Behind the Scenes look at the Toyota electric lap record effort [video]

Another TMG video giving a behind-the-scenes look at the Nürburgring Toyota EV lap record effort.

Rare earths supply concerns force Toyota to make hybrid parts in China

Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp. plans to make key parts of its Prius hybrid in China, company officials said.

China is currently the world's largest automobile market, a Kyodo News report in Japan Times said Monday.

The report said Toyota recently received approval from China to produce its next Prius model.

Under the new arrangement, Toyota will gradually move production of Prius' key components, including batteries and electric motors to China, Toyota officials were quoted as saying.

Analysts said China's restrictions on exports of rare earth elements is a factor. Some of the rare earth elements are key components for hybrid car parts such as batteries and permanent magnet electric motors.

China, which produces more than 95% of the world's rare earth supplies, has imposed strict production and export quotas on these elements, citing environmental concerns.

Despite such statements the World Trade Organization ruled that China’s duties and quotas on the export of raw minerals, such as zinc, violated its rules. Beijing is trying to delay the proceedings by appealing the ruling.

"Rare earths and concerns about their supplies could very well have played a role in this decision," Vivek Vaidya of Frost & Sullivan told the BBC.

He explained that Toyota's move to start producing components in China may help counter these restrictions as it will be buying the elements to use within China, the BBC reported.

Toyota bets on hybrid for Camry in Japan

Toyota Motor Corp unveiled a new Camry sedan for Japan on Monday, offering it only as a gasoline-electric model to jump-start sluggish sales of the model in its hybrid-friendly home market.

The Camry has been the best-selling car in the United States for the last nine years, but Japan accounts for just 1 percent of the model's global sales due to shrinking demand for sedans in favor of subcompacts or minivans.

For the first time since the Camry's debut in 1982, Toyota said it would limit sales in Japan to a hybrid version, hoping to emulate the success of the Prius, which as a hybrid car enjoys exemptions on certain taxes. Hybrids now make up about 14 percent of new vehicle sales in Japan, excluding 660cc minivehicles.

"The Camry doesn't sell as much here as it does in the States, so we decided to focus on fuel economy," said deputy chief engineer Keiichi Yoneda.

Toyota said it received 1,700 pre-sale orders for the car against a monthly sales target of 500 and actual sales of just 100 a month last year in Japan. In the United States, by contrast, Toyota plans to sell 360,000 of the 2012 model year Camry unveiled last month.

Pricing for the Camry hybrid, which twins a newly developed 2.5 liter engine with an electric motor, ranges from 3.04 million yen to 3.80 million yen ($39,600 to $49,500) in Japan. The U.S. version, which is slightly smaller, carries a sticker price of $27,400 for the high-end model.

The hybrid Camry gets listed mileage of 23.4 km/liter in Japan, more than double the 11.4 km/l for the preceding gasoline model, which was measured under the previous, less stringent test cycle. The previous model ranged from 2.505 million yen to 3.47 million yen.

Daimler and BASF Jointly develop Smart Forvision EV concept

Daimler and BASF have developed a new concept vehicle that combines both companies' ideas for holistic electric mobility. The resulting vehicle is the smart forvision, which has been developed with a special emphasis on energy efficiency, temperature management and lightweight design. The smart forvision will have its world premiere at the 64th International Motor Show in Frankfurt.

Both Daimler and BASF are engaged in wide-ranging research and development work aimed at getting electric cars on the road and ensuring that electric mobility becomes part of everyday life as soon as possible. Daimler is embracing the age of electric mobility: it is the first car manufacturer to have released four electric production models, and its smart fortwo electric drive is a pioneer among battery-driven vehicles. BASF, the world's largest supplier of chemical products to the automotive industry, develops sustainable, environmentally friendly solutions for the energy-efficient mobility of tomorrow. The two companies have now combined their technological competencies for the first time, developing a forward-looking vehicle concept that offers decisive solutions to the challenges of the future. The new vehicle brings design, lifestyle and technology together to form a new functional whole.

"In this joint project with Daimler we have successfully developed a holistic approach to urban mobility of the future. This is something we are very proud of. Our research activities make an important contribution to ensuring that electric cars are affordable, environmentally friendly and sustainable," says Dr. Andreas Kreimeyer, member of the Board of Executive Directors and Research Executive Director of BASF SE.

"The smart forvision is an impressive example of what can be achieved when two leading companies from two very different sectors sit down together. It was exciting to see how our developers and designers worked with the researchers at BASF and came up with a joint vehicle concept that provides a meaningful insight into the future of electric mobility," says Dr. Thomas Weber, Daimler AG board member responsible for Group Research and Development at Mercedes-Benz Cars.

Because it has always set itself apart from other vehicle concepts, the smart was predestined for this joint project. As a result, the smart forvision is the perfect vehicle for showcasing new technologies. The researchers and developers have succeeded in combining no less than five automotive world premieres in the new concept vehicle. Transparent organic solar cells, transparent organic light-emitting diodes, all-plastic wheels, new lightweight body components and infrared-reflective films and coatings all help to reduce the vehicle's energy consumption and thus increase its range and practicality.

Energy efficiency

State-of-the-art materials and technologies allow new concepts to be implemented in the electric car that not only save energy, but even generate it. The resulting increase in range contributes to further improving the performance and economy of electric vehicles. The smart forvision features energy-efficient solutions such as power-generating solar cells based on organic-chemical dyes on the roof. Combined together with energy-saving organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), the vehicle's roof, which is covered in solar cells, is not just environmentally friendly, but a real design highlight as well.

One challenge in ensuring the continuing development of electric mobility is sustainably producing and using the power required to drive the cars. Electric mobility is at its most effective in preventing climate change and protecting the environment when the energy required for it is generated highly efficiently and with minimal CO2 emissions. For this reason BASF is also working on solutions for producing electricity from renewable energies such as wind and solar power.

Multifunctional lightweight design

The lighter an electric vehicle is, the less drive energy it requires, and the greater its range will be. Making vehicles lighter will therefore be one of the key challenges for electric mobility in the future, and BASF can make an important contribution here. Lightweight design means replacing heavy, metal components with composite plastic materials that offer the same functionality and stability. Weight can be reduced particularly successfully by substituting load-bearing components, for example the chassis, with fiber-reinforced plastics. Moreover, the smart forvision features the first ever all-plastic wheel suitable for series production, made from the new high-performance material Ultramid® Structure developed by BASF. This material, which is just as stable as metal, can reduce weight by up to 30 percent.

Comprehensive temperature management

The heating and air conditioning systems in vehicles are major consumers of energy. The amount of energy needed to heat up or cool down the vehicle's interior can be reduced with the help of a comprehensive temperature management system that uses innovative materials such as polymer films in the windows to reflect thermal radiation, and high-performance insulating materials.
The smart forvision brings together these forward-looking technologies from the chemical industry with a unique mobility concept and distinctive design. Together, the automotive and chemical industries are making a significant contribution to the affordability, environmental friendliness and safety of electric vehicles. In the smart forvision, Daimler and BASF have laid the perfect foundations for efficient, sustainable, uncompromising electric mobility.

Fisker Automotive Signs Supplier Agreement with BMW

Fisker Automotive announced today the signing of an agreement with BMW that will cover the supply of engines and other components for future Fisker models.

BMW will supply a four-cylinder turbocharged engine for the next generation of Fisker cars, code-named ‘Project Nina’, which are scheduled to go into production in the re-commissioned former GM plant in Wilmington, Delaware at the end of 2012 and be on sale globally in 2013.

The agreement calls for up to 100,000 engine units per year at peak volume.

The first ‘Project Nina’ derivative will be a mid-size premium sedan utilizing Fisker’s EVer™ (electric vehicle with extended range) technology to deliver on Fisker’s corporate vision of Uncompromised Responsible Luxury.

Fisker ‘s CEO and Executive Design Director, Henrik Fisker, comments; “The BMW engine was an obvious choice for us, as BMW is known for producing the best and most fuel efficient gasoline engines in the world. We are very pleased to have signed this agreement with BMW."

Fisker’s Chief Operating Officer, Bernhard Koehler, adds; “This is an important agreement for Fisker. We are focused on building environmentally responsible cars that deliver Pure Driving Passion to our discerning customers. Who better to be a part of this exciting ‘recipe’ than BMW – the makers of the Ultimate Driving Machine?”

California-based Fisker Automotive recently established a European office in Munich, Germany and has publicly stated that both the Fisker Karma Sedan and ‘Project Nina’ lines are global vehicles with sales likely to be split equally in the US and Europe (40% each), with Asia (20%) providing the remainder.

BMW opens new Moses Lake carbon fiber factory

BMW's new carbon fiber factory in the United States has brought advanced, lightweight materials developed in Formula One racing one step closer to consumers' driveways.

The German carmaker opened the ultra-modern production plant in Moses Lake, Washington state, on Thursday to supply carbon fiber for its highly anticipated, all-electric i3 Concept car.

Built through a 2009 joint venture with materials specialist SGL Carbon, the $100 million (70 million euro) facility is powered entirely by locally generated hydroelecricity. It will produce up to 3,000 metric tons of carbon fiber annually.

"The facility has been erected in only 10 months and will be the most cost efficient carbon fiber plant using modern technologies," said Andreas Wüllner, Managing Director of SGL Automotive Carbon Fibers.

The fibers produced in Moses Lake will be woven into lightweight fabrics at a second joint venture site in Wackersdorf, Germany, before being formed into carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) parts and components at the BMW plant in Landshut. From there they will be transported to Leipzig, where series production of the i3 is due to start in 2013.

Electric era

The i3 urban vehicle will be the first model in BMW's new i sub-brand of lightweight, energy efficient models. The larger and sportier i8 is expected to be released in 2014.

"Carbon fibers are a key construction material for the automotive industry of the 21st century and will change the way we develop and build cars," BMW chief executive Norbert Reithofer said in a statement.

"It's a revolution in automotive design," Klaus Draeger, the company's head of development, said earlier.

Fiber of the future

Because of its lightweight properties and proven strength, carbon fiber has long been used in the construction of high-performance racing cars and aircraft.

When carbon fibers are woven, they weigh in around 50 percent lighter than steel and roughly 30 percent lighter than aluminum, making CFRP the lightest material that can be used in a car body without sacrificing safety.

The i3's carbon fiber passenger shell makes it 250 to 350 kilograms lighter than a conventional electric car. BMW said that means more dynamic handling and improved range.

Other benefits of CFRP include corrosion resistance and resilience in severe climate conditions. The material shows little change in shape and size regardless of temperature fluctuations.

"Carbon is the fiber of the future," said Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, an automotive expert at the University Duisburg-Essen. "The heavy use in Formula One racing cars is an indicator that it will filter down to the mass market once the cost of production becomes more affordable. BMW is the closest to achieving solutions on a large scale."

Daimler & Volkswagen follow suit

BMW is not alone in the race to make carbon fiber vehicles easily available to consumers. In April of 2010 Daimler followed BMW's lead by forming a partnership with Toray Industries, a Japanese carbon producer. The group plans to begin mass production of carbon parts for the Mercedes-Benz brand in 2012 at a plant outside Stuttgart, Germany.

With no new plans to mass produce carbon fiber technology in car bodies, Daimler's efforts have focused on high end of the auto market. In 2004, Daimler began offering the Mercedes-Benz McLaren SLR with a carbon-fiber body to match its ceramic disc brakes and 377,000-euro price tag. About 2,000 of the vehicles were sold before production ceased in 2009.

Last, but certainly not least, Volkswagen became the latest German automaker to invest in a major carbon fiber producer when it announced in February of this year that it had purchased an 8.18 percent stake in SGL Carbon. While Volkswagen stated that it does not intend to increase its stake in SGL Carbon, the news certainly came as a surprise to BMW, which had previously bought into the company.

Volkswagen has been pouring resources into its XL1 concept vehicle, which debuted at this year's Qatar Motor show. With a prototype that can travel 100 kilometers on just one liter of diesel fuel, the vehicle is fitted with a lightweight passenger shell constructed of carbon fiber.

Despite the innovations and progress being made in carbon fiber production, Stefan Bratzel, director of the Center of Automotive Management in Bergisch-Gladbach, said carmakers were yet to answer one major question: "A full carbon body could be quite difficult to repair. What will be key is if there's a strategy to deal with that issue."

Volkswagen Nils Concept Set to Debut at Frankfurt Motor Show

The tiny, single-seat Volkswagen Nils concept will make its public debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show later this month. It is supposed to offer sports car-like performance with zero emissions and silent propulsion.

Volkswagen says the Nils concept is designed just like a Formula 1 racer. Much like Audi’s Urban Concepts, the single seat is mounted in the center of the car, the engine resides just aft of the driver, and the 17-inch wheels — wrapped in low rolling resistance tires — are placed outboard of the body. Entrance into the cabin is provided by polycarbonate gullwing doors, one placed on each side of the car.The body has few sharp angles and two small rear fins to help with aerodynamics. Never mind the F1 inspiration: the look is more akin to a narrow egg placed on wheels.

The Nils is powered by a 15 kW electric motor – with a 25 kW over boost-like function – that draws juice from a 5.3-kWh lithium-ion battery. VW says that allows for a range of about 40 miles, and can be charged using a 230-volt outlet (the standard in Europe) in about two hours. According to Volkswagen, 73.9 percent of German commuters drive less than 15.5 miles on driving to work, making the Nils the right size and right range for urban commuters.

The Nils weighs only 1014 lbs, thanks to all-aluminum construction, and is expected to accelerate from 0-62 mph in under 11 seconds. The electric motor pushes out around 95 lb-ft of torque and sends powerto the rear wheels through a one-speed transmission.

To help quell nerves over the Nils’ diminutive size, the is equipped with a radar-based automatic braking system, a collision warning system, four disc brakes, and electronic stability control. The wing doors include a crash reinforcement section, and the aluminum space frame has been designed to act as a safety cell in the event of a collision.

The Volkswagen Nils concept will make its debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show next month.

Source: Volkswagen