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Not too long ago we reported that German tuning house RUF was preparing to unveil an all-electric Porsche Cayman . Today, RUF has shown their Tesla-fighter is in fact a Porsche 911 . The concept is fueled by 96 lithium-ion battery packs weighing a total of nearly 1,200 pounds; despite the weight, the 204 HP electric motor uses its 480 lb-ft of torque to hit 60 MPH in under 7 seconds. Looking at the battery layout in the images below, it appears RUF balanced the weight as best they could, but that's a lot of ballast to haul; we're wondering how handling will be affected. More stats after the jump. galleryPost('rufelectric911', 9, 'RUF Electric Cayman Morphs Into Electric 911'); RUF claims that, despite the battery heft, the electric 911 will hit nearly 140 MPH and, "driven normally," should have a range between 155-180 miles. "Driven normally" is a big caveat, however: Normally for a Porsche or normally for a Taurus? Either way, we're all for...
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We just caught the Nissan NuVu , a concept that, as we said earlier , is meant to reveal the next generation styling of the next Nissan Micra. Frankly, the concept's as cute as its name (a play on words meaning "New View" as in "a new view on the Micra"). The interior is just as bubbly as the exterior, with the "2+1 seating arrangement" apparently designed with midget strippers in mind — it comes complete with a mini-stripper pole and a "double-dong" steerng wheel. We're sure hoping the Micra ends up with both in the final production version. OK, maybe not. Also, we're told this little bubble-topped concept's got an electric drivetrain. Does this mean the next Micra will see the Nissan electric engine slide under the bonnet? Only time will tell. Check out the full press release (again) in all its enormity, below the jump. galleryPost('NissanNuvuLive', 9, 'Nissan Shows An Askew View Of The Next Micra'); NUVU: RESHAPING...
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It wasn’t until I crashed into a pile of boxes and luggage that I realized riding a motorcycle — even a completely silent electric one with no emissions — around my Brooklyn apartment was a bad idea. I’d been attempting to do a burnout, but the painted concrete floor didn’t have enough grip for the Quantya Strada ’s front tire and plenty for the rear, resulting in a wheelie. Compounding matters was the bar-mounted back brake that sits where the clutch lever normally does. When I went slip the clutch to bring the bike back in line, the brake just tossed me into the boxes. The nice thing about riding a bike in your apartment is that, while you might do irreparable damage to all of your and your friend’s worldly belongings, you probably won’t hurt yourself too badly. galleryPost('quantyastradadrive', 15, 'Quantya Strada Street-Legal Electric Motorcycle'); Never mind the Chevy Volt , never mind the Tesla Roadster , never mind the Dodge ev revealed in concept yesterday. None...
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It wasn’t until I crashed into a pile of boxes and luggage that I realized riding a motorcycle — even a completely silent electric one with no emissions — around my Brooklyn apartment was a bad idea. I’d been attempting to do a burnout, but the painted concrete floor didn’t have enough grip for the Quantya Strada ’s front tire and plenty for the rear, resulting in a wheelie. Compounding matters was the bar-mounted back brake that sits where the clutch lever normally does. When I went slip the clutch to bring the bike back in line, the brake just tossed me into the boxes. The nice thing about riding a bike in your apartment is that, while you might do irreparable damage to all of your and your friend’s worldly belongings, you probably won’t hurt yourself too badly. galleryPost('quantyastradadrive', 15, 'Quantya Strada Street-Legal Electric Motorcycle'); Never mind the Chevy Volt , never mind the Tesla Roadster , never mind the Dodge ev revealed in concept yesterday. None...
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In an interview with a German newspaper, BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer has confirmed that a small city car is being developed to cope with future European and American regulations for fuel economy and pollution. But we're talking about more than just an electric Mini here. This will be an entirely new vehicle which will come with either a "very efficient combustion engine" or a pure electric powertrain. Of the standards it will meet will be a California regulation which mandates fuel cell or battery-powered vehicles to have a range of over 200 miles by the year 2012. But the burning question is, what will the car be called? The first thing that pops into our head when we hear talk of a small BMW city car that's completely different from the rest of the range is "Isetta," and that's said to still be a possibility. It would certainly be a more appealing name than 0-Series. BMW has had plenty of retro small car experience with the Mini brand, but a more forward...
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The thorn in Tesla's side, the troubled single-speed transmission for its all-electric Tesla Roadster , has finally been approved for production, and with it comes an announcement of more power and better range. After durability problems with the original single-speed transmission, Telsa was forced to used a two-speed cog swapper for production. But now, after re-sourcing the business to transmission mega-star Borg Warner, the redesigned single-speed is ready to go and offers big benefits. Because of the additional capability in the transmission, the peak torque has been raised from 211 lb-ft to 280 lb-ft; a heady number considering peak torque arrives at zero rpm with an electric motor. Despite the higher output, the EPA estimates show a 10% increase in range. That's a pretty neat trick. Complete details below. Tesla Motors Selects BorgWarner for Production of New Gearbox for Tesla Roadster Deliveries of 27 Roadsters Completed to Date, Production and Delivery of Roadsters To Accelerate...
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newVideoPlayer("/ZAPhack.flv", 494, 410,""); As further evidence that all ZAP Xebra electric vehicle owners are complete dorks, we have this video of a ZAP owner showing us how to get the most out of the little 3-wheeler. Along with some cosmetic changes, this guy replaced the copper wiring with a thicker gauge cable and increased the voltage by adding another battery. Now his ZAP-amino can actually go up hills! And if the wind is just right, it can hit a top speed of 45 MPH, about 7 MPH faster than a stock model. (We apologize for the video's soundtrack.) [via Autoblog Green ]
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Not content to wait for the major automakers to show up with their expensive Chevy Volts or Electric Cubes , regular folks are home-brewing their own electric vehicles. While the results you get with golf-cart batteries aren't quite the same as what you get with, say, Li-Ion batteries (usually just 20 to 40 miles on an overnight charge), we doubt there's any other way to get yourself an electric-powered Honda Del Sol. One Atlanta man spent $12,000 converting his Chevy S-10 pickup — not exactly a gas-guzzler to begin with — to cruise on all-electric for 40 miles with a top speed of 60 MPH. While this might not be the most cost-effective way to lower the price of commuting, it's a fun project for those looking to go green and who aren't interesting in taking the easy way out by buying a Tesla or waiting for something else. Anyone have a donor BRAT and a cache of golf cart batteries? [ CNN.com , Photo: Flickr ]
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A new study by the Institute of Transportation Studies at UC-Davis reveals only one-third of US car buying households have both the necessary charging infrastructure and the desire to purchase a plug-in electric hybrid. The comprehensive study, designed to determine more about the early plug-in market, found that most consumers know very little about plug-in hybrids or think that existing hybrids on the market are already plug-in capable. But, it's not all bad news for lovers of the slide toward electrics. Aside from the consumer education challenge, one curious conclusion in the study was "just more than half the population of US households that buy new cars has the potential to recharge a vehicle at home with at least 110-volt service. This is 1.5 to 3 times larger than prior estimates." We thought that if you had the capability to purchase a new vehicle, you probably had 110-volt electrical service, so either amperage loads and outlet availability were factored into the...
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We've told you about Nissan's new electric concepts . Now the trendy technicians over at Popular Mechanics have actually flown to Japan to drive the electrified Nissan Cube , the EV-02, and lived to tell the story. The lithium-ion battery-powered box on wheels is said to be just the start of Nissan's big li'l electric vehicle efforts, but how does current concept impress? [ Popular Mechanics ] galleryPost('cubeEV02', 3, 'Electric Box');
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Paris's Mayor, Bertrand Delanoe, has announced the installation of a massive electric car-sharing scheme in his city. Autolib takes its cue from the city's successful Velib bicycle-sharing system and will make up to 4,000 electric cars available at stations located throughout Paris, allowing users to rent one on the spot and return it elsewhere, charging them a per-mile rate. There will be about 700 pick up/drop off/recharge locations scattered throughout the city and its suburbs. Autolib will be open to any legal driver who registers with the service. Despite opposition from France's Green Party, which wants to eliminate car use in the city altogether, Delanoe is aiming to have the system up and running by late 2009 or early 2010 and says that it will reduce congestion, the battle for parking spots and pollution. Vive la France! [via Channel 4 ] Image Courtesy: Eley Kishimoto
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News of Shelby SuperCars' intention to build an electric version of its record breaking SSC Ultimate Aero TT leaked out yesterday prompting the company to make the news official. The company expects the SSC Ultimate Aero EV to be ready by late next year, saying that it will initially feature a 500 HP electric motor and revolutionary batteries capable of holding their charge for "years." Additionally, the vehicle will use a 6-speed transmission and once the first model is out, they'll be exploring ways to fit two of the motors into the engine bay, resulting in a 1000 HP model. It's tempting to call shenanigans on this, but when you've made the world's fastest car, beating huge German companies in the process, you suddenly gain a lot of credibility. SSC are keeping additional details hush hush, but click through to read their full performance claims. West Richland, WA (July 18, 2008) Shrouded in mystery and secrecy, SSC (www.shelbysupercars.com) has announced...
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After making the fastest production car in the world, the SSC Ultimate Aero TT , Shelby SuperCars is now planning to make the world's fastest electric car. The Ultimate Aero EV will be based on the company's current Aero, but with the 1183 HP V8 replaced by an electric powertrain. The electric driveline would consist of either a 500 HP electric motor, or a 1000 HP setup using a pair of motors, possibly driving all four wheels. So where are they gonna get the juice for that sort of power? SSC claims they're working on a revolutionary power source that allows for up to several years between charging. We're assuming that they mean several years of actual use, and not just sitting around. Because, you know, we can put some fuel stabilizer in our car, park it, and not have to fill up for a while too. So, is this vaporware or soon-to-be-reality? Jalopnik Snap Judgement : Everyone thought SSC was full of crap when the company announced they made the fastest car in the world, but...
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Following word this morning the production version of the Chevy Volt will be shown in September, we hear the rocking-down-electric-avenue Lutz-mobile will also be featured in Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen . Although there's no official word if the Volt will actually be a Transformer, but given its guts and looks, it's just begging to become some kind of electric-themed Autobot. The Volt would join the Trax and the Beat as not-yet-available Chevy vehicles featured in the movie. Jalopnik Snap Judgement : This may be the reason why they're hurrying up the production look of the car. They've got to beat set filming times, right? [ Reuters via TFW2005 ]
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We knew the Tesla was a popular car among the famous, like Matt Damon , but it seems the 225-mile range $60,000 ride is becoming the feel-good car among the rich too. Greenwich, Conn., a city known for old money, is apparently the new hotspot for Tesla wannabes. Tesla recently brought a vehicle to a Greenwich hotel to allow potential owners the opportunity to take a quick test drive, yielding predictable results. What makes this vehicle ideal for the wealthy? It's comparatively expensive, has decent power, and it's a lot less common than the average Ferrari. More importantly, it helps the rich feel better about themselves. Says one moneyed onlooker: "We're in a wealthy area," Patrick added, "so, while gas prices aren't as much of an issue, you can still feel like you're fulfilling your green responsibility and reducing your carbon footprint with a car like this." [ Greenwich Time via CG ]
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