Last September, Michelin and Maxion Wheels jointly presented a flexible wheel solution that features the tyre maker’s Acorus Technology. This solution has been adopted by French driverless vehicle specialist Navya for its autonomous electric shuttle bus, which is already on the roads in five cities around the world. The electric city shuttle is now making its debut in London.
The global electric vehicles market is estimated to grow of 28.3 per cent (CAGR) in volume from 2017 to 2026. According to a market research report by BIS Research, titled “Global Electric Vehicles Market – Analysis and Forecast (2017-2026)”, the demand for electric cars is increasing rapidly, with the global stock numbers crossing 2 million in 2016 after crossing 1 million in 2015. The surge is attributed to the substantial amount of investments made by the automobile manufacturers for the research, development, and deployment of electric vehicles. Mass production prospects have also led to a decline in the prices of the key components such as electric batteries, and technologies such as regenerative braking. In addition, the governments of different nations are providing tax benefits, and subsidies to fuel the production of EV’s. The government bodies are actively promoting the usage of electric vehicles in order to reduce high emission levels.
Two new Continental battery charging systems for electric vehicles will be presented at next month’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The first of these is an automatic wireless charging system and the second is known as AllCharge and aims to optimise the compatibility of cable-based systems.
With recent legislation aiming to banish non-electric vehicles from both showrooms and city centres (starting with Oxford, which wants them gone by 2020) car manufacturers are preparing for electric power to become the mainstream. Electric propulsion has emerged by consensus as the future of driving, rather than other alternative technologies such as hydrogen fuel cells.
In our August edition, this column examined how “the clocking is ticking for combustion engines”, which also means the clock is ticking for conventional tyres designed with combustion engine-centric vehicles in mind. Four months later, both points are true. However, there are also significant challenges facing this market development that also warrant our attention.
Two of the obstacles between the status quo and the electric vehicle car parc of the future are charging points and technological recall risk.
The UK new car market declined for an eighth consecutive month in November, according to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). 163,541 vehicles were registered, down -11.2 per cent year-on-year, driven by a significant fall in diesel demand.
Tesla has unveiled its electric Semi truck which has a range of 500 miles with a full 36.3-tonne load. It does 0-60 mph in 20 seconds with a full load, a task that takes a diesel truck about a minute. Without a trailer, the Tesla Semi achieves 0-60 mph in five seconds, compared to 15 seconds in a comparable diesel truck.
On Wednesday 15 November, the Driven consortium was given the chance to showcase its ground-breaking technology for the benefit of the Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer at Number 10 Downing Street. This was as part of an event held by the government to launch a series of measures to support the continued growth and success of the UK’s world-class tech sector.
The headline news from chancellor Phillip Hammond’s latest budget is that Stamp duty is to be abolished immediately for first-time buyers purchasing properties worth up to £300,000. Those first-time buyers purchasing properties over this amount won’t pay stamp duty on the first £300,000. However, there was less to say with regards to the automotive industry and business in general.
Nevertheless, the fuel duty rise for petrol and diesel cars scheduled for April 2018 has been scrapped. At the same time car tax for new diesel cars not meeting latest standards is to rise by one band next year. The good news for businesses reliant on deliveries is that this particular tax hike will not apply to van owners.
Ricardo experts will present a free webinar on how operators of commercial road-vehicle fleets can develop effective business strategies to implement electric vehicle (EV) technology.
Under a cooperative deal signed with Hyundai Motor, Michelin will work together to develop a new all-season tyre for electric vehicles, and will also collaborate in the development of a bespoke tyre for a successor model to the Genesis G80 saloon. Representatives from Hyundai Motor recently visited Michelin’s research and development centre in Clermont-Ferrand, France, to sign a technical partnership agreement.
Cenex – transport and energy not for profit consultancy – has been appointed by Cadwyn Clwyd, a Rural Development Agency, and Wrexham County Borough Council (WCBC), to determine the feasibility of installing electric charging points across the county of Wrexham. This project has received funding through the Welsh Government Rural Communities – Rural Development Programme 2014-2020, which is funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the Welsh Government.
At the beginning of 2017, it became government policy that all petrol and diesel cars must be off the road by 2040 causing quite a media stir. Click4Reg.co.uk investigated the impact of this bill on the popularity of electric cars, and sought to identify if electric charge points are growing at the same rate across the UK.
Motorway services and large petrol retailers will be required to install chargepoints for electric cars, under plans announced in the House of Commons on Wednesday, 18 October by transport minister John Hayes.
When vehicle manufacturers talk about the future, the talk centres more and more on electric vehicles, and the timetable for their introduction is increasingly specific. During the IAA show in Germany a couple of months back, several major car makers announced or reiterated plans to bring all-electric models to market by 2020. This means that OEMs, including tyre makers, are already busy with preparations.
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