Cars Clips: May 15, 2023
DOE Offers $362m Loan To EV-Wiring Company. According to Politico, “The Department of Energy announced a $362 million loan Friday for a company with a novel approach to moving energy and data around an electric vehicle. CelLink Corp., based near Silicon Valley in California, is building a $130 million factory close to Tesla Inc.’s mammoth auto plant in Texas. The funding from DOE's Loan Programs Office (LPO), if finalized, will be used to build out the factory, which at full size could equip 2.7 million EVs a year.” [Politico, 5/15/23 (=)]
New Efficiency Standards For Electric Motors Will Save Consumers $8.8B Over 30 Years, DOE Says. According to Utility Drive, “The U.S. Department of Energy on Friday announced it has finalized new efficiency standards for electric motors that the agency estimates will save consumers up to $8.8 billion over a 30-year period. The new standards, which will go into effect in 2027, are the result of an agreement among manufacturers, efficiency advocates and utilities. Electric motor efficiency standards were last updated in 2014, according to the Appliance Standards Awareness Project. “Bringing motor efficiency up to the levels required in Europe is going to help American manufacturers keep their costs competitive,” ASAP Executive Director Andrew deLaski said in a statement. DOE also announced proposed standards for new dishwashers and beverage vending machines, which the agency estimates will save consumers more than $3 billion over the same period.” [Utility Drive, 5/12/23 (=)]
Company Refuses NHTSA Request To Recall 67M Potentially Dangerous Air Bag Inflators. According to Detroit Free Press, “A Tennessee company could be heading for a legal battle with U.S. auto safety regulators after refusing a request that millions of potentially dangerous air bag inflators be recalled. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is demanding that ARC Automotive Inc. of Knoxville recall 67 million inflators in the U.S. because they could explode and hurl shrapnel. At least two people have been killed in the U.S. and Canada, and seven others have been hurt as a result of defective ARC inflators, the agency said. The recall would cover a large portion of the 284 million vehicles now on U.S. roads, but the percentage is difficult to determine. Some have ARC inflators for both the driver and front passenger.” [Detroit Free Press, 5/12/23 (=)]
EPA Declines To Set Specific Values For Biofuels’ Lifecycle GHG Emissions. According to Inside EPA, “After years of studying the lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions of various biofuels, and soliciting input from many stakeholders, EPA has decided not to select definitive, specific emissions values for various biofuel types, a senior agency air official says, potentially leaving ambiguity over the contested topic. Speaking at a May 11 meeting of EPA air advisers in Ann Arbor, MI, Sarah Dunham, head of EPA’s Office of Transportation and Air Quality, unveiled a ‘teaser’ of EPA’s current thinking on the issue. ‘You will not see ‘here’s EPA’s answer’ with respect to specific biofuels, Dunham told the Mobile Sources Technical Review Subcommittee (MSTRS) of the agency’s Clean Air Act Advisory Committee. Rather, EPA will take a similar approach to what is in its proposed ‘set’ rule that establishes biofuel blending volumes under the renewable fuel standard (RFS) for the next several years, Dunham said. In that proposal, EPA examined the state of the science on lifecycle emissions, and presented a wide range of findings by various researchers and institutions.” [Inside EPA, 5/12/23 (=)]
Fully Electric Jeep Wrangler Reportedly Not Coming Until 2027. According to InsideEVs. “An all-electric version of the iconic Jeep Wrangler is not expected to arrive until 2027, per a new report from UK outlet Auto Express. The Wrangler has been available in PHEV guise since 2020 and is Jeep's second best-seller after the Grand Cherokee. Although Jeep CEO Christian Meunier confirmed an electric Wrangler is on the way, it's reportedly not due until 2027. That said, Jeep is launching plenty of EVs in the next 2-3 years. The entry-level Avenger crossover is now available in Europe, meanwhile the more rugged Recon EV is expected to go on sale in the US next year. An electric version of Jeep's flagship luxury SUV, the Wagoneer, is also in the works and will be revealed in full later this year.” [InsideEVs, 5/14/23]
Tesla Recalls Virtually Every Car It Has Sold in China. According to Bloomberg, “Tesla Inc. recalled virtually every car it’s sold in China due to a braking and acceleration defect that may increase crash and safety risks. The automaker will deploy an over-the-air software fix to more than 1.1 million vehicles produced in Shanghai from January 2019 to April this year, plus some models imported into China, the State Administration for Market Regulation said Friday in a statement.” [Bloomberg, 5/12/23 (=)]
Tesla Owners Sue Over Impact Of Software Update On EV Batteries. According to Reuters, “A group of U.S. Tesla Model S and Model X owners filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against the electric vehicle maker in California Friday over automatic software updates that reportedly decreased driving range or cause battery failures. The lawsuit claims Tesla’s updates and their effects violate state and federal laws because they can cut driving range by up to 20% and can require some owners to replace batteries at a cost of $15,000. Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.” [Reuters, 5/12/23 (=)]
As Breakthrough EV Battery Pursuit Falters, QuantumScape Seeks Hedges. According to Bloomberg, “QuantumScape has long talked a big game about its potential, and rightfully so — it’s pursuing a holy grail in the field of battery-materials science that’s eluded researchers for decades. The solid-state battery technology the startup has been working on for electric vehicles promises much greater range and 15-minute charge times. After its spinoff from Stanford University in 2010 and as it was going public a decade later, automakers lined up and investors salivated.” [Bloomberg, 5/12/23 (=)]
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