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Recharge Wrap-up: Lego Tesla logo, BMW goes electric in Singapore

A man built a giant Tesla logo out of Legos. Adrian Drake, a Tesla owner, displayed his brickwork homage to the electric car company at Brickworld Chicago. In the video above, the hosts interview Mr. Drake about his creation, and he gives some insights into how he conceived and constructed the freestanding display. Drake also demonstrates its sturdiness, giving the logo a tap to send it wobbling precariously from side to side. You'll probably notice that standing to the left of the logo is a Lego model of a Tesla Supercharger. That was built by Robert Turner and can be seen in a separate video. See the Lego Tesla logo in the video above, and read more at Teslarati. Canadian power generator TransAlta will use Tesla stationary batteries for a commercial energy storage project. The project involves installing five Tesla Powerpacks to store energy during periods of low demand for use during peak grid times. TransAlta believes that energy storage systems like this will help encourage the creation of more wind and solar energy. "This is a major step forward in putting new technology to work in Canada," says TransAlta Lead Engineer of Technology Dan Chapman, "and Tesla is already a leader in this field." The project is expected to be up and running in late 2016. Read more from TransAlta. BMW and Nanyang Technological University in Singapore have launched an electromobility research program. In addition to the projects the joint Future Mobility Research Lab is already working on, (Advanced Battery, Driver Enhancement and Intelligent Mobility), the groups will also begin Electromobility in Asia and Smart Materials research projects. The Electromobility in Asia project focuses on how people interact with BMW's i cars, while the Smart Materials project seeks to improve touchscreens and interactive surfaces. BMW has provided the lab with an i3 and i8 with which to conduct research. Each partner is investing $965,000 into the new programs. Read more at Green Car Congress, and in the press release below. BMW Group and NTU embark on S$1.3 million electromobility research NTU receives BMW i3 and BMW i8 as research platforms Singapore. BMW Group and Nanyang Technological University (NTU Singapore) today launched a new electromobility research programme, involving the all-electric BMW i3 and plug-in hybrid sports car BMW i8 that runs on electricity and petrol.

Tesla Uber alles in Shanghai

Is anyone surprised that Tesla Motors is ready to disrupt the status quo even in little ways? If you are, then here's one more example: Tesla is partnering with Uber (which taxi drivers around the world are not happy with) in Shanghai to both give people free, 15-minute rides in the electric car. Think of it as the free Supercharger miles for the don't-own-a-Tesla set. It's a small, limited promotion defined by the fact that you can't actually order yourself a Tesla. Instead, if you're looking for a ride in Shanghai's inner ring on Wednesday, you can hope that one of the "few super-secret Teslas on the system" will come and pick you and up to three friends up. What's completely different about this Uber ride is that it's not a ride at all. Instead, if you have your drivers license, you can get behind the wheel and driver for up to 15 minutes. CNET says that this is only the first of more Tesla-Uber promotions. Tesla is supplying the vehicles and a spokesperson said it was, "only a pilot test at the moment."

Tesla Model S reduces colors with new options

The Tesla Model S is no longer a "green" car. Or brown, for that matter. Call it a case of streamlining. The California-based automaker will reduce the option choices for the Model S by reducing the number of variants and colors available on its only production vehicle. Elon Musk made the announcement on the company's conference call with analysts earlier this month. Musk said: We've had to make some tough decisions on essentially having fewer versions of the Model S in order to streamline manufacturing and thus be able to ramp production better and have better control in logistics and not have like a million variations on the Model S. The dual motors, we're not going to produce the dual motor 60-kilowatt hour car at all. We're not taking additional orders for the performance 85. We're only doing the performance 85 dual motor and we're cancelling green and brown as colors. These are a few examples, but this helps us streamline the manufacturing and supply chain logistics and enables us to better ramp production. Additionally, there will no longer be an all-wheel-drive version of the 60-kilowatt-hour Model S. Tesla announced its third-quarter results earlier this month, saying it had a record-high 7,785 deliveries for the three-month period. By the end of next year, the company hopes to be knocking out 2,000 vehicles a week, which would put Tesla over the 100,000-annual-vehicle threshold. And with fewer colors to choose from, too.