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Sunday, May 8, 2011
The first 4 wheel drive... was a Porsche. It was also the first hybrid. It was over 110 years ago as well
0 comments Posted by korekore at 10:14 AMJacob Lohner & Co in Vienna, Austria produced electric cars from 1898 to 1906.
Ferdinand Porsche, one of Lohner´s employees developed a drive system based on fitting an electric motor to each front wheel without transmissions (hub mounted).
Vehicles of this type were known as Lohner-Porsches Lohner produced a number of hybrid petrol- electric cars. That is, with a gasoline US engine driving a generator to produce the electricity to drive the electric motors.
While the Lohner-Porsche technology was reliable, it was not competitive with conventional petrol-engined cars. Production costs where higher.
Production of Hybrid cars seized in 1906 although Lohner produced Lohner-Stoll trolley buses for several years on.
Above is a recreation, and is named "Semper Vivus" and is currently on display at the Porshe museum in Stuttgart http://www.porsche.com/usa/aboutporsche/pressreleases/pcna/?lang=none&pool=international-de&id=2011-04-26 between May 10 2011 and June 13 2011
Here below is a picture of a racing version of the front wheel driven, petrol-electric Lohner "Porsche". This vehicle was entered in the 1900 "Semmering" race and is driven by Dr. Porsche himself.
read more about it http://www.marque1.com/marque1/2011/03/yes-its-a-porsche-the-worlds-first-hybrid-car.html
Labels: electric car, hybrid, Porsche, racecar, vintage
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Ettore Bugatti's runabout for inspection tours of his factory
0 comments Posted by korekore at 10:14 AM Called a type 56 Bugatti, if the translator program on Google hasn't mangled it, and it was an electric buggy.
found on: http://svammelsurium.blogg.se/2010/june/en-dag-i-illinois-1964.html
Labels: Bugatti, electric car
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
In 2008, BYD made press coverage by showing its F6 DM (dual mode) car at the Detroit Auto Show. Clearly, the car was a prototype, but it gave the world a surprise, becaus e outer China, there was a general idea that china was 20 years behind the developed nations in terms of car technology. Indeed it is true, and still is at this moment.
But what makes BYD stand out from the crowd? Billionaire Warren Buffett invested by October 2008 230 million dollars in the to become electric car manufacturer. What made him do this?
BYD has proven that despite been a newcomer and outsider to the auto industry, it has smartly managed to cut through competition, many many companies failed to do so in China, Lifan has not managed to increase, Bird a Ningbo cell phone manufacturer made a claim to enter the market and gave up months later, not to mention some non auto related supplier like Polarsun in Shenyang (originally making house door parts), ZhongYu (originally making street lighting equipment) from Wuhan still struggle to make it pay. Let's be frank, there is no room for many players and if you enter the market after 2000, it is far too late.
BYD tries to capitalize on its core activity : batteries.
In the coming years, they will market heavily their electric cars their point of differenciation. First they made an announcement about their F3e (for electric), and later showed their F6 DM, and have started to sell their F3 FM in China , with little success until now. The problem is the price and maybe are they coming too soon. Environmental friendly is a very new concept in China, the world's first polluter after the USA.
The fallout from the slump in auto sales after the Global Financial Crisis, the government’s bailouts of two of the Big Three, the liquidation of numerous dealerships and the reduction in hybrid sales that came with the sudden drop in fuel prices is still being felt in much of America’s automotive heartland. Add to that the small market share commanded by hybrid and electric vehicles – just 2.2% worldwide according to JD Power – and BYD may be in over their heads already.
AS Mike Omotoso from JD Power explains:
“Because consumers are wary about electric vehicles and their driving range and batteries, they are even more likely to go with more established companies like G.M. and Nissan. The problem with the Chinese car companies is they are trying to run before they walk.”
Only time will tell if BYD’s U.S. plans end in fruition or failure.


Labels: BYD, electric car
Thursday, January 27, 2011
The automobile industry has been responding to both consumer and government demands for increased fuel efficiency and reduced emissions in recent years. While most manufacturers were devoting their research and development to hybrid engines, combination gas/electric vehicles, Nissan was developing an all electric, zero emissions vehicle called the Nissan Leaf. With a December 2010 release date for Japan, Europe, and the United States, the 2011 Nissan Leaf is the world's first mass produced, affordable all electric vehicle.

The Nissan Leaf can seat five adults and features the latest in advanced IT connectivity and state-of-the-art wireless control capability. Customers can use mobile phones to monitor battery charging status and to activate functions such as climate control. The Nissan Leaf has a range of about 100 miles on a full charge and can reach a speed of over 90 miles per hour. It is powered by a lithium ion battery pack that can be charged in eight hours or less from a standard home outlet or charged to 80 percent capacity in less than a half hour from a 50kW commercial charger. Though now limited in number, municipalities and businesses are working to create commercial charging stations to meet anticipated demand.

2011 Nissan Leaf is a one hundred percent electric car
Labels: electric car, Nissan