Category

Autonomous, Connected, Electric, Shared Vehicles

May 27
Rusakovsky Tram Park (Samuil Adlivankin, 1928)

Questioning Ethical Standards for Autonomous Cars

By Automotive, Autonomous, Connected, Electric, Shared Vehicles No Comments

We expect much from the autonomous cars of the future.

We want them to be better drivers than us humans. We want them to handle driving tasks effectively and safely, avoiding fatalities, injuries, and property damage. And we expect these them to be a significant factor in reducing car crashes that kill 1.35 million people every year, more than half of whom are pedestrians, motorcyclists, and cyclists.

And when faced with complex driving situations, we want the autonomous car of the future to maneuver them gracefully and in a manner accepted by society. We continue to debate the intricacies and myriad variations of the Trolley Problem and the details of the technology we expect will one day deliver the appropriate behavior.

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Mar 30
Des gens dont le soleil rjouit peu la vue (Honore Daumier, 1855)

Developing the Electric Vehicle Market – Technology vs. Mindset and Attitude

By Automotive, Autonomous, Connected, Electric, Shared Vehicles No Comments

Traditional Automakers and Vehicle Electrification

The danger facing traditional automakers charting their future in the nascent electric vehicle market is not electric powertrain technology, it is in their mindset and attitude.

The tallest hurdle on the way to mass-market adoption is not in charging infrastructure and battery supply chain, it is the headwind caused by the combined impact of new markets, new customers and new regulations.

I find recent conversations with Ford Motor newly appointed COO Jim Farley and Thomas Ingenlath, the CEO of Polestart (a Volvo company), a good illustration of the deeply rooted differences in mindset and attitude between the two companies.

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Jan 31
Problème d’eau. Où trouver l’eau

Batteries, Coffee and T-Shirts: Sustainability in the Automotive Industry

By Automotive, Autonomous, Connected, Electric, Shared Vehicles No Comments

One of the strongest arguments for the broad adoption of electric vehicles is, of course, that they do not pollute. Considering that transportation, including cars, trucks, airplanes, trains and ships, produces about one-third of greenhouse emissions in the U.S., this is a powerful argument.

Astute analysts point out that the environmental penalty of generating the electricity needed to charge EVs must also be taken into account when calculating the net impact of electric vehicles. Indeed, the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in the U.S. produce nearly as much pollution as transportation, making  up some 28% of greenhouse gas emissions. On the other hand, countries that generate electricity from renewable sources do much better. For instance, Costa Rica is generating 95% of its electricity from hydro, geothermal, solar and wind.

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Jan 17

Electric Vehicles: Who Cares About Acceleration?

By Automotive, Autonomous, Connected, Electric, Shared Vehicles No Comments

Market studies show that travel range and purchase price are top of mind considerations for prospective electric car buyers. So why are so many journalists, bloggers and the automotive press so enamored with performance metrics and can spend hours comparing acceleration and top speed figures?

Seriously, how many EV owners care if their car can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 10 seconds, while the Porsche Taycan in “Launch” mode can do the 0-60 mph sprint in 2.6 seconds?

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Jan 14

Famous Last Words: I Wouldn’t Ever Sit My Butt in a Self-driving Car

By Automotive, Autonomous, Connected, Electric, Shared Vehicles No Comments

In a 2018 Medium article, the author, a self-described as high-performance driving instructor, professional driver and race car driver, proclaimed: “A self-driving car will never be able to make the split-second decisions that can save a life.” She continues: “I wouldn’t ever sit my butt in a self-driving car. I will never trust them. Ever.”

The article was written in 2018 and the author was probably right then. She is probably right today, despite the usual hoopla about self-driving cars at CES 2020.

But I suspect the author’s statement will go down in history as yet another “famous last words.”

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