Category Archives: Personal Automobiles

Fuel Cell Vehicles

Posted on September 4, 2013 | 2 comments

Like the tide, going in and out and so does the Fuel Cell Vehicle favorability.   Right now favorability is pretty well in the tank, but not completely.  The city of London is installing hydrogen (H2) fueling stations with the objective of encouraging their use.  California has a similar program, as does Germany.

Some of you may not be familiar with fuel cell cars because they have been  out of the spotlight recently.  The following is an overview of  the  fuel cell and the fuel cell car.   The cartoon below pictures most of the hardware needed.

Fuelcellcarforblog

Courtesy of http://www.imageproduction.nl

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Posted in Alternative Energy, Batteries, Electric Vehicles, fossil fuels, fuel cells, Personal Automobiles, Renewable Energy

July EV Sales Down But Still Some Hope For 100,000 Sales By Year End

Posted on August 3, 2013 | Leave a comment

July sales for the leaders, Chevy Volt and Nissan Leaf were off compared to their June sales.  The Volt sold 1,788 in July versus 2,698 in June.  The Leaf sales were 1,864 in July versus 2,225 in June.

The table below shows the models having sold more that 1000 vehicles year-t0-date.  (Tesla would be in this table but they only report sales quarterly.)

MODEL JULY SALES YEAR-TO-DATE SALES
Nissan Leaf 1,864 11,703
Chevy Volt 1,788 11,643
Toyota Prius Plug-In     817   5,035
Ford  C-Max Energi    433   2,915
Ford Fusion Energi    407  1,991
Ford Focus Electric    150  1,050

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Posted in Batteries, CAFE Standards, Electric Vehicles, fossil fuels, Green Jobs, Personal Automobiles, US Auto Manufacturers

Price Cutting Gives A Sales Boost To The Volt And The Nissan Leaf

Posted on July 2, 2013 | Leave a comment

GM’s Volt June sales rebounded to 2,698 in June from the reported May sales of 1,607 resulting in year-to-date sales of 9,839. The increase is being attributed to the incentive programs that have lowered the Volt’s price.  It is estimated that there is a one hundred day inventory of Volts at the dealerships.  GM says that it will continue to offer the incentive programs for at least the month of July; no doubt to get the inventory down before the introduction of the 2014 model.

Nissan’s Leaf June sales of 2,225 were slightly better than the May sales of 2,138.  No doubt last months lowering of the price has helped the Leaf.  The year-to-date sales for Leaf are 9,855.

Honda’s Fit EV sales were 208 in June.  Fit EVs sales for the first five months  only  totaled 83.  Honda offered a very attractive lease program last month on the Fit EVs which seems to have been major factor behind  increased sales.  Nissan says they still have a sizeable inventory of Fit EVs.  The Fit EV is available from 200 dealers.  One per month per dealer average, it looks like.

Ford is not having much luck selling their Focus EV with year-to-date sales of 880.  However, the Ford Hybrid has sold 8,177 units in the first 5 months of the year.

cbdakota

h/t Detroit News’ Business + Autos Section.

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Posted in CO2, Domestic Energy, Electric Vehicles, fossil fuels, Green Jobs, Personal Automobiles, US Auto Manufacturers

May 2013 EV Sales Update and Price-Cutting Is The New Normal

Posted on June 21, 2013 | Leave a comment

Yes, I am really late in posting this info.  None-the-less, here is the data.

Nissan Leaf had a big May selling 2,138 vehicles. Their second best month all time behind March’s 2,236 Leafs sold.  Year to date sales are 7,614.

Volt May sales were 1,607 with year to date sales of 7,157 putting Volt in second place behind the Leaf.

It is reported that Chevy dealers have more than 9,000 Volts in inventory.  With the 2014 soon to be in the show rooms, the dealers need to sell the 2013 model inventory.

Price-cutting going on across the board

Fewer sales than needed and California’s requirement that all major makers must offer a minimum number of “zero emission vehicles” are pushing the manufacturers to cut prices.

Nissan reduced the price of the Leaf by 18%, or $6,000, when it launched a new, stripped-down model at the beginning of the year.

The Detroit Bureau.com says:

A California buyer can now purchase a Chevrolet Volt for as little as $28,495.  The base price for the plug-in is $39,995 but all buyers qualify for $4,000 off on a 2013 model and $5,000 off for a 2012 Volt. They also can get an extra $1,000 if they are currently leasing a non-GM vehicle. Meanwhile, the federal government provides a $7,500 tax credit while the state kicks in another $1,500.

Chevrolet also is now reducing lease pricing for the Volt to $269 a month for 36 months, with a $2,399 downpayment. 

Recently, a posting maintained that GM had to sell the Volt for about $75,000 to break even.  How long can they keep the Volt line going at this rate?

Detroit Bureau also reports that the Honda Fit EV’s will reduce the lease pricing from $389 to $259 a month, and customers will no longer face mileage limitations.

Clearly the price-cutting reflects the lack of enthusiasm by the US population for these vehicles.   The manufacturers of the vehicles are likely to be operating at a loss on each car.  The government (and thus the average tax payer) is spending a lot of money on an idea that is not showing signs of capturing the public’s imagination.

cbdakota

 

 

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Posted in Batteries, Electric Vehicles, Environment, EPA, fossil fuels, Government Regulations, Personal Automobiles, US Auto Manufacturers, US Manufacturing Companies

Steep Depreciation Rates For EVs A Serious Problem

Posted on June 21, 2013 | Leave a comment

According to the National Automobile Dealers Association the used plug-in electric vehicles depreciate at a 30% rate that is the highest depreciation of any vehicle segment in the American automotive market. For other vehicles, according to Carsdirect.com: “New cars depreciate about 20% the moment you drive them off the lot.”   Then the depreciation is about 15% per year for the second and third year and less in subsequent years.

TheDetroitBureau.com says:

“The steep rate of depreciation for used plug-in electric vehicles can be attributed to limited range, manufacturer incentives and federal tax credits intended to offset the higher prices of new plug-in electric vehicles,” said Jonathan Banks, executive automotive analyst for the NADA Used Car Guide.

If the forecasted decline continues, it could be a serious problem for both manufacturers struggling to boost demand for their latest plug-in hybrids and pure battery-electric vehicles, as well as federal and state government officials who have been using financial incentives to help promote the technologies.

 Another ominous sign for the EV business.

cbdakota

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Posted in AGW, Alternative Energy, Batteries, CAFE Standards, Electric Vehicles, fossil fuels, Government Regulations, Personal Automobiles, Renewable Energy, US Manufacturing Companies

EV Charging Station Co. Better Place Files For Bankruptcy.

Posted on May 28, 2013 | Leave a comment

Better Place joins the ranks of electric vehicle (EV) business to declare for bankruptcy.  Better Place had planned to develop a prototype EV battery-swap operation in Israel.  A network of stations were installed that would allow the EV owner to replace the battery with a new one in about the “same amount of time it takes to fill a gasoline tank on a regular car”. The idea was to remove range anxiety.  Israel was thought to be an ideal place because driving distances are relatively short.

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Posted in AGW, Batteries, Electric Vehicles, Environment, fossil fuels, Government Regulations, Middle East Resources, Personal Automobiles

CONGRATULATIONS!! Some Rich Californian Thanks You For Helping Pay For His New Tesla

Posted on May 27, 2013 | 2 comments

Now the Tesla is a sweet looking car with some impressive stats.  Perhaps not as good as advertised, see this posting, but still right up there with the best.
teslamodelcimages
 And while you may not be able to afford one—early models went for over $109,000 and the new S model goes for about $70,000—some people, wealthy ones anyway, are buying them.  Tesla sold an estimated 9,650 S models by the end of April this year. Things are going so well that Tesla made a profit in the first quarter.

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Posted in AGW, Batteries, carbon tax, CO2, Electric Vehicles, Energy Development, fossil fuels, Government Regulations, Government Revenues, Personal Automobiles, Renewable Energy, US Auto Manufacturers, US Manufacturing Companies

Chreos Electric Car Claims 640hp And 620 Mile Range!!

Posted on May 2, 2013 | 1 comment

Silex Power located in Malta claims they will build an electric car,  powered by  batteries, when fully charged, will have a range of 1000km (620miles), develop 640 horsepower, attain road speeds of 186mph, and to top that all off, it can be recharged in 10minutes.  The concept car looks good, see below:
chreos2013-Silex-Chreos-by-Racer-X-Design-in-black

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Posted in AGW, Alternative Energy, Batteries, Electric Vehicles, fossil fuels, Green Jobs, Personal Automobiles

Volt & Leaf April Sales

Posted on May 1, 2013 | Leave a comment

It would appear that the Leaf’s Tennessee manufacturing facility is having a positive effect on sales.  In April the Leaf sold 1,937 vehicles versus Volt’s 1,306.    Year-to-date sales are Leaf = 5,476 and Volt = 5,550.  Very close with the Leaf sales really picking-up in the past two months.
The Green Car Report is estimating Tesla Model C sales in April at 2250 to 2500, making it the biggest seller.  Tesla does not report monthly sales so this figure is subject to change.
For the other plug-ins in the sales race,  The Green Car Report offers the following:
Tiny Battery Cars
As for the Mitsubishi i-MiEV, a flurry of sales in January and February that averaged almost 300 cars each month ended in March.
April sales of 127 cars improved on the dismal March number of 31 cars sold, but it remains unclear if the electric minicar will remain above its historic rate of about 50 cars a month.
Finally, either this month or next, the 2013 Smart Electric Drive–the lowest-priced plug-in car in the country–will go on sale, adding to this year’s totals as well.
 
Plug-in hybrids: chugging along
The Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid was last year’s second best-selling plug-in car, but it’s been on a downward trend this year.
In April, just 599 were delivered, for a year-to-date total of 2,952. That’s the lowest monthly sales number since the very first month the plug-in Prius went on sale, in March 2012.
The 2014 Honda Accord Plug-In Hybrid logged 55 deliveries in April, more than its total of 45 deliveries in the three months since it went on sale in January. Sales are rising as Honda cautiously rolls out its first-ever plug-in hybrid vehicle in California.
Sales are looking up but Obama’s 2011 State of The Union target of 1,000,000 EVs on the road by 2015 wont be achieved.  Obama has since backed off on that promise, but just for the record , I post it again to remind you how “hopey changey”  fades in the face of reality.
cbdakota

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Posted in Alternative Energy, Batteries, Electric Vehicles, fossil fuels, Green Jobs, Personal Automobiles, US Manufacturing Companies

Electric Vehicle March Sales Update And Other News

Posted on April 4, 2013 | Leave a comment

The Nissan Leaf had it biggest ever sales month in March when it moved 2,236 cars.  The increase was attributed in part to a reduced sales price.  It sells for $28,800.  The  Chevy Volt sales were down 35 % compared to February. Total March sales were 1,478.  The Detroit News reports that the Tesla Model S was the best EV seller for the first quarter:
“ The high-end Model S, which after a Monday announcement will start at about $62,400 after federal tax credits, registered 4,750 deliveries, topping the second-place Volt, which had 4,244 sales through March.  Nissan sold 3,539 Leaf vehicles during the first three months of the year and Toyota Motor Corp. had sold 2,353 of its Prius plug-ins.”
Tesla has decided to quit selling the short range S model that is equipped with the 40kWh battery that is said to have a range of 160 miles.  Only 4% want it over the S Model equipped with the 60 kWh battery that is said to have a range of 230 miles. The 85 kWh battery model is said to have a range of up to 300 miles on a single charge.
The Detroit News cites a Japanese survey that finds that about 1/3 of the current owners of EVs wont buy another. The reasons:
A new report from researcher McKinsey and Co. found that about one in three electric-vehicle buyers felt “seduced” by the prospects of low energy costs, attractive subsidies and good test-drives, but became less enthusiastic about electric vehicles when faced with issues like higher electric bills and lack of charging stations
Renault’s new all-electric car, Zoe, has an advertised range of 130 but Motortrades Insight says:
“British drivers are not expected to warm to the new Renault Zoe, an all-electric city car, after Renault today revealed it can only achieve 60 miles in cold weather and 90 miles in normal conditions.” 
Apparently if you buy the Zoe,  you rent the battery. Motortrades Insight adds:
“Drivers will also have to pay between £70 and £93 every month to ‘hire’ the car’s expensively-manufactured batteries, with Renault replacing them when they become worn out.”
Probably everyone by now has heard that Fisker has laid off all its US workers and will soon file for Bankruptcy.  Autobloggreen says:
“Kirkland & Ellis is advising the California-based maker of the extended-range plug-in Karma for a potential bankruptcy filing, which hasn’t produced a car in about eight months and is losing interest from two prospective China-based buyers. Fisker declined to comment to Reuters.
 cbdakota

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Posted in AGW, Alternative Energy, Batteries, Electric Vehicles, Green Jobs, Personal Automobiles, US Auto Manufacturers