Eric Loveday, Author
Articles
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Makers of green cars can rejoice as the President has signed the 2010 energy budget bill into law giving green car development one of the largest boosts in funding seen in decades. The bill...
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President Signs Bill Qualifying Three Wheel Vehicles for Loans Under AVTM Program
The President has cast his vote and approved three wheel vehicles for funding under the Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing program created back in 2007. Voting on the bill took place over the last couple of weeks with both the House and Senate approving the bill. Now with the president's...
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Ford Not Offering Fast Charge Capability on First Generation of EVs
Many potential EV buyers have discussed the necessity of fast charge stations and the automakers are listening. Most upcoming EVs will have fast charge capability, but there are additional hurdles to overcome before fast charging become commonplace. Fast charging requires a lot of juice. Fast...
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Author Compares Vegan Hummer Driver to Meat Eating Prius Driver, Says Hummer Driver is Better for Environment
Last week author Michael Pollan made a statement that upset many. His words, "A vegan in a Hummer has a lighter carbon footprint that a beef eater in a Prius." Obviously his claim drew immediate criticism, but is there any truth to his words? Well, it turns out that Pollan was indeed wrong...
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Honda Working on Hybrid System For Larger Vehicles, Possible Hybrid Minivan by 2011
The Honda Accord Hybrid never really caught on. Sales were low from the get go and Honda really had little choice but to cancel the vehicle. Other Honda hybrids like the dedicated hybrid Insight and even the Civic Hybrid have fared much better, but the unloved Accord Hybrid came and went...
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Tesla Roadster Sets New World Record With 313 Mile Journey
The Global Green Car Challenge took place this week in Australia. Participants in numerous categories faced off for supremacy. One vehicle, the Tesla Roadster, set a new world record in the battery powered production vehicle class. Driver Simon Hackett and co-driver Emilis Prelgauskas set out...
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Finally the cup holder has been overtaken as the most important feature of a new car. It was beat out by fuel economy. Americans have finally confessed and admitted that fuel efficiency is the...
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Better Place Experimenting With EV Car Sharing at Train Stations
Better Place, well known for their somewhat controversial battery swapping technology and their growing partnership with Renault is now toying with yet another new idea. Better Place is partnering with DSB, Denmark's largest commuter train service company to provide an EV car sharing solution for...
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Ford's Director of Global Electrification Discusses Battery Swapping
There are many methods for charging EVs. From using household current, to battery swapping, to fast charge stations, the list is continually growing. However, not everyone is on board with some charging options. Battery swapping has continually been met with interest, yet few believe the idea...
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Ford and the University of Michigan Team Up To Develop Next Generation Hybrid
Last week Ford Motor Company announced that it has been working with the University of Michigan to help with the research and development for the companies next generation of hybrid vehicles. Researchers from both Ford and U of M have been gathering data from thousands of roads trips in current...
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Focus EV Prototype Test Drive
Ford will introduce the Focus EV in 2011 to high expectations. The vehicle will be one of the first EVs to hit the roads from a domestic manufacturer. For Ford, it will be their second EV by the time it comes to market, just behind the Transit Connect EV. Currently in the prototype stage...
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EV Opponent Reinking Believes EVs Are Destroying the Auto Industry
Guido Reinking, editor of Automobilwoche, is well known for his occasional outbursts against electric vehicle technology. Previously, Reinking wrote that EV technology will not become mainstream for at least 15 more years. Now he's back with yet another statement that may or may not sit well...
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Innowattech In Road Energy Harvester Uses Tiny Generators to Capture 2000 Watts Per Hour Eric Loveday
Awhile back we brought you a story about a company called New Energy whose Motion Power system presented an interesting energy harvester installed in roadways. The system is designed to capture...
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Daimler to Launch A-Class BEV in 2010
Daimler recently made the commitment to update and expand its Rastatt factory by 2011. The company will invest over 600 million euros to retool the facility in time for the release of its next generation, sub-compact and compact A and B Class vehicles. This decision has been in the works for...
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Toyota to Participate in SmartGridCity Project
Toyota announced that it will put 10 Prius plug-ins into use in Boulder, Colorado. The vehicles will be part of a research project and will utilize Xcel's SmartGridCity technology. The research will be coordinated by the University of Colorado at Boulder Renewable and Sustainable Energy...
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Aston Cygnet EV a Possibility ?
Word has come out that the Aston Cygnet, essentially a re-badged Toyota iQ city car, is expected to be available as early as next year. Aston selling a re-badged Toyota product is interesting enough, but there's more to the story. Aston Martin believes that many of its current drivers have a need...
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Federal Government Purchases 35 Hybrid Buses and One Electric Car
The U.S. government recently purchased numerous "green" vehicles to do their part to clean up the environment. The most recent purchase includes a slew of hybrid buses, some CNG buses and a sole electric car. This time around the General Service Administration of the U.S. government purchased 35...
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Gen. Wesley Clark Says Nation Must Apply Economic Might To EV Technology
The thoughts of General Wesley Clark of the U.S Military came out as powerful words at the Business of Plugging In conference in Detroit this week. As Clark said, "The nation must muster the same economic might that brought about the explosion in personal computing, the Internet and cellular...
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Honda unveiled the second concept version of its sporty hybrid coupe the CR-Z at the Tokyo Motor Show. The production version will make its world debut at the North American International Auto...
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Use of Aluminum Could Reduce Cost of EVs by $3,000
According to a new study jointly conducted by the Aluminum Association Inc, and Ricardo a technical research and consultant firm for automotive industries, the use of aluminum in plug-ins, hybrids, and full EVs could reduce vehicle costs by $3,000. The study shows that the use of aluminum frame and...
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Test Drive: Volvo C30 BEV
Andrew English of Popular Mechanics magazine is an envious individual right now. Not only did he have the chance to test drive the Volvo V70 PHEV (read about it here) he also had the chance to drive the Volvo prototype C30 BEV. First some background. The C30 BEV has not been given an official...
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Bright Auto. Upgrades IDEA PHEV to 40 Miles of Electric Only Range and 36 MPG
In response to owners of the IDEA PHEV commercial vehicle, Bright Automotive has upgraded the vehicle to deliver 40 miles of electric only range and almost 40 mpg in hybrid mode. As Bright Automotive said CEO John E. Waters said, “After speaking to major fleet operators and measuring how they use...
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Test Drive: Volvo V70 Plug-In Diesel Hybrid Wagon
Volvo may be a newcomer to the hybrid segment, but the company has been actively working on hybrids for nearly 20 years. Back in 1992, Volvo displayed their first hybrid concept car, but the vehicle never saw production. Now Volvo has the intention of producing a plug-in hybrid with some high...
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Renault Awarded $70 Million Euros By Spanish Government to Ready Plant For EV Production
At the recent Frankfurt Motor Show Renault unveiled several electric concept vehicles. One vehicle, the Fluence ZE, is expected to see production numbers possibly exceeding 100,000 units per year. Producing 100,000 EVs costs a significant amount of money, but the Spanish government has stepped...
Eric Loveday