2022 Tesla Model Y Long Range Dual Motor All-wheel Drive on 2040-cars

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Recharge Wrap-up: Mazda, Subaru and Toyota PHEV, Nomadic Power grant

The next generation of the Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid looks to be important for Mazda and Subaru as well. Toyota will likely need to sell more of the new plug-in hybrid to meet stricter ZEV standards in California. That means it will get more extra electric range, as customers have been asking for. Subaru and Mazda will also have to adhere to the California standards beginning in 2018. Those two smaller automakers will likely license a plug-in hybrid powertrain from Toyota in order to fulfill compliance. Read more at Green Car Reports. Tesla is partnering with Dalhousie University to improve battery technology. Tesla signed a five-year research agreement with Dalhousie's Jeff Dahn, a lithium-ion battery researcher. Dahn and the 25 researchers in his lab will work with Tesla's Director of Battery Technology, Kurt Kelty, to increase capacity through improved materials. The collaboration could be important both for Tesla's automotive and stationary batteries. "Our research group's goal is to increase the energy density and lifetime of Li-ion batteries, so we can drive down costs in automotive and grid energy storage applications," says Dahn. Read more from Dalhousie University. Nomadic Power is receiving a European Commission grant worth ˆ2 million (about $2.26 million) for trailer-mounted mobile batteries. Nomadic Power's mobile batteries, called Nomads, have incorporated photovoltaic systems and can be used to extend the electric driving range of a plug-in vehicle, or to provide backup power to a home. The Nomads use an intelligent energy management system to learn and predict user behavior and manage the solar system based on weather forecasts. "We see a strong future in electric-powered mobility and an increasing use of renewable energy, photovoltaic power in particular," says Nomadic Power CEO Dr. Manfred Baumgaertner. "Our mobile batteries have great potential in these markets that recently got a significant shot in the arm by Tesla's announcements." Read more from Nomadic Power, and at Green Car Congress. Related Gallery 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In: First Drive View 24 Photos News Source: Green Car Reports, Dalhousie University, Green Car Congress, Nomadic PowerImage Credit: Nomadic Power Government/Legal Green Mazda Subaru Tesla Toyota Technology Electric recharge wrapup

Elon Musk wants to build an Internet in space

The next James Bond film is called Spectre; if the villainous mastermind driving that Jaguar C-X75 isn't named Elon Musk, we'll want to know why not. The real-life Musk isn't evil so far as we can tell, but we gotta say he's just as ambitious as Ernst Blofeld ever was. While opening a SpaceX office in Seattle, the face of Tesla said that the engineers and software programmers in the Pacific Northwest outpost will be working on "a global communications system that would be larger than anything that has been talked about to date" on top of their Falcon rocket and Dragon capsule duties. Musk's idea is that hundreds of satellites in low-Earth orbit would get information around the world much faster, and be provide better Internet service for "people in sparsely populated areas." Once the folks in the terrestrial hinterlands are taken care of, Musk envisions the network providing the foundation for a satellite network that would provide Earth-to-Mars communications to the Mars-based colony that the SpaceX CEO expects will wear company branding. The idea isn't new - one of Musk's peers is working on the same concept, backed by Qualcomm and the Virgin Group. But Musk says that OneWeb, the competitor, has a different concept for the underlying architecture and that his satellites would be "an order of magnitude more sophisticated." If you're trying to figure out what the area code to Mars is, you're way ahead of things: Musk says the terrestrial satellite system won't be ready for at least five years. And since the average distance to Mars is 140 million miles, it'll probably be a few years after that before you can shoot a text to the Spirit and Opportunity rovers. Related Video: News Source: BloombergImage Credit: AP Photo/Paul Sancya Green Tesla Technology Mars satellite communications

Tesla tires turning on Stretchla Vanagon EV conversion project

It is one thing to say you are going to Frankenstein a Tesla Model S with a pair of Siamese-twinned Volkswagen Vanagons and quite another to actually start taking your newly-acquired, smashed-up electric sedan apart in an effort to bring it back to life. Otmar Ebenhoech is doing just that, and having no small successes along the way. The Stretchla project, as it is being called, has officially started and our protagonist has put together another bit of video to document his progress and let us know about some of the different challenges he's encountered and conquered. While our original post about this endeavor featured video of the stretched Vanagon's drivetrain removal, this latest installment focuses on the Model S. Otmar received the Tesla in less-than-operable condition. Otmar received the Tesla in less-than-operable condition and has been tackling some of the basic problems one might expect to encounter: lots of error messages and an electrically disconnected battery pack. Without the aid of a manual or technical diagrams, he's removed the battery pack and discovered why it wasn't sending power to the car. Scroll below to watch the ten-minute presentation and celebrate some initial victories. You can also check out the official Stretchla blog for more photos and updates, including the most recent one that discusses how he talked himself into paying (*spoiler alert) $42,000 for a wrecked, non-functional electric car, along with more recent struggles with the steering rack. Hit us up in the comments to let us know what kind of trouble you would get into with a Model S drivetrain of your own. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.