Electric Vehicle Industry News

EV etiquette: Four solutions to the problems of public charging

How You Can Test Drive Electric Vehicles on National Plug In Day

Good News for the Climate: Electric Vehicles Posting Record Sales Across the Nation

Electric vehicle sales showing more pickup

Series Production Of The BMW i3 EV Begins

GM Picks Up Speed on Mass-Market Electric Cars

6 Most Interesting Electric Car Apps


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Amber Perry is a Marketing Specialist at SemaConnect. She graduated with a B.A. in Communication Studies from Towson University. Amber handles the SemaConnect blog, supports Public Relations efforts and helps build the overall brand. As a new EV convert, Amber reports with a truly fresh perspective. Learn and grow with her! She can be reached at amber.perry@semaconnect.com.

Amber's EV 101

Hello, my name is Amber Perry and I am the new Marketing Specialist at SemaConnect.  I’m excited to join the team, and I’ve learned a lot of new information about the industry - including how Electric Vehicles operate, the continuing growth of the industry, the need for charging stations, etc. I’m new to the EV industry and to be honest, I did not fully understand the purpose behind these vehicles before. Learning about Electric Vehicles made me realize how completely unaware I was of all the benefits of driving an EV!  I hope that we continue to learn more together as I contribute weekly on this blog.

In the past, I would occasionally see EV’s when driving on the highway and wonder to myself if the person driving the car had always been the environmentally conscious type. There is a particular memory I have, where I made a joke about a hybrid car with a friend before I knew anything about electric vehicles. My friend and I were on the Cape May-Lewes Ferry and we were sitting in the car as we were approaching Atlantic City.  There was a woman walking back to the parking garage with four large plastic to-go containers full of salad, that we saw her carrying around the boat. We wondered what she was going to do with all that salad and when we saw her walk over to her Toyota Hybrid, I joked that her hybrid probably ran on salad, which we both thought was hilarious, at the time.

Now that I work for a company that makes charging stations for EV’s, I am becoming more educated on the topic and the more I learn, the more I think it’s a great idea. I am excited to be working for a company that plays such a huge role in this promising market.

One topic that intrigued me was safety ratings among EVs.  An article that caught my eye while I was doing research is, Why crash test dummies prefer electric vehicles.

In the article, The Tesla Model S, earned a 5 star safety rating from The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.  It stated that while a 5 star safety rating has been attained by other vehicles, the Tesla scored better than any other vehicle under the new rating system, which began in the 2011 model year.  

The ratings that the Tesla received during testing, were very impressive and some would even argue that safety is what will win the hearts and minds of the general public, and further catapult EV’s into the mainstream. The machine designed to test how much weight a car’s roof could withstand, actually broke after applying more than four times the force of gravity to the Model S.

The reason these cars are so safe, is the weight of the lithium ion battery and this is what makes these cars more stable on the road.  A Tesla model S has a 1,000 pound battery, which sits under the floor of the car, giving it a low center of gravity and making it almost impossible to roll over.

Another article that I found interesting was, Is the Electric Car Revolution Now Dependent on Single Start-Up?  In the article Ian Sacs, who is a worldwide transportation solutions consultant, talks about the Tesla Model S creating a quiet revolution. A revolution which is embodied in Tesla’s electric car. A revolution that reduces hundreds of moving, intricate, breakable parts, as well as removing the internal combustion engine and fuel tanks and replacing them with an electric motor the size of a milk crate. The battery can then be custom fit to squeeze beneath the passenger cabin. So what does this all mean? That the Electric Car is inherently safer than today’s cars.

I’m an EV convert, and I look forward to writing more blog posts and generating more awareness to the EV and EV Charging industry. I know my point of view on EV’s has drastically changed since I really began looking at the data. I believe that once more people become educated about the EV industry, like myself, they will wonder what took them so long to invest in an electric vehicle.

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Amber Perry is a Marketing Specialist at SemaConnect. She graduated with a B.A. in Communication Studies from Towson University. Amber handles the SemaConnect blog, supports Public Relations efforts and helps build the overall brand. As a new EV convert, Amber reports with a truly fresh perspective. Learn and grow with her! She can be reached at amber.perry@semaconnect.com.

A Closer Look at the EV Economy in 2013: Setting the Stage for Future Growth

By Joseph Tohill

For years petroleum-backed analysts have been down-playing the importance of EVs as a viable form of personal transportation. Arguing that EVs will only serve a micro-niche segment of the population, they claim that sales have been underwhelming and that the market will soon approach saturation.

However, a look at the cold hard numbers paints a different picture of the EV economy.

Yes EVs still constitute a small share of the automobile market. But new reports from industry analysts and EV manufacturers themselves suggest that the EV market has been performing exceptionally well for such a brand new industry. Current EV users are some of the most satisfied automobile owners in the country, and EV technology is improving by leaps and bounds every year.

In fact, 2013 has been one of the best years for the EV market.

So without further ado, let’s look at the cold hard number of the EV economy and how far things have come over the past year.

The EV Market: Comparisons, Sales, and Trends

Neal Dikeman from Jane Capital Partners LLC perhaps sums up the EV market best: “EVs may have been underselling the hype, but they are outselling the reality.” While initial projections of the EV market were perhaps a bit too optimistic, when one compares the performance of the EV market with other brand new technologies, it becomes immediately apparent EVs are performing exceptionally well.

By comparing sales of hybrids and EVs (which includes both full electric and plug-ins hybrids), Dikeman reveals that EVs have been outperforming hybrids by three to one. Hybrids took 6 years years to achieve 100,000 units sold and 1% market share. EVs are on pace to accomplish the same thing in just three years. Therefore, EVs are being adopted much faster than hybrids when they were first released.

Tesla, often considered one of the benchmarks of EV success, has already achieved profitability – and ahead of schedule too. It will meet its goal of moving 20,000 units this year and has had to revise its goal upwards to 21,000. It cannot keep up with demand in some locations and has had to ramp up production.

In addition, BMW has released its first ever EV – the Active E – and the race is now on to tap into the burgeoning luxury EV market. Tesla will be hard to knock off its throne in this category, but it will be interesting to see how the luxury EV market will play out in the coming years.

Since Nissan released the new model for the Leaf in March, sales have surged 335%. The Leaf is currently Nissan’s top selling vehicle in Seattle, Portland, and San Francisco with sales taking off in other markets across the country as well. The Chevy Volt and the Nissan Leaf are now neck and neck in the race to dominate the mid-range EV market.

Navigant Research reveals that growth in EVs sales have been driven by appeal for new technology, lower lifetime operating costs, government regulations, and a rebounding economy.

The Emerging EV Consumer

What are some defining features of the current EV owner? Are there certain characteristics future EV buyers will share?

Current and future EV drivers are predominantly eco-minded individuals who embrace new technology and favor convenience and efficiency. They are not as obsessed with horsepower and RPM’s as their parents were. Realizing this, Nissan has decided to recast itself as a high-tech company defined by sustainability and cool electronics. It realizes that tomorrow’s car buyers will be increasingly selecting companies that align with their own personal values.

And most user reviews of EVs reveal that these cars perform exceptionally well, feature sleek and sexy designs, and tap into existing technologies.

A whopping 92% of current Chevy Volt owners say they would buy their car again – which is the highest satisfaction rating of any car according to Consumer Reports. Consumer Reports also gave the Tesla Model S an incredible 99/100 review rating, the highest rating they’ve ever given to a car.

EVs feature a user interface that taps into smart technologies and mobile devices. For instance, the MyFord interface establishes a network between the owner’s mobile devices and their car, so they can easily track driving information and get the most out of their EV driving experience.

M2M technology is not merely some gimmick meant to eke out a few extra sales – it is rapidly becoming a defining feature of the coming transportation revolution.

EV Charging Stations – The Infrastructure for the Future EV Network

One of the most important components of the emerging EV economy is the infrastructure. Realizing that there are increasing numbers of EVs on the road yet not enough infrastructure to support them, many companies and government agencies have decided to invest in EV charging stations in a big way.

For the past few years EV charging station have emerged at Walgreens, Ikea, office buildings, sports stadiums, and even airports. Over the past year, many companies have come to the realization that tapping into the EV market is one of the easiest but most important ways to remain ahead of the curve in the future economy.

And when it comes to providing the actual EV charging stations, the most successful companies have been the ones that tap right into the emerging EV ownership lifestyle. This means providing charging stations that are sleekly designed, feature easy payment options, and easy to locate via mobile devices. M2M technology is also a key component of EV charging stations – just like in EVs themselves.

SemaConnect understands the necessity of tapping into mobile devices and providing convenient payment options. By implementing Pay-By-Cell at charging stations, we allow customers to simply scan a QR code to pay for charging. No longer is it necessary to pull out a credit card or call into customer service to charge an EV (of course these are still options).

Over the past year the playing field for EV charging stations has started to level out. Some companies have failed while others have established themselves as leaders in providing EV charging stations. The ones that have succeeded understand their customers and are able to effectively tap into the EV lifestyle.

Conclusion

2013 has been a big year for the EV economy in nearly every facet – from the EV themselves, to the drivers, to the EV charging stations. Although initial projections regarding the EV market were a bit over-optimistic, when compared to reality EVs have been performing exceptionally well in virtually every department.

So what is the biggest takeaway from 2013 going forward?

The EV economy is not merely defined by its vehicles. Instead the EV economy is multi-faceted, and includes a network of EV charging stations, driver interfaces, and smart devices. An EV lifestyle is emerging that is defined by sustainability, high technology, fluid networks, and a high degree of connectivity.

All of these components are defining features of the clean transportation revolution. Companies that are able to sufficiently tap into the emerging EV economy will succeed, while those that don’t will be left in the dust.

Image Source found here.

Joseph Tohill is a freelance writer and online communications specialist for organizations in the sustainability sector. He has a B.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies from the University of British Columbia and spent most of his academic career studying sustainable urban development; namely the interdisciplinary relationship between built form and natural environment.