The All Electric Audi R8 E-Tron [Video]

New Trends: Cars that Plug into your Surge Protector

Electric cars are slowly starting to replace high end automobiles as Jaguar C X-75, BMW, Tesla, GE Watt Stations, and Volvo all begin massive investment on electric car development. Now it's Audi's turn. The all new Audi E-Tron R8:

• Cost: $200,000
• 313 Horsepower at peak
• 3319 pounds/feet of torque
• 100 km/h in 4.8 seconds

The Battery:

• weighs 1212 pounds
• store 53 KWh of energy
• charges in 6 to 8 hours using a 220V outlet
• goes 150 miles on a single charge

As Audi releases its all new electric sports car, a clear trend in the auto industry is starting to develop. Electric is the way of the future, and in retrospect, always has been. We looking at movies that have depicted the future, Demolition Man, Total Recall, The Sixth Day... electric cars are being used. Since the green car revolution is very new, critics and the media are skeptical to call the future of the automobile industry an electric one, but the money being invested by the major car companies listed above proves a steady trend towards electric cars.

Sources: [CrunchGear]

The Solar Golf Cart

The solar golf cart, save energy while hitting the greens, "... will allow most golf carts to become solar powered vehicles." These solar panels produce up to 180 watts of power, supplying 3 amps of electrical current

Why should Golf Course should Buy this Product

• "The solar panels can generate up to 180 watts and supply 3 amps directly to a 36 or 48 volt battery. Overall, this will increase the distance the cart can go on a single charge by 30%." [Meta Efficient]
• Federal Tax Credits

To be specific [From Cruise Car]:

• Most powerful solar panels on the market: 190-380 Watt Solar Panel Top Systems output up to 88 Volts.
• Batteries constantly recharge in the sun extending the battery life by up to 30%.
• Lower electricity bills.
• Increases driving distance by 5-12 miles per day on the average.
• Eco-friendly; zero carbon emissions when operating on solar power.
• Easy to install, no maintenance.
• Quality construction: mono-Crystalline solar panels, U.L.Certified High Grade Industrial Wiring, Compression Tested Glass.
• Full 10-year warranty included; an extended 25-year warranty is available.
• 2-5 year customized leasing programs available.

Cruise Car even sells a kit that will let you make most golf carts solar powered.



Sources: [Meta Efficient] [Cruise Car]

Jaguar C-X75 Electric Sports Car

Tesla... Look Out

• 0 to 60 in 3.4 seconds,
• 780bhp due to 4 electric motors and two of micro gas turbines
• Top speed of 205mph

"There are four 195HP electric motors at each of the wheels, powered by an extended range system similar to the one inside the Chevy Volt."  - Crunch Gear

"You can go for 68 miles just on electric juice or 560 if you let the gasworks recharge the Li-ion battery pack on the go." - Engadget

Sources: [Engadget] [Uncrate] [CrunchGear] [TreeHugger]

A Closer Look at the GE WattStation

To see more GE videos on Electric Cars, WattStations, and an interactive guide to see if an Electric Car is right for you, click on this link.

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Volvo Stores Energy in Electric Car Panels

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"Imagine a car whose body also serves as a rechargeable battery..."

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With electric cars becoming increasingly more popular due to public power stations like GE's WattStation and electric car charging parking spots at California Costco's, car companies are working strenuously to come up with new electric car innovations. Volvo is working on a car were it's side panels, roof , and car hood are made from battery's.


Sources: [TreeHugger] [Green Technology] [Mother Nature Network]

Electric Cars Are the Solution - GE WattStation

The new GE WattStation's are 10 years too late. Electric car charging stations are easy to place along side roads and allow for easy access. Companies should all be developing electric cars, and companies like Tesla should be excited for products like this to be installed in major cities.

Below is the new ad for GE WattStations

Sources: [TreeHugger] [YouTube]

2010 Progressive Insurance 100 MPG Automotive X-Prize Winners

3 Winners Split $10 Million

Mainstream-Class Winner: Edison2 Very Light Car [VLC]

The Edison2 received $5 million as the first place winner. The car itself weights 830 pounds and has a 40 horsepower motorcycle engine.

Alternative Class / Tandem Class Winner: E-Tracer

The E-Tracer won $2.5 Million.

Alternative Class Winner: Wave II

This batter-electric hybrid, created by Li-Ion Motors, was the third winner receiving $2.5 million

Sources: [Gizmodo] [Inhbatiat]

Nagoya Institute's Hyperdrive Concept Car

Photo's from the Tokyo Motor Show. Yes, its a folding car.

Click Here to Read More

Military, Police, and Earth Technology

A Greener Police - The Ford Police Interceptor

From Ford:

A highly efficient 3.5-liter V-6 engine delivering at least 263 horsepower and E85 compatibility is 25 percent more efficient than the 4.6-liter Single Overhead Cam (SOHC) V-8 offered in the current Crown Victoria Police Interceptor.

Plus, an all-new 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6 twin-turbocharged, direct-injection engine will deliver at least 365 horsepower and 350 ft.-lb. of torque across a broad rpm range.

A high-capacity six-speed SelectShift Automatic transmission delivers the power of EcoBoost to the road via the sophisticated torque-sensing all-wheel-drive system.

Again, Ford and other American automobile makers are on a very strong rebound, especially due to the current Toyota Recall. The computers in these cars should also have the technology to control and launch mobile UAV's.


The Bunker Busting Robot

This Robotic Underground Munition [RUM] is being developed by the US Defense Threat Reduction Agency to drill deep underground into enemy bunkers then explode, creating a very expensive one time use.

Our Last Defense Against Earthquakes

The Stanford University "Quake-Catcher" has been available since 2008, but due to current frequency and intensity of the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, they have experienced many new users that will allow the earthquake predictor to work with more efficiency. Using accelerometers built into many new laptops, the software takes note if many laptops are all shaking in the same area and uses this information to track the earthquake.

My only problem with technology like this is that it uses expensive laptop sensors that are expensive and not available in the areas that will be most affected by "increased frequency and intensity" of storms and geothermal activity [Taken from my notes in Prof. Gary Yohe's class and the IPCC Report], most notably the "third-world."


Sources: [Smart Planet] [Gizmodo] [Engadget]

RoboCar G

Finally I can take my Golf Cart off some sweet jumps

Sources: [Crunch Gear]

All Electric BMW - 2013

BMW's first all-electric regular series production vehicle, the Megacity EV, has now been set in stone and inserted into the company's roadmap for a commercial launch in 2012 or 2013.



Source: [Engadget]

Cal Poly Eco Car Gets 2,752 Miles Per Gallon

Sources: [Tree Hugger]

The Tesla Roadster

A Glimpse at the 100% Electric 2010 Tesla Roadster

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Top Gear: Reviews Tesla Roadster

Cost: 

$98,000 - about 48,000£ 

Power Supply: 

Electricity (You Plug it in to your Home's Outlet)

Charge Time: 16 Hours

Miles Per Charge: Advertised at 200 miles/charge  -  Top Gear tested at 55 miles/charge

[Top Gear Review of Tesla Roadster Video Below]

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OnCars.com - Tesla Model S Video

Sources:  [Engadget] [Engadget 2] [Green Technology] [Green Technology 2] [Top Gear]