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Recharge Wrap-up: No Tesla Gigafactory deal with California, BMW i3 recalled

Before the Nevada announcement was hinted at, a deal to incentivize a Tesla Gigafactory in California fell through. Tesla was looking for around $500 million in incentives, which the California Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development was willing to offer in tax breaks along with making the permit and environmental processes easier. According to Senator Ted Gaines, there still remained "a gap between what Tesla wanted and what California was willing to offer," the contents of which were undisclosed. California could still be chosen for another of Tesla's battery plants, should those ever materialize. Read more at The Desert Sun. The California Air Resources Board (CARB) will consider allowing a bit of compliance flexibility to its Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) regulations for some automakers. CARB will hold a hearing to discuss giving intermediate volume manufacturers (IVMs) - carmakers that do between 4,501 and 60,000 new vehicle sales in the state - some leniency catching up to the larger manufacturers when it comes to clean vehicle production. The ZEV regulation changes take into account the amount of revenue IVMs have available for developing the cars, particularly plug-in hybrids. Read more at Green Car Congress or see the notice from CARB here. Certain units of the BMW i3 are subject to an airbag recall. For cars built March 31, 2014, the passenger airbag inflator may have been assembled incorrectly, which could keep it from deploying when needed. Owners will be notified by BMW, and the problem will be fixed for free. The recall also affects certain 2014 Mini Cooper models. Learn more at the NHTSA website. The Renault-Nissan Alliance is providing 200 electric vehicles to telecommunications company Orange in France. The cars, which will include the Nissan Leaf, Nissan e-NV200, Renault ZOE and Renault Kangoo ZE, will be used mostly for carsharing. Through the program, Orange employees can book a car for work or personal travel using a smartphone. The Alliance will also help Orange install charging stations for the new cars. The addition of the EVs to the fleet will help Orange achieve its goal of reducing its carbon footprint by 20 percent by 2020. Read more in the press release, below. Jianghuai Automobile Company (JAC) is delivering its first 100 EVs to the US. The shipment is part of a larger order of 2,000 cars to be sold by GreenTech Automotive in the US market. Read more at ECNS.

Nissan tests 'self-cleaning' paint on Leaf models in Europe

Once upon a time, self-cleaning ovens were all the rage. Now, Nissan thinks the concept may apply to its vehicles. And the Japanese vehicle maker is testing it out on some of its Leaf battery-electric vehicles Europe, no less. Nissan says its trying out what's called a "superhydrophobic and oleophobic" paint on Leaf battery-electric vehicles for testing and demonstration purposes. The paint, produced by UltraTech International Inc., is designed to repel splats of liquid such as oil or standing water away from the car's surface. The paint, called Ultra-Ever Dry, does this by creating what Nissan says is a layer of air around the vehicle surface. We imagine there's a detailed chemical explanation for this phenomenon that would better explain this process, but that's the best way we can explain it. Right now, Nissan is pitching the product testing as a way to further the Leaf's reputation as what the automaker calls "the world's cleanest car." That said, the paint hasn't been tested in North America, and no plans have been made to add the feature as either a standard or optional goodie for the battery-electric vehicle. Still, go ahead and check out Nissan's press release on the magic paint below. Nissan Creates "World's Cleanest Car" – a Zero Emissions Nissan LEAF with Self-Cleaning Nano-Paint Technology For LEAF owners who never qualify for gas stations' "Free Car Wash with Purchase" offers, this technical study might be the perfect solution July 09, 2014 10:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time NASHVILLE, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--What do you get when you combine the world's best-selling zero emission vehicle with innovative paint technology that repels mud, rain and everyday dirt? Answer: A very special Nissan LEAF electric vehicle that might just be the "world's cleanest car." "No matter what the road throws at this LEAF, its Ultra-Ever Dry® exterior coating will throw right back" Created to demonstrate its potential use in future production vehicles, this Nissan LEAF's exterior was treated with a specially engineered superhydrophobic and oleophobic paint that is designed to repel water and oils. The "self-cleaning" paint, called Ultra-Ever Dry®, creates a protective layer of air between the paint and environment, effectively stopping standing water and road spray from creating dirty marks on the LEAF's surface. Nissan is one of the first carmakers to apply this technology to a vehicle.

Toyota, Nissan, Honda will work together on hydrogen filling stations

Japan's own version of the Big Three is taking on a transportation effort that's a far cry from the large-engined history of General Motors, Ford and Chrysler. In fact, Toyota, Nissan and Honda are looking to do their part – and maybe a little more – for the environment by working together to collaborate on accelerating the deployment of hydrogen fuel delivery in Japan. More refueling stations means more convenience for prospective hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle owners. Toyota says the specifics, including investment amount and the number of stations to be deployed, will be "determined at a later date." Still, the effort dovetails with that of the Japanese government. That government announced a so-called Strategic Road Map for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells last June and subsequently said it would start offering about $20,000 worth of incentives for fuel cell vehicle buyers. In December, Toyota started selling its first mass-produced fuel cell vehicle, the Mirai, in Japan and said it would almost triple production to 2,000 vehicles in 2016 from 700 this year. Last month, the Tokyo government began talks with Toyota and Honda to collaborate on ensuring that there'd be at least 6,000 fuel-cell vehicles on Japan's roads in time for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Tokyo officials are looking to have 100,000 fuel-cell vehicles on the city's roads by 2025. Check out Toyota's press release below. Toyota, Nissan, and Honda to Jointly Support Hydrogen Station Infrastructure Development Toyota Motor Corporation, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., and Honda Motor Co., Ltd. have agreed to work together to help accelerate the development of hydrogen station infrastructure for fuel cell vehicles (FCVs). Specific measures to be undertaken by the three manufacturers will be determined at a later date. For hydrogen-fueled FCVs to gain popularity, it is not only important that attractive products be launched-hydrogen station infrastructure must also be developed. At present, infrastructure companies are making every effort to build such an infrastructure, but they face difficulties in installing and operating hydrogen stations while FCVs are not common on the road. Following the formulation of its Strategic Road Map for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in June 2014, the Japanese government has highlighted the importance of developing hydrogen station infrastructure as quickly as possible in order to popularize FCVs.