The long-simmering confrontation between South Korea and Japan has affected all sorts of relationships between the two countries. While mostly peaceful over the last few decades, there remains some bad blood between the two countries. A new rule that the South Korean government will soon introduce could bring the disagreements to the electric vehicle market.

According to the Japanese newspaper the Yomiuri Shimbun, starting on July 1, South Korea will begin to regulate goods that have lithium-ion batteries. South Korea and Japan are two of the world's biggest li-ion battery makers, and the new rule "could in effect shut products using Japanese-made lithium batteries out of the South Korean market," the Yomiuri wrote. Exactly how the li-ion products are supposed to get the certification the South Koreans are requiring isn't exactly clear, one Japanese government official told the paper. How EVs might be affected is also unknown at this time. U.S. products will be exempt from the regulation starting in October.

[Source: Yomiuri via Green Car Congress]

For the last two months in Japan, hybrid vehicles from either Honda or Toyota have actually managed to outsell all other vehicles, regardless of what's powering them. Here in the States, though, Honda is reporting that it's unable to sell as many Insight hybrids as it had hoped. What's up with that?

According to Earth2Tech, the issue is with incentives. It seems that Japan has both wide-ranging subsidies to spur the sale of fuel efficient vehicles along with harsh penalties in the form of expensive fuel for choosing gas guzzlers. Here in the U.S., there may be similar programs in place, but they are not nearly as beneficial to highly fuel efficient vehicles.

For instance, hybrids like the Honda Insight and Toyota Prius are completely tax free in Japan. In contrast, U.S. tax rebates for hybrids have been all but completely phased out due to the seemingly arbitrary 60,000 limit for incentives per hybrid vehicle manufacturer.

When it comes time to sign on the dotted line, it would seem that relatively inexpensive fuel in the U.S. and a general lack of federal incentives mean that hybrid vehicles just don't pay back their increased sticker price quickly enough for most consumers in the States to justify their purchase.


[Source: Earth2Tech]

Just as they have in most other countries, car sales in Japan have gone in the dumpster. Now, the Japanese government is considering new incentives to at least stimulate sales of greener cars. The new program would provide cash back ranging from $1,000-3,000 depending what is purchased. Buyers of fuel efficient mini-cars that meet certain emissions and efficiency criteria would be eligible for the minimum rebates. Larger vehicles and hybrid and electric vehicles could get as much as $2,000 back. Those who opt to trade in a car that's at least 13 years old would get back an extra $1,000 in Japan's version of cash for clunkers.

[Source: Nikkei via Green Car Congress]

Mitsubishi didn't need a survey to find out if Lawson likes the iMiEV. The Japanese convenience store chain has ordered 150 of the electric jelly beans to replace some of its commercial vehicles starting in the summer. The Yomiuri Shimbun reports that this might be the first step in Lawson's electric shift: all 1,500 Lawson vehicles will probably go electric "in the future." An even bigger deal is that Lawson is considering installing electric vehicle chargers in its parking lots. There are about 8,000 Lawsons in Japan, and the availability of public charging stations could quickly become a non-starter with that kind of infrastructure. Lawson's "corporate social responsibility" platform includes carbon-reducing efforts and collecting donations for a tree planting campaign.


[Source: Yomiuri Shimbun via EVWorld]

Japan's in just as tough a financial position as any other industrialized country in the world. With an aging population and a dwindling sum to pay out social security, the Japanese government is working on new taxing schemes to bring in extra revenue. Unfortunately, that's a tough sell in an economy that's being pinched from every direction. The Japanese automakers have also been seeing slower sales in their home market for the last several years. In an effort to spur sales of eco-friendly automobiles, the government is considering halting duties on these green machines. Currently, all cars are taxed with a five percent surcharge along with an additional amount based on the weight of the vehicle.

Another proposal currently on the books would tax corporations - including automakers such as Toyota, Honda and Nissan - based on how much carbon dioxide they release into the atmosphere. For the first time ever, a majority of major enterprises in Japan have said that they would favor this type of taxation.

[Sources: Forbes, Mainichi Daily News]

A few bits of news from the Better Place electric vehicle juggernaut today.

One, Israel's first electric parking lot has opened at Cinema City in Pi-Glilot. Pictured above is Better Place Israel CEO Moshe Kaplinsky with one of the Renault vehicles plugged into the station. So, how does the Better Place battery-swap idea fit in with these charging stations? There is an interesting tidbit in this Guardian article that says that Better Place "expects a lithium-ion car battery to last for 106 miles. Given Israel's small size, the company expects relatively little need for changing batteries." Let's just note for the record that Better Place is OK with not swapping the packs. (The Guardian says the first charging station in Israel is located by a shopping center in Ramat Hasharon, near Tel Aviv.)

The second announcement is that Better Place will join with Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd., (i.e., Subaru) and "other Japanese carmakers" for a electric vehicle project in Japan (guess the rumors were true). For now, Better Place is building a battery exchange station in the city of Kanagawa for the Ministry of Environment. The government project will start in January and last "three to six months."


[Source: Better Place]

Deliveries of the US-spec FCX Clarity took place back in July and since then plenty of celebrities and excited hydrogen fuel cell advocates have been leasing the vehicles in Southern California. Honda has long planned to also offer the FCX Clarity in Japan, but it wasn't until today that anyone there has been able to take one home. Well, sort of. The first delivery in Japan was to the Ministry of the Environment, which previously had the original FCX fuel cell vehicle. In Japan, Honda will only offer the FCX Clarity to "governmental agencies and certain corporate entities" for the foreseeable future.

This limitation does not mean that Honda thinks that only the Japanese government should get an H₂ vehicle. In fact, Honda is promoting the FCX Clarity with an introduction event aimed at children. I'm sure all hydrogen fuel cells skeptics will have a field day with this bit from Honda PR:

The event ... provid[ed] children an opportunity to learn more about environmental issues, dream their own dreams of advanced technology, and experience the wonder of the FCX Clarity by seeing and touching the actual vehicle. This experience also encouraged children to take a step ahead of adults and envision a more environmentally responsible future, one in which the first automobile they drive will be a fuel cell vehicle.

Indeed.

[Source: Honda]

America got its first look at Audi's new Q5 mid-size SUV during the recent Audi Mileage Marathon. Those examples were powered by the company's 3.0L V6 diesel engine. So far there is no word from Audi on when or if Americans will ever be able to buy a Q5 TDI. For the moment the only Q5 powertrain confirmed for the U.S. is the 3.6L gas V6. When we got a preview of the Q5 in Germany last April, Audi officials discussed another possibility, a hybrid. Plans to introduce a hybrid version of the larger Q7 are on hold in part because Audi engineers are not satisfied with the performance of nickel metal hydride batteries, particularly in cold weather. We were told a Q5 hybrid with a lithium ion battery is likely to appear sometime around 2010-11 and that will probably be the first Audi hybrid in North America. The Nikkei is now reporting that the Q5 hybrid is expected to be introduced into Japan in 2012.

[Source: Nikkei, via Green Car Congress]

Most people are under the impression that trains are a reasonably green sort of transportation. When used in a city to move people about, the environmental benefits seem pretty obvious. Fewer cars are needed on the roads, decreasing congestion and electric trains are more efficient and create less air pollution than their automotive brethren. But apparently that's not good enough for some folks in Kagoshima, Japan. They realized if they placed some midori (green) around and under the train tracks, not only could they improve the appearance of their town but also reduce the heat island effect caused by acres of concrete and pavement. In the newscast discussing this development a reporter takes a temperature reading while standing on the asphalt street of 62.6 degrees Celsius (143.96 Fahrenheit). Moving over to the grass, the temperature drops to a much more reasonable 35 degrees C (95 F). So far they've done just under 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) but hope to green about 9 Km (5.5 miles) by 2012. The effect on the people of the city seemed positive. The one comment the reporter received from a woman about the improvement that we could understand without an interpreter said it looked beautiful. We agree. Thanks to B.T. for the tip!

[Source: Japan Probe]

While Nissan/Renault has been very helpful to Project Better Place in Israel by offering to supply electric cars that will work with their recharging and battery swapping service, its cooperation with PBP may not be extending to its homeland of Japan. Not only has Nissan undertaken its own investigation to decide what business model is best suited for the island nation (Like the "Project," they are looking closely at the battery-lease model as a way to keep the initial vehicle purchase price low), its already begun putting together a consortium of companies to deal with everything from batteries to real estate.

Nissan, as well as Mitsubishi and Subaru, are also participants in a project sponsored by the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. This electric vehicle promotional effort, said to continue until 2015, will involve charging station testing, examine different insurance models, and attempt to get the public on-board.

Though there was talk of Project Better Place making a go of it in Japan, facing competition from its partner on their home turf will probably persuade them to concentrate their expansion efforts on some other island. Click the "read" link for more details.

[Source: Globes]