Joint ventures no longer mandatory in China: China will be making a huge change for automakers who want to build electric cars locally – setting up their own shops 
without having to forge a joint venture with a Chinese automaker. That will lower costs for companies like Tesla that have to pay steep tariffs to import their cars into China, and which choose to run their own factories similar to how they do it overseas. Foreign automakers will be able to go into free-trade zones to establish their factories. The country has 12 free-trade zones in Shanghai, Fujian, Guangdong, and Zhejiang. China will “actively implement the opening up of the new-energy manufacturing sector to foreigners, together with other departments under the direction of the State Council,” the nation’s Ministry of Commerce told Bloomberg. Other carmakers like General Motors, Ford, and Volkswagen, are tapping into JVs with Chinese makers to set up EV manufacturing subsidiaries.
LeEco using Faraday Future patents: Parent company LeEco used some of Faraday Future’s electric vehicle design in LeEco’s LeSee electric car, according to patents filed with the U.S. government. A Faraday Future representative confirmed that two of its patents are being used in the development of LeEco’s electric car. The look and design will be used across the FF and LeSee brands. One patent will be used for the look of the exterior design and the other is for the steering wheel. The two companies have been quiet about their working relationship as parent company LeEco has gone through the wringer financially, including a failed $2 billion acquisition of Vizio. In July, FF walked away from its planned $1 billion factory in Nevada. The company has leased an existing factory in Hanford, Calif., as it seeks new investment funds.
AeroVironment working with BMW and Mini: AeroVironment has been selected as the North American provider of BMW and Mini-branded TurboCord accessory electric vehicle chargers. The dual-voltage charger features a small and lightweight design with a 
convenient 20 ft. charging cord. That brings 120-volt and 240-volt charging to BMW and Mini electric cars. The TurboCord charger can be purchased with the EV at all North American BMW and Mini dealerships and online. It also integrates state-of-the-art safety features such as unit and plug temperature monitoring, automatic shut-off and a rugged, being waterproof, and submersible enclosure (NEMA 6p) that enables users to safely and reliably charge anywhere indoor and outdoor.
accreditation program. Resources regional fleets are tapping into for clean vehicles and fuels were discussed in the next panel by Craig VanItem, fleet maintenance supervisor at City of Santa Monica, Vartan Yegiyan, police administrator II and assistant commanding officer at Los Angeles Police Department, Laura Renger, principal manager of air and climate at Southern California Edison, and Mike Bolin, senior account executive at SoCalGas. Issues discussed included finding the real cost of ownership for EVs in fleets; the “chicken or the egg” debate over what needs to be prioritized first – clean vehicles of the charging and fueling infrastructure; SCE’s $450 Clean Fuel Rewards Program; and SoCalGas on how landfills and waste are being converted into renewable natural gas. Marco Anderson, senior regional planner at Southern California Association of Governments, led an afternoon panel on EV charging at multi-unit dwellings and workplaces. The Santa Monica event hosted a wide range of vehicles on Friday and Saturday, including the new Nissan Leaf and improved Rogue Hybrid; a BYD electric bus customized for UCLA events; the Chevy Bolt; the Kia Optima and Nero plug-in hybrids and Soul electric; an RNG-powered commercial truck with 400 horsepower; the Toyota Mirai and Prius Prime; the Honda Clarity in its three variations – fuel cell, electric, and plug-in hybrid; and the Karma Revero plug-in hybrid sports car. AltCar Expo was tied into National Drive Electric Week, as the event provides a great opportunity to test drive and check out the latest in plug-in vehicle offerings.
already placed in that market over the past year – the Cadillac CT6 and Buick Velite 5 plug-in hybrids and the Baojun E100 all-electric vehicle. Barra explained how it will be part of a larger move bring together autonomous vehicles, connectivity, and shared mobility services. The Chinese government is taking very seriously the need to address fast-growing cities with air pollution, traffic congestion, and safety. By 2025, nearly all of the Buick, Cadillac, and Chevrolet will have an electrified version. GM’s joint venture company with Chinese automaker SAIC Motor, called SAIC-GM, will be opening a new battery assembly plant in Shanghai sometime this year to support the electrification strategy.
New York City yesterday. UPS, the Bronx Botanical Garden, Habitat for Humanity, and Big Reuse have begun two-year leases on a small number of the medium-duty electric trucks that can go up to 80 miles on a charge. Daimler had previously made a deal with 7-Eleven to send 25 of the trucks to Japan. The electric trucks can carry three to four and a half tons of cargo, which is a few tons less than the diesel equivalent.
hybrid, and hybrid vehicles. The company currently offers one hybrid vehicle, a version of its Mazda3, and has focused on its fuel efficient Skyactiv system in gasoline engines. Electric powertrain technologies are being developed and may be deployed in Mazda vehicles starting in 2019. At that time, the company plans to reveal a very efficient gasoline engine that be used in plug-in hybrid models. Mazda previously forged an alliance with Toyota to develop electrified technology.
introduced into the European market with no word yet on whether it will show up in the U.S. It will have an on-board advanced Honda Automated Network Assistant acts as a personal concierge, which learns from the driver by detecting emotions behind their judgments for future recommendations. Honda’s Power Manager Concept, also revealed in Frankfurt, can store and manage energy between the grid, the electric car, and homes. The Urban EV Concept will come out in the near future. “This is not some vision of the distant future; a production version of this car will be here in Europe in 2019,” Honda Motor Co. President and CEO, Takahiro Hachigo.
race to the FIA Formula E Championship
technology, announced in a speech Saturday that regulators are working on a timeline for phasing out the sales and production of the gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles. Norway, France, and the UK, are already going in that direction. Almost 80 percent of the global auto market is heading toward an eventual phase-out of petroleum-powered cars through government incentives and mandates. It’s a big job – with about 695,000 of 84 million new vehicles sold last year being electric; and with about a billon vehicles out on roads across the world now.
Cars, only expect to see half the profit margins now for EV compared to conventional internal combustion engine vehicles. That could break even, and EVs more price competitive, by 2025. Seeing battery prices come down will be a big part of it. More specifics were given on its electric fleet introductions – by 2022, there will be an electric version of every Mercedes model sold. It will be led by the new EQ electric brand, which Mercedes-Benz is overseeing. The Smart brand will stop selling vehicles with any internal combustion engines in 2020.
hybrid that’s expected to be competitive in the luxury utility segment. Photos went out unexpectedly ahead of time. Production will launch in 2018. BMW executives have said the X7 will go on sale in the U.S. market in early 2019. There’s also an i-Series model, that could be the long-anticipated i5 sedan, that will be revealed next week. It will be one of 12 all-electric vehicles launched by 2025, bringing the total to 25 electrified vehicles offered, BMW’s CEO said.
kWh battery and an 80-kilowatt electric motor. The Japanese automaker promised to release a faster, more powerful version with longer range in 2019. The new Leaf is not meeting the 200-mile electric vehicle standard that’s becoming the norm, but it is going about 40 miles further than the current Leaf and costs a bit less; and it can deliver 147 horsepower, 38% more than the previous version. It’s got a new sharp-edged aerodynamic look and a few tech features. That includes the ProPILOT advanced driver assistance system, ProPILOT Park, and the e-Pedal that allows for accelerating, decelerating and stopping the car by using the accelerator pedal alone.
conduct studies on the best ways to write and implement EV rebate legislation. The report won’t be due until Sept. 1, 2019. Language was also removed from AB 1184 that offered a formula for providing higher rebate amounts. The full legislature will consider the amended bill. The $3 billion originally in AB 1184 would have offered rebates until 2030. It would have been six times higher than the nearly $500 million spent on EV rebates so far in the state.
ike the Generation EQ Concept show last year in Paris; it could be an electric sedan but most likely will be a small crossover or hatchback. It’s not going to roll out until 2020 or later as a production vehicle, and Mercedes-Benz is expected to reveal a few other electric EQ concept vehicles by that time. The company will also be showing a small autonomous concept car in Frankfurt called the Smart Vision EQ.
ridesharing venue through 
Workers union with charges of unfair labor practices. The Fremont factory has been picking up production volume as the Tesla Model 3 is being delivered to first buyers, and with production volumes speeding up later this year. Tesla sees it as a campaign by UAW to unionize Tesla workers, which has failed to gain enough support so far to win a union election. Employees have voiced their own concerns about working conditions in the factory. A study released by Worksafe in May found injuries at the Fremont plant to be much higher than the industry average in recent years.
well lately, with an 8.3% increase over July. At 9,685 units sold in the U.S. so far in 2017, it’s up 22.3% over that same period last year. There’s been a lot of interest in the Leaf lately with the all-new version being launched in September. It will be longer range than the current Leaf and will feature a new set of tech features, including ePedal. Consumers are looking for more affordable electric cars and have a lot of interest in the new Leaf, along with the Tesla Model 3 and Chevy Bolt.
2013. Car Charging Group began operating thousands of Blink charging stations, and the software that manages, monitors, and tracks these stations and stores charging data. Blink Charging Co. also started a 1 for 50 reverse stock split, effective two days ago. After a period of 20 business days from then, the company’s stock symbol will be CCGID and will then revert to CCGI. The company’s website has switched over to www.BlinkCharging.com. “Changing the name of the Company to Blink Charging continues our integration efforts and corporate rebranding, which allows us to unify our identity and illustrates the company’s primary products and services,” stated Mike Calise, Blink Charging’s CEO. “The reverse split is also another step in the right direction towards achieving a listing on a national stock exchange and to build additional shareholder value.”
An upgraded smartphone app has helped, along with a new marketing campaign that’s helping Lyft grow from serving 160 more cities for a total of about 350. Lyft is an ideal situation, with its General Motors partnership and recent deals with other companies on autonomous vehicle test projects. Uber’s excessive market valuation and ability to raise about $14 billion in private equity since its inception is causing a huge shakeup as investors want to see transparent, professional management of the company. Uber this week hired Expedia CEO Dara Khosrowshahi to take the place of ousted and controversial founder Travis Kalanick. The new CEO is also known for being outspoken, and is expected to bring the company forward to an initial public offering within 18 to 36 months. Lyft co-founders Logan Green and John Zimmer work on keeping the company simple and direct. They say they haven’t done beyond asking employees and drivers to make sure passengers are treated like guests at a fine hotel.