2017 Tesla Model X 75d on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Tesla Model S successfully hacked by Zhejiang University team

The $10,000 prize for successfully hacking a Tesla Model S has been claimed. A team from Zhejiang University in China claimed victory at the Symposium on Security for Asia Network (SyScan360) event in Beijing by exploiting a "flow design flaw," whatever that means, to gain access to vital systems including the door locks, horn and window controls, while the vehicle was moving.
The group that was able to hack a Tesla reported its findings to the electric car automaker, so this security breach will hopefully be fixed in short order. The event was welcomed by Tesla, which said it "[supported] the idea of providing an environment in which responsible security researchers can help identify potential vulnerabilities."
Last year, potential security pitfalls of high-tech electric and hybrid cars came to light when the US Defense Department's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (better known as DARPA) successfully hacked into hybrids from Ford and Toyota. Questions about the security of the Tesla Model S have been raised before. If you're wondering why all this might be such a big deal, we suggest you watch this.

Recharge Wrap-up: New "2-in-1" electric motor increases range, Gulf offers isobutanol blends

A new electric motor with integrated air-conditioning compressor increases the range of EVs in hot climates, where much of the battery power is used to keep the car cool. Developed by scientists at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore and the German Aerospace Centre, the "2-in-1" motor uses regenerative braking to help operate the AC compressor, and could increase range by 15 to 20 percent with some modifications. "By integrating the refrigerant compressor directly into the electric motor, we save components, weight and cost," says Dr. Michael Schier of the German Aerospace Centre. "Simultaneously, the more regenerative braking part of the kinetic energy is passed directly to the refrigerant compressor and thus the efficiency is further increased." Read more at Green Car Congress, and in the press release below. Elon Musk has been chosen as a Eurostar winner by Automotive News Europe. The publication chose the Tesla CEO for exceeding expectations in entrepreneurship, saying, "Musk has proved that he's capable of doing what seems impossible." Other Eurostar winners include Dieter Zetsche of Mercedes-Benz, Ralf Speth of Jaguar Land Rover and Marco Tencone of Maserati. Read more at Automotive News Europe. GreenTech Automotive has raised $47 million in a round of equity funding. The company, which was formerly run by Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, received the contributions from a total of 94 investors. GreenTech Automotive has plans to produce the small MyCar neighborhood electric vehicle at a newly built factory in Mississippi. The company also has a deal with Jianghuai Automobile Company to sell cars for the Chinese automaker in the US. Read more at Bloomberg. Gulf Racing Fuels will offer fuel blended with renewable isobutanol for marine use and off-road vehicles. The ethanol alternative is approved for sensitive environments, produces fewer emissions, is resistant to moisture and has a lower vapor pressure, making it suitable for boats and ATVs. Gulf will offer a new line of fuels with 16.1-percent isobutanol for these special applications. Gevo, the company supplying Gulf's isobutanol, produces the additive in biorefineries converted from ethanol facilities. Read more in the press release below.

Recharge Wrap-up: Panasonic, Tesla on Gigafactory deal?

Bentley has been awarded the Carbon Trust Standard for reductions of carbon, water use and waste production in manufacturing. The Carbon Trust is an organization that helps groups such as businesses and governments reduce carbon emissions, use of energy and resources, and waste output. From 2011 to 2013, Bentley reduced CO2 emissions by 16 percent per car manufactured, curtailed water use by 35.7 percent, and saw significant waste reductions. Darran Messem of Carbon trust says, "Bentley is clearly passionate about continuing to improve its environmental performance, which is reflected by the fact the company has consistently invested in new technology." Read more in the press release below. Chevrolet is giving 12 Volts to MBAs Across America. The organization will use the range-extended electric cars in its efforts to help MBA students learn from and work with small business owners. As part of the MBAs Across America program's first year, four students drove 8,000 miles to provide entrepreneurs with free business counseling. The program has expanded, and this year, teams of MBAs will use the Volts to travel to 25 cities to offer their services. Learn more about the partnership between Chevrolet and MBAs Across America in the press release below. A professor from the University of Michigan has found fuel cycle analysis to be too flawed to be relied upon for measuring CO2 impacts of transportation fuels. Professor John DeCicco of the university's Energy Institute feels that the flaws in calculating the carbon footprint of liquid fuel production and combustion make such lifecycle analysis impractical. He suggests, instead, to focus to carbon capture. Since capturing CO2 directly from a vehicle is probably never going to happen, DiCicco believes the solution is to capture carbon from the atmosphere in sectors outside of transportation. Says DiCicco, "Research should be ramped up on options for increasing the rate at which CO2 is removed from the atmosphere and on programs to manage and utilize carbon fixed in the biosphere, which offers the best CO2 removal mechanism now at hand. Such strategies can complement measures that control the demand for liquid fuels by reducing travel activity, improving vehicle efficiency and shifting to non-carbon fuels." Read more at Green Car Congress. Global transportation energy consumption is expected to increase by 25.4 percent by 2035, according to a report by Navigant Research.