EDITOR'S CHOICE

Tesla Clears FSD Hurdle In China But System Faces Further Scrutiny In US

01 May 2024 | Synopsis

"The approval...was granted under certain conditions...it is understood that Tesla managed to overcome two of the most important hurdles standing in the way of approval for its self driving technology

"First, it agreed to a mapping and navigation deal with Chinese tech giant Baidu...Second, it agreed to requirements from the Chinese government that determine how it handles data security and privacy issues."

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Sodium Batteries From Michigan To Challenge Lithium's Grip

01 May 2024 | Synopsis

Natron Energy Inc. will unveil what it bills as the first full-scale plant in the US for making sodium-ion batteries...funded in part by a nearly $20 million federal grant. That makes it one of a wave of new US battery plants to receive backing from the Biden administration.

"...sodium-ion batteries offer benefits over their lithium-ion counterparts. They can discharge faster, providing short, intense bouts of power...The downside: Sodium-ion batteries can?t match lithium-ion?s energy density."

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Dong Feng Shows A Pretty Decent-Looking Cybertruck Knockoff

01 May 2024 | Synopsis

"Cybertruck-inspired in general shape and proportion, and overall tone and feel...it seems to have body panels made of stamped steel or aluminum instead of the Tesla's flat stainless ones.

"...it uses Dongfeng's existing skateboard EV platform and makes 1,305 horsepower, so, holy crap!

Overall, while it is definitely derivative, I don't think it's a bad take on the Cybertruck design."

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The Reckless Policies That Helped Fill Our Streets With Ridiculously Large Cars

29 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"Dangerous, polluting SUVs and pickups took over America. Lawmakers are partly to blame."

"Bulky SUVs and pickup trucks - which have themselves steadily added pounds and inches - now comprise more than four out of every five new cars sold in the US...One of Congress's most consequential moves was creating the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards...CAFE has two of them: one for passenger cars... a separate, more lenient standard for ''light trucks''..."

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Why America Remains A Forbidden Land For Chinese Carmakers

29 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"...among the approximately 1,500 auto and parts makers exhibiting this week, Chinese automakers stole the [2024 Beijing Auto] show with a mix of new models...One estimate puts that total at close to 100 carmakers, and when the dust finally settles, only around a dozen are expected to remain.

"The biggest challenge to Chinese carmakers selling in America is not price or sales tariffs. It’s a lack of dealer networks."

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What the Heck Is Seaweed Mining?

29 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"Preliminary research suggests seaweed can trap and store valuable minerals. Is this the beginning of a new type of mining?

"...the [ARPA-E] agency has awarded US $5-million to three ventures investigating whether seaweed can serve as a practical source of critical materials, such as platinum and rhodium, as well as rare earth elements, including neodymium, lanthanum, yttrium, and dysprosium."

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Company Develops Innovative Magnetic Train That Can Operate With Existing Infrastructure: 'An Easily Usable Technology'

29 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

Italy's IronLev has developed a magnetic train that works on existing tracks...a fascinating breakthrough in the magnetic levitation rail world that could reduce costs, noise, and air pollution.

"...the test covered about 1.2 miles outside of Venice, hitting 43 mph...It works by utilizing the physics of magnetism to provide lift, push, and pull...IronLev's ability to integrate existing infrastructure greatly reduces rollout costs.."

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US's Power Grid Continues To Lower Emissions - Everything Else, Not So Much

29 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"Excluding one pandemic year, emissions are lower than they've been since the 1980s.

"The [US DoE Energy Information Agency] assigns 80 percent of the 2023 reduction in US emissions to changes in the electric power grid... it's clear that the harder challenges are still coming, both in terms of accelerating decarbonization, and in terms of tackling sectors where decarbonization will be harder."

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Modern EV Batteries Rarely Fail: Study

26 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"Plug-in electric vehicles' lithium-ion batteries have become less prone to failures in recent years."

"According to the data, the worst model year was 2011 with a 7.5% failure rate...In the next few years, it was 1.6-4.4%.

"...starting in 2016, there was a step change in the battery replacements due to failures, excluding recalls. It was as high as 0.5% starting in 2016, but in most cases, it was from 0.1% to 0.3%. That's an order of magnitude improvement."

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Give Us the Dumbphone EV

26 Apr 2024 | Synopsis

"Simpler electric vehicles would not only be cheaper — they’d last longer too."

"Dumbphones, though, are rugged and cheap. They do their job without fuss or pretense. They are an appliance, and they know it...This attitude needs to come to electric cars...Positioning EVs as fancy gadgets was a natural strategy to get Americans to lust after them...America needs a simpler, more affordable EV to help the transition to electric. [Pictured VW Beetle EV conversion]

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