Fiat Bugster to be Unveiled at 2008 Brazil Auto Show. Click the above image to view the gallery with larger images.

I don’t know about you, but any time I hear about an all electric off-road vehicle, I get a little excited.  I live in Tucson, AZ where you see a LOT of off-road vehicles out and about, I can rarely go driving without seeing at least one or two.  So it goes without saying, this year we will be watching the 25th Salão Internacional do Automóvel in Brazil for the unveiling of this little-known vehicle. The event will run from the 30th of October through the 10th of November.  Look’s like Optimus Prime may have a new recruit.  The Fiat Bugster is powered by an all electric engine, with the exterior body made of molded natural fibers. And man does it look aggressive.

Although it may seem odd that Fiat is unveiling this in Brazil, this ethanol powerhouse is Fiat’s largest market outside of Italy, and production facilities produce 30% of all Fiats.  Details about the vehicle are still mostly unkown, but it is expected to feature Fiat’s Locker Series components. Although the consensus is that the vehicle is a little too aggressive for mass production, more electric vehicles in concept statistically means more electric vehicles produced.  We encourage world-wide research and development, even if its as far south as Brazil.

GM Chooses LG Chem and Compact Power to Produce Volt Battery Packs

According to a Reuters, sources close to the deal have reported that GM has chosen LG Chem and Troy, Michigan based Compact Power to produce the lithium-ion batter packs for the Chevrolet Volt.  Seems they are still in talks regarding the details, like warranty costs, but this still seems pretty legitimate.  The actual deal will not be reported until November, and it seems as if all companies involved are conveniently declining to comment.

The anonymous sources also had indicated that the CPI batteries were being used in most of the Volt tests, and seemed to be running fairly perfectly.  A GM spokesman let Reuters know there was no official decision yet, although a a spokesman for LG Chem said:

“We were informed that the results are due in November, but we didn’t get any official answer from GM yet. We hope for and expect a good result.”

We will keep you informed of any new developments.

GEM Peapod Electric Car, or Alien Head? Click the above image to view the Peapod image gallery.

So apparently, Chrysler’s own GEM is going to be mass-producing the GEM Peapod for worldwide distribution, around 2010. Before I start, let me preface with the minor detail that Autocar.co.uk, (the source for this post, and in the above link) did not source this information,  we will do our best to scour the internet to find whom from Chrysler actually said this.

This proposed EV will have a 40 mile range, and for most city-drivers that seems plenty.  It will also be electronically limited to 25 mph. So, who drives 40 miles going 25 mph anyways? Supposedly, it will be available for purchase sometime in 2010, as a one-seater, two-seater and utility van.

Global Electric Motorcars (GEM) has been developing neighborhood electric vehicles (or NEVs) for some time now, with over 38,000 units currently in use, and over 150 current dealers.   The Peapod will be produced in existing factories.

T.Boone Pickens, Smart Like a Fox

T. Boone Pickens is spending (or is it investing) 60 million of his fortune into pushing environmental responsibility and reduction on foreign oil as a matter of national defense. T.Boone is smart like a fox.  As a believer in our system that rewards initiative and talent with wealth, I think T.Boone and his advisers have come up with a slick marketing and business plan that will ultimately yield handsome returns on this investment. Before T.Boone was filling our airwaves with his message that we must shift our economy away from foreign oil, he was busy investing in natural gas and compressed natural gas technology.  He acquired the nation’s largest provider of natural gas for transportation, is a partner in a 160 million dollar project to develop a mass market CNG powered vehicle, and has invested heavily in wind energy companies.

Some environmentalists are piously claiming that T.Boone’s motivations are not pure and that he is pushing energy independence not as good citizen but rather as a greedy capitalist.  Others claim he has gone too far in pushing the political system in California to pass the now controversial Proposition 10 that supports a handful of green initiatives, but primarily gives tax incentives and rebates to buyers of natural gas based vehicles.

Is it really wrong for a company or individual to invest in marketing or lobbying that supports past  business decisions? T.Boone is sounding a resonant chord that has more than just a ring of truth and allows him to simultaneously raise the value of his personal investment in alternative energy.  Is it a brilliant financial move or is T.Boone, the national benefactor, unselfishly using his wealth to help clean our environment and move to energy independence?  In a market where alternative energy investment has been growing at a steady and growing 25% a year, we should all take a lesson that for this brief moment in history, a good capitalist can promote a clean environment and generate personal financial growth.

Could we see a major slowdown of clean energy development?

From bio diesel plants to wind and solar farms in the U.S. and aboard, many companies face the current challenge to stay afloat, without the proper capital and backing, it could cause a major slowdown in the alternative energy industries.  Although DrivePwr’s main objective is to cover news and trends in the “green transportation” industry, we can’t help but cover some other important topics that indirectly effect the cause. From Solar to Wind energy to automotive companies like GM, Ford, Chrysler and even Tesla Motors, small and large companies all over the industry are feeling the pinch.  Two major factors are making investors weary, cheaper oil and unavailable or expensive capital that was previously available, and it was much less expensive too.  Unless you have been hiding out in a bomb shelter, you have watched the U.S. mortgage crisis turn into worldwide financial turmoil.  The price of a barrel of oil has hovered below $75 for the past week (down from over $147 in July), with fears of demand running rampant. This deadly combination could mean disaster for the industry, or by minimum slow it down..a lot.

Overall, the green-tech industry relies heavily on outside sources of capital from banking institutions or large companies.  Even large and once cash-strapped companies like GE are having issues:

“Right now we can’t price a deal,” said [GE Financial Services managing director Timothy] Howell in an interview with Clean Technology Insight on the sidelines of the Solar Power International conference in San Diego, Calif. “We can’t go out and borrow. So we can’t commit to a deal today.”

GE is having issues getting money, and many green-tech companies rely on funding from companies like GE.  That can’t be a good thing.  Over the past 3 months, we have watched a decline of over 45% in the renewable energy stocks.  Compare that to the average 23% decline in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, and the prognosis is not good.

Looks like many of the analyts on Wall Street are expecting mergers, acquisitions and an overall consolidation in the industry.  But the overall outlook isn’t all grey skies, larger companies and governments like the U.S. and U.K. see alternative energy solutions as viable, profitable and an opportunity to elminate our dependence on foreign oil.  Although any drop in prices at the pump is by all means a GOOD thing for the pocket books of Americans, we still need to push hard for solutions to the pollution, sollutions to our economic dependence on a finite product.

BMW's Mini-E All Electric Mini Worldwide Photo Debut. Click the above image to view more Mini-E pictures.

For some time now, many have been salivating at the inevitable possibility of an electric Mini, well BMW decided to give a small taste.  This should satisfy most (for the time being.)  UK auto website, Autocar.co.uk, got first dibs on details and photos galore on BMW’s Mini-E.

Not only is the Mini-E expected to have a range of up to 150 miles, on just 8-hours of charging, but it could have as much as 204bhp and 162lbs of torque.  Unfortunately, the Mini-E isn’t going mainstream just yet.  Although we may be seeing it in the U.S. as early as next year, only 500-1000 customers will have the opportunity to lease this vehicle.  Pre-selected customers in New York, L.A., New Jersey (humm?) and London will get first crack at these beauties due to their available electric infrastructure.

Of course, the Mini-E will be powered using the latest technology in Lithium-ion battery packs (totaling 573 lbs.)  The batteries push the single-stage helical gearbox, that are mounted conveniently where passengers used to be able to sit.  To add a little more juice, Mini decided to store kinetic energy used while breaking.    The plug-in is conveniently located where the gas cap used to be.

Curb weight starts at a mere 3229 lbs, and is fully equipped with interchange-yellow mirrors as evident in the photos.  Supposedly, there will be many other goodies to come so thats seperate from her siblings.  The Mini-E is already U.S. legal, and has been put through the ringer with crash testing.

Overall, we have to say we are proud of BMW, and Mini for taking a step forward and giving all-electric a try.

“This step will allow the BMW Group to gain an initial knowledge of how mobility can be achieved efficiently using purely electrically powered vehicles. Our task here is to combine the ultimate driving experience with an efficient electrified drive with practically no emissions”, underlined Dr. Norbert Reithofer, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG.