News: Passenger Cars, Minivans, and SUVs

2020-09-27

Tesla Poised To Start the Engine…as Competitors Close In

Even though Tesla’s “Battery Day” was held Sept. 22, 2020, it didn’t produce the wildly exciting results that Elon Musk had promised would “blow your mind.”

Tyler Wiegert
Tyler Wiegert

During its event, Tesla unveiled plans to develop a “million mile” battery that could last an electric car’s entire lifetime on the road. It also outlined plans to dramatically reduce the cost of its battery cells and packs to $100 per kilowatt-hour, at which point experts believe electric cars will become comparable in price to combustion engine vehicles.

Bill Gates-backed QuantumScape, the first US battery company to go public in a decade, announced that it has overcome two major hurdles to create an all-metal lithium battery, which, if true, would allow electric vehicles to go up to 50% further on a single charge. Those hurdles were metallic lithium’s propensity to explode when it comes into contact with liquid and its needle structure that has historically punctured plastic separators between electrodes and caused shorts.

Read More»

2020-08-23

ANFAVEA Negotiates To Postpone PROCONVE P8 in Brazil

With the problems caused by COVID-19, ANFAEA is lobbying to postpone the introduction of PROCONVE P8 – an emissions regulation that will make the Brazil emissions level similar to Euro VI.

Fabio Ferraresi
Fabio Ferraresi

ANFAVEA argues that the postponement is needed because of delays in testing and engineering development caused by COVID-19. The level of investment necessary also has increased.

Source: Automotive Business     Read The Article

PSR Analysis:  The Brazilian government is not likely to approve the postponement and the deadline date of 2022 probably will be kept. It is important to Brazil to be current in terms of emissions as Brazil is a hub of production for South America, and the ability to export will be jeopardized if the level of production technology declines.  PSR

Fabio Ferraresi is Director Business Development South America for Power Systems Research

Higher Octane Gasoline Offered in Brazil

Fabio Ferraresi
Fabio Ferraresi

The new specs as per ANP 087/20 resolution determines the minimum density of 715 kg/m3 and minimum octanes of 92 RON. In January 2022, it will be 93 RON. The Ethanol mix was kept in 27% for regular gasoline and 25% for premium gasolines.

Source: UOL     Read The Article

PSR Analysis: With the use of Ethanol in the mix, Brazil gasoline specs get closer to Europe and USA. The goal is to improve the consumption 6% and reduce failures in engines. This may reduce barriers for imported engines and reduce the cost of “tropicalization” of engines.

Fabio Ferraresi is Director Business Development South America for Power Systems Research

BMW Production Plant Scheduled for Kaliningrad

Maxim Sakov
Maxim Sakov

The launch of new plant with full production capabilities for BMW SUVs is planned for July 2021. According to Kaliningrad officials, the new plant is one of the most important investment projects in the regional processing industry. Autotor holding makes up a significant part of the regional production.

Officials said the enterprise is one of the largest employers and taxpayers in Kaliningrad region. Construction of the plant building is underway, and machinery installation will be started in January 2021. The first car is expected to be produced in July 2021.

Read More»

Indian Government Allows Registration of EVs Without Batteries

In a bid to promote electric mobility in India, the Indian government now permits sales of EVs without a battery. This step has been taken to reduce the upfront cost of EVs, since the most expensive component in an electric vehicle is the battery pack (which accounts for 40% cost of the total cost).    Read The Article

Aditya Kondejkar

PSR Analysis: We anticipate that electric 2 and 3-wheelers will be the first segments to benefit from this move. This move by the central government will support the FAME-II program and the Delhi government’s latest EV policy, aiming for 5 lakh registrations of EVs in 5 years.

As the upfront cost of the electrical 2 and 3 wheelers will be lower than their ICE counterparts when registered without battery, it will be more attractive to consumers. However, implementation will be critical for the success of this move. As lack of infrastructure was one of the key reasons for customers not opting for EVs.

Read More»

Taiwan Audi Teams with Noodoe To Create EV Charging Plan

To continue to promote the deployment of electric vehicles in Taiwan, Taiwan Audi officially entered the pure electric vehicle market at the end of 2019 and launched the “E-tron Future” reservation project.

Erik Martin
Erik Martin

To meet the pure electric future, Taiwan Audi has joined hands with strategic partner Noodoe to accelerate the deployment of Taiwan’s charging network. Evaluating home charging station installation and a cloud-based charging operating system paired with Taiwan Audi’s charging solution aims to realize a pure electric mobile life.

From north to south, Taiwan spans only about 500 kilometers.  At the same time, the main population centers are concentrated in the seven largest metropolitan areas. These cities–while clearly defined–are connected by a comprehensive road network that provides excellent advantages in the development of electric vehicles. Audi has been actively promoting the deployment of electric vehicles in Taiwan since last year. It is expected to introduce the first electric vehicle model ─ Audi e-tron – before the end of 2020 with a battery life of 417 kilometers (WLTP). Through the 150kW fast charge mode, it can be charged in 30 minutes to 80% power.

Read More»

How Does Market Brace for Low Speed EV Impact?

By August 12, after 20 days of product launch, SGMW’s MINI EV will hit a sales record of 15,000 vehicles, making it the world’s fastest car model reaching the threshold of 10,000 units.

Source: D1 EV      Read The Article

Qin Fen
Qin Fen

PSR Analysis: Consider BYD’s electric bus, SGMW’s MINI EV, as well as premium car brands like Tesla: These traditional and emerging automotive OEMs are reformulating rules of the auto game, with their own proprietary technology. 

As a matter of fact, it’s not just the automotive market that needs to brace for the impact of electrification, the off-road market also is trending toward electrification.  The changing markets include passenger car, light commercial vehicle, medium and heavy duty vehicle, forklift, and lawn mower. Will this wave continue to expand to other off-road applications?  How much more will it change the rules of the game?     PSR

Qin Fen is Business Development Manager for Power Systems Research

2020-08-16

Taiwan Audi Teams with Noodoe To Create Pure Electric Living Space

To continue to promote the deployment of electric vehicles in Taiwan, Taiwan Audi officially entered the pure electric vehicle market at the end of 2019 and launched the “E-tron Future” reservation project.

Erik Martin
Erik Martin

To meet the pure electric future, Taiwan Audi has joined hands with strategic partner Noodoe to accelerate the deployment of Taiwan’s charging network. Evaluating home charging station installation and a cloud-based charging operating system paired with Taiwan Audi’s charging solution aims to realize a pure electric mobile life.

From north to south, Taiwan spans only about 500 kilometers.  At the same time, the main population centers are concentrated in the seven largest metropolitan areas. These cities–while clearly defined–are connected by a comprehensive road network that provides excellent advantages in the development of electric vehicles.

Read More»

2020-07-26

Hyundai Plant Can Produce 300,000 Car Engines Annually

Hyundai VIA has begun construction on an auto engine plant near St. Petersburg.

Maxim Sakov
Maxim Sakov

The enterprise initially plans to make 240,000 engines per year. Then, the capacity will increase, and the plant will make 300,000 Gamma I engines of 1.6 liters.

The project has been established under a special investment contract. The investors “injected” US$185 million  (13.1 billion Rubles) into the project. The plant will bring about 500 jobs to the city.

Test launch of the plant is planned in Q1 2021, and mass production is scheduled to start in October 2021.     Read The Article

Read More»

Hyundai Exports Fuel Cell Trucks To Europe

South Korea’s Hyundai Motor announced on July 6 that it has begun exporting commercial hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) to Europe. The company shipped 10 trucks to Switzerland, and it plans to export 1,600 units by 2025 using a long-term lease contract system.

Akihiro Komuro
Akihiro Komuro

Hyundai has set up a joint venture company to build a hydrogen infrastructure in Switzerland; it also plans to develop hydrogen stations and other infrastructure in cooperation with a local company. They plan to use Switzerland as a base for expanding their exports throughout Europe.

The South Korean government is also focusing on the spread of the hydrogen-based society and will appeal to the governments of other countries. The trucks exported this time will be used by the food distribution industry. The route for these trucks is fixed, making it easy to set up the infrastructure for refueling.

Read More»