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Zap bringing electric taxi, Alias to Shanghai Auto Show; promises production later this year

Sebastian Blanco — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 15:59:00 +0000

Zap Jonway Electric Taxi - Click above for high-res image

About a year ago, we got our first glimpse of the electric taxi from Zap. There were hints in that vehicle about what was to happen: the taxi was an electrified version of a Jonway A380 SUV, which itself was a knock-off of the second-gen Toyota Rav4. In July 2010, Zap and Jonway officially joined forces and now Zap is announcing it will show off two electric vehicles - the A380e SUV and the long-awaited Alias trike - at the Shanghai Auto Show this year. Zap says both vehicles are "anticipated for production later this year" - the A380e in June and the Alias in September. Both will be made at Zap Jonway's 3.5 million square-foot factory in Sanmen, China. Zap isn't giving out any new technical details on the A380e, but last year told the world it has a top speed of 70 miles per hour and a range of up to 186 miles.

At the Shanghai show, Zap Jonway will also discuss new plans for two new platforms, a crossover SUV and seven-passenger van. As far as we can tell, all of these vehicles will be available only in China.

[Source: Zap Jonway]

Continue reading Zap bringing electric taxi, Alias to Shanghai Auto Show; promises production later this year

Zap bringing electric taxi, Alias to Shanghai Auto Show; promises production later this year originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Tue, 19 Apr 2011 10:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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X-Prize in-fighting goes public as Li-Ion Motors tries to back out of prize-sharing agreement

Jonas Dalidd — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 19:02:00 +0000

Filed under: Automotive X-Prize, USA

Automotive X Prize winner Li-ion Motors may have tarnished its reputation soon after the Wave II claimed the top spot in the Alternative Side-by-Side Class. As we reported previously, four out of the five teams competing in the category signed an agreement, drafted on spiral bound notebook paper, just minutes before the final race to split the $2.5 million purse based on an agreed-upon formula. Now Li-ion is asserting that the agreement is void because all five teams remaining at that point did not participat and they are under no obligation to share the winnings with the other three teams that signed the agreement. According to a news release the company posted on its website (along with a scan of the actual agreement):

Li-ion agreed to the prize sharing arrangement based on all teams participating. That proposal called for the first place prize winner to receive $1.7 mil, 2nd place would receive $400K, 3rd, $200K, 4th and 5th would receive $ 100K each. 8 minutes before the race, the company was informed that RaceAbout from Finland did not sign the agreement. Having only a couple of minutes before the race started, Li-ion Motors attempted to obtain board approval if it wanted to have an agreement with only 4 teams participating, but was unable to do so prior to the start of the race. Therefore, due to the decision of RaceAbout from Finland, the proposed agreement never became final.

What's interesting is that the scan (read it here) shows that the agreement specifically reads that the undersigned teams will share the prize purse with "any undersigned teams" and only breaks out the prize distribution to four places.

In any case, this latest move by Li-ion, which has a troubled past, has surely done some damage to its integrity and could end up costing the company more than sharing $800,000 with its competitors. Says Randy Reisinger of the German team TW4XP, one of the teams that signed the agreement:

The British Columbia Securities Commission has already suspended trading of their stock. As news of their methods spreads, can the Frankfurt Xetra Exchange in Germany be far behind?

[Source: New York Times]

X-Prize in-fighting goes public as Li-Ion Motors tries to back out of prize-sharing agreement originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Tue, 23 Nov 2010 14:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remy HVH250 motor to drive ZAP’s electric vehicle lineup

Eric Loveday — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 22:00:00 +0000

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Zap

Remy Electric Motors, the Pendleton, IN-based automotive supplier, has been selected by Zap, a California-based electric vehicle producer, to supply motors for all of the automaker's cars and trucks sold across the globe. Remy's HVH 250 electric motor - the one Steve Burns, president of Advanced Mechanical Products, Inc. (AMP), once called "the best (electric motor) on the market today" - will find a home between the fenders of every Zap vehicle produced from here on out.

Remy's patented High Voltage Hairpin (HVH) technology is said to deliver world-class torque and power density, attributes which could add some needed pep and range to Zap's electric vehicle lineup. Remy HVH motors can also be found in vehicles produced by AMP, General Motors, Mercedes-Benz and BMW .

Remy and ZAP announced the long-term motor supply deal at the 25th World Electric Vehicle Symposium and Exposition (EVS 25) in Shenzhen, China. Additionally, Zap disclosed that it's developing a drivetrain featuring the HVH 250 motor for use in several Chinese-built autos. Zap recently merged (or bought, depending on your viewpoint) with Zhejiang Jonway Automobile Company and has access to a broad distribution network through Jonway Automobiles in China.

[Source: Remy International, Inc.]

Continue reading Remy HVH250 motor to drive ZAP's electric vehicle lineup

Remy HVH250 motor to drive ZAP's electric vehicle lineup originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Wed, 10 Nov 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Automotive X Prize: And the winners are …

Eric Loveday — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 15:13:00 +0000

Filed under: Emerging Technologies, EV/Plug-in, Green Culture, Green Daily, Automotive X-Prize

Automotive X-Prize vehicles line up in the Knockout Stage - Click above for high-res image gallery

Ladies and gentlemen, it's time to meet the winners of the 2010 Progressive Insurance Automotive X-Prize. But before we get to declaring the victors, let's take one last look at the finalists:

Mainstream Class

Edison2, Very Light Car (team name, car name)

Alternative Class - Tandem

X-Tracer, E-Tracer

Alternative Class - Side-by-Side

Aptera, Aptera 2e
Li-ion Motors, Wave II
RaceAbout Association, RaceAbout
TW4XP, TW4XP
ZAP, Alias

Remember, the award ceremony starts in a few minutes and you can watch the stream here. If you want to see who won before the pomp and circumstance gets underway, just click past the jump.

Continue reading Automotive X Prize: And the winners are ...

Automotive X Prize: And the winners are ... originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Thu, 16 Sep 2010 10:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Automotive X-Prize: finalists announced, X-Tracer now last team standing in Tandem class

Sebastian Blanco — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 20:01:00 +0000

Filed under: Emerging Technologies, EV/Plug-in, Green Culture, Hybrid, Green Daily, Automotive X-Prize

Automotive X-Prize Knockout Stage - Click above for high-res image gallery

Ladies and gentlemen, meet your finalists for the Automotive X-Prize:

Mainstream Class

Edison2, Very Light Car (team name, car name)

Alternative Class - Tandem

X-Tracer, E-Tracer

Alternative Class - Side-by-Side

Aptera, Aptera 2e
Li-ion Motors, Wave II
RaceAbout Association, RaceAbout
TW4XP, TW4XP
ZAP, Alias

These are the cars that have passed all the on-track testing at the Michigan International Speedway this summer and those that will now move into the Validation Stage at the Argonne National Lab next month. As you can see, X-Tracer has joined Edison2 as a team with no one but themselves to beat, which means that these two teams are just a few in-lab tests and one more road event away from earning the $2.5 million or $5 million prize money, respectively, on September 16 in Washington, D.C. For the other teams, results from the lab tests, as well as the standings from today's combined performance and efficiency event, which will be used as a tiebreaker, will determine the winners. For teams fighting against themselves, all that's required to win now is to meet the X-Prize's minimum targets. For detailed team standings and vehicle performance details, click here and there's more information after the jump.

[Source: Automotive X-Prize]

Continue reading Automotive X-Prize: finalists announced, X-Tracer now last team standing in Tandem class

Automotive X-Prize: finalists announced, X-Tracer now last team standing in Tandem class originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Tue, 27 Jul 2010 15:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Zap merges with China’s Jonway Automobile

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 22:01:00 +0000

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Manufacturing/Plants, Legislation and Policy, Zap, China

We'll level with you on this one. We all know that Zap has seemingly had some, ahem... interesting business practices in the past. And we're not really sure what to make of this latest news, either. With that in mind, here's the main point: Zap has merged (or bought, depending on your viewpoint) with China's Jonway Automobile. There are three more bullet points to consider...

One: Zap has had seven straight annual losses, last making a profit in 2002. Two: Zap is reportedly paying over $29 million in cash that was apparently privately financed through unknown European sources along with 31.5 million shares in Zap... which were newly issues specifically for this transaction. Three: The Chinese authorities have yet to approve of the deal.

With all that out of the way, assuming all goes according to plan, Zap says it wants to offer an electric version of Jonway's A380 SUV for use as a taxi in China. It will reportedly cost around $25,000 and have seating for five. No word on range.

Jonway apparently operates 500 dealerships in China and just completed a new plant with 3.6 million square feet of space. A few months back, Zap and Jonway announced plans to have the three-wheeled Alias built in China. So... those are the facts, at least as best we can figure. See the press release after the break.

[Source: Bloomberg]

Continue reading Zap merges with China's Jonway Automobile

Zap merges with China's Jonway Automobile originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Fri, 09 Jul 2010 17:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AFVI 2010: Zap Dude is not an urban achiever

Sebastian Blanco — Wed, 12 May 2010 15:54:00 +0000

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Zap, AFVI Expo

Zap Dude - Click above for high-res image gallery

Last month, Zap introduced the all-electric Dude, an off-road ATV. The company has sold a half-dozen of the $5,495 units and has "a warehouse full" of them ready to go out the door to a good home, according to Zap regional manager Dennis Vickery, who we talked to here at the AFVI Expo in Las Vegas. In this case, a good home means parks or other natural settings, because the Dude can only be used in off-road settings. The Dude (and yes, we want to make countless Lebowski references, too) can go up to 25 miles per hour and has a range of 25 miles. Apparently, the Dude can carry a rider up to 290 pounds and tow up to 650 pounds using a 48V permanent-magnet rush DC motor and standard 65aH absorbed glass matt (AGM) lead acid batteries that recharge in around 4-6 hours.

If you're thinking that electric vehicles might have trouble meeting stated range estimates on paved roads, Zap is with you and has included a very clear statement attached to the ATV's webpage: "Range will vary significantly depending on hill grade, speed, and rider weight." You've been warned.

Gallery: AFVI 2010: Zap Dude

Photos by Sebastian Blanco / Copyright (C)2010 Weblogs, Inc.

[Source: Zap]

AFVI 2010: Zap Dude is not an urban achiever originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Wed, 12 May 2010 10:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Automotive X-Prize: Zap Alias can stop, swerve at MIS

Sebastian Blanco — Sun, 09 May 2010 23:12:00 +0000

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, AutoblogGreen Exclusive, Zap, Automotive X-Prize

Zap Alias - Click above for high-res image gallery

Zap had some things easier and some things harder at the Shakedown stage of the Progressive Insurance Automotive X-Prize last week. The team's three-wheeled Alias vehicle easily passed the accident avoidance course at 46 miles per hour and, given that the X-Prize's events at this point are pass/fail, didn't need to try again at a higher speed. Driver Al Unser Jr., though, was convinced that the Alias is capable of passing the test as a higher speed. The Alias also passed the 60-0 mph deceleration test on the first attempt, but the car's clutch was slipping "quite seriously," in Unser's words, and so had a hard time passing the 0-60 acceleration test (as of late Wednesday, we're still waiting for an update).

Zap, unlike some of the other teams at the Michigan International Speedway, is actually selling electric vehicles while the competition is going on. Zap co-founder and chairman emeritus Gary Starr said:

We've had to switch projects in mid-stream a few times because we're multiple projects. We have an on-going business that we're shipping electric vehicles out every week. We're working seven days a week, 12-15 hour days now.

This pace will continue for the foreseeable future. In the window between the Shakedown stage and Knockout stage in late June, Zap will be working on the USPS electric delivery van, an electric taxi project and the regular delivery of the company's electric vehicle line. "We're doing a lot for a little company," Starr said.

But back to the Alias. The vehicle Zap is using in the competition was built in 45 days, Unser said, because Zap didn't decided to enter the X-Prize until quite late. The trike is still evolving, "They're always tweaking," Starr said, adding:

We designed this vehicle to be very cost-effective. Some people got a half-million dollar motor drive systems around here. Our goal is to produce a vehicle we can produce in very small quantities for a reasonable price, so we don't have the biggest motor. We might have the smallest motor here, but it's also one of the lowest-cost ones. Originally, that was the design goal of not only our [vehicle] but also the X-Prize. It's changed a little bit over time. They have various performance tests that go beyond Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. That wasn't originally our path, but now we're adding and altering things to do it a little bit differently.

Zap built the Alias to meet the FMVSS rules for motorcycles, but the X-Prize uses it's own blend of motorcycle and automobile rules. The Alias has a new reverse back-up light, for example. Motorcycles don't need back-up lights, but the three-wheeled trikes in the competition do need them. Starr said the rules were changed within the last two weeks or so.

Another change, this one decided on by the company, is that the car will likely have more powerful motors In the June knockout tests, Unser said, "and we're going to be more prepared." Unser added that what's happening during the shakedown is giving teams a chance to be ready next month:

It's about the X-Prize foundation learning about the competitors, letting the competitors learn about the X-Prize foundation and getting to see what's here, what's showing up.

Unser has had a relationship with Zap since January 2008. A friend turned him onto the Alias when it was still just a drawing (remember those days?) and, when the NADA convention happened in San Francisco that year, Zap invited him to attend. Since then:

it's an honor they asked me to drive it to begin with. It's wonderful to be a part of this whole X-Prize competition. Quite honestly, I feel the addiction to oil has to stop. If it doesn't stop, it's going to stop eventually with the reserves that we have [declining] so alternative fuels have to be on the forefront of automobiles.

Unser was recently in Sao Paolo, where he saw the result of pollution first-hand:

I'm seeing emissions everywhere now. It's something I do realize, as far a mainstream transportation, this is not going to happen in my generation, but maybe my grandchildren, or their grandchildren, electric cars or some type of alternative fuel will be the way of their transportation. So, to be a part of it, right now, is very exciting for me. I truly feel I'm part of history right now.

Gallery: Zap Alias at the Michigan International Speedway

Automotive X-Prize: Zap Alias can stop, swerve at MIS originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Sun, 09 May 2010 18:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Zap Alias electric trike to be built in China by Jonway

Sam Abuelsamid — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 21:01:00 +0000

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Zap, Automotive X-Prize, China

Zap Alias - Click above for high-res image gallery

Santa Rosa California based Zap has expanded its relationship with Chinese automaker Zhejiang Jonway Automobile Co. Ltd. to include manufacturing of the Alias electric trike. The Alias is a battery-powered two-seater that Zap has been in developing for several years. At one point, Zap was hoping to build the Alias at a plant in Kentucky but that venture collapsed when funding could not be arranged. Jonway will begin production of the Alias for the Chinese market first, then expand globally.

The Alias is entered in the Automotive X-Prize competition which is kicking off in Michigan this week. Zap claims the Alias can go over 100 miles on a charge of its lithium ion battery and will charge $35,000 for the Alias in the U.S. The shakedown testing starts next week at Michigan International Speedway. Zap will be there, along with 27 other teams that are competing for the $10 million in prize money.

Gallery: Zap Alias

[Source: Zap]

Continue reading Zap Alias electric trike to be built in China by Jonway

Zap Alias electric trike to be built in China by Jonway originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Fri, 30 Apr 2010 16:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Automotive X Prize revs up for Michigan events, Knockout Stage starts next week

Sebastian Blanco — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 19:56:00 +0000

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, MPG, AutoblogGreen Exclusive, Green Daily, Automotive X-Prize

Governor Granholm and X-Prize CEO Peter Diamandis in the Amp'd Sky - Click above for high-res image gallery

At the official kick-off event for the Progressive Insurance Automotive X-Prize in Lansing, MI today, the same cars, most of the same people and the same "news" was delivered as we heard and saw back in January at the Detroit Auto Show. Still, with the sun out and the shakedown stage of the event about to kick off at the Michigan International Speedway next week, there was a sense of excitement today that just wasn't present in Cobo Hall four months ago. The main similarity was that Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm spoke at both events, and she's energetic no matter what.

The Amp'd Sky (pictured), the Edison2's Very Light Car, the Zap Alias and the Tango two-seater EV were all on hand. Aptera was listed among the teams that would be on hand, but there was no 2e to be found anywhere. Oh, and remember when there were like 120 teams shooting for the top spot? Today, there are but 28 teams left, entering a total of 36 vehicles in the mainstream (15 vehicles) and alternative (21) classes. You can see the breakdown of where these teams are from and what type of energy they are using after the jump.

The one tidbit that caught our ear today was that in the second-to-last stage of the event, the Knockout Qualifying Stage in June, the teams will only need to prove their vehicles can achieve 67 miles per gallon equivalent. During the Finals Stage a month later, they will need to reach 100 mpge, the headline target for the X-Prize. We asked why this low bar was set so close to the end of the competition, and the X-Prize's Senior Director, Eric Cahill, said that it was a reasonable goal everyone agreed to and proves that all the competitors will at least be in the ballpark when it comes time for the final event. We don't know how anyone who just manages to reach the June goal will be able to tweak their way to 30 more mpge in a few short weeks, but maybe that's the kind of intense competition the X-Prize will deliver in the very near future.

Gallery: Automotive X-Prize at the Michigan Capitol

Continue reading Automotive X Prize revs up for Michigan events, Knockout Stage starts next week

Automotive X Prize revs up for Michigan events, Knockout Stage starts next week originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Thu, 29 Apr 2010 14:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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