DIY EV Makers Get Key Electric Tech | 21 Aug 2021

Episode 1186,   Aug 21, 2021, 12:00 AM

Today’s big EV stories:
• First Ford Mustang Mach-E GT deliveries begin early
• Xiaomi to build its electric car from the ground up
• New Kia EV4 on course to grow electric SUV range
• Electric vehicles feature in 2022 World Car Awards contenders
• Electric vehicle battery startup Ample raises $160 million
• Fisker Joins Forces With Abbie Eaton
• Ford Teases its EV Crate Powertrain Solution Ahead of SEMA
• Ford plans to offer DIY EV-makers its key electric tech
• Bluetti reveals modular home battery backup
• How To Double Electric Vehicle Charge Points Overnight? EV Charge Point Sharing

Show #1186.

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Good morning, good afternoon and good evening wherever you are in the world, welcome to EV News Daily for Saturday 21st August. It’s Martyn Lee here and I go through every EV story so you don't have to.

Thank you to MYEV.com for helping make this show, they’ve built the first marketplace specifically for Electric Vehicles. It’s a totally free marketplace that simplifies the buying and selling process, and help you learn about EVs along the way too.

FIRST FORD MUSTANG MACH-E GT DELIVERIES BEGIN EARLY

- Ford Mustang Mach-e GT deliveries are happening. A Rapid Red GT Performance customer showed off his two-week early score in Iowa today. Are more on the way?

- According to the macheforums poster 0t60-3.5, the Rapid Red model arrived last night to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, two weeks earlier than expected. He picked it up at the dealer last night, just in time to take a few snaps and charge it up.

- Ford priced track-ready Mach-E GT at $60K, GT Performance at $65K, an aggressive price for its high end Mustangs that are still eligible for the current $7500 Federal Tax Credit in the US and various state and local incentives. The GT looks similar to the slower Mach-E, with the biggest difference being the plastic carbon fiber faux grill and pony show up front,

- The Mach-E GT Performance Edition hits a 0-60 time of 3.5 seconds


XIAOMI TO BUILD ITS ELECTRIC CAR FROM THE GROUND UP

- Earlier this year, in the month of March, Xiaomi officially announced the commencement of its smart electric vehicle business. It was also confirmed that the new division will be led by the company’s founder and CEO Lei Jun.

- Now, the latest report coming from Science Innovation Board Daily claims that Xiaomi will be building its own car from scratch, and details about the same will be officially revealed by the Chinese company next week.

- A well-known tipster Digital Chat Station has also revealed that the company has been in contact with a world-renowned auto parts and emission technology supplier and is also working on a design plan.

- the company has talked with several carmakers but has not made any decision regarding any partnership for its electric vehicles business.

- Xiaomi aims to offer high-quality smart electric vehicles to allow users globally to enjoy ubiquitous smart life, says Lei Jun. For this new wholly-owned subsidiary to work on the electric vehicles and related business, the company plans to invest around 10 billion yuan (~$1.5 billion) over a period of 10 years.


NEW KIA EV4 ON COURSE TO GROW ELECTRIC SUV RANGE

- Kia will follow its first bespoke electric car, the EV6 crossover, with two ‘EV’ SUV models, Auto Express has learned. According to European product boss Sjoerd Knipping, the Korean brand’s second “EVx” car will be a large SUV targeting the US. But more importantly for us, it will be followed by a model developed for the European market – Knipping spoke of “balancing” the US and other territories.

- e large SUV could be branded EV7 or EV8, and it will offer seven-seat capability similar to that of Hyundai’s Ioniq 7 SUV confirmed for launch in 2024. It will be followed by a crossover potentially called EV4, sized as a rival for the Volvo C40 and Mercedes EQA.


ELECTRIC VEHICLES FEATURE IN 2022 WORLD CAR AWARDS CONTENDERS

- the World Car Awards launched its 2022 program and published the list of eligible vehicles for the upcoming contest. When the winners are announced at next year's New York International Auto Show, there will be a new category just for battery-electric vehicles.

- BEVs will be eligible to win the overall 2022 World Car of the Year award; the rules just require that a car be produced in volumes of at least 10,000 a year. The vehicle must also "be priced below the luxury-car level in their primary markets" and must be available in two major markets (China, Europe, India, Japan, Korea, Latin America, and the USA) in at least two continents, between January 1, 2021, and March 30, 2022.

- Several BEVs are in contention for the top award, including the Audi Q4 e-tron and Q4 e-tron Sportback, BMW i4, Hyundai Ioniq 5, and Kia EV6.

- Jaguar's I-Pace won overall in 2019, and the Volkswagen ID.4 won overall in 2021; if the Porsche Taycan Turbo had been eligible in 2020, it would probably also have romped home to victory but for the fact that it was too expensive to qualify. (


ELECTRIC VEHICLE BATTERY STARTUP AMPLE RAISES $160 MILLION

- Ample, a San Francisco-based developer of swappable electric vehicle (EV) batteries, has raised $160 million in a new funding round, the company said on Thursday.The company has developed a battery for EVs and an automated process for quickly swapping out depleted batteries for newly charged packs

- The Series C round brings to $230 million the total raised by the seven-year-old startup

- Unlike the Chinese carmakers, Ample aims to make its batteries and swapping process more widely available to different brands.

- Automated battery swap "could solve a big problem" for energy companies and commercial operators that are moving their fleets to electric power and cannot afford downtime for extended charging


*AD*

FISKER JOINS FORCES WITH ABBIE EATON

- Fisker today announced it is joining forces with renowned racing driver, Abbie Eaton. One of 18 drivers competing in the 2021 W Series Championship, Abbie will work closely with Fisker’s engineering and product development team, focusing on chassis and vehicle dynamics on the Fisker Ocean SUV program and other vehicles to follow.

- Abbie brings her experience as a test driver for The Grand Tour show to Fisker, along with her credentials as a race driver, certified instructor and precision driver. She’ll join other women at Fisker in high-visibility senior roles, perfecting the Fisker Ocean SUV and eventually three more vehicles for the diverse and ever-expanding global electric vehicle market.


FORD TEASES ITS EV CRATE POWERTRAIN SOLUTION AHEAD OF SEMA

- For fans of vintage American iron, the looming transition to electric motivation might strike fear into your heart: your nostalgia express might be rendered inoperable. Well, there’s some good news for those that are interested in modifying your classic: EV crate conversions. While this technology is still in its relative infancy, it does seem to be gaining some traction. Ford is teasing an electric crate powertrain solution that is slated for a debut at the upcoming SEMA show.

- Chevrolet introduced a similar system back in 2018. That system has since evolved into the eCrate system, which Chevrolet said would be hitting the market sometime this year.


FORD PLANS TO OFFER DIY EV-MAKERS ITS KEY ELECTRIC TECH

- Tesla and Nissan seem to be some of the most common donor drivetrains for EV conversions, in no small part because of their general availability. Ford Performance, though, is getting in on the action. Rather than having to source the electrification system independently, you’ll be able to buy an Eluminator motor off the shelf.

- Full details will be shared at SEMA 2021, the annual car mods show. What we do know, however, is that the Eluminator is targeted at restomods and project cars, and that it will be impressively compact. Only 570 mm – or shorter than 23 inches – in length, in fact.


BLUETTI REVEALS MODULAR HOME BATTERY BACKUP

- Bluetti, manufacturer of battery backup systems large and small, has announced its modular home battery backup design. With the Tesla Powerwall only available to solar rooftop customers (and pending orders), many are dipping their toes into vehicle or home backup systems like Bluetti. 
Bluetti announced its flagship AC300 modular backup system, the B300 modular battery, the Fusion Box Pro for connecting staggering power, as well as the upgraded AC200 MAX all-in-one unit.

- Fully packaged system power
6 kW, 24.6 kWh

- Solar input (Basic unit)
2400W


HOW TO DOUBLE ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGE POINTS OVERNIGHT? EV CHARGE POINT SHARING

- There are currently around 39,000 public electric vehicle charge points available in the UK and over 400,000 home chargers. By sharing even a fraction of them via Community Charging, electric vehicle uptake can be transformed.

- Community Charging is the utilization of community resources including chargers, space and infrastructure to allow members of that community to run electric vehicles.

- So all that’s needed to double the available public chargers without a single hole being dug or a cable laid is for just 10% of the 400,000 home charger owners to decide to share their charger – making 40,000 chargers available straight away.


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