Zero emission green car in Israel.

Electric car pilot for UK roads

2009-01-11T09:36:00.001-08:00

The government is set to announce a pilot scheme to test electric cars on Britain's roads in three cities.

TH!NK Ox A platform vehicle

2008-12-05T07:07:00.000-08:00

The TH!NK Ox is our latest concept development. 100% emission free, the TH!NK Ox project includes a unique EV platform suitable for a variety of different body styles

TH!NK Ox is a platform concept, designed for electric vehicles, for the European, North American and Asian market. It is the basis for a variety of vehicle styles, starting with the TH!NK Ox Crossover 5-seater. This is possible due to a space frame concept featuring the main crash structure and the batteries centrally placed in two compartments in the lower frame.
The TH!NK Ox picture gallery shows an MPV version and a coupé version. The MPV version is suggested as a taxi with a larger luggage space. The MPV version is designed for easy entry and exit, and a spacious and easy access luggage trunk. The coupé and sports versions have a larger battery capacity for higher performance.
The TH!NK Ox Platform design allows two different standards of battery packs;
- High stack: two compartments, allows use of low cost, high range sodium batteries
- Low stack: gives space for flat Li Ion packs, allows lower/upper frame for sports car and flat flow applications

see Th!nk Xo amazing promo video on Youtube

Shai Agassi speaks about converting entire countries to electric transportation.

2008-11-21T10:56:00.000-08:00

Shai Agassi speaks about converting entire countries to electric transportation.
3 parts

דף הבית

Shai Agassi at WEB2.0 summit

2008-11-15T13:04:00.000-08:00

John Battelle sits down with Shai Agassi at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco last week to candidly talk about his concept of building a vast network of electric car charging and battery swapping stations.

Intriguingly, Agassi notes that using any number of different assumptions, Better Place's business model proves to be cheaper for the consumer than the current buy/lease model we have today.
This is a excellent discussion that is well worth the 33-minutes it takes to watch if you're interested in how Better Place may revolutionize personal mobility in the coming age of the electric car.

ZAP Electric Vehicles Receives Largest Order of Electric Cars ever from Chicago Based Start-Up

2008-11-15T12:16:00.000-08:00

This is great news for ZAP, but also great news for me as an electric car enthusiast. ZAP confirmed in an email today that they have received the largest order for electric cars ever and from a Chicago based startup called the Electric Vehicle Company (EVC), no not that Electric Vehicle Company.

So it looks like I may have double the opportunity to secure either a Smart car or an electric vehicle from ZAP via EVC.
Whenever I bring up my excitement for electric cars though, I get the same response, “Yeah, that’s great, but where do you charge it?” That’s an easy solution to fix my friends. Electric outlets are a dime a dozen and as electric cars become more prevalent, more outlets will be added. The next question that always arises is “How can you get behind electric cars, when much of our electricity currently comes from coal fired power plants or nuclear power plants?” Well, at least the opportunity exists with those alternatives for renewable power sources such as wind, wave, solar, or geothermal energy. The oil option or some hybrid solution of part oil, part electric or part oil, part hydrogen, just isn’t going to cut it in the long term.
So EVC, if you’re listening, send me a promo kit or let me know when you are having any test drive events.

Training how to convert your gas car to the fully electric one

2008-11-15T11:54:00.000-08:00

ACE Technologies Inc. , an engineering consulting company for major auto manufacturers is offering a unique training program to San Antonio residents. The class teaches the average backyard handyman how to convert a conventional gas guzzling automobile into a fully electric car, with zero emissions.

The 7 hour classes are held monthly in San Antonio and cover all aspects of how an electric car works down to the detailed process of building your own car.
“This type of activity is an excellent family project” explains Craig Egan, President of ACE Technologies, Inc. “It teaches the importance of conserving our natural resources and reducing harmful greenhouse gases , along with saving money”
According to Mr Egan, the conversion process is something that can be done in your own garage. The vehicles are easy to maintain, and fun to drive! Along with explaining how the vehicles work, students learn where to get parts, and how to join local electric car clubs and organizations. “Electric vehicles are coming faster than most people think”, explains Mr. Egan, “so this is an excellent opportunity to get a head start. Even if you don’t plan on building one, understanding how they work is worth spending one afternoon”
To encourage ongoing research in renewable energy and a commitment to the future of our children, ACE's Electric Vehicle business will be supporting the following charities;

We Can Solve It
Support for repowering America “America must commit to producing 100 percent of our electricity from renewable energy and other clean sources within 10 years.” For more information go to www.wecansolveit.org

SA BEST
(San Antonio Boosting Engineering, Science and Technology) A competition, in which area high school students and mentors from local businesses team for six weeks to design and build technology projects. The intent is to help foster interest in our children to become involved in engineering and science. For more information, go to www.sabest.org

Involved companies

2008-11-12T06:24:00.000-08:00

A123Systems, developer and producer of patent-pending Nanophosphate lithium-ion batteries, has completed a $30 million round of funding, bringing the total capital invested in the company to $132 million.

Chinese automobile manufacturer based in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, People's Republic of China. The firm was founded in 2003 and it is a part of the BYD Company Limited. The BYD company, established in 1995, makes 65% of the world’s nickel-cadmium batteries and 30% of the world's lithium-ion mobile phone batteries. Based on this background, BYD Auto has ambitious plans for hybrid and electric automobiles.

Carlos Ghosn, CEO of Renault-Nissan, has made a firm commitment: Renault-Nissan will be the world leader in the electric vehicle industry, and their efforts will be far-reaching and profitable. And hopefully world-changing.

Picture zero-emission electric cars running on a clean energy grid. Governments, auto makers, energy companies and Better Place work hand-in-hand to make this happen. The result: our people and our planet prosper together.

Tesla Motors, Inc. is a Silicon Valley automobile startup company focusing on the production of high performance, consumer-oriented battery electric vehicles. The firm was incorporated in July, 2003 by engineers Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning in San Carlos, California. Tesla Motors is named after electrical engineer and physicist Nikola Tesla.

Miles Electric Vehicles is based in Los Angeles, California, with several facilities throughout the United States, is privately held by "Green" magnate Miles Rubin. The company gained prominence in 2005 when it began sales of the ZX40, the first street-legal Chinese-made automobile sold in the United States.

Models

2008-11-11T04:25:00.000-08:00

Renault debuts electric car prototype with swappable batteryThe car, conceived by Better Place, relies on Renault for vehicle development, while Nissan has created the lithium-ion battery pack through a joint-venture with NEC. The prototype shown on Sunday can go from 0 to 60 in eight seconds and can run comfortably at highway speeds, but as with many EVs, range is limited (in this case to just 125 miles). Drivers can recharge the batteries at home after short trips, but to solve the range problem Better Place has come up with a novel concept -- swappable batteries. Swap stations would be conveniently located near highways, and when drivers run low on power they could simply pull in and change to a fresh battery in about the same amount of time it takes to fill a normal car with gas.

The Tesla Roadster
California-based Tesla Motors unveiled its electric-powered roadster at an event in Los Angeles yesterday. The 240-horsepower, battery-powered sports car goes from 0 to 60 in about four seconds, has a top speed of around 130mph, and costs a penny per mile to drive, according to Tesla executives. This venture began in 2000, when Elon Musk, PayPal founder and chairman of Tesla Motors, approached an electric car company with the idea of creating an electric sports car.

Miles electric vehicles
Founded in 2004, this company already makes and sells two low-speed electric vehicles which are manufactured in China. We chose to list details for its upcoming highway-speed model, which should have a mass market appeal, if the price is low enough.
Fuel type: All-electric
Price: TBA
Range / top speed: 120 miles / 80mph
Release date: 2009 (month TBA)

Fisker Automotive — “Eco-Chic” (Working name TBA)
Fisker will be showing off the first productions models of its cars on January 13th, at the Detroit Auto Show. Created by a world-renowned auto designer, these will compete in Tesla’s high-end market niche.
Fuel type: Hybrid
Price: $80K
Range / top speed: 620 miles / TBA
Backing: Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers has invested more than $10 million in Fisker.
Release date: Mid-2009

Phoenix Motorcars — Sport Utility Truck / SUV
No cars here, just trucks and SUVs. The company will have an extended-range battery option for 250 miles later in 2008.
Fuel type: All-electric
Price: $45K
Range / top speed: 130 miles / 95mph
Release date: Mid-2008

Main

2008-11-11T03:17:00.000-08:00

Project Better Place
Founded in October 2007 on $200 million of venture capital, in its first six months, announced cooperative agreements with Israel and Denmark to transform their transportation infrastructure from oil-based to renewable energy and significantly reduce harmful emissions.

Better Place’s model means consumers subscribe to transportation as a service, much like they do today with mobile phones. Auto companies make the electric cars that plug in to the Better Place electric recharge network of charging stations and battery swap stations. Energy companies provide the network’s power through growing renewable energy projects. And Better Place provides the batteries to make owning an electric car affordable and convenient.

And with oil out of the picture, transportation is transformed into a sustainable service we can all subscribe to.
And that’s why this model works. It’s a path forward for everybody.

• Drivers’ daily budgets are no longer at the mercy of rising fuel prices, and the affordability of the Better Place network allows more people to own cars and expand their horizons.

• Auto makers don’t just adapt to the oil crisis—they evolve beyond it and thrive in a new era of sustainable transportation.

• Energy companies surge into new markets, following a path to faster and more affordable growth for renewable energy.

• National governments breathe new life into their economies and ecologies, achieving profitable compliance with global environmental standards.

• Most importantly, climate recovery accelerates as Better Place shows companies, countries and everyday people around the world how to align environmental and economic interests.
Thanks to our partners, the Better Place model has already taken root and is rapidly expanding:

• Renault-Nissan is already developing the first line of battery-powered electric cars for Better Place, and other auto makers are soon to follow. For the press release, click here.

• In January 2008, Israel became the first nation in the world to declare a plan for oil independence by 2020. Partnering with Better Place and Renault-Nissan, Israel has committed to widespread deployment of an electric recharge grid to power electric vehicles by 2011. Renewable energy will be supplied through Israel’s growing solar power sector. For the press release, click here.

• In March 2008, Denmark demonstrated its continued global leadership in environmental policy by committing to an electric recharge grid of its own. DONG (Danish Oil & Natural Gas) Energy company has partnered with Better Place and Renault-Nissan to power electric vehicles with unstored electricity from wind turbines.

Bold plan

2008-11-11T02:36:00.000-08:00

It’s simple. The car has evolved. Gas guzzlers have gone the way of the dinosaur—there’s a reason they call it “fossil fuel.” In their place we have electric versions of our favorite makes and models being developed by established car companies.

And the evolution of the car means the evolution of the entire transportation model. When we eliminate the dependence on oil, we eliminate the environmental and economic damage that came with it.

The good news is we’re evolving into something very familiar. The Better Place business model is one most of us already experience every day—with our mobile phones.

Think of it like this: we pay mobile providers for minute-by-minute access to cell towers connected together in cellular networks. Truth is, we pay comparatively little—or next to nothing—for the phones themselves. After all, what you’re really buying is air time, not a box with buttons.

The same model works for transportation. Just replace the phone with an electric car, replace the cell towers with battery recharge stations, and replace the cellular networks with an electric recharge grid. Now you’re buying miles, not minutes.

When you think of it in those terms, suddenly a seemingly revolutionary business model becomes something a lot more proven—and more than a little appealing.

Why pay for an addictive, expensive and harmful substance like oil when you can simply pay for transportation as a sustainable service? Why produce pollution when you can bring your emissions to zero and produce economic advantage as the only by-product? The proposition sells itself.

• Drivers pay to access a network of charging spots and conveniently located battery exchange stations powered by renewable energy.
• Drivers pay for the miles they drive.
• Cars are made much more affordable—even free in some markets—by the business model’s financial and environmental incentives to add drivers into the network.
• Better Place operates the electric recharge grid that brings it all together.

This is transportation as a sustainable service, with drivers as subscribers, and Better Place as a true “mobility operator.”

---

Our reliance on oil pitted the economy and environment against each other. But in this new era of sustainable transportation, we bring the interests of people, auto makers, energy companies, governments and the planet, itself, back into balance.

It starts when we switch from the pump to the plug. It seems like such a small change, but it has such profound benefits when you think about it.
For Drivers

For drivers, it means living free from oil while still enjoying our cars …

• Powering our zero-emission cars with affordable, clean energy.
• Experiencing transportation as a sustainable service we can subscribe to.
• Reaping the benefits of a cleaner, healthier environment.
For The Automotive Industry

For the automotive industry, it means moving to sustainable profitability …

• Switching to a sustainable, long-term business model by retooling factories to meet the demands of today’s consumers.
• Securing first mover advantage in the next 100 years of transportation.
• Selling the only car our children will drive—the electric vehicle.
For Energy Companies

For energy companies, it means servicing a whole new market segment created by this sustainable transportation infrastructure …

• Reducing capital expenditures and improving profitability with better load balancing and distributed storage strategies.
• Accelerating the transition to clean energy, serving a whole new breed of customer, and assuring environmental regulatory compliance.
• Securing first mover advantage in a new and rapidly growing market—sustainable transportation as a service.
For The Nations Of The World

For the nations of the world, it means bringing the economy and environment into balance …

• Creating new opportunities for leadership in a new global economic mode.
• Achieving environmental and economic objectives together.
• Benefiting from new jobs created as we build this sustainable transportation infrastructure.
For The Planet Itself

For the planet itself, it means breaking an addiction to oil and accelerating climate recovery …

• Reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40% from the conversion of electric cars alone.
• Reducing emissions even further as the renewable energy industry flourishes.
• Creating whole new industries that benefit the biosphere and bottom lines alike.

Think ZERO

2008-11-11T02:18:00.000-08:00

Cars with zero emissions.

At Better Place, we know that if we are going to reduce transportation’s impact on our planet, this must be our goal.

Not just better gas mileage. Not just reduced emissions.

No emissions.

Zero.

This goal is achievable, and we should accept nothing less. That’s why we’re incorporating time-tested lithium ion battery technologies into electric cars as part of our sustainable transportation network.

What about Hybrids? You can buy one today, and they are definitely an improvement over a standard internal combustion engine. But they still need oil. Not as much, but they still need it. They won’t break our addiction to oil, they’ll simply make it last longer.

And hydrogen fuel cells? All they produce is water vapor. But the technology to mass-produce them is years away, and we must begin the transition of our infrastructure now, with today’s technology.

Better Place already has the capability to build an all-electric car network. Together with our partners from around the world, including auto makers, battery manufacturers, energy companies and governments, we are making rapid progress. Israel has declared its commitment to be oil free by 2020. Denmark has reaffirmed its global environmental leadership by committing to a renewable energy-powered electric car network, which presents new market opportunities for its considerable stores of wind energy. And 25 more countries around the world are already talking to Better Place about how they can be next.

We are on an accelerated path to something truly amazing: sustainable transportation and economic growth that actually benefits our planet, and leaves nothing behind ... except the addiction to oil.

Batteries Key to Plugging in at Electric Vehicle Symposium

2008-11-10T13:34:00.000-08:00

Industry leaders head to California to discuss technologies and strategies that could electrify the automotive industry.

by: Rachel Barron
Bullet Arrow December 3, 2007

It was the year that defined a cultural revolution: 1969.

It was also the year an international cadre of researchers and academics got together to exchange the technical information needed to bring about a transportation rebellion where people would leave the oil pump behind and plug in with electric vehicles.

What was once a meeting for intellectual visionaries has now expanded into a full-fledged conference. On Sunday, doors opened to the four-day long International Electric Vehicle Symposium and Exposition in Anaheim, Calif., where researchers, companies, government agencies and financial backers are planning the next stage of the revolt.

That next stage appears to be focused on batteries, which are key to getting better mileage out of hybrids and better range out of all-electric vehicles.

Lithium-ion batteries, often found in consumer electronics like cell phones, have caught the interest of the electric-vehicle community because they are potentially more powerful, for their size, than other car batteries. But they are expensive and also have the problem of "thermal runaway" - overheating and even catching fire.

A number of scientists and entrepreneurs have been researching different ways to get around the battery issues.

Companies such as Valence Technology, Toyota and even ExxonMobil were planning to bring battery-related technology to the event.

Rechargeable-battery company Valence Technology (NSDQ: VLNC) said Friday it planned to unveil its latest phosphate-based lithium-ion battery, dubbed Epoch. With phosphate to keep it from catching fire, the battery also is equipped with an advanced management system that monitors and enhances cell performance.

The battery packs will be available in 12.8-volt and 19.2-volt modules, and the Austin, Texas-based company said it hopes the batteries will be powering electric-vehicle fleets in Europe next year.

Oil giant ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) planned to present its lithium-ion battery-related technology at the conference.

ExxonMobil and its Japanese affiliate, Tonen Chemical, have developed a separator-film technology for the batteries. Separator film keeps the battery's positive and negative fields from touching.

According to ExxonMobil, the company's film can handle higher heat levels.

Conference attendees won't just be talking, either. Some will be able to view or even drive a variety of alternative vehicles, including hybrids, plug-in hybrids and fuel-cell electric vehicles.

Among the showcased cars is Toyota's Prius plug-in hybrid prototype. Earlier this month, Toyota said it was going to study U.S. consumer demand for the car, among other need-to-know items like the car's mileage.

The company has set no date as to when consumers will be able to buy the car, which takes three hours to charge on the same voltage used by household appliances such as refrigerators.

Toyota still has some key issues to figure out before it brings the car to market, particularly the batteries.

Knight said the battery pack is the most important thing when it comes to greater electric driving range. "We are still researching the ideal battery pack," said Cindy Knight, a Toyota spokesperson. "It can't overheat and burst into flames."

While most companies -- Toyota included -- want the range that lithium-ions can bring, the plug-in hybrids being pilot tested use nickel-metal-hydride batteries instead.

Some plug-in hybrid advocates, such as Felix Kramer, founder of CalCars, supported the move, saying it's important to have "good enough" plug-in hybrids now instead of waiting for lithium-ion technology to be perfected for the automotive market.

Not everyone agrees the plug-in hybrids are worth the effort, however.

In October, Honda Motor CEO Takeo Fukui said plug-in hybrids offer too few environmental benefits for the company to pursue.

If the company were able to come up with lithium-ion batteries that were cheap, safe and high-performing enough for plug-in hybrids, Honda would rather use the batteries for electric vehicles, he said (see Honda Says No to Plug-In Hybrids).

Analysts say electric cars aren't ready for mass adoption because they can't drive as far on a single charge as gasoline cars can drive on a single tank.

Companies with new lithium-ion technologies hope to change that.

Aside from the companies mentioned above, Project Better Place in October raised $200 million for a plan to lease removable batteries for electric cars, and A123Systems grabbed $30 million for its high-efficiency lithium-ion batteries for hybrid and electric cars (see Startup Snags $200M for Electric-Vehicle Battery Leasing Program, A123Systems Gets $30M Charge).

But although the interest in electric cars and plug-in hybrids is growing, it's clear there is still plenty of work ahead.