Important Innovations

$50 Billion Fiat Chrysler & PSA Peugeot Merger Combining to Share Electrification and Autonomous Technology Investment Costs On Wednesday, December 18, 2019 Fiat Chrysler and PSA Peugeot are expected to announce that they are merging the two global automotive companies.  The tie-up will create a $50 billion entity that will produce 8.7 million cars a year.  The combination will create the world's fourth largest automaker after Toyota, VW and the Renault-Nissan alliance. Source:  Fiat Chrysler Jeep Assembly Line PSA Likely in the Driver's Seat PSA Group CEO Carlos Tavares is expected to be the CEO of the new entity.  He's known as a cost cutter and brand turnaround expert at the French based PSA. He led Nissan America and has extensive knowledge of the US market.  Fiat Chrysler Chairman John Elkmann, whose family founded Fiat in 1899, is expected to be Chairman of the combined organizations. Electrification This merger is a strategic move

Ultimate Electric Car Source:  Ferrari SF90 Stradale Hybrid  Ferrari's Hybrid:  Their Most Powerful Car Ferrari is going all-electric.  CEO Louis Camilleri told reporters he anticipates the all-electric Ferrari will come out sometime around 2025.  It's coming in a few years because Camilleri says the battery technology isn't where it should be yet, including the need for faster recharging.  He also wants advanced autonomous systems.  Camilleri sees the advanced technology coming together to create Ferrari's first all electric car by the mid-2020's. That is a major statement about the future of electric cars including in the industry's highest performance category. Ferrari Now Focused on Hybridization Ferrari's newest model, the SF90 Stradale, is the company most powerful car ever.  And, it's a plug-in hybrid.  The vehicle packs 986 horsepower, reaches 60 mph in 2.5 seconds and has maximum speeds of 211 mph.  Ferrari is focusing on

Revolutionary New Electric, Self-Heating Battery Source:  Penn State University Recharges in 10 Minutes with Up to 300 Mile Range The future of driving green and emissions free is electric.  Now a team of engineers at Penn State University has invented a new battery to make that future a lot closer and more doable.  Their new lithium-ion battery can be charged in ten minutes, self-heats and provides a driving range up to 300 miles.  They envision this being done at local service stations with electric charges for EV's. Revolutionary New Tech This new battery is revolutionary.  It can be recharged over and over again for up to 500,000 miles of travel.  That's a big deal.  Some lithium-ion batteries rapidly degrade based on ambient temperatures.  This battery overcomes current limitations.  The Penn State team has installed nickel foil on the batteries, eliminating lithium plating. The nickel warms quickly through resistance to 140F. That triggers rapid charging bu

Toyota Mirai Driving on Hydrogen Power Toyota is making a bet that the preferred fuel of the future is hydrogen.  They just unveiled their 2021 Toyota Mirai concept design.  The 4-door sedan is powered by hydrogen and has enough room inside to accommodate five people. Taking Its Own Road Toyota is going a different direction than its major global competitors which are placing their bets on electric battery powered big vehicles like SUVs and trucks.  Toyota will start selling the hydrogen powered vehicles in late 2020.  It adds that it will ramp up production ten fold for what it believes will be a very popular mass market, four door sedan. Not Putting All Its Eggs in One Technology Basket For Toyota, electric vehicles are also in its mix, although it does have some concerns about the electric vehicle market.  Namely, Toyota worries about the uncertainty of consumer demand and the technical challenges of extending battery range and cutting recharging time.  Nonetheless, Toyot

Toyota & Suzuki Invest in Each Other to Develop Electric and Autonomous Technologies Source:  Toyota New Global Example of the Rules of the Road to Innovation Toyota and Suzuki are taking small equity stakes in each other.  The purpose, according to the Japanese automakers, is to develop new innovative technologies and come out on top in the rapidly changing global automotive industry. Deepening Japanese Alliance This announcement deepens the alliance between the two global automakers with Toyota taking a 4.9% stake, amounting to $908 million, in the smaller rival Suzuki, which owns Mazda and Suburu.  Suzuki is investing $453 million in Toyota for 0.2% of Toyota shares. All About Developing Expensive Electric and Autonomous Technologies Today's R&D innovation tie-up between Suzuki and Toyota is another leading example of the technology partnerships in the global automotive industry.  It's all about joining forces, with big competitors, to defray the costs

"The Putin Limousine" Taking Orders Now Russia's first post-Soviet era luxury sedan just went on display and sale in Moscow this weekend with an official showroom. The car is part of the Aurus brand, used by President Vladimir Putin in his inauguration in 2018. Hence, the nickname the "Putin Limousine".   The Aurus Senat sedan is based priced at $274,000.  Aurus is taking orders for the vehicle. Targeted, Global Customer Base Aurus says that the targeted customer base is government officials and businesspeople in China, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.  Russia has invested $189 million in the Aurus limousine project since 2013.  There are plans to open a showroom in China in 2020-2021. Electric Vehicles on the Horizon and a Lot More The vehicles are produced by a Russian research institute NAMI in partnership with Russian carmaker Sollers.  Luxury hybrid and electric models are targeted for 2024.  They are also developing a SUV, minivan, an e

Targets 2022 to Start EV Production  Source:  Toyota Electric Concept Car Big Automakers Investing Indonesia plans to start producing electric vehicles by 2022.  Companies like Toyota and Hyundai are expressing interest in building EV plants.  In fact, Toyota has committed to investing $2 billion over the next five years.  Part of the money will be used for electric vehicle production. Rich Resources for EVs Indonesia has the opportunity to exploit the country's rich supply of nickel laterite ore, that's used to make lithium batteries.  The country is offering tax holidays for companies funding electric vehicles. Indonesia is already Southeast Asia's 2nd largest car production center.  The government is aiming to have electric vehicles at 20% of their national car production by 2025.

BMW to Start Producing Electric Mini's in Great Britain Source:  BMW Ready for Global Distribution Spring 2020 BMW has a major commitment to developing electric vehicles.  In fact, the automaker say it will have 25 electric vehicle models by 2023.  The global automaker just confirmed that it will build the Electric Mini's at its facility near Oxford, Great Britain despite the fact that Britain is leaving the European Union.  For a news blog with more details, go to Important Innovations Collection: BMW Going Electric : Electric Mini Production Starts in UK in Late 2019 Source:  BMW's Mini Electric Delivery in Spring 2020 BMW is kicking off its ...

Vehicles Electric and On-Demand Source:  Toyota Electric Car First Market Japan  The Toyota SoftBank electric vehicle alliance now includes Mazda, Suburu, Suzuki, Isuzu and Toyota's compact car unit Daihatsu.  Each will invest $530,620 in the venture called Monet in return for a 2% stake in the EV company.  They join Honda and Hino Trucks, each of which have a 10% stake in the new entity.  Toyota and SoftBank own 35% each in a venture now capitalized at $26.6 million. Big Plans for Monet The group plans to rollout on demand bus and car services next year.  Monet is building up members for its on demand services and  expects to have a service platform for electric vehicles by 2023.  This alliance is a primary example of automakers joining forces to offer vehicle services rather than selling cars and to share the massive investment to develop new electric vehicles.

New LiveWire Electric Bikes to Debut in 2019 Source:  Harley-Davidson - LiveWire LiveWire Harley-Davidson is unleashing a slew of new products, with advanced technology, over the next 3 years to pull in a new generation of riders and $1 billion in additional revenues by 2022.  The most notable new entry is their electric motorcycle LiveWire. LiveWires for Young, Urban Commuters Who Prefer Electric Vehicles Harley is targeting young, urban commuters who care about the environment and like electric vehicles that save them money.  LiveWire is a no-clutch, "twist and go" electric powered bike. It's coming to market in 2019. Biking and Transportation Go Electric Electric vehicles are reshaping the transportation industry globally from cars to planes.  Electric motorcycles are cheaper to operate than gas-powered ones.  They're quieter and some don't have gears.  There are smaller electric motorcycle brands now on the market, including Zero Motorcycles.  Th

Electric Boat that Almost Flies Jaguar just broke another speed record.  Not for racing cars.  This one is for their electric boat.  It just happened in late June, shattering the world electric speed record for boat racing.  The electric boat is the Jaguar Vector. The racing happened on Coniston Water, the third largest lake in the English Lake District. The Jaguar V makes eco-friendly, green, clean electric water craft look good for waterways and the environment. Jaguar Vector Racing The Jaguar Vector has a V20E electric engine.  Electricity provides all the boat's electric power and powers the motor and control systems.  The Jaguar V smashed a previous world record of 76.8 mph set a few years ago. The Jaguar V reached and sustained 88.6 mph for 8 miles.  The boat was designed and built by Jaguar Vector and their racing partner Williams Advanced Engineering. Next Race Lap  Jaguar has a strong vision concerning the importance of electric cars and electric boats in the trans