December 4
In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):
Under new leadership, Nissan wants to reclaim its leadership in electric vehicles. But it’s going to downplay affordable electric cars like the Leaf hatchback. Instead, newly minted CEO Makoto Uchida wants Nissan EVs to have robust features, long range, and higher prices that would bring higher profits. The new strategy will start with a new pure-electric crossover SUV, based on the Ariya concept, that would sell in Europe for the equivalent of between $55,000 and $78,000.
Tesla’s Autopilot-powered safety features, especially its Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB), has shown some impressive results in a new series of crash tests.
You can see it save pedestrians at the last second in the video below. expand full story
Gas generators still own the portable, emergency home-backup power space. Ten years ago there was a lot of hope and hype for using all the energy stored inside EVs’ batteries to power your entire house, but it hasn’t come to pass. No EV maker will sell you a bidirectional charger, outside of Japan and a handful of small utility pilots.
Meanwhile, the 2020 Ford F-150 will come with the option for its own built-in, onboard gas generator. And aftermarket companies, like Indiana’s Real AC power, offer sleek, chassis-integrated generator systems (pictured above) for internal combustion engine (ICE) trucks. EV makers ceded this space for unknown reasons. But now Tesla CEO Elon Musk has teased a 240V AC power outlet on the Cybertruck, something neither Rivian nor Bollinger have announced. We don’t know how many watts we can expect, though. So will the Tesla Cybertruck finally offer EV enthusiasts a path to navigate societal collapse? Or are we stuck with settling for “head’s up, you’re going to lose power” messages?
Euro NCAP announced today that the Porsche Taycan, the German automaker’s first all-electric car, has achieved a 5-star safety rating in their crash tests. expand full story
Tesla Model X has been named a ‘standout performer’ by Euro NCAP in their latest batch of safety crash tests — getting a near-perfect score for adult occupant protection. expand full story
Elon Musk confirmed that Tesla Cybertruck will be able to carry a full 4×8 sheet despite its smaller bed — thanks to a “flip stop” feature on the tailgate. expand full story
December 3
The US Senate confirmed former deputy energy secretary Dan Brouillette to be the next energy secretary last night. Yesterday, Brouillette said that Donald Trump told him to figure out a way to boost coal.
In an interview with the Washington Examiner, Brouillette, who was accompanied by his predecessor, Rick Perry, said, “What the president has directed us to do is to look for different ways to utilize coal.”
Tesla Model Y deliveries will start in Q1 of next year, according to a new research note from Deutsche Bank as reported by CNBC. If accurate, this means the first customers could get their cars within four months from now.
The bank bases its estimate on accelerated parts orders from Tesla suppliers, which we reported on last week.
A Tesla Model Y prototype was spotted with a tow hitch, which is an increasingly requested feature that Tesla first promised in the Model 3, but was only launched in Europe. expand full story
