Featured Threads Archive

Currently, very few EVs qualify for some federal tax credit, let alone the full $7,500 tax credit. It will be a while before domestic mining of lithium and production of lithium cells begins for more EVs to qualify for the tax credit under the inflation-reduction act.

We’re down to just a handful of EVs that qualify for the full $7,500 tax credit in the US—The Verge

Source: TI Press Release

https://www.motortrend.com/awards/best-car-of-the-year/

Beat out the Model 3 and a Porsche among others.

In other news, Motor Trend going to 4 printed issues a year. Publishing is a challenge, (I do my part, 1 Daily, 1 weekly, two monthly not counting MT)

The biggest, but mostly unaddressed, issue with all these pure EVs is that you can't just roll up and pay cash. You need to have an account with someone and you need to remotely log in before you can charge. Everywhere you have ever been becomes part of your permanent record. The potential for misuse of this system is tremendous.

Source: GM Issues Stop-Sale for Chevy Blazer EV Due to Software Glitches | Edmunds

With coal-powered EVs being shoved down everyones throat despite the lack of back-end production for raw material existing and an administration that sh*ts on the very producers of those raw materials, as well as an overall lack of charging infrastructure...

Just give me a plug-in hybrid. That's affordable.

I don't need a backup camera. I don't need a giant screen. The Japanese domestic market can somehow produce barebone vehicles like this for the current model year in Japan but Americans apparently need bells and whistles?

I don't want it to look stupid; something that took about five generations of Prius for Toyota to ALMOST figure out (the taillights are atrocious on the new Prius, Toyota needs to fix that and drop the "Prius" brand due to its connotation with overall lameness). EVs and plug in hybrid designers and their out of touch handlers just CANT HELP THEMSELVES and add weird and goofy little plastic trim pieces, strange dimensions (Wth is the Chevy Bolt?) and overall...

GM buys out around half of its Buick dealers | Automotive Dive

"General Motors has bought out around half of Buick dealers that declined to invest at least $300,000 to sell and service its future electric vehicles, a company spokesperson confirmed in an email."

Cummins, maker of the 6.7L ISB Turbo inline-six that goes into Dodge RAM 2500 and 3500 heavy-duty pickup trucks, was fined US $1.675 billion (~€1.519 , CAD $2.225 billion with a b) as part of a settlement by the US DOJ. Affects model years 2013 through 2023 although the defeat devices only affected up through 2019. After that they were fitted with, and this is my favorite, "undisclosed auxiliary emission control devices". This affects about 960,000 diesel engines.

Wonder how that money will be used? Wonder how the states will react? Last time New York State gave out up to $2,000 rebates for purchasing PHEVs and EVs from the VW Dieselgate settlement. I believe that rebate still exists.

Forgot the link:
Cummins Fined $1.6B for Diesel Defeat Devices in 630K Ram Trucks

https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/news/more-us-auto-buyers-are-turning-to-hybrids-as-sales-of-electric-vehicles-slow/ar-AA1lQi8i

Lying is the standard operating procedure in Silicon Valley to have the stock price rise, but this one has sadly cost lives.

But of course all of it rests on the backs of humans behind steering wheels, what Madeline Clare Elish calls “Moral Crumple Zones.” Tesla keeps these paying liability sponges behind the wheel largely through the strength of a statistical lie: that Autopilot is safer than human drivers. Tesla has been officially making this claim in its “Quarterly Safety Reports” since 2018 (though Musk has been making it for longer still), despite the fact that its sweeping statistical comparison doesn’t take into account any of the best-known factors affecting road safety. When road safety researcher Noah Goodall adjusted the best publicly available data for factors like road type and driver age in a peer-reviewed paper, Tesla’s claim of a 43% reduction in crashes turned into an 11% increase in crashes....

ZEEKR unveils LFP batteries that can recharge 500km in 15 mins

Normally it's laughable when hearing of new battery Tech, because in actuality it's still being developed in a university & such. The stories turn out to be in reality - how far out production really is. The specs on this traction pack seem to defy physics. Faster charging when cold soaked? Still usable after being water submerged? &/or exposed to 1,000° C temperatures?
How often did PT Barnum say suckers are born? Electric Viking shows video demonstration of Geely traction pack...

Letter to FTC on Toyota's Misleading Advertising - Public Citizen

While some of the complaint is without merit, Toyota's "Self charging electric car" is total BS. Self charging, sure, if you supply it with gas to run the engine...

They also go after Toyota for whole hEV thing. Which sounds entirely too much like EV for the average consumer to know the difference.

Time to buy a Tesla: now or never. The tax credit is completely going away at the end of 2023.

Tesla to lose $7,500 consumer tax credits for some Model 3 vehicles

Vancouver EV written off, owner questions sustainability | CityNews Vancouver

Edit: More coverage and information

The last time voltages were changed over was over ½ a century ago - when the Automotive industry went to 12 volt over 6 volt. The rationale to switch over to 48v is extensive - but of course that would mean a lot of the peripheral electronics that use it would have to be upgraded & thus the switch over has been met with resistance (no pun intended).
Cybertruck incorporates 48v instead of 12v. Tesla just released all their documentation to the competition which will bring its changeover more affordably if when the competition also incorporate it.

'Great For The Industry': Ford, Others Get Tesla Cybertruck 48V System Specs

Hopefully domestic Manufacturing won't drag their feet & let the Asian countries Master this long before the USA
.

Here's Why The Tesla Cybertruck Might Never Make It To Europe (Updated) (insideevs.com)

"First of all, the market for pickups in America is huge, and that is different with you," Moravy told TopGear. "And two: European regulations require a rounding of 3.2 millimeters on protruding parts. Unfortunately, it is impossible to make a rounding of 3.2 millimeters on a 1.4 millimeter sheet of stainless steel," he added.

Why Elon Musk's Cybertruck Won't Be Coming to Europe Anytime Soon (businessinsider.com)

To drive a vehicle heavier than 3.5 tons in the EU, drivers must have a category C1 license — meaning that to drive a US-built Cybertruck on European roads, you may need to apply for a...

While most of us on Priuschat who work on hybrid battery packs and associated components got our training from the people we met on PriusChat, I recently got an announcement from Jose, who has an advanced hybrid training class starting on Dec.11th: Hybrid Solution Diagnostics - YouTube

He's based on the island of Trinidad-Tobago and is offering this 16 course in-person class on everything you need to learn to be a hybrid and EV technician. Each class is 2-1/2 hours long and in US dollars the cost is roughly $62 per class, which seems like a reasonable price.

Of course probably most of us won't be able to show up for that. So it got me thinking where else besides PriusChat do hybrid repair folks get their trainings?

There's lots of community colleges that offer auto repair certificates. The two I'm aware of are the one Professor Joe ( Hybrid Car Battery Distributor...

Toyota showcases new generation battery electric technologies with FT-3e concept

Toyota previews expanded dedicated BEV line-up and advanced battery technologies