When whispers started getting louder about Cadillac’s plan of building a production version of the Converj Concept, a lot of people began to wonder whether this was another one of those merry-go-round statements that would be taken back pretty quickly. After all, rumors about a production version of the Converj have been going on for about two years now and on more than one occasion, General Motors has pulled the plug on the project.
But now it looks like the green light is finally on. The Cadillac Converj Concept is headed to production as the Cadillac ELR.
According to GM, the development of the ELR is currently underway and they are in the middle of testing and developing all the pertinent details of the car. Chief among this is the powertrain, which is expected to carry an electric propulsion system with a T-shaped lithium ion battery, an electric drive unit, and a four-cylinder engine-generator.
The whole set-up is pretty similar to the Chevrolet Volt where the ELR is looking into using electricity as the primary energy source with the assistance of a gas engine generator as back-up in case the batteries are all used up.
The decision to finally grant production status on the ELR was a long time in the making for GM, but in the end, the company felt like it was now time for the car to be built. “The concept generated instant enthusiasm,” said Don Butler, VP of marketing for Cadillac.
“Like other milestone Cadillac models of the past, the ELR will offer something not otherwise present – the combination of electric propulsion with striking design and the fun of luxury coupe driving.”
As if we haven’t been inundated with all these companies releasing EV sports cars recently, Morgan - yep, the very same brand that brought back the Three Wheeler - is laying the groundwork for its own electric sports car concept.
Together with British companies Zytek and Radshape, Morgan is in the development stages of building a prototype model that’s based on the Supersports chassis. If everything goes according to plan, two electric concepts being built under the Morgan +E program will be featured next year carrying a new high power-density electric powertrain courtesy of Zytek. This powertrain is being prepared as a new derivative of the company’s 70kW, 300 Nm electric powertrain that is already being used on some cars in the US.
For their part, Morgan is looking into exploring different avenues to further enhance their brand ever since its recent revival from obscurity. “This is an exciting investigation into the potential for a zero-emissions Morgan with near supercar performance,” says Morgan’s Operations Director, Steve Morris.
“By working closely with Zytek and Radshape, who already have considerable expertise in this field, we aim to make this a realistic concept that could lead to further developments if demand and other factors prove favorable.”
While this smells like an attempt by Morgan to keep abreast of the times by introducing an electric sports car concept, we’d be very surprised if this whole project makes it past the prototype phase. Not that we don’t want to see one on the road; it’s just that it speaks more about it being a feasibility study than it is about actually producing the car.
You have to excuse us for doing a little double-take on Audi’s new Frankfurt-bound Urban Spyder Concept. We actually thought that this was the same concept as the Urban E-Tron Concept that we introduced a few days ago. As it turns out, they’re two completely different models. Who knew, right?
The overall look of the car is completely similar to that of the Urban E-Tron Concept, including stand-out features like the free-standing 21” wheels and the surrounding plates that incorporate those strips of LED lights. However, where the E-Tron has a sliding roof and doors, the Spyder Concept doesn’t have a roof at all and instead features a low, continuous window area with its doors opening upwards diagonally.
As for the interior, well, we don’t see anything different either. Both models carry a 1+1 seating configuration with each of the seats being made from carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) to provide supreme sturdiness in a lightweight set-up.
Finally, the Urban Spyder Concept also runs on two E-Tron electric motors that provides the power for the car and combined with a lithium-ion battery pack that supplies the energy.
That’s about as much as we’ve been told for now. But rest assured, we’ll share more details as soon as they become available.
The ever continuing dialogue regarding the future of electric cars has drawn a fine line between the believers and the skeptics. But we’ve learned this year not to sleep on EVs just yet, especially when you have cars like this 1981 Camaro and the Volkswagen Beetle Black Current proving that EVs are the real deal.
The latter has already shown that it can blast off a quarter-mile time of 9.51 seconds, an astounding number for a car, let alone an EV. And recently, this 1981 Chevrolet Camaro by Team Haiyin EV Racing called the "Warp Factor II", managed to pull off a similar feat, clocking in a quarter-mile time of 10.08 seconds at the Lebanon Valley Dragway while hitting a top speed of 127 mph.
It’s not as quick as what the Black Current was able to accomplish, but it was impressive nevertheless, which lends to the belief - hollow as it may be for some - that high-powered EV cars like this one have a place in the future of the industry.
Find out more about the 1981 Chevrolet Camaro ’Warp Factor’ after the jump
While we can feel bad about Bluebird Electric’s failed attempt at setting the land speed record for an electric car, we can at least give due props to another team that set an electric car record of their own this past weekend.
We’re not all too familiar with the "Schluckspecht" EV car, but we’re definitely sure about how EV range has been one of the biggest challenges facing electric cars these days. But if you’re one that can feel at ease about the possibility of having an EV that can travel over 1,000 miles on a single charge, the Schluckspecht EV just might prove that it’s an attainable goal after all.
The whole collaboration came as a result of partnership between Pforzheim University, the University of Offenburg, and the Fraunhofer Institut EMI, the Schluckspecht - apparently, it translates to "heavy drinker" - shattered the previous EV range record, traveling a distance of 1,103 miles (1,631.5 km), which is almost twice as far as what the previous record - 623 miles - was able to accomplish.
The Schluckspecht is powered by 14 lithium-cobalt battery packs and was driven by four drivers in a 36-hour span. The vehicle comes with a lightweight chassis that uses two in-wheel hub motors. It took over 14 years of development before the vehicle finally had its turn in the spotlight. But if you ask anybody associated with the project they’ll tell you that all those years spent building the car was all worth it in the end.
You’ve probably heard about this burgeoning market segment in the auto industry called electric cars. Clearly, a lot of people have strong opinions about the future of these types of cars, including Porsche who has just appointed Audi engineering executive, Joerg Kerner, to head up powertrain development. Kerner has been working on electric powertrains for Audi since 2009, so it would be safe to assume he’ll be doing the same for Porsche. Porsche rival, Ferrari, isn’t so pro-electric. In fact, Ferrari president, Luca di Montezemolo, has a pretty straight-forward opinion on the matter.
He doesn’t believe in them.
Strong words for a man whose company brought out the Ferrari Vettura Laboratorio HY-KERS and is working hard on building a hybrid Ferrari. But apparently for Mr. Luca, there’s still a fine line drawn between hybrid and electric...and he’s not willing to cross that line. Granted, the man is very smart in choosing his words, so his opinions on the matter certainly carry some weight on it, but isn’t it still a little presumptuous to suggest that Ferrari has no future in the electric car segment?
Engadget was able to chat with Montezemolo and he was pretty clear on where he stood on the matter. "You will never see a Ferrari electric because I don’t believe in electric cars," he said. "I don’t think they represent an important step forward for pollution or CO2 or the environment. But, we are working very, very hard on the hybrid Ferrari. This should be the future, and I hope in a couple of years you can see it."
Like we said, Luca di Montezemolo is a very smart man and while we understand where he’s coming from, we certainly wouldn’t unequivocally shoot down the possibility of seeing an electric Ferrari in the future, especially considering how unpredictable the world is right now.
For the past few months, Don Wales and the Bluebird Electric Team have been preparing to break the existing land speed record for an electric car. Ultimately, fate would play other games on the team as the attempt came to a premature end.
With the team primed and ready for the record attempt at the Pendine Sands in Carmarthenshire, Wales, on August 13th and 14th, 2011, Don’s son, Joseph, got the opportunity to enter the record books, continuing a family legacy that went all the way back to the patriarch, Malcolm Campbell. Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be as limited visibility within the cockpit of the Bluebird and an alarming slide towards the sea at speeds in excess of 100 mph caused the Bluebird to bounce severely on the uneven surface and hit a soft pothole of sand. The impact caused by the accident severely damaged the vehicle’s bodyshell, steering components, and the bottom wishbone.
“When you can’t see the ground in front of you for 60 meters or 70 meters you’re in trouble before you’ve seen it,” Don Wales said just after the accident.
The only good thing that came out of this doomed attempt was that Joe Wales was able to control the car enough that the damage it incurred was as minimal as it could have been given the circumstances surrounding the entire debacle. Nevertheless, the team is understandably dismayed about the failed record attempt, but they know more than anybody else the extenuating circumstances that can torpedo their record-setting quests. As for the future, the Bluebird Team is optimistic that another attempt is in the oven, although the time frame has yet to be determined.
“We’ll take the car back to Pembroke Docks and see what need to be fixed and see where we go from here," said Wales.
BMW has made good on their plans for developing an urban vehicle for the metropolitan areas. They’ve unveiled the first sketches and official details on the future Megacity Vehicle due to come to the market in 2013. According to BMW, it will be the world’s first volume-produced vehicle with a passenger cell made from carbon. The Megacity Vehicle will be built on a new LifeDrive architecture that will help reduce the car’s weight by 250 to 300 kilos.
The LifeDrive concept consists of two horizontally separated, independent modules. The Drive module integrates the battery, drive system, and structural and crash functions into a single construction within the chassis. Working in conjunction with the Drive module is the Life module which consists primarily of a high-strength and extremely lightweight passenger cell made from CFRP. These aspects of car building will lead the way to a whole new process for building cars. A process that will be simpler, more flexible, and use less energy.
"The drive system remains the heartbeat of a car, and that also applies to electric vehicles. Powertrains also remain a core area of expertise of Bayerische Motoren Werke. Electromobility and the hallmark BMW driving pleasure make an excellent match, if you go about things the right way. For this reason we are developing the powertrain for the Megacity Vehicle in-house – that includes the electric motor, the power electronics and the battery system."
In an interview with Automotive News, BMW revealed plans on selling 30,000 units of the i3, which they say is "comparable to one of the lower-volume Mini derivatives." BMW also revealed that when it does go on sale in 2013, the i3 will be priced at about 40,000 euro in Europe, or about $55,000 at the current exchange rates.
UPDATE 05/16/2011: New details on the BMW i3 have been revealed thanks to CarAndDriver. According to them, the i3 will be priced at about $35,000 and will be powered by an 150 HP electric engine. It will be capable of hitting a top speed of 100 mph, while delivering an average autonomy of 160 miles.
UPDATE 08/15/2011: The BMW i3 was recently spotted on Wacker Drive in Chicago, presumably while filming a commercial. Hit the jump to see the i3 live and in color!
UPDATE 11/21/2011: After a very long time the upcoming BMW i3 has been caught on the back of a truck in the south of Germany. This latest prototypes gets the headlights in the correct position, while the roof line and that the window in the C-pillar are similar to the i3 Concept. The doors will be opened the same way as on the Mini Clubman - meaning the i3 will also get suicide doors. The car will use a powerful 170 HP electric engine that will sprint the car from 0 to 60 mph in under 8 seconds and up to a top speed of 93 mph.
UPDATE 02/01/2012: The upcoming BMW i3 has been caught testing again, during winter conditions in Nothern Sweden.
Tesla Motors’ portfolio of vehicles is slowly growing, which is welcome news for a company that only a few years ago, was struggling to make a profit. In a recent meeting to discuss the company’s quarterly earnings, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that the company is preparing to unveil its very first sport utility electric vehicle by the end of this year.
The SUV, which is being touted as the ’Model X’, will share the same powertrain and technology as the other electric cars the company has in its line-up, saving precious time and resources in the development of the SUV along the way.
“The plan is to have an unveiling of the Model X prototype in the mid-December time frame,” Musk said. “So far it’s looking good, I don’t think anything will cause an issue.”
Another factor that expedited the development of the Model X came from the $210 million Tesla was able to raise a few months ago, enough funding to keep the project moving along.
As for the Model X, the vehicle is set to become Tesla’s third electric model following in the reins of the Roadster and the Model S. Full details surrounding the Model X have yet to be revealed, but that hasn’t stopped Tesla from looking at building 15,000 Model X units every year as soon as production begins in 2013.
*Photo features the Tesla Roadster and the Tesla Model S
Ford had big plans for the roll out of its 2013 Ford Focus Electric, which had been set to launch in 19 markets by the end of 2011. Instead, Ford will introduce the car in just the New York and California markets by the end of the year. The automaker didn’t elaborate, but limiting the release is a better way to monitor customer satisfaction and product issues than undergoing a simultaneous launch in 19 cities. Perhaps Ford is also testing the waters for EV demand, since sales of both the Chevrolet Volt and the Nissan Leaf have thus far failed to live up to the pre-launch hype.
The remainder of the original Focus Electric launch markets, located from coast to coast, have been told to expect the car to launch next spring. We suppose that depends upon the success of the Focus Electric launches in California and New York, as well as the overall consumer interest in the car. Like the Nissan Leaf, the Ford Focus Electric is a battery powered EV with no range extending generator (like the Chevy Volt or the Fisker Karma). It features a 23 kwh, temperature-stabilized lithium-ion battery pack that should provide a range of up to 100 miles, making it range-competitive with the Leaf. Ford has yet to release pricing, but we expect the Focus Electric to be priced on par with the Leaf.
