- Dontcrush.Com Announces Toyota Victory, Launches Plug in America
- Clooney’s Tango! WOW!!!
- Toyota Agrees to Stop Crushing Electric SUVs
- Ford Electric Pickups Keep Truckin’
- Mitsubishi Lancer
- Get ready for $4 a gallon: Soaring prices hitting more than just drivers
DontCrush.com Announces Toyota Victory, Launches Plug In America
to Keep RAV4 EVs RollingMedia release:
Thursday, September 1, 2005
Toyota Makes Historic Decision: Agrees with DontCrush to Keep RAV4 EVs Rolling!
Former CIA Director joins auto engineers and advocates to encourage automakers to produce petroleum-free, pollution-free cars
Los Angeles – In an international telephone press conference today DontCrush.com, lauded Toyota’s recent decision to keep its zero-emission, battery-electric RAV 4 SUVs on the road. Joined by a former CIA-director, an ex-GM employee, an EV engineer, and the Southern California Edison Electric Transportation director, DontCrush.com is declaring a victory in its efforts to save America’s last remaining petroleum-free, pollution-free vehicles.
DontCrush.com’s success in saving Toyota’s RAV4 EV, the Ford Th!nk City EV and Ford Ranger EV from the crusher while bringing national attention to
General Motors’ decision to destroy its popular EV1s, have inspired the group to help America move towards an oil-independent future with Plug In America, a new advocacy organization launched today. The organization will work with industry, environmental and national security organizations, and concerned citizens to revive plug-in auto production and give Americans the freedom to choose cars, trucks, and SUVs that are powered by cleaner, cheaper, domestic sources of energy.
Following a three-month campaign, Toyota agreed to stop crushing its RAV4 EV, and allow satisfied customers to lease or buy their zero-emission SUVs. Electric vehicle advocates, long dismissed as “fanatics” or “hobbyists” by automakers, are in fact speaking for the majority of Americans concerned about national security, public health, rising gas prices, and global warming. A recent Reuters survey found that most Americans believe it is patriotic to buy a fuel-efficient vehicle to help reduce American dependency on foreign oil. Nearly no oil is used for making electricity in the U.S; over 70% of our oil is consumed for transportation. Plug in America wants the government and automakers to prioritize building and marketing plug-in vehicles now.
Plug In America
Pulling away from the pump and plugging into our nation’s extensive electric infrastructure would mean that Americans could immediately make the switch to cheaper, cleaner, domestic energy sources to power cars, trucks and SUVs. The cost of plugging in to the grid and charging up at home is the equivalent of pennies per gallon on the average electric bill as compared to $3.00-plus a gallon at the pump today. The widespread use of renewable energy like solar and wind power is on the rise across America and offers drivers the opportunity to plug-in to fossil-fuel free energy. With a plug-in hybrid, which uses a battery-powered electric motor for the first 30 to 50 miles, most American commuters would rarely if ever need to fill up or even top off with gasoline unless making a long trip. Since 50 percent of Americans do not drive more than 20 miles per day, the electric range of a plug-in hybrid would power nearly all of our daily driving.
A Brief History of EVs and The People Who Tried to Destroy Them DontCrush.com started in 2004 in response to auto companies’ ongoing destruction of their electric cars after successfully eviscerating California’s Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate. Despite enormous popularity including waiting lists to lease the all-electric, zero-emission vehicles, the auto industry spent millions lobbying Sacramento and suing in federal court to take the cars off the road and replace them with gasoline cars as the only readily available option. Successful grassroots interventions including demonstrations at dealerships, car-sit vigils, and public education rallies helped save from the crusher hundreds of Ford and Toyota electric cars.
DontCrush.com’s efforts have received public support from the American Lung Association, CalCars.org, California Assembly Member Fran Pavley, California Assembly Member Mark Leno, California Environmental Protection Agency Secretary Alan Lloyd, California State Senator Sheila Kuehl, Electric Auto Association, Environment Now, Global Exchange, Greenpeace, Jumpstart Ford Coalition, Natural Resources Defense Council, Orange County Interfaith Coalition for the Environment, Rainforest Action Network, Set America Free, Sierra Club, City of Santa Monica, South Coast Air Quality Management District and the Union of Concerned Scientists.
Supporting Statements
James Woolsey, former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency and member of Plug In America coalition and Set America Free, is a well-known advocate of plug-in hybrid technology. “We must encourage the commercialization of technologies that are compatible with existing infrastructure. What makes plug-in hybrids promising is that they are; we don’t need a Manhattan Project to make this happen.”
"Southern California Edison is proud to operate one of the nation's largest and most successful EV fleets, “says Ed Kjaer, Director of Electric Transportation Department of Southern California Edison. “Since its inception, SCE's EV fleet has traveled almost 12 million trouble-free miles delivering significant petroleum, emissions and green house gas reductions as well as lower maintenance and operating costs. Thanks to the continuing support of Toyota and as a testament to the quality, durability and reliability of their world class EV, SCE is committed to maintaining its almost 180 Toyota RAV4 EVs indefinitely."
“The waiting lists and public campaigns for plug-in vehicles only proves that the demand for these cars has always gone unfulfilled by the automakers,” says Chelsea Sexton, Plug In America organizer and former GM EV1 specialist. “There was compelling demand a decade ago when large EV programs started and were killed. That demand has only increased exponentially as the nation has come to realize the devastating consequences of depending on foreign oil.”
“Four years and over 30,000 miles driving electric cars has proven to me that the best way for us individually and as a nation to use less oil is to have the choice to use none,” says Marc Geller, Plug In America organizer. “Automakers need to offer plug- in electric alternatives, because electricity from the American grid, or in my case my solar PV panels, is cleaner, cheaper and domestic. We shouldn't have to pay off oil companies or undemocratic regimes just to get to work. Disruptions in oil supply – in Iraq, in Louisiana - compel us to move quickly. We need choices. Now. Unlike the ever-more distant panacea of hydrogen fuel cells, plug in technology works today, and the infrastructure is ubiquitous. The automakers have already proven they can make great plug in cars. I drive one past gas stations every day.”
“Before I leased my RAV4 EV, I never knew how much I’d love it. After I had it, I had no idea how hard I’d have to fight to keep it,” explains Linda Nichols, Toyota RAV4 EV owner. “Toyota’s turnaround is a courageous decision to respond to consumer demand and revise a policy created years ago for the benefit of their customers as well as the environment.”
Source: Electrifying Times
[August 10, 2005]
How awesome it this? You know the Tango specs are off the hook. Won't bore you with them here. Just get a load of this... How can you not love a guy who kicked off his career attacking giant tomatoes and now does this with his money! (Now we know what Julia Roberts sees in him.) Hat's off... oh, the reflection of the power lines on the hood, don't know if the photographer intended for that to happen, but nice touch.
This is the note Rick Woodbury sent ET this morning along with the photographs: "George Clooney saw and drove his Tango today for the first time. He was just interviewed by "Interview Magazine" today at the Smoke House across from Warner Brothers studios. As he bought the Tango sight-unseen, we are very pleased to see that he's so excited about it." We bet! :o)
George is going to be the envy of every celebrity on the red carpet. George, drive safely! This thing is a rocket on wheels... You just kicked off the start of the rEVolution, and we want you in one piece for many years to come!
See photos at: http://www.electrifyingtimes.com/ClooneyTango.html
© RemyC. ET webed 8/10/05
Toyota Agrees to Stop Crushing Electric SUVs
Source: EV World.Com
[Jul 14, 2005]
SYNOPSIS: Electric cars given second 'lease' on life as Toyota reconsiders its policy.
A
Tom Hanks shows off his Toyota RAV4 EV battery-powered sport utility vehicle.
TORRANCE, CA -- Toyota Motor Corporation announced late yesterday that it will stop the demolition of its battery-powered RAV4 EV.
Don't Crush organizer Paul Scott sent out the following email to supporters of a grassroots campaign organized to protest Toyota's practice of crushing RAV4 EV's that are returned from corporate lease programs.
"During the course of a 2-hour meeting with Toyota today, the dontcrush.com negotiating team worked out the following points, which will be finalized in writing over the next few weeks:
No more usable cars will be crushed- the definition of "usable" is still to be worked out.
- · Current lessees shall have the option to continually renew their leases as long as the vehicle is usable, as defined by Toyota and the consumer.
- · Toyota will re-examine their policy of not selling fleet RAVs and attempt to give current lessees the option to purchase their vehicles outright.
- · Toyota will create a process by which RAV4 EVs deemed not salable or usable will be dismantled for parts to be used by the remaining vehicles.
- · Vehicles neither re-leased nor purchased will continue to be used; they will be sold to the public, used in the Toyota corporate fleet or made available for use by non-profit organizations."
Toyota's official response to inquiries regarding its policy has stated, "Toyota does not support retail sales of fleet vehicles when they reach the end of their lease. The fleet vehicles are typically used in commercial applications, are subject to harsh duty cycles and accumulate high miles. As we expected, at the end of the lease period, most are ready to retire from service. As parts supplies diminish, most of these vehicles are not feasible (parts no longer available) nor cost-effective (parts are too expensive) to operate or support. Therefore, we decided to recycle most of RAV4-EVs that we could recover at the end of five years.
"Vehicles that are returned to Toyota and are still technically supportable are being placed in community service programs where they assist with sustainability efforts. These include national parks, universities, and station car programs. Most recently, off-lease RAV4s have been placed with the Catalina Island Conservancy, Pt. Reyes National Seashore, and the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreational Area".
Scott estimates that there are several hundred vehicles still in operation that are likely to be impacted by this agreement.
Electric Pickups to Keep Truckin'
By Eric Bailey, Times Staff Writer
SACRAMENTO — Six months after public protests prompted Ford Motor Co. to stop demolishing the last of its electric vehicles, the auto giant announced a plan Monday to return the surviving electric Ranger pickups to erstwhile owners.
Ford officials said about 200 of the last electric pickups would be sold to former leaseholders selected in a lottery.
"It has taken a little bit longer than we wanted or expected," said Niel Golightly, Ford's director of sustainable business strategies.
Electric vehicle advocates welcomed the announcement but said it was little more than a symbolic gesture.
"What we really need is for Ford to restart its EV program, to acknowledge that America is addicted to oil and needs to get off it," said Jennifer Krill of Rainforest Action Network in San Francisco. "Their customers are clamoring for smart, pollution-free vehicles."
Her group was among several that joined Ranger EV owner Dave Raboy, a Mariposa County rancher and software consultant, in a weeklong sidewalk vigil in January outside a Sacramento Ford dealership.
The automaker agreed to sell Raboy his truck for $1. Golightly said about 21 other electric Ranger leaseholders also took advantage of the offer as lease terms ended for their trucks.
Under the program announced Monday, the last of the pickups set to come off lease between now and 2006 will be refurbished by a Sacramento firm, Blue Sky Motors, and then offered to their current leaseholders for $6,000. The fee would pay for the costs of refurbishment.
Any unwanted trucks will be sold to former Ranger EV owners who gave back their trucks before Ford reversed course in January and began offering them for sale. Most of the 1,500 electric Rangers produced by Ford were scrapped.
Ford will hold a lottery on Sept. 23 to establish a list of who gets first choice for any unwanted trucks as they come off leases.
Golightly said he suspects there will be a big demand by former owners of the trucks but that any left unclaimed after the lottery will be offered for sale by Blue Sky Motors on the open market.
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution MIEV
Text & Photo courtesy Mitsubishi Motors Corporation
edited 08-24-05
All-wheel drive using new type of in-wheel motor
Mitsubishi Motors Corporation announced that it would enter a Lancer Evolution MIEV test vehicle in the Shikoku EV Rally 2005 to be held August 27-28 in Tokushima Prefecture on the island of Shikoku, Japan. Deriving from the Company’s Lancer Evolution IX high-performance 4WD sports sedan, Lancer Evolution MIEV uses a lithium-ion battery system to power four newly developed in-wheel motors. The Shikoku EV Rally 2005 is organized by the Shikoku EV Challenge Committee and the Shikoku EV Rally 2005 Executive Committee.
Mitsubishi Motors is driving forward the development of the Mitsubishi In-wheel motor Electric Vehicle (MIEV) next-generation electric vehicle and is planning to bring a MIEV model, built around core technologies of in-wheel motors and high density lithium-ion batteries, to market by 2010.
The Lancer Evolution MIEV will be the Company’s second MIEV test vehicle, following the Colt EV announced in May 2005. The new in-wheel motor uses a hollow doughnut construction that locates the rotor outside the stator as opposed to a common electric motor where the rotor turns inside the stator. This construction brings several benefits. It makes it easier to raise power output and torque; higher torque allows the speed reducer unit to be eliminated, which means less weight and improved power transmission efficiency; and it offers better space efficiency with the brake assembly fitting inside the motor which itself fits neatly within the wheel house. The outer-rotor arrangement also surmounts the difficulties presented to date by the steering system, making it suitable for fitting to and driving the front wheels that opened the way to 4WD in-wheel motor vehicles.
Mitsubishi Motors has acquired vehicle type certification for Lancer Evolution MIEV and will be conducting practicality evaluations over a wide variety of conditions, the Shikoku EV Rally and other public road driving included. The evaluation programs will assist the Company in developing high-performance electric, hybrid and fuel cell vehicles that deliver not only superior environmental performance but also output performance and maneuverability equal to or better than gasoline-fueled vehicles.
Lancer Evolution MIEV: overview
Mitsubishi Motors’ MIEV concept comprises two core technologies: lithium-ion batteries, which the Company has been developing for practical application in automobiles; and the in-wheel motor that, as its name implies, mounts inside the vehicle wheels. Building upon the advantages offered by these technologies, the MIEV concept is currently the main driving force behind the Company’s development of next-generation electric vehicles. Mitsubishi Motors also envisages the application of the MIEV concept in hybrid and fuel cell vehicles. The first MIEV test vehicle built by Mitsubishi Motors for in-wheel drive system development and testing purposes was the Colt EV, announced in May 2005. Derived from the standard production Colt compact model, Colt EV is driven by in-wheel motors mounted on the rear wheels and powered by a lithium-ion battery system.
With the Lancer Evolution MIEV high-performance 4WD in-wheel motor test vehicle, the Company has taken the next step forward. After removing the engine, fuel tank, transmission, differential, drive shaft and other 4WD components from the production Lancer Evolution IX sports sedan, newly developed outer-rotor in-wheel motors were mounted on all four wheels. Fitted under the floor between the front and rear wheels in the space vacated by the 4WD components, a lithium-ion battery system powers the motors.
The new in-wheel motor was developed by incorporating Mitsubishi Motors’ vehicle installation technology to the motor manufactured by Toyo Denki Seizo K.K. The motor produces a maximum output of 50kW and its distinguishing feature is its outer-rotor construction. In the conventional type of in-wheel motor, as used on the Colt EV, the rotor turns inside the stator. The outer-rotor in-wheel motor, however, uses a hollow doughnut construction that locates the rotor outside the stator. The major benefits of this arrangement are as follows:
- The design makes raising power output and torque easier and makes the speed reducer unnecessary, which reduces energy losses and restrains the increase of unsprung weight.
- Elimination of the speed reducer makes the motor easier to fit into wheel house.
- The doughnut construction creates space in center of the motor for the brake assembly and other components.
- The outer-rotor construction also allows the motor to be mounted on the front wheels, something not possible until now because of the presence of steering system components. This evolutionary feature has opened the door to the realization of 4WD in-wheel motor vehicles and widened the potential for EV’s.
One of the Company’s major objectives in developing Lancer Evolution MIEV is to evaluate the outer-rotor type in-wheel motor construction, key to 4WD in-wheel motor vehicles, under an extensive range of driving conditions. To this end, Mitsubishi Motors has acquired vehicle type certification for Lancer Evolution MIEV to allow evaluation not only in the proving ground but also under normal driving conditions on public roads. These evaluations are designed to verify the reliability and durability of the outer-rotor in-wheel motor when subject to road surface inputs, to water inundation, and to exposure to sand and dirt – the major challenges this type of motor must overcome. The test program will also allow the Company to carry out research and development aimed at raising performance and at reducing weight and size.
Leveraging its trademark all-wheel control technology and know-how, Mitsubishi Motors is also considering developing a system that controls drive torque and braking force independently at each wheel and is eying its use in Lancer Evolution MIEV. The Company will aim for the realization of high-performance electric, hybrid and fuel cell vehicles that deliver not only superior environmental performance but also output performance and maneuverability equal to or better than gasoline-fueled vehicles.
Lancer Evolution MIEV layout
New outer-rotor in-wheel motor schematic
 |
Lancer Evolution MIEV: specification (base model: Lancer Evolution IX)
|
Length |
4490 mm |
|
|
Width |
1770 mm |
|
|
Height |
1450 mm |
|
|
Curb weight |
1590 kg |
|
|
Seating capacity |
5 |
|
|
Max. speed |
180 km/h |
|
|
Cruising range / charge |
250 km |
|
|
Motor |
Type |
Permanent magnetic synchronous |
|
Maker |
Toyo Denki Seizo K.K. |
|
|
Max. output |
50 kW |
|
|
Max. torque |
518 N?m |
|
|
Max. speed |
1500 rpm |
|
|
Dimensions |
445 mm (dia.) x 134 mm |
|
|
No. fitted |
4 |
|
|
Battery system |
Type |
Lithium-ion |
|
Maker |
GS Yuasa Corporation |
|
|
Capacity |
95 Ah |
|
|
Voltage |
14.8 V |
|
|
L x W x H |
388 mm x 175 mm x 116 mm |
|
|
No. of modules |
24 |
|
|
Controller |
Inverter |
|
|
Drive |
4WD |
|
|
Tires |
255/30ZR20 |
|
Shikoku EV Rally 2005
Open to electric vehicles licensed for use on public roads, the Shikoku EV Rally has been staged by scientists at universities in Shikoku every year since 1998 with the purpose of promoting the use of EV’s. This year marks the eighth time the Rally has been held.
Mitsubishi Motors has entered models such as the FTO-EV and Eclipse EV test cars in the Rally from the first Rally through 2003. The Company will be entering the recently completed Lancer Evolution MIEV in this year’s Rally to test its driving and battery charging performance under normal driving conditions on public roads and to promote the MIEV next-generation EV concept among the general public.
Date: August 27-28
Venue: Tokushima College of Technology (Sakano-machi, Sakano-gun, Tokushima Prefecture)
Organizing body: Shikoku EV Challenge Committee and Shikoku EV Rally 2005 Executive Committee
Route details: 12 stages over public road with Tokushima College of Technology as the base point. Performance testing and measurement over special stages.
Get ready for $4 a gallon: Soaring prices hitting more than just drivers
By LAWRENCE HOVISH - STAFF WRITER
Around 9 a.m. today Joe Hubertus got the call: Gas prices were going up another 11 cents.
It was the third time in as many days, with the first two times being 15 cents each. Up went the numbers on the sign from $3.31 for regular to $3.45.
Hubertus Services in Canisteo has been family owned since 1949. He said it's never been this bad, but laments there isn't much he can do about it. Hubertus predicts the prices will rise to $4 locally, although he does believe they will fall back down. The only question is when.
At another station, the manager, who wished not to be unidentified because of job concerns, lamented getting three calls a day to up prices.
"It makes me sick when I have to come to work," the manager said. "How is anyone going to afford this?"
Next to the Acorn station in Canisteo, Tom Hurburt was setting up his farm stand for the day with his father-in-law, Sopio Aguilar. Not only is it costing him $100 to fill his truck, he' also seen business drop in the normally high traffic area.
Hurburt is used to making between $900-$1,000 on Thursdays. This Thursday he only made $200. The cost of watermelon, meanwhile, has skyrocketed from $500 for around 1,000 to $3,000.
"I'm a retired veteran and this is how we get treated," he said. "I can't afford this; it's going to close me down."
Locally, regular prices were as follows early today: Sunoco, Main Street Hornell, $3.19; Sugar Creek, Almond, $3.09; Sugar Creek, Arkport, $3.19; Sunoco Arkport, $3.19; Sunoco, North Hornell, $3.19; Kwik Fill-Red Apple, North Hornell, $3.09; Citgo Kwik-Fill, Hornell, $3.09; Sugar Creek, corner of Seneca and Genesee Hornell, $3.29; Uni-Mart, Canisteo, $3.19; Acorn, Canisteo, $3.29; Hubertus, Canisteo, $3.45; and Sunoco, Canisteo, $3.29.
While anger is growing as gas prices rise across the nation, gas station owners and attendants say the people have been nice to them.
"It's not bad," said Dan Clark, a relief driver for Griffith Energy. "You don't get as many waves as you used to."
Because of Hurricane Katrina, pipelines are down, Hubertus said. Time will only fix that.
"Everybody's talking about it, but they're not blaming me," Hubertus said. "It's not the retailers. It's not the distributors. If anybody is making money, it's the oil companies themselves."
Hubertus also noted the government is making a mint, too. According to him, about 25 cents on his current price is state sales tax and another 40-45 cents is federal taxes.
State Sen. George H. Winner Jr., R-Elmira, has announced the state Senate's Republican Majority is advancing a proposal to cap the state-local sales tax on gasoline. The plan, he said, would provide immediate relief to motorists, as well as deliver New York's current gas tax windfall to a program to help fixed-income seniors meet rising home fuel heating costs this winter.
By rolling back the state-local sales tax on gas and replacing it with a fixed tax, Winner estimates it would immediately save drivers eight to 10 cents per gallon on fuel purchased at more than $2 per gallon. The state believes the gas tax windfall, now projected at $42 million, may grow to $100 million or more by the end of the fiscal year.
Rep. John Sweeney, R-N.Y., meanwhile, has called prices ''out of control,'' and is seeking a suspension of the federal 18.4-cent tax on gasoline when it climbs over $3 per gallon. The gas tax funds a massive highway construction program that pumps billions of dollars a year into New York state.
That, however, may not be enough to stem the growing frustration. According to an AP-Ipsos poll, the public is demanding that President Bush and Congress make fuel prices their highest domestic priority. Gasoline prices were named as the top domestic priority for the nation's political leaders by 24 percent, slightly behind Iraq at 29 percent, but ahead of other domestic issues like the economy and jobs at 14 percent and terrorism at 9 percent.
The AAA reported that the nationwide average price of a gallon of unleaded gasoline was $2.68 Thursday, but in New York, around $3 was the norm.
Gov. George Pataki and state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer are warning that price gouging will not be tolerated. A special Gasoline Price Stability Task Force will monitor prices, and a consumer hotline for complaints has been set up. The toll-free number is (800) 214-4372. Complaints also may be registered by visiting the Consumer Protection Board's Web site www.nysconsumer.gov.
The governor's release, however, also urged New Yorkers to conserve fuel by driving less, utilizing public transportation, using energy-conserving grade motor oil and car pooling. It also was suggested that it is better to fill gas tanks in the evening hours to reduce evaporation.
Whether the solution be conservation or investigation, it's obvious to people like Greenwood resident Gary Updyke that times are changing. Updyke's parked his truck; it just costs too much to fill.
"I guess they weren't kidding when they said it would go to $5 a gallon," he said while filling a gas can at the Canisteo Uni-Mart for the lawnmower at the Greenwood Cemetery. "I don't see what the problem is. There's something going on, and I don't know what."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.