Cars

Automakers are not waiting for battery technology to improve in order to increase the range of electric vehicles. They are looking at every possible way to make their vehicles more efficient with aerodynamic performance and weight reduction. With the same mindset, Continental thinks that its latest film technology could help them make vehicles more efficient and increase the range of EVs by as much as 5.5%.
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Typically, Tesla forbids video and photo during factory tours, on occasion only granting permission to professional camera crews for preplanned shoots. Recently, however, an individual was allowed to capture some impromptu images during his visit.

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A group of engineers based in Greece launched a crowdfunding campaign to finance the production of a new three-wheeled solar and human-powered vehicle. Although I can’t imagine too many applications for the vehicle, the startup has a working prototype with some very interesting features.
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We reported earlier today about Ford preparing to unveil a plug-in vehicle at the Detroit Auto Show next month, but apparently that leak was only a teaser as Ford just announced that it is getting really serious about electric cars with $4.5 billion in investment and 13 new electric models coming to its lineup by 2020.
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After Mexico yesterday, now it’s Scotland’s turn to get a new Tesla retail location, the first in the country. The automaker opened the showroom today in Edinburgh at the upmarket Multrees Walk shopping center in St Andrews Square, home to other luxury product makers including Louis Vuitton and Harvey Nichols.
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Ford appears to be set to unveil a plug-in vehicle at the Detroit Auto show next month as evidenced by recent pictures (see above) posted to Twitter by WSJ’s Detroit Bureau Chief John Stoll.
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Tesla needs to deliver a record-breaking ~17,000 units in the last quarter of the year to achieve the low-end of its 2015 delivery guidance of  50,000-55,000 vehicles. Since the company now sells more cars in Europe than in North America or Asia, Model S deliveries in European markets are more important than ever.

Here’s our November 2015 look at Model S deliveries based on registration data in Tesla’s most important European markets:
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According to a letter the company sent to Nevada officials Wednesday (via Auto News), Faraday Future says it plans to build its $1 billion electric vehicle factory in North Las Vegas.
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As Signature Model X reservation holders are still patiently (or impatiently) waiting for a delivery date from Tesla, one more Founders series owner managed to get his hands on the all-electric SUV. This time its the #36, a significant jump from the last reported #13 delivered to Venture capitalist Chamath Palihapitiya.
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Tesla launches in Mexico this week by opening a “Pop-up” store in the Mexican capital and we learn that the company hired Google’s longtime brand and communications manager for Latin American markets, Ricardo Blanco, to lead Tesla’s communications and marketing in the country.
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The Consumer Technology Association (CTA) announced that during the keynote address of Volkswagen’s Chairman of Passenger Cars Dr. Herbert Diess at the upcoming CES 2016, he will unveil a new all-electric concept car.

Diess is scheduled to deliver a keynote address about “electric mobility driving the automotive market” on January 5 at the Cosmopolitan’s Chelsea Theater.
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We recently reported on Tesla starting to push new Autopilot restrictions to some Model S owners last Sunday – about a month after Tesla CEO Elon Musk warned of upcoming constraints to limit some potentially dangerous use of the Autopilot as seen in videos posted online.

The Model S owners reporting on forums having received the update with new Autopilot restrictions have quickly removed their posts. We now learn through sources with knowledge of matter that Tesla started testing the new version 7.1 of its software with a select group of Model S owners this week.

The new update includes UI improvements, a new self-parking feature, ‘Driver Mode’ and Autopilot restrictions.
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Tesla announced today via Instagram that  the company now offers test drives out of Harrods, a popular upmarket department store in London. The company claims to be the first automotive manufacturer to offer test drives out of the store.
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France-based automaker Citroën officially announced yesterday the all-electric E-MEHARI. Although the car is officially based on the company’s flagship vehicle of the same name built between 1968-1988, it seems to borrow more design cues from the Bolloré Blue Summer which can be explained by the fact that the E-Méhari is built on Bolloré ‘s electric platform.
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After some confusion over Tesla registering thousands of Model S’s in Denmark in anticipation of a surge of electric vehicle sales over the phasing out of tax breaks in the country starting in 2016, the company confirmed having ordered 2,500 license plates in order for Tesla buyers to be able to complete their purchases by the end of the year.

With 113 Model S’s registered in October, the data didn’t reflect any demand increase due to the end of the tax breaks for electric vehicles, but the government published November registration data today and it now shows a significant increase in Tesla Model S registrations.
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Hyundai announced today that it will unveil a new car with 3 electric powertrain options called IONIQ. The vehicle will be available in all-electric (BEV), plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and conventional hybrid without a plug (HEV).

The launch is set for January 2016 in Korea, followed by Geneva and New York auto shows.
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We received some questions about the renderings of the Model 3 floating around lately. There’s been confusion since some reports failed to specify that the renderings were from an independent artist unaffiliated with Tesla and some even called it a “leak”.
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This weekend was the 19th anniversary of the first deliveries of GM’s all-electric EV1. With GM planning to release the Chevy Bolt in “late-2016”, it would coincide with the 20th anniversary of the EV1 launch. Although it’s doubtful the company will try to associate both releases considering GM is trying distance the Bolt from the image of a compliance car, it is nonetheless an interesting coincidence. 
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Over a year after the first deliveries of the plug-in hybrid BMW i8, the open-top version is still not available even though the option was unveiled in 2012 – prior to the release of the production version.

But now BMW CEO Harald Krüger reiterated the company’s commitment to the feature and said the company is working on a production version.
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During the conference call to discuss the company’s third quarter financial results on November 3rd, Tesla CEO Elon Musk warned that the company will push software updates to add restrictions to the Autopilot.

Now we learn that Tesla started pushing these constraints to some Model S owners on Sunday – about a month after announcing it.

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