1971 Volkswagen Karmann Edition Super Beetle Convertible on 2040-cars

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Recharge Wrap-up: Tesla details factory expansion; Ford and SunPower raise money for Sierra Club

Tesla has revealed the details of the upgrade of its Fremont, CA factory. One major change is the addition of a dedicated production space for the dual-motor P85D version of the Model S. Robots will be doing the battery installation on the Model S to save some time, and new export docks allow Tesla to get the cars out the door and on the way to their new owners more quickly. The new robots that move the cars around the factory have been named after X-Men characters, which makes our inner geeks smile. Check out the factory upgrade in the time-lapse video below and read more at Teslarati or at the Tesla Motors Blog. A program in Beijing for privileged registrations for EVs hasn't had much success. Of the 1,424 lottery winners, only about 30 percent went on to register an electric car despite a two-month extension of the deadline to do so. Buyers are likely discouraged by the lack of charging infrastructure, which the city hopes to ameliorate with the addition of 1,000 new charging stations by the end of the year, and by requiring new and renovated developments to set aside parking specifically for EV charging. Read more at Green Car Reports. The UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies suggests that laws designed to protect dealers and consumers are stymieing the adoption of EVs. Laws like the ones certain states have in place that block or otherwise restrict Tesla's direct-to-consumer business model are not helpful for companies that want to introduce new products to the market. They prevent companies from passing on savings to customers for whom they would likely make the difference in a purchasing decision. One possible solution would be to allow exemptions to certain selling restrictions for a certain number of vehicles sold. "This could give automakers the degree of control needed to work out kinks with early customers, develop scalable processes for supporting PEVs, and ensure that effective dealer performance standards are in place before handing the reins over to wholly independent retailers," according to UC Davis ITS. Read more at the UC Davis website. Volkswagen says its environmental program, called "Think Blue. Factory," is meeting the automaker's own sustainability targets. The main purpose of the program is to move toward eco-friendlier carmaking at each of its plants worldwide.

VW admits 430,000 2016 models have implausible CO2 ratings

Volkswagen finally explained more details about its CO2 rating scandal in Europe and admitted that 430,046 of the estimated 800,000 affected vehicles with "implausible" figures came from the 2016 model year. They included some from Audi, Seat, Skoda, VW, and VW Commercial Vehicles, according to the automaker's list (as a PDF). The problem mostly impacts diesel engines, but the inventory also shows some gasoline mills. VW will next determine the accurate CO2 emissions for these vehicles, and the German Federal Vehicle and Transport Authority will supervise that process to ensure the data's veracity. The automaker will also launch websites in Europe to let owners enter their model's VIN to check whether it's affected. Because governments there often link vehicle taxes and CO2 production, the company promises to work with regulators in each country to cover any fees that result from the inaccurate figures. VW announced the CO2 scandal earlier in November and estimated the equivalent of $2.2 billion to fix it at the time. A later report claimed that a group of engineers were responsible for fabricating the emissions data. They allegedly couldn't meet reduction goals from Martin Winterkorn, and between 2013 and this spring the workers did things like overinflate the tires during testing to achieve the desired results. VW is also closer to a fix in the diesel emissions scandal. According to an anonymous insider to Bloomberg, the company has a repair for the 1.6-liter engine that's reportedly neither very complex nor expensive. German regulators would still need to approve the solution before it could roll out to owners. Next step in clarifying the CO2 issue Affected Volkswagen Group models of the current model year have been identified Customers being informed via website Discussions with the authorities have begun The Volkswagen Group reports that the vehicles of the 2016 model year affected by the CO2 issue have been identified. There is thus now clarity about the new vehicles of the current model year out in the marketplace. On 3 November 2015, the Group had already reported that irregularities may have arisen in determining the CO2 figures for type approval of around 800,000 vehicles. This was identified during its own currently ongoing investigations and had been made public. The internal investigations into the current vehicles of the 2016 model year provide results for narrowing down the actually affected vehicles with implausible CO2 figures.

Volkswagen Cross Coupe GTE concept previews new midsize CUV... again

Volkswagen has taken a big step towards the long-awaited second model to be built at its Chattanooga, TN factory, introducing the two-row Cross Coupe GTE Concept at the 2015 North American International Auto Show. The relatively handsome two-row crossover borrows its basic styling language from the CrossBlue Concept that launched at the 2013 Detroit show (that we later had a brief chance to drive), and the CrossBlue Coupe from that year's Shanghai Motor Show. To be entirely frank, it just looks like a much more production-ready version of the Shanghai concept. The more aggressive elements of that model, like its rear taillights, rounded wheel arches, and aggressive front and rear fascias, have been toned down considerably. In other words, this concept almost wouldn't look out of place on the average road. Changes in the cabin are similarly minor, with the same basic design as the CrossBlue, complemented by a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and a 10.1-inch touchscreen display. While it's still quite clearly a concept car interior, it's not hard to imagine VW transitioning this cockpit into a production model. Riding atop the Volkswagen Group's MQB architecture – making it a relative, albeit distant, of cars like the VW Golf, Audi TT and the Euro-market Passat – the Cross Coupe GTE is motivated by a 3.6-liter VR6 that's been mated to not one, but two electric motors (one on each axle). The gas engine offers up 276 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque, while the front axle's electric motor generates 54 hp and 162 lb-ft of torque, and the rear can deliver a more robust 114 hp and 199 lb-ft of torque. That cacophony can be easily boiled down to this: the Cross Coupe GTE has a total system output of 355 hp and 280 pound-feet of torque, which is good enough to get the five-seater to 60 miles per hour in six seconds, on to a top speed of 130 miles per hour. As a plug-in hybrid, though, there's more to the Cross Coupe GTE then just its power output. Range plays a big role, and in that regard, this concept is fairly average. It can cover 20 miles when its 14.1-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery is charged up. Beyond that, the drivetrain can be set to a number of modes to optimize the behavior of plug-in-hybrid powertrain. In E-Mode, which can be locked in via a battery hold/battery charge mode, all 20 miles of range are available, although the Cross Coupe's driver will only have the 114-hp rear axle electric motor to work with.