2023 Fisker Ocean on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2021 L.A. Auto Show roundup | All the reveals, reviews, pictures

The L.A. Auto Show took place this week for the first time since the onset of the pandemic. It was a show packed with news and reveals, which hasn't really been the case with other shows we've seen this year, and Autoblog was on the floor covering every minute of it. Well, Riswick and Stocksdale were, anyway. The rest of us were sitting at home in our sweatpants, but hey, we'll take credit anyway. Let's get to it. Hyundai Seven Concept This is the Hyundai Seven Concept, and it’s meant to act as a preview for an incoming electric SUV for the Ioniq brand. It leans more toward the concept side of the spectrum than a production car, but expect the final SUV to take design cues from the Seven Concept. Kia Concept EV9 The Hyundai Seven counterpart isn't the only big, bold electric SUV at L.A. this year. Kia has its own take, and it's a modernized version of the traditional boxy utility vehicle called the Concept EV9. It also previews one of the next production electric cars for the brand, which should look right at home next to things like the Telluride. 2023 Kia Sportage HEV As promised, the 2023 Kia Sportage HEV has been revealed. The hybrid powertrain makes the compact SUV the most powerful version available, and it goes on sale next year. The engine is a turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder paired with a 44-kW electric motor. Total output is 226 horsepower. The company didn't give a torque number, but it should basically be the same as the Sorento HEV that has the same basic powertrain: 258 pound-feet. Those numbers are a healthy step up from the 187 horsepower of the base 2.5-liter engine. 2022 Range Rover If you noticed how extra smooth and suave the new Range Rover looked during its recent reveal, Autoblog's James Riswick got a design tour that revealed some of the technological secrets to its success. "Less is more" is harder to achieve than it looks. Fisker Ocean Fisker has brought the new Ocean EV to the L.A. Auto Show, with a public preview at Manhattan Beach and a presence at the show itself. You can watch the public show reveal above, and see more shots from the show floor below. Fisker says the Ocean will start at $37,499 before incentives. That entry model would be the Sport trim with a single, 275-horsepower motor driving the front wheels and 250 miles of estimated range. It also has a 0-60 time of 6.9 seconds. 2023 Toyota bZ4X This is the 2023 Toyota bZ4X, due to hit U.S.

Nissan, Fisker in advanced talks on investment, partnership

Nissan is in advanced talks to invest in electric vehicle maker Fisker in a deal that could provide the Japanese automaker with access to an electric pickup truck while giving the struggling startup a financial lifeline, according to two people familiar with the negotiations. The deal could close this month, said the sources, who asked not to be identified because the talks are ongoing and have not been finalized. Terms being discussed include Nissan investing more than $400 million in Fisker's truck platform and building Fisker's planned Alaska pickup starting in 2026 at one of its U.S. assembly plants, one of the sources said. Nissan would build its own electric pickup on the same platform, the source said. Nissan has U.S. assembly plants in Mississippi and Tennessee. Fisker said on Thursday, when it announced it might not be able to continue as a going concern and would cut 15% of its workforce, that it was in talks with a large automaker for a potential investment and joint development partnership. It did not name the automaker. A Fisker spokesman said the company does not comment on speculation, while Nissan officials were not immediately available to comment. Fisker shares had been down about 45% before the Reuters report but pared those losses and were trading down about 25% with a market capitalization of more than $295 million. The term sheet is ready and the deal is going through due diligence, one of the sources said. Nissan was an EV pioneer with its fully battery powered Leaf hatchback in 2010 but has since struggled in the face of nimbler new entrants. A deal with Fisker would help it move into the growing U.S. electric pickup market. Nissan's talks with Fisker comes in the wake of the former's “rebalanced” relationship with its long-time alliance partner Renault. Last year, Nissan and Renault finalised terms of a restructured alliance after months of negotiations. They aim to have cross-shareholdings of 15% as part of the deal. The more limited alliance removes certain restrictions and has opened the door for Nissan to develop growth plans in areas such as EVs and software independent of Renault, said one of the sources, who is familiar with Nissan's thinking. The Yokohama-headquartered automaker is scouring “many, many opportunities,” the person said.

Recharge Wrap-up: Fisker owner Wanxiang owns a lot of US real estate, carmakers gaming EU emissions system

Wanxiang Group says it might now be China's largest corporate investor in American real estate. The owner of both Fisker Automotive and battery company A123 Systems, and parts supplier to Mazda and Chrysler, Wanxiang has invested in over 60 projects in the US since 2010. Returns on those investments have been "very, very, very" high, according to Wanxiang America President Pin Ni. "We can invest in clean energy, auto, real estate or anything, but the key is pegging it well to the economic cycle," says Ni. Read more at Bloomberg. Cars sold in 2014 in Europe are exceeding 2015 targets for emissions, but not necessarily for the right reasons. The cars produce 2.6 percent (or 123.4 g/km) less CO2 than cars sold in 2013, which is nearly 7 g/km less than 2015 targets. Unfortunately, these results are influenced in part by manufacturers taking advantage of flaws in the EU testing procedures for better results. Real-world fuel economy is about 31 percent less than official ratings. "These figures need to be treated with extreme caution," says Greg Archer, clean vehicles manager at Transport & Environment. Most of the measured improvement is being delivered through manipulating tests, not delivering real-world improvements. We need the new test to be introduced without further delay." Read more at DieselNet, or from Transport & Environment. Ballard will supply fuel cell modules for eight hydrogen-powered buses in China. Shipping later this year, the FCvelocityTM-HD7 power modules will power buses in multiple Chinese for cities. "We are now beginning to see meaningful evidence of growing demand for clean energy mass transportation alternatives in China, including both buses and trams," says Ballard President and CEO Randy MacEwen. "This demand is being driven by a pressing need to address China's challenging air quality issues, for which fuel cell technology is seen as an emerging option." Read more from Ballard in the press release below. Ballard Inks Deal to Supply Next-Generation Fuel Cell Power Product For Eight Buses in China April 15, 2015 Vancouver, Canada – Ballard Power Systems (NASDAQ: BLDP; TSX: BLD) today announced that it has received an order from a Chinese customer to supply its next-generation FCvelocityTM-HD7 power modules for 8 buses to be deployed in a number of Chinese cities. Ballard expects to ship all of the modules in 2015.