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Recharge Wrap-up: Schaeffler 48V mild hybrid Audi TT, Georgia Power charging stations

Schaeffler will test a 48-volt mild hybrid system in the Audi TT. A lithium-ion battery powers an electrified rear axle, which supplements the power provided to the front wheels from the internal combustion engine. The system includes a belt-driven starter generator also running on 48 volts. The car has driver-selected Sport and Eco modes, the latter of which maximizes all-electric driving at low speeds for increased fuel economy. The rear axle can also support the front when more traction is needed. Sport mode wrings out every bit of performance from both the internal combustion and electric motors, with torque vectoring between the rear wheels offering extra stability. Read more at Green Car Congress, or in the press release from Schaeffler. A man has built a near-life-size replica of a Tesla Supercharger out of Legos. Robert Turner's ode to the charging station stands at 42.5 inches tall (which looks impressive standing next to a real Model S), and took over three months to build. Turner showcased his Lego Supercharger at the Brickworld Chicago Lego convention, and he goes into more detail about the painstaking process of forming his creation out of tiny plastic bricks in a video interview. See the Lego Supercharger and read more at The Brothers Brick. Georgia Power is opening 11 new EV charging stations around the state. The charging islands – which are located at various Georgia Power locations – offer DC fast charging with CHADeMo/SAE Combo plugs as well as Level 2 208/240-volt chargers. Customers can pay with either a Georgia Power or ChargePoint card. These first chargers are part of a larger plan by the utility to roll out 61 charging islands throughout Georgia by the end of 2016. See a list of locations and learn more in the press release below. Georgia Power opens 11 new EV charging islands First phase of statewide public charging infrastructure completed ATLANTA, Sept. 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Georgia Power announced today that the company will open 11 new electric vehicle (EV) charging islands to the public on October 1. The new charging islands, located at Georgia Power properties across the state, mark the completion of the first phase of planned charging infrastructure being developed by the company which will include approximately 61 community charging islands for public use statewide by the end of 2016.

Tesla's Musk Paid $70,000 Salary In 2013

Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk was paid just under $70,000 in 2013. But he could be in line for much, much more. According to a Tesla filing with regulators Thursday, Musk made a base salary of $33,280 in 2013. That was the minimum he was required to make under California law. He got an additional $36,709 in company bonuses. Tesla says Musk, the billionaire founder of PayPal and rocket-building company SpaceEx, only accepts $1 and returns the rest to the company. Musk could someday rake in much more from the company he helped found in 2003. Under a compensation package approved in 2012, Musk was awarded options to buy nearly 5.3 million shares of Tesla stock at $31.17 each. The stock closed Thursday at $207.86, making those shares worth about $900 million. The plan is supposed to compensate Musk over a 10-year period, but only if the company meets performance goals. Musk can't exercise all the shares, for example, unless Tesla's shares reach a total value of $43.2 billion. The company's shares are currently worth $25.6 billion. Musk would also have to meet milestones for production of Tesla's planned Model X electric SUV and its Generation Three vehicle, which will cost around $35,000. Right now, Tesla only makes the Model S sedan, which starts at $70,000. Tesla said in its filing that some incremental stock value goals have been achieved, but the operational milestones, while probable, have not been reached, so none of Musk's shares have vested. Related Gallery Tesla Model S Wins Coveted 'Car Of The Year' Awards

Tesla adds free titanium underbody shields to Model S to prevent fires

Following a garage fire incident with a Model S EV last year, Tesla Motors quickly sent out an over-the-air software update to adjust how the car charges. Following two on-road fires caused by road debris that struck the underside of different Model S EVs (one in Washington State and the other in Tennessee), Tesla basically said, that it was a random thing, and the car is perfectly safe. The company later sent out a software update to have the car ride a bit higher at highway speeds. Today, Tesla is offering a more substantial solution. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced that all Model S EVs built since March 6 have a stronger triple underbody shield that should "bring this [fire] risk down to virtually zero." The company conducted 152 tests using, "every worst case debris impact we can think of, including hardened steel structures set in the ideal position for a piking event, essentially equivalent to driving a car at highway speed into a steel spear braced on the tarmac" and is now confident that there's basically nothing that can break through the new barriers. As you can see here, the shields prevent a concrete block, a three ball tow hitch and a steel alternator from puncturing the car's underside. The new shields should "bring this [fire] risk down to virtually zero." Any Model S owner who wants the new triple shield can ask for it, and even if they don't ask, the structure will be installed whenever the car is next in for service. The three layers of the shield include a rounded, hollow aluminum bar, a titanium plate and "a shallow angle, solid aluminum extrusion." The new shields, "only have a 0.1 percent impact on range and don't affect ride or handling," Musk writes, which means there's no reason for Model S owners not to get the upgrade. You can read all of Musk's explanation below. Tesla Adds Titanium Underbody Shield and Aluminum Deflector Plates to Model S By Elon Musk, Chairman, Product Architect & CEO In 2013, two extremely unusual Model S collisions resulted in underbody damage that led to car fires. These incidents, unfortunately, received more national headlines than the other 200,000 gasoline car fires that happened last year in North America alone. In both cases, the occupants walked away unharmed, thanks to the car's safety features. The onboard computer warned the occupants to exit the vehicles, which they did well before any fire was noticeable.