi. “I have very strong expectations of Renault and Mahindra. At the same time, we should have Virgin, Andretti and Jaguar on our radar as well. Continue reading

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WEC: Toyota Wins in Bahrain

“I would like to express my deepest gratitude to all those who supported TOYOTA GAZOO Racing in the World Endurance Championship this season,” said Akio Toyoda, President, Toyota Motor Corporation. “Going to Le Mans to be together with our team in our fight there this June resulted in a personally and truly frustrating experience. And I am aware that our performance in that race brought frustration to our fans, as well. Other grueling races followed, and, amid it all, we learned of Porsche’s planned withdrawal from the WEC. After last year’s Le Mans, Porsche recognized us as a rival. By battling it out with such rivals as Porsche, I think we were able to heighten our technical prowess, making us faster and stronger. As we went up against Porsche, all our team members, including me, had the same thought in our hearts: we hate to lose.” Continue reading

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Ford, Zotye Ink Chinese JV Agreement on Electric Vehicles

Pending regulatory approval – all but certain in the government directed economy – the new JV will design, build, market and distribute all-electric passenger vehicles for China, the world’s leading electric vehicle market. The establishment of the JV is a combined investment of 5 billion RMB (~ $756 million). Continue reading

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BMW Group Sales of EVs Pass 10,000 in September 2017

It bodes badly for the Detroit Three that China the world’s largest vehicle market and India – soon to surpass North America as the world’s second largest market – have both embraced EVs as the future. Continue reading

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GM Roughs in Choices for Autonomous Fuel Cells

General Motors in an active and thus far unsuccessful “pump up the moribund stock price with press releases” claims today that it will solve some of the transportation challenges created by natural disasters, complex logistics environments and global conflicts. The … Continue reading

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GM Ups Ante Calls Out Other Automakers on EVs?

The 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV has an EPA-estimated range of 238 miles (383 kM) from its 60-kWh battery pack that is made in Korea. What the future holds depends energy prices, and EV prices – roughly $40,000 or more with options for a Tesla Model 3 or Bolt mid-size car. Continue reading

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