Carmakers, would-be carmakers on potentially bumpy road to electric future
General Motors on Monday highlighted its path forward to “…a world with zero crashes, zero emissions, and zero congestion….” GM announced it will introduce two new all-electric vehicles over the next 18 months—the first of at least 20 to launch by 2023.
And last week, British inventor Sir James Dyson announced plans to build an electric car that would go on sale in 2020. The Dyson initiative faces some skepticism that Dyson’s company can overcome manufacturing and regulatory hurdles in the short timeframe. Tesla, already well established as an automaker, is facing challenges ramping up production of its Model 3.
The GM and Dyson news follows Volvo’s July announcement of a push toward electric vehicles, with each new model launched beginning in 2019 having an electric motor.
“General Motors believes in an all-electric future,” said Mark Reuss, General Motors executive vice president of product development, purchasing, and supply chain. “Although that future won’t happen overnight, GM is committed to driving increased usage and acceptance of electric vehicles through no-compromise solutions that meet our customers’ needs.”
GM also said it will pursue both battery-electric and hydrogen-fuel-cell technologies. With regard to the latter, the company introduced SURUS (Silent Utility Rover Universal Superstructure), a fuel-cell-powered, four-wheel-steer concept vehicle on a heavy-duty truck frame that’s driven by two electric motors. SURUS, GM said, could be used as a delivery vehicle or an ambulance.
As for Dyson’s efforts, 400 engineers have been working on the £2.5 billion project since 2015. Dyson claims an electric motor is ready and that two types of battery under development would be more efficient than batteries used in existing battery-electric vehicles.
Gwyn Topham in The Guardian quotes Dyson as saying, “I’m not a Johnny-come-lately to electric cars. It’s been my ambition since 1998 when I was rejected by the industry that has happily been creating dirty vehicles, and governments have kept on allowing it.”
Karl West in The Guardian reports that Dyson will use solid-state batteries. He also reports skepticism about Dyson’s chance of success. “Some of Britain’s biggest car manufacturers—steeped in the engineering and regulatory challenges that come with every new launch—reckon Dyson will struggle to rush a new EV into showrooms by 2020,” he writes.
Meanwhile, Tesla is facing challenges of its own. Tim Higgins in The Wall Street Journal reports that the company missed its goal for manufacturing Model 3 cars in the third quarter, “…the first sign that the production ramp-up for the new sedan isn’t going as smoothly as planned.” Higgins reports that Tesla built only 260. In a July tweet, Elon Musk predicted his company would build 100 Model 3 vehicles in August and more than 1,500 in September.
In related news, Adam Vaughan in The Guardian reports that Nissan and UK energy supplier Ovo are teaming up to offer a “vehicle-to-grid” service that will defray the £350 to £400 annual charging costs for purchasers of Nissan’s new Leaf. Using a special charger installed in a customer’s home, Ovo will top off the Leaf’s battery during off-peak periods and sell it during peak demand for four times the off-peak rate.
It’s unclear how much the scheme would restrict customers’ mobility. Presumably, they would have to be at home (or some other location equipped with an Ovo-managed charger) during periods of peak demand.
Vaughan quotes Ovo chief executive Stephen Fitzpatrick as saying the technology would initially have a “relatively modest” impact but is “…the thin end of a very important wedge.”
