This week on the Electrek Podcast, we discuss the most popular news in the world of sustainable transport and energy, including a flurry of Tesla news from the shareholder meeting, Daimler unveils new electric trucks in response to Tesla Semi, Jaguar starts marketing the I-Pace, and more.
Latest
Porsche’s Mission E all-electric vehicle becomes the ‘Taycan’
Porsche’s first all-electric vehicle has been known so far as the Mission E, but the company made the announcement today that the production version of the vehicle will be called the ‘Taycan’.
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Kia unveils new all-electric Niro CUV ‘up to ~280 miles of range’
After revealing the all-electric Niro concept earlier this year, Kia is now unveiling the production version of their new all-electric vehicle at the 2018 Busan International Motor Show today in Korea.
The vehicle appears to feature the same powertrain as the electric version of the Hyundai Kona.
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Green Deals: 8-pack LED Solar Lights $23 Prime shipped, more
Oak Leaf LLC (99% positive feedback from 32,000) via Amazon offers its eight-pack of stainless steel solar LED lights for $23 Prime shipped when promo code JVTVIX87 is applied during checkout. That’s good for $8 off the regular going rate and the lowest we’ve tracked all-time. Perfect for summer and warmer weather, Oak Leaf’s outdoor lights illuminate your space or walkway. Rated 3.9/5 stars.
Tesla employee was filmed sleeping or unconscious at the wheel driving on Autopilot
Amid the controversy over the use of Tesla Autopilot and the few highly publicized accidents involving the driver assist system, a Tesla service technician has been filmed either asleep or unconscious at the wheel of a Model S driving on Autopilot.
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E-bikes are efficient, but nothing beats this 400 mile range electric recumbent trike
When it comes to electric transportation, it’s hard to beat an electric bicycle on efficiency. They are lightweight, narrow and can cram batteries in the negative space of standard bike frames. But one Danish startup appears to have gone even further, and all they had to do was lay down.
Engineer and designer Lars Oksbjerre built the VELOKS MK3, a full suspension electric recumbent tricycle that has a range of 660 km (410 mi).
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Tesla releases new Autopilot update with performance improvements and new car renderings
As Elon Musk announced earlier this week, Tesla started pushing a new Autopilot software update.
It features some performance improvements and it has a new feature that renders the surrounding car on the instrument cluster.
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Tesla next-gen Roadster will have ‘Augmented Mode’ to help you handle all that power
Some people already have issues managing all the power in Tesla’s current performance vehicles and that power is going to be dwarfed by Tesla’s next-gen Roadster.
CEO Elon Musk now says that the upcoming supercar is going to have an ‘Augmented Mode’ to help you handle all that power.
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New Dutch-built electric scooter claims 400 km range with modular batteries
Nimble scooters are quintessentially European, with many taking design inspirations from the classic 1960’s Vespa scooters that formed the impetus for the trend. And now a new Dutch startup is throwing their hat in the ring with an impressive offering complete with all the charm of a stereotypically cute Italian scooter.
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Tesla says the Model 3 body line is now 95% automated
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that they made the mistake of being over ambitious when it comes to the automation of the Model 3 production line.
It contributed to a lot of issues with the early production ramp, but now Tesla is gradually going back to automation across various parts of the Model 3 production process, including the Model 3 body line, which is now almost completely automated, according to the automaker.
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Ryder orders a large fleet of 500 all-electric vans from new startup to build electric rental fleet
Last summer, a new startup called Chanje launched a commercial all-electric van in the US with Ryder as its “exclusive sales channel and service partner.”
Now Ryder is ordering a large fleet of 500 all-electric vans from Chanje to expand its North American electric commercial truck rental and ChoiceLease fleet.
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