From ChinaCarTimes.com:
The S11 was first unveiled at the Shanghai Auto show earlier this year to an impressed crowd. The car was designed by Shanghai based TJ Innova, the S11 looks fantastic, with Audi and Ferrari design tones slipped into its sleak body, under the platform there is an AWD drivechain pushing power to each corner of the car. From what we hear the S11’s design is completed, and is now at the test stage and will soon be hurtling down the production line in Changchun city, although its not quite clear whose production line they will be using.
GM makes its case with the Volt. Check out WatchMojo’s look a the Volt, and then read more about the new electric car from gm-volt.com:
Close observation of recent developments in the automotive sector leads to a certain conclusion; financial collapse is necessary to bring about needed change.
We are bearing witness to a catastrophic rupture of the car industry as we know it. Not only in terms of the economic machinery upon which it is run, but more so upon the fuel its creations will use. The near death of the auto industry is bringing with it the slow death of the combustion engine.
When GM first introduced the Chevrolet Volt electric car concept, car sales were brisk, oil prices reasonable and the economy appeared healthy. Now that the car is nearing mass production and that most other automakers have subsequently unveiled electric car programs of their own, the economy, the industry, and the company is steeped in disaster.
I do not propose it is the case that the birth of the electric car caused this chaos, but rather it is this chaos that will allow the electric car industry to rise.
Whenever in the history of humankind and industrial progress a new transformational technology has arisen, its ascent has brought with it the demise of that which was before it.
Simple examples are how the typewriter was eradicated by the PC, the Polaroid by the digital camera, or how the horse and cart were replaced by the car. These destructive transformational events take place on many levels, such as the collapse of societies or ecosystems, the extinction of dinosaurs, or even as the big bang gave rise to the universe.
Fundamental market forces of their own right would not have led to a rapid production and adoption of electric cars. Rather, the status quo would have persisted, car companies would have continued to make profitable gas guzzling trucks and people would have kept buy them on credit. Indeed when GM introduced the Volt is was more public relations than an engineering. They didn’t decide to bring it to production until they saw the intense public response. Now it is their last hope.
The collapse of the economy combined with the current administration’s interest in energy independence, alternative energy and electric vehicles will make the rapid rise of the electric car possible.
People have not been buying new cars out of fear of their future economic status, lack of available credit, and a general dearth of financial confidence. They are driving their old cars and are doing so for as long as they can.
The government has chosen to support and recreate the auto industry as one that will grow the already inadvertently kindled electric car enterprise.
And then when the bottom has finally come and gone, and the lean restructured auto companies are mass producing electric cars including the Chevy Volt, the tide will change.
Confidence having begun to rise, and old cars having begun to fail, the people will come. And then our dream will arrive. A country and a world less dependent on oil. The rise of the electric car.
CBS is way behind WatchMojo.com… but they do have some more info on this make or break car for Chevrolet:
To say General Motors has a lot riding on the Volt is both a bad pun and a big understatement.
GM says this electric car is designed to lead the company into the second century - if it is to have a second century.
But when GM invited reporters to experience the Volt, what they actually drove was the Volt technology stuck into a conventional car called the Chevy Cruze, reports CBS News correspondent Dean Reynolds. The real Volt is not yet ready.
The rush to showcase the technology was clearly designed to generate publicity for the car and public support for the federal money GM needs to stay afloat.
“What makes the technology so significant is actually what is under the skin,” said Frank Weber, with GM.
What is under the skin is a 6-foot-long battery that you can recharge every night by plugging it into your garage socket.
Battery power takes the Volt 40 miles. Since most Americans drive less than 40 miles a day, GM says the Volt will use zero gasoline and produce zero emissions. When the charge wears off, an on-board gas tank can power the car and extend the trip 400 miles, addressing what’s know in the trade as “range anxiety.”
“The current Prius doesn’t deliver that,” said Brian Johnson, an industry analyst with Barclay’s Capital. “The current Honda doesn’t deliver that, so they are trying to leapfrog the competition in that respect.”
“This is a livable vehicle,” said Tony Posawatz, a vehicle line director with GM. “It’s not a golf cart or whatever. This is something that people could buy in quantity … particularly if we can get the cost down.”
Perhaps way down - because the sticker price will be about $40,000 - for what GM calls a spunky car that can go from zero to 60 in less than nine seconds.
The Volt is due in dealer showrooms by the end of next year, which is itself a show of optimism about GM’s future. But there’s a problem: sales of existing hybrids have been plummeting for months because the price of gasoline has dropped. If that consumer attitude holds, it could mean that GM will be bringing out the right car at the wrong time.
US carmaker General Motors is joining with scooter maker Segway to make a new type of two-seat electric vehicle.
The prototype, which will be debuted in New York, is aimed at urban driving. GM aims to start making them by 2012.
The vehicle, named Puma, has a top speed of 35mph and can go as far as 35 miles on a single charge. It will use lithium-ion batteries.
GM, having been bailed out by the US government, is looking to smaller vehicles to secure its future.
Puma stands for personal urban mobility and accessibility.
At the beginning of the year, Tesla Motors had announced that by spring the company would be producing 30 of their all-electric luxury Roadsters weekly. Well, it’s spring, and the company is now saying it’s likely they’ll only reach that benchmark in the summertime: right now they’re making 20 per week. The company is not expected to show a profit this year. Read more…
Rinspeed will be debuting the company’s all-electric car - the iChange - at the Geneva Auto Show next month. Rinspeed, while known for designing extravagant concept cars, says the iChange is not another of these, but shows the dramatic shift in the auto industry. Read more…
Honda is currently the only car-maker to offer vehicles that run on compressed natural gas (however these cars are only available in California and New York). This Civic GX is selling out consistently, and so Toyota has decided to get in on the game. In November at the LA auto show, they will be unveiling their CNG-electric hybrid Camry - although the company has not yet decided whether they should put the car into production. Read more…
As Reuters has reported, it will be years before electric cars are made affordable to the average American. However, if you’d like to look at what’s available to you today, check out this list of electric cars:
1. Zap
Model: Xebra
Price: $11,700
Top Speed / Range: 40 mph / 25 miles
2. Commuter Cars
Model: Tango
Price: $108,000
Top Speed / Range: 150 mph / 200 miles (with Lithium Ion batteries)
3. Dynasty Electric Car Corp.
Model: IT SEDAN
Price: $19,000
Top Speed / Range: 24 mph / 30 miles
4. GEM
Model: e2
Price: $6,795
Top Speed / Range: 25 mph / 35 miles
5. TWIKE
Model: TWIKE
Price: $35,000
Top Speed / Range: 53 mph / 100 miles
6. REVA
Model: Standard
Price: $16,000
Top Speed / Range: 45 mph / 70 miles
7. Myers
Model: NmG
Price: $35,000
Top Speed / Range: 75 mph / 30 miles
8. ZENN
Model: ZENN NEV
Price: $12,000
Top Speed / Range: 25 mph / 35 miles
9. Venturi
Model: Fetish
Price: $435,000
Top Speed / Range: 100 mph / 155 miles
10. Tesla
Model: Roadster
Price: $108,000
Top Speed / Range: 125 mph / 225 miles
The electric Cube was pretty nimble on the test track, but the new hybrid raises as many questions as it answers
I just got back from driving Nissan’s much hyped new electric car and hybrid. The press event, held in searing heat at an advanced technology showcase 90 minutes outside Tokyo, was the first chance that reporters have had to check out the Japanese automaker’s new environmental techs.
Most seemed pretty impressed at the electric vehicle, although it’s hard to draw too many conclusions. The version we drove was an electric version of a Nissan Cube, a popular model in Japan. However, the company says its EV, which is scheduled for a 2010 launch in Japan and the U.S., will use the same electric system but look completely different from any of today’s Nissans. Read more…
According to Ian Rowley
LONDON–(Marketwire - November 20, 2007) - A new four-dour electric car design from ZAP called the Xebra has passed Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) inspection, allowing it to be driven on roads in the United Kingdom.
VOSA provides a range of licensing, testing and services enforcing the roadworthiness standards of vehicles in the UK. VOSA approval means the vehicle complies with full road traffic standards set for UK cars.
“With its congestion toll zone, London has become the world’s great proving ground for the electric car,” said ZAP CEO Steve Schneider. “Here is a unique electric vehicle that will help drivers save significantly on fuel costs as well as free passes for the daily congestion tolls and parking. We believe the Xebra is the first four-door electric vehicle to pass the VOSA test.”
Schneider noted the Xebra is also available in a truck configuration. ZAP designed the Xebra to quickly and affordably fill the demand for cars that don’t use conventional fossil fuels. ZAP calls the Xebra a “city-car,” a unique vehicle for city-speed driving up to 40 MPH (64.4 KPH). The sedan and pickup truck versions can recharge at any normal household outlet.
ZAP recently appointed UK-national and former Lotus Engineering CEO Albert Lam to its Board of Directors. Mr. Lam is the Chairman for ZAP’s new joint venture to manufacture next-generation electric and hybrid vehicles with Youngman Automotive Group, one of China’s leading bus manufacturers.
Based in Santa Rosa, California, ZAP is now expanding distribution for the Xebra and other electric vehicles worldwide. The Xebra is targeted towards government, corporate and utility fleet use as well as daily urban commuting for multi-car families and is now available at a price of just over US$10,000.
About ZAP
ZAP has been a leader in advanced transportation technologies since 1994, delivering over 100,000 vehicles to consumers in more than 75 countries. At the forefront of fuel-efficient transportation with new technologies including energy efficient gas systems, hydrogen, electric, fuel cell, ethanol, hybrid and other innovative power systems, ZAP has a joint venture to manufacture electric and hybrid vehicles with Youngman Automotive Group, one of China’s leading manufacturers of buses and trucks. ZAP is developing a high-performance crossover SUV electric car concept called ZAP-X engineered by Lotus Engineering. ZAP is also developing a new generation of vehicles using advanced nanotech batteries with Advanced Battery Technologies. The Company recently announced a strategic partnership with Dubai-based Al Yousuf Group to expand its international vehicle distribution. ZAP also makes an innovative, new portable energy technology that manages power for mobile electronics from cell phones to laptops. For product, dealer and investor information, visit http://www.zapworld.com.
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