How about an electric scooter that folds into a briefcase? (see photo above and video) Mother Nature Network says the Commute Case, from Green Energy Motors Corporation, will double as a scooter and an actual briefcase. It can travel at 12.5 mph, has a range of 25 miles per charge, and can recharge in less than one hour.
The US state of California is planning driverless car regulations on the expectation these vehicles will be on the road later this decade. The California Department of Motor Vehicles has begun to study the complex question of how to regulate cars that rely on computers — not people — to drive them. The Department has already worked through rules governing how auto companies and others can test the technology, and those regulations could be finalized in the coming weeks. Now the agency is looking at how to integrate driverless cars — sometimes called “autonomous vehicles” — onto public roads. The issues being studied include data privacy and security as well as whether a person will always have to be in the driver’s seat should something go wrong. Google and carmakers argue that if the regulations are too onerous, development of the technology will be stifled.
TheGreenCar wonders what the automobile fuels of the future will be. How about air or ammonia?
International Business Times informs us about Europe’s plans to kickstart the market for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. The European Union is behind an initiative to develop hydrogen fuel cell-powered electric cars and hydrogen refueling stations across five member EU states. The cities taking part are Bolzano, Italy; Copenhagen, Denmark; Innsbruck, Austria; Munich and Stuttgart, Germany and London, England. Also taking part in the project are automakers BMW, Daimler, Honda, Hyundai and Toyota which are providing a total of 100 hydrogen vehicles. The hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicles have the potential to be more than twice as fuel-efficient as traditional vehicles, can cover over 400 miles before needing to be refueled. The cities will be installing refueling facilities in 2015 for these vehicles.
Liquid petroleum gas (also knows as LPG, propane or autogas is a clearer burning fuel than petrol, diesel and Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) according to Click Green. A comprehensive new vehicle emissions study testing more than 9,000 cars and vans in Europe by Dr. Eric Johnson of Atlantic Consulting compared the fuels across similar vehicle type with respect to their regulated pollutants: CO2, CO, HCs, methane, NOx and PM. See also the green fuel, Overlooked LPG is the cleanest fuel to use.
the daily fusion notes hybrid cars are significantly more fuel-efficient in China and India than in the US. This finding comes from two papers, “Understanding the fuel savings potential from deploying hybrid cars in China,” published in Applied Energy and “Understanding fuel savings mechanisms from hybrid vehicles to guide optimal battery sizing for India,” accepted for publication in the International Journal of Powertrains. The studies are believed to be the first of their kind. The authors found that driving a hybrid would achieve fuel savings of about 47% to 48% over a conventional car in India and about 53% to 55% in China. In the US, hybrids are rated to produce a fuel savings of about 40% over their conventional counterparts. Because of the highly congested roads in the Asian countries, the frequent starting and stopping, considerable amount of time spent idling, and low percentage of time spent on highways provide hybrids three ways to save additional fuel. The combination of regenerative braking, being able to turn off the engine when the car is stopped or in low-power condition, and the hybrid system (the electric motor, the batteries) enable the engine to operate at a higher efficiency operating conditions in India and China.
Rio Bus, the public transportation company for the Brazilian city of Rio de Janerio, is testing an all electric bus we learn from Automotive Business Review. Provided by Chinese EV company, BYD, it will be running in Rio for a month on regular routes as part of a multi-city testing of the electric bus under differing traffic, road, climate and geographic conditions. Since 2011 the bus has been running in Los Angeles and New York (US), Bogota (Colubia), London (UK), Copenhagen (Denmark), Oranjestad (Aruba) and São Paulo (Brazil).
The Bristol Post refers us to a tool to enable UK drivers to determine the cost of driving different new cars. Green Car Guide provides a quick and easy way to view fuels costs, mpg and C02 emission data for all new cars.
Torque News tells you ways you can improve your EV’s mileage range while the American Automobile Association discusses the impact extreme temperatures have on EV range.
Wall St. Cheat Sheet answers frequently asked questions about electric cars.