Recent Comments:
Tesla confirms Model S sedan, 225-mile range and $60k {Autoblog}
Jun 30th 2008 4:30PM Tesla is on the verge of wasting more free publicity than any company ever. No company has recieved more media attention for not having actually done anything of consequence. It is, as if, there is a 24 hour Tesla watch for news from a company that has made exactly 1 car.
Seriously, why does ABG and others dote over a kit car EV execution of an electric Lotus elise? How does it or the (oooh) whitestar displace petroleum, when they don't actually exist?
The amount of petroleum displaced by the one Tesla car is about equivalent to the amount of petroleum I displace since I retired my gas weed wacker with an electric one.
How about ABG spend more effort and ink to dig out the realities of the Nissan and Mitsubishi EV's?
GG Quadster defies classification {Autoblog Green}
May 25th 2008 10:49PM not at all green:
Aero - worse than small car (higher Cd), worse than motorcycle (higher area)
Rolling resistance - worse than small car (look at those tires) worse than motorcycle (4 instead of 2
This is only Autoblog material in that it entertains fantasy projects as if they were real or significant.
Hybrid sales at GM looking slightly less barren in April {Autoblog Green}
May 3rd 2008 11:18PM Sam -
I'll bet that GM is making money on each Tahoe/Yukon. Okay, we get it, the retail prices of the 2-Mode hybrid premium for the SUV is less than GM's total cost for the 2-Mode hybrid treatment. You know that from your work on the brakes for one of the GM hybrids. Got it.
But it takes a deeper analysis and some accounting details that we don't exactly know about to come to the conclusion that GM makes (or loses) money on a 2-Mode:
1) The actual transaction prices. What else is bundled with the 2-Mode hybrid on an average transaction? For the factory configured dealer ordered cars, a bunch of other high margin stuff, thats what.
2) How large of an incentive does it take to move a Tahoe or Yukon off the lot? How big of an incentive is on the hybrid? Last I checked there was a $2000 customer incentive to move a base SUV, but $0 customer incentive on the 2-Mode. Also, what we don't know is any dealer incentives that are out there. I am sure that GM is paying retailers plenty to move the base SUVs in this market. No need for extra juice on the hybrid.
3) Is the contribution margin (net revenue per sale minus the variable cost) on a Tahoe/Yukon 2-Mode positive? You would need to understand the fixed vs variable costs of the SUV to answer. The Tahoe/Yukon is probably a high contribution margin vehicle.
If, after all the actual revenue is added up and all the variable costs (parts an labor) are subtracted, then the contribution margin is positive. This means that every additional incremental sale will add to the GM coffers, since the fixed costs of engineering and tooling the 2-mode are at this time sunk and so only the variable costs matter.
You could argue that GM would be better off selling a non-hybrid SUV vs the 2-Mode, but you have to prove that someone who purchased a 2-Mode would have otherwise entered the showroom and bought a non-hybrid Tahoe/Yukon if there was no 2-Mode available. Slim chance - these hybrid buyers were more likely looking at Oddeseys and Highlanders, but realized that they could have more utilty, better mileage and some enviro-cred with the 2 Mode.
Working on a high margin vehicle for a full hybrid is a good idea for GM from the accounting standpoint, since it gives them the best chance to still make money, despite the high costs of the system.
Pelosi to EPA head on CA waiver denial: "I vigorously disagree with your rationale," "strongly support the inquiry" {Autoblog Green}
Dec 24th 2007 12:34PM All is a tempest in a teapot. It almost doesn't matter at all if you look at the difference between CAFE and CA inspred CO2 laws when it comes to actual fuel consumed.
All regulators Pelosi, Scwhartznegger, whoever, lack the real courage to raise gasoline taxes. They are probably just pissed that their lawmaking is entirely reducndant to another group of law makers.
The price of fuel affects the amount used way more than any CAFE law or CAFE Law in drag - the C02 proposed laws like the beloved CA AB1493. The price of gas is the actual reason why consumption went downin the late 70's and early 80s. Raise gas taxes and the consumption of fuel is curtailed for all vehicles, not just the 7% or so of all that are on the road that are new cars, subject to CAFE law.
Cheap gas will mean more driving, even if the cars get better mileage. Consumption will be up if fuel prices stay low.
Are GM and Toyota working on a hybrid together? {Autoblog}
Nov 28th 2007 7:37PM If toyota v8's had near the efficiency of GMs they would make and sell more. GM has the lowest friction lightest engines and have AFM. The are time with very late intake valve closing and run effectively as atkinson cycle engines. toyota has high friction engines and all 8 run all the time, regardless of load. as it is, toyota 8s are fuel hogs.
GM and Toyota to make a hybrid together? {Autoblog Green}
Nov 27th 2007 8:02PM I suppose this rumor was started by a toyota fan to somehow give people the impression that gms great 2 mode and bas hybrids come from toyota. gm has gone out of their way not to be a client of toyota (like ford or nissan). gms' 2 mode is superior and more costs less (way smaller motors, way smaller electronics, way lower voltage).
there is no way that gm would use a toyota hybrid system in any car they sell. why would they want to? they now are leading with the volt eflex system, which is a real plug in that runs at all speeds and power levels with the engine off. all toyota can muster is a conversion of a regular prius, no better than a hobby shop or home made conversion.
Are GM and Toyota working on a hybrid together? {Autoblog}
Nov 27th 2007 7:45PM no way is gm using toyota old hybrid technology on anything. they have the volt eflex system all to themselves. guess what - gm stopped their minivans to build the volt!
toyota is fighting the plug in all the way and only showing a paltry prius conversion wher the enigne goes on all the time, like driving at 50 mph or accelerating. they only are using nickel. not like gm's volt which is an all new car design specifically to with full performance all electric. the volt runs for a real 40 miles on new lithium batteries before the engine comes at all.
toyota doesn't want to make a new car and wants everyone to believe that hybrid are good enough.
The Truth About Cars: Hard-core EV freaks and eco-poseurs are going to love the Tesla {Autoblog Green}
Jun 17th 2007 9:27AM Siry,
Thanks - it's settled then, "greenscam" is both a verb and a noun!
The choice of 2 passenger car guarantees lots blog attention and no measurable effect. As far as credible goes, the whitepaper is a collegiate level techno-apology for why we should expect any kind of reliability or safety from thousands of laptop batteries strung together. (" People, I need 2000 words on laptop EV pack reliability by Tuesday, grammar counts!")
Well written , I will grant you that, well enough to keep investment coming. But no impedance, no circuit model, no circuit stability simulation results, no FMEA results, no thermal test data, no real anything. You could see how folks less vested in a positive outcome than yourself would see the greenscam in this.
If you are not in on the money, I am sorry to hear. But In the final analysis, a good moral compass would tell you it is better to be on the naive side of the greenscam than the money side.
Toyota delays launch of third-generation Prius {Autoblog}
Jun 16th 2007 11:17PM Here you go - http://www.evworld.com/news.cfm?newsid=9943 - all the way back after the big splash at the 2004 Auto show for the fulls ized Toyota HYbrid Truck.
Need any links to The Toyota Tundra hard engine failures? I can find them in a "snap"
The Truth About Cars: Hard-core EV freaks and eco-poseurs are going to love the Tesla {Autoblog Green}
Jun 16th 2007 11:04AM I am I the only one that thinks that Tesla is a marketing phenomena or darker? And after it all boils over, this is an AC Propulsion T0, (no cars really made) or a second gen 1999 EV1 (300 cars made, later killed, and a lot of cash burned (or buried).
Tesla is a rich man's toy as the centerpiece of a money-losing proposition - A limited-range, 2-seat car. Small market, not enough to 1) recoup costs or 2) have any real effect on FE.
With the controlled hype and blog amplification, Tesla is awash in money and accolades without doing much more than talking about a 10 year old proposition and some kit car level hobby work. If I had my hands on that cash and the liabilty of trying to fulfill the Tesla mirage, I would be looking at "vacation" property in Bolivia.
No societal benefits: 1) No technolgy contribution - an huge ungainly string of quick to deteriorate notebook batteries in a Lotus chassis. 2) Energy not really saved at all because owners use them as a hobby, not as transporation. Alternate hobbies without a Tesla include fly fishing or RC helicopters.
Being "Green" requires the credible potential for an actual measurable effect, doesn't it?
New vocab word for our age, "Greenscam": Pr campaigns and new business ventures capitalizing on well meaning, naive and gullible environmental/technical enthusiam in the old and the new media. See perpetual motion, and EV sportscars, "Hydrogen Economy".
