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Transit bus OEM Gillig has delivered six Battery Electric buses to the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA), which serves Charged’s home city of St Petersburg, Florida—the first deliveries under a 5-year contract with Gillig for 62 Battery Electric buses. Each of the 40-foot buses sports 686 kWh of onboard energy storage. PSTA’s investment also includes

Porsche is working on a mid-cycle update for the current 992-generation 911, and a prototype for the 911 GT3 variant has been spotted. The refreshed track star will receive the mildest of tweaks, one of which will be a fully digital gauge cluster. A redesigned Infiniti QX80 will be launched for the 2025 model year.

EcoPro BM, a South Korean cathode materials company, has won a 5-year, $33.4-billion (43.87 trillion KRW) contract to supply high-nickel NCA cathode material to battery manufacturer Samsung SDI. The contract runs from 2024 through 2028. The sales unit price for the actual transaction will be determined by applying the price of raw materials (nickel, cobalt,

Duplicitous doublespeak has become de rigueur dialect in the auto industry. “We remain committed to an all-electric future,” says GM as it announces a rollback of its electrification plans. “We strongly believe in EVs,” say auto dealers as they support efforts to slow the EV transition. “The greatest responsibility for us as a company is

Porsche is working on an update for the current 992-generation 911 range, and the latest prototype to be spotted is for the 911 Targa. Referred to internally as the 992.2 generation, the updated range should get mild styling tweaks, a revised dash, and a hybrid powertrain for some grades. The prototype for the Targa shows

As electrification takes hold in all the legacy automakers, the topic of upgrading existing powertrain test facilities is a high priority.  Whether it is converting traditional Internal Combustion Engine testbeds to support E-Powertrains or upgrading older battery lab cyclers to support higher voltages and powers, fitting in new test equipment, and supporting the new energy

Sodium-ion batteries have long been touted as a possible successor to the lithium-ion kind—they may have lower energy density, but they rely on more abundant sodium rather than lithium, perform better in cold temperatures, and above all, tend to be cheaper. Now, after years of anticipation, cars equipped with sodium-ion batteries have begun rolling off

Automakers often discuss modular architectures that can be used for multiple models, but a newly surfaced Ford patent filing takes the concept of modularity to another level. The application, which was published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on Jan. 2, and originally filed on Apr. 28, 2021, essentially describes building an

US school bus manufacturer Blue Bird and sustainable investment company Generate Capital have formed Clean Bus Solutions, a joint venture (JV) designed to meet increasing demand for electric school buses.  Blue Bird recently opened its 40,000-square-foot EV Build-up Center, designed to enable the company to increase its electric school bus production capacity to as many

Ford and home automation company Resideo Technologies have announced a joint V2H simulation project called EV-Home Power Partnership.  The project involves pairing the bidirectional EV charging of Ford’s F-150 Lightning with a Resideo smart thermostat to explore the potential of the EV batteries to optimize home energy management, reduce customer electricity costs and relieve strain

Porsche is about to introduce an update to the Taycan, and included in the updated range will be a new flagship variant. Thought to be called a Taycan Turbo GT, Porsche this week revealed that the new variant laps the Nürburgring almost as fast as Rimac’s Nevera electric hypercar. 2024 Mercedes-Benz EQS 580 4Matic Mercedes-Benz

The trucking industry has a serious driver shortage, and operators are exploring all kinds of ways to improve driver recruitment and retention. Meanwhile, trucking industry trade groups are fighting tooth and nail against electrification. They might be surprised to learn that deploying EVs could be a major hiring advantage, because drivers love them. In a

One’s a three-row midsize SUV under $60,000; the other’s a compact hatchback that starts in the mid-30s. Now we’ve driven both. Choosing “best of” or “most important” new cars is always dicey, and doubly so with electric vehicles. New entries are announced virtually every month, and picking the 2025 models that will be most important

The redesigned 2025 Mini Countryman that debuted last fall is now just months out from reaching showrooms in the U.S. It’s slated to start sales in May and will be available with the choice of gas or electric powertrains. Mini has previously confirmed E and SE electric grades for the U.S., plus a high-performance John

Versinetic, a UK smart charging consultancy, has launched three new products: the Remora PLC Module, BalanSea software and White Label Installer App. The Versinetic Remora PLC Module is a new EV charging communication solution that meets ISO 15118-3 and DIN SPEC 70121 standards. The HomePlug Green PHY (HPGP) powerline communication (PLC) module offers versatile interfaces.

When it comes to electrifying by the magic date of 2030, automakers talk a great game—but if you want to know which companies are serious about electrification, look into which ones are lining up supplies of critical battery minerals. According to a recent report from Transport & Environment (T&E), automakers in the European market have

Mini is out testing a prototype for a new addition to its lineup, and the reduced camouflage gear compared to earlier test vehicles suggests the debut is coming up shortly. The prototype is for an electric subcompact crossover that will be positioned below the Countryman which has grown into a compact vehicle for its 2025

California-based EV charging software developer WeaveGrid and Spanish EV charging equipment supplier Wallbox have partnered to expand North American Wallbox owners’ access to utility-managed charging programs, beginning with Xcel Energy’s Charging Perks Program in Colorado. The program optimizes residential EV charging times to align with low power grid demand and high availability of renewable energy

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) will delay enforcing some of the registration and reporting provisions of its Advanced Clean Fleets regulation, which had been scheduled to take effect at the end of 2023. Under the rule, drayage fleets and other “high-priority” fleets had until December 31 to register any legacy combustion-powered trucks operating at

Maserati last summer launched a track-only version of its MC20 supercar in the form of the MCXtrema, but it isn’t the first time the automaker has treaded down such a path. Back in 2006, Maserati took the covers off the MC12 Versione Corse, a track-only version of the V-12-powered MC12 supercar. Just 12 were built,

US-based vehicle electrification system supplier HummingbirdEV has provided 393 electric mining vehicles powered by its EV technologies under a licensing agreement with Keshi Group, a China-based manufacturer of coal mining vehicles and equipment. They are now in operation in Chinese mines. The vehicles have payload capacities of between 16,000 and 30,000 lbs. They include HummingbirdEV’s

Toyota Motor North America is expanding its battery recycling network with Cirba Solutions, a battery recycling materials and management company. The agreement expands Toyota’s battery recycling network and optimizes its logistics network for end-of-life lithium-ion battery collection from Midwest and East Coast regions, including those from hybrid and battery EVs. Processing will take place at

Porsche has managed to clock a Nürburgring lap time of just 7:07.55 with a version of its Taycan electric sedan, the automaker said on Tuesday. Porsche didn’t say what version of the Taycan set the time, though it is thought to be a new range-topper forming part of an updated Taycan range expected on sale

German mechanical and plant engineering firm Dürr Group has expanded its range of production technology for battery electrodes. Following its acquisition of French mechanical engineering company Ingecal, Dürr can now supply calendaring systems for coating lithium-ion battery electrode foils. Dürr has also partnered with US-based LiCAP Technologies, which provides engineering in activated dry electrode technology.

In a recent Charged webinar, Dave Schaller, Industry Engagement Director at the North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE) presented 10 electric truck case studies—real-world examples of how companies are benefitting from deploying EVs. The 10 examples cover a wide variety of use cases, including one that’s often cited as the perfect use case for

The Bugatti Chiron reset the hypercar bar and costs millions of dollars. As a special car, it and the other extraordinary cars that come out of Bugatti’s factory in Molsheim, France, don’t just get ordinary paint jobs. Each car features eight layers of paint and more than 600 hours of hand-finishing, according to a Bugatti

Zeon, a Japanese chemicals corporation, is preparing to build a Li-ion battery binder production line via its subsidiary Zeon Chemicals at its Texas plant. Zeon expects the new facility to be operational by 2026. Zeon’s Li-ion battery binders include anode, cathode, functional layer (for separator coating) and sealant binders and materials for battery cells. Zeon’s

IoTecha, provider of a smart charging platform for EVs, and Hager Energy are collaborating on charging products to power Volkswagen EVs. Volkswagen’s recent announcement of bidirectional charging support for its new ID. models (and existing models through an ID. software update) and availability of a vehicle-to-home (V2H) solution with Hager Energy’s DC home power station

Current Formula 1 engines generate up to 1,000 hp from just 1.6 liters of displacement, and now Engineering Explained has video breaking down the details that make that possible. Technically, Formula 1 cars have “power units,” not “engines,” as the 1.6-liter turbocharged V-6 is just one part of a hybrid powertrain. Since 2014, F1 has

For auto dealerships, adding EVs to their offerings requires some effort—and some substantial cash outlay. Automakers including Ford and GM are giving their dealers a choice—make the necessary investments in training and charging infrastructure, or don’t sell EVs. Akins Ford in Winder, Georgia, the largest dealership by volume in the state (as reported by Georgia