Electric auto news

Official: Mitsubishi previews bonkers i-MiEV Evolution for Pikes Peak

No, that's not a Mitsubishi i-MiEV in a fat suit, it's the automaker's brand-new all-electric race car, and it's set to take on the 2012 Pike's Peak International Hill Climb in July. This isn't the first time we've seen an EV enter the Pike's Peak challenge - Nissan commissioned a Leaf for battle last year, a car that set the bar for all future electric racers.

Mitsubishi says that its race car, dubbed i-MiEV Evolution, uses the same motor, drive battery and other major components as the standard, bean-shaped electric car that we haven't quite grown to love. Aside from the additional bodywork, the chassis has clearly been lengthened and widened, and the race car now uses an all-wheel-drive configuration rather than the rear-wheel drive of the standard i-MiEV.

To give you an idea of just how big the racer is, a quick glance of Mitsubishi's specs show that the i-MiEV Evolution's dimensions are within a few inches of the stock Lancer Evolution. We wouldn't be surprised if the all-wheel-drive system was sourced from the Lancer, as well.

Mitsubishi will also be bringing two more of its EVs to the Pike's Peak event, including an i that has been updated with a more aerodynamic front bumper and new safety equipment, as well as a bone stock model. Scroll down for the official press blast.

Continue reading Mitsubishi previews bonkers i-MiEV Evolution for Pikes Peak

Video: Nissan Leaf ensures high-quality whisky from Isle of Islay

The Bruichladdich Distillery has been making artisan single malt Scotch whisky since 1881 on the Isle of Islay in the UK. As the southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides of Scotland, you may not expect the island's 620 square kilometers (239 square miles) to be the ideal habitat for electric cars.

Apparently, though, the Nissan Leaf works out quite well for Mark Reynier, managing director at the distillery. The island's inhabitants are also benefited, says Reynier, by Nissan's Power Control System, which allows the Leaf's high-capacity lithium ion battery to power other devices - important when a single storm can completely cut the island's link to the outside world.

Watch Reynier describe how the Nissan Leaf has improved his life and his distillery in the video below. And, if you're interested in other ways to use Bruichladdich's whisky as a biofuel, you can also watch James May run a Radical SR4 race car on the spirit in a separate video.

Continue reading Nissan Leaf ensures high-quality whisky from Isle of Islay

Video: Translogic examines the power of plug-in hybrids for commercial fleets

The crew at Translogic took the time to stop by and see the the team at ALTe Powertrain Technologies recently. Founded by a group of former Tesla Motors executives, the company focuses on building plug-in hybrid conversions for fleet vehicles. From creations like a Ford F-150 with a 2.0-liter gasoline engine and two 60-kilowatt electric motors to full-size delivery trucks, buses and vans, the company is focused on reducing fuel consumption on some of the largest and hardest-working machinery out there. ALTe says the F-150 conversion supplies up to 465 pound-feet of torque, which is more than the old 4.6-liter V8.

Most of the truck conversions come with 22-kWh lithium-ion battery packs, which yield 25-40 miles of all-electric range. From there, the four-cylinder kicks in to keep the batteries charged and the motors spinning.

ALTe says the company has focused on Ford conversions first, since the F-Series is the largest-selling pickup in the country. While E-Series and Panther-based creations are also on the docket, ALTe is also focusing on partnering with OEMs in China. Scroll down to check out the video for yourself.

Continue reading Translogic examines the power of plug-in hybrids for commercial fleets

Report: Ford C-Max pricing to undercut Toyota Prius V

Ford dealers have started taking orders for the 2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid, the company announced today.

The gas-electric hybrid will arrive later this year with a starting price of $25,995, undercutting its most direct competitor, the Toyota Prius V hybrid, which has a base price of $26,550.

"C-Max Hybrid offers better fuel economy, performance, technology and functionality than Prius V - and C-Max Hybrid customers will pay less at the dealership and at the pump," said Ken Czubay, vice president, U.S. Marketing, Sales and Service, in a press release.

More importantly, Ford will provide some stiffer competition for Toyota, which has ruled the hybrid market, selling 77 percent of all hybrids in the U.S. this April. The C-Max will only be offered in the U.S. as a hybrid, similar to Toyota's Prius strategy. There will also be an all-electric version, known as the C-Max Energi, that arrives this fall.

Ford sells the C-Max, which is built on Ford's compact car platform, in Europe as a gas powered model. Since introducing this utility vehicle in 2010, Ford has sold more than 150,000 C-Max vehicles in Europe.

Continue reading Ford C-Max pricing to undercut Toyota Prius V

Report: Leaked Fisker Atlantic documents reveal big production delay, specs

The Fisker Atlantic extended-range plug-in vehicle will start production about a year after its previously estimated mid-2013 date, Inside EVs blog reports, citing leaked company documents that were dated "a few weeks ago."

The Atlantic, formerly known as Project Nina, will compete pricewise against the BMW 3 Series and 5 Series sedans, as well as the Mercedes-Benz C-Class and E-Class, Jaguar XF and Audi A4 and A6. That would put the model in the $50,000 to $60,000 range, according to the publication. The model, which will still be produced at Fisker's Delaware plant, will have 300 horsepower, a 0-60 time of 6.5 seconds and emissions of 50 grams per kilometer of CO2, Inside EVs reports, citing the documents.

"As these documents are obviously leaked investor documents and highly confidential, I am not prepared to comment any further," a Fisker representative tells Autoblog sister site, AutoblogGreen.

The status of the Atlantic has been in question since plans for the former General Motors plant in Delaware were put on hold once the U.S. Department of Energy froze most of the $529 million in loans earmarked for the California-based company.

Fisker unveiled the Atlantic at the New York Auto Show last month, saying that the car's price tag would be "a much lower price point" than Fisker's Karma sedan.

Video: Mission Motors Mission-R electric motorcycle checks in to Jay Leno's Garage

The crew from Mission Motors took the time to stop by Jay Leno's Garage to give the comedian a peek at the Mission-R electric motorcycle. The machine uses 14-kWh lithium-ion batteries paired with a 120-kilowatt motor, which means there's around 161 horsepower on hand. Mission says the combination can get rider and machine to 60 miles per hour in around three seconds while scooting to a top speed of 160 mph. Not too shabby. The whole package weighs in at around 550 pounds and gives riders a range of 80-100 miles depending on how frisky they are with the throttle.

Mission says the company wanted to pursue a race bike because of the challenges the platform presents. Namely, the machine has to serve up impressive performance while remaining fairly lightweight, meaning there's little space for massive battery packs. Leno is no stranger to electric bikes or motorcycles. The guy has a stable of two-wheel machines, both internal-combustion and EV. Scroll down to check out the video for yourself.

Continue reading Mission Motors Mission-R electric motorcycle checks in to Jay Leno's Garage

Report: A123 Systems posts $125 million net loss

As you may recall, A123 Systems provides battery packs for companies like Fisker. The extended-range EV manufacturer recently reported issues with the supplier's products, but A123 says it has determined the cause of the defective cells and is working to make sure the failures don't reoccur.

The report also suggests A123 Systems will lower its revenue forecast for the year to $145 million to $175 million. The company originally projected it would generate between $230 million and $300 million.

Video: Rimac Concept_One shreds its custom Vredesteins

Go back a decade or so - before Koenigsegg, SSC and the Bugatti Veyron were on the scene - and the idea of a million-dollar, thousand-horsepower supercar that could break the three-second barrier to sixty would seem out of this world. Posting those kinds of figures with an electric car? No way.

Way. That's what the Rimac Concept_One is all about. It chews up Tesla Roadsters and spits them back out into the Silicon Valley from whence they came. The electric motors mounted at each wheel give the electric supercar 1,088 horsepower of thrust and a 2.8-second sprint to 100 km/h (62 mph). Range comes in at a claimed 372-miles. All yours (if you're one of the first 88 customers to call) for the low, low price of $980,000.

We could hardly believe it when we saw the show car in Frankfurt last year, and neither could the show-goers in Monte Carlo where it made its production debut. So to show the public that it was for real, Rimac put out this short video clip showing its Croatian creation laying down patches of its Giugiaro-designed Vredestein rubber on the tarmac. It's brief, but it's worth a watch. Scroll down below to check it out.

Continue reading Rimac Concept_One shreds its custom Vredesteins

Report: Toyota Prius Plug-In third fastest-selling car in America

The good people at Cars.com have slogged their way through sales data from April and found something interesting. The Toyota Prius Plug-In managed to walk away as the third quickest-selling car in the U.S., spending just five days on dealer lots. That figure was good enough to land it behind the BMW X3 and X5, both of which take four days to find a new homes. The plug-in hybrid has only been on sale for two months, and took the honor of being the second-quickest selling vehicle in March, according to Cars.com.

The report also took the time to look at the slowest-selling models around. Surprisingly, the Porsche Boxster sits at the top of that list, taking a whopping 250 days to turn. The 2012 BMW 6 Series isn't doing much better. The 650i Convertible took fourth place with an average of 128 days on the lot while the 640i Coupe rounds out the top 10 with 111 days. Perhaps even more shocking is the news that there are four vehicles selling slower than the Nissan Murano Cross Cabriolet at 120 days on dealer lots. Head over to Cars.com for the full report.

Report: Tesla posts $89.9M Q1 loss, Model S coming sooner than expected

It seems like we've been hearing about the Tesla Model S for a decade, but a report in Yahoo! states that the electric sedan is only a month away from production. That's about one month ahead of schedule, as Tesla is reportedly wrapping up crash testing fast enough to start making the hotly anticipated EV.

The Model S couldn't come at a much better time for Tesla, as the automaker just announced a first quarter loss of $89.9 million. The prospects aren't any better for Q2, but the second half of the year should be an entirely different story. Q1 revenue was only $30 million, and the first half revenue is expected to come in around $60 million. With the Model S around for the second half of the year, sales are expected to skyrocket into the $600 million range. Tesla plans to move about 5,000 units in 2012, even though the automaker currently has 10,000 orders in-hand.

Some of those 10,000 hand-raisers might have something more to get excited about, as Tesla announced that the top range Signature model, which features a 85-kWh battery pack, will be able to travel 320 miles on a two-cycle charge. That's 20 miles more than Tesla previously announced. The first 1,200 copies of the Model S will be Signature models with the largest-possible battery pack.