The Plug-in Car Grant had previously offered consumers up to 35% off the purchase price of an EV up to £2,500.
Now, however, the grant has now been dropped to just £1,500, and the new eligibility criteria only applies to around 20 models in the UK.
Transport Minister Trudy Harrison said: “The market is charging ahead in the switch to electric vehicles. This, together with the increasing choice of new vehicles and growing demand from customers, means that we are refocusing our vehicle grants on the more affordable vehicles.”
The network topped Zap-Map’s survey which consisted of over 3,000 respondents ranking their overall satisfaction for the networks they use regularly. MFG EV Power and Opsrey Charging came in second and third place respectively.
InstaVolt has been ranked as the UK’s best electric vehicle chargepoint operator, according to Zap-Map’s annual public charging network rankings.
At the bottom of the table, the legacy Ecotricity Electric Highway points that have not yet been migrated to GRIDSERVE’s new chargers are in last place overall for the second year in a row. Furthermore, bp pulse has this year slipped into the bottom three, where it is also joined by bp pulse owned network Charge Your Car
The Renault Zoe has scored zero out of five in the latest round of Euro NCAP safety tests, falling from its initial five-star rating in 2013.
Addison Lee has called for urgent investment in London’s EV charging network, after it found “insufficiencies” with the capitals charging infrastructure.
Gridserve has announced plans to open more than 20 electric vehicle charging hubs across the UK by Q2 2022.
The charging firm says the new initiative will be the biggest upgrade of motorway electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure in UK history, and the project is already underway with 11 sites currently under construction at motorway services.
On-street EV charging firm char.gy has confirmed the world’s first trial of public EV wireless charging in Marlow, Buckinghamshire.
A study from LV= Britannia has found that electric car breakdowns are three times more likely to be caused by wheel or tyre issues than running out of charge.
Gridserve to build more than 20 electric vehicle charging hubs
The Government has slashed the plug-in car grant by £1,000, with the incentive now only applying to EVs with an RRP of up to £32,000.
ABB FIA Formula E World Championship Season 8 Calendar
Round 1 & 2
Diriyah, Saudi Arabia, Jan 28/29
Round 3 Mexico City, Mexico, Feb 12
?Round 4 TBC, Mar 5
Round 5 China, Mar 19
Season 8 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship kicks off later this month, with the typical curtain-raiser in Diriyah, Saudi Arabi.
The first weekend in the Middle East will mark the start of the motorsport’s most expansive campaign to date, with races in Mexico, China, Jakarta and many more scheduled for 2022.
After the first weekend in Saudi Arabia, the teams will head off to Mexico City in February, the sixth time the Championship has taken over the Mexican capital. The series then makes its return to China for Round 5, before the first European race of the season in Rome. Round 6 is the muchanticipated Monaco E-Prix, which threw up lots of drama last time out in Season 7, and fans will also be hoping for a repeat of the final weekend of last season when the teams return to Berlin for Round 8.
Formula E will also hit the streets of Jakarta for the first time ever in June for Round 9, with Indonesia welcoming FIA-sanctioned motorsports back into the country for the first time since 2006. The
series then travels to North America for Round 10 in Vancouver and a double header in New York. The penultimate weekend of the season will take place in London once again, before the series comes to a close in Seoul in August.
It’s been all change on the grid ahead of the new season, with some new faces and a few team swaps shaking up the driver lineup.
Alongside Jake Dennis for the rebranded Avalanche Andretti Formula E team is Oliver Askew, who reunites with the manufacturer following his time in the Indy Lights championship in 2019. Antonio Giovinazzi will partner Sergio Sette Camara for Dragon Penske Autosport this year, and another new face for the sport is Dan Ticktum, who will race for NIO 333 Racing alongside Oliver Turvey.
Oliver Rowland has made the switch from Nissan e.dams to Mahinda Racing to partner Alexander Simms, with Max Guenther taking Rowland’s place at Nissan, alongside Sebastien Buemi.
Jake Dennis, Avalanche Andretti Motorsport: “It was obviously a great season. We broke records with the two wins, the pole position and with the most laps led last season as well. Overall, it was pretty cool to make a statement that I’m here. Now that I’m not a rookie, I’m coming into this season ready to try and win this thing.”
Antonio Felix da Costa, DS Techeetah:
“The team is running smoothly, and everyone’s super hungry to come back swinging. This is a group of people that always works with ambition. We’re not here to take part, we’re here to win. We’re up against a lot of things, so it’s going to require our best efforts to deliver.”
Round 6 Rome, Italy, April 9
Round 7 Monaco, April 30
Round 8 Berlin, Germany, May 14
Round 9 Jakarta, Indonesia, June 4
Round 10 Vancouver, Canada, July 2
Round 11 & 12 New York, US, July 16/17
Round 13 & 14 London, GB, July 30/31
Round 15 & 16 Seoul, South Korea, Aug 13/14
Following Audi’s departure from Formula E at the end of last season, fan-favourite and former Formula E Champion Lucas Di Grassi will be turning out for ROKiT Venturi Racing this year, forming a strong lineup with Edoardo Mortara.
Season 8 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship begins in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia from 28th January.
Lucas di Grassi, ROKiT Venturi Racing: “Anyone who knows me know how competitive I amdriving for a team that I know can fight at the front and really challenge for the championship is essential for me. ROKiT Venturi Racing was simply the best choice and I’m really happy to be part of the team.”
With 16 races in 12 different countries across three continents, the stage is set for Formula E’s biggest season yet. Here’s what to look forward to in Season 8.
Heading into his second season with Jaguar TCS Racing, Sam Bird is hoping to finally claim his first ever Formula E Championship this season. In an exclusive interview with EV Powered, he shares his thoughts on last season, Formula E’s biggest race calendar so far, and what he needs to do to bring home the title.
Q: Hi Sam. You’ve just been testing in Valencia ahead of the new season. How was that and has it made you confident for the new season?
A: Testing was very good. I was really happy with what we were able to achieve in Valencia over the three days. We showcased good speed in both qualifying format and race format. We learnt some bits and pieces as well so I would say that we go into the new season confident that we will be fighting for the positions that we want to be fighting for.
Q: How did you find your first season with Jaguar and do you feel more settled in with the team now?
A: My first season with Jaguar was a really good one. It was great to bond with a lot of new people and I got introduced to some new strategies, some new ways of thinking which is great. Would I say it was my finest season? Probably not. I didn’t finish enough races and ideally wanted to fight for the Championship but I wasn’t able to achieve that. But I definitely feel more settled now and I’m looking forward to my second season with Jaguar.
I’ve enjoyed working with Mitch, he’s a great driver, a good guy and we work very nicely together.
Q: How do you reflect on last season from a personal perspective and from a team’s point of view?
A: From a personal perspective, it wasn’t good enough. Ok, I got two wins and with four or three races to go I was leading the Championship, but when you are in that position you need to try and see it out and I wasn’t able to do that for many reasons. I would say that the season was a good first season with Jaguar TCS Racing, but not what I wanted so I’m looking to put those things right this year and really take the fight to others to try and fight for this title.
Q: Are there any moments from last season that you look back on with regrets or of what could have been?
A: There are quite a few regrets from last season and things that I look back on that could have been done differently. However, I also think that sometimes there’s some driving standard issues within Formula E that need to be resolved. I hope that it’s a little bit more consistent this year throughout the pack and I think the qualifying format will help that out.
I made some mistakes. Could I have done some things differently in some of the manoeuvres that I wanted to do? The way I drive is the way I drive; I’m not going to change that. Some people might not particularly enjoy the way that I might force an overtake, but at the same time people have to learn to actually relinquish a position sometimes, so that’s pretty much that.
Q: What was your personal highlight from last season?
A: There were obviously two highlights, being Saudi and the bounce back in New York. I think the bounce back in New York probably shaves Saudi, just from what we went through on day one to what we were able to achieve in difficult circumstances on day two. That showed my resilience and the resilience of the team. It was amazing work by every single person at Jaguar TCS Racing to get a car up and running for me, even though it wasn’t all guns blazing on day one, but we came out of the traps day two, firing
on all cylinders able to bring home the the P1, so that was a pretty good days work.
Q: Obviously, the aim is to bring home to Championship this season - Have you identified specific things that need to change in order to go that step further this year?
A: I need to have more consistency and finish more races in comparison to last year, so those are things that I’m looking to do, absolutely.
Q: Next season will be Formula E’s biggest campaign yet, with a mix of some classic venues and some new ones. Which destinations stand out to you when you look at the calendar?
A: The venues that stand out are always the big ones; you’ve got London and then New York and those are two big ones that I always look forward to. To be honest, I’m really pleased that we’re going back to Mexico City, I think that track suits us, but on the whole, I look forward to all of them. I think there’s not really a massive stand out one; I do I have fond memories of New York so maybe that one.
Q: It was a crazy end to last season with 18 drivers all able to win the title on the last weekend. Are you expecting a repeat of that or is it impossible to predict what is going to happen in Formula E?
A: No, I think next season will be quite different. I don’t think you will have so many drivers fighting for the Championship by the end. I think that this new qualifying format will sort a little bit of a pecking order which I think will be good for the Championship as a whole. Last year, as exciting as it may have been, it was also a little bit chaotic. The fact that you had so many drivers fighting for a title might have seemed good, but at the same time, I think the viewers and the people want some heroes, like what we’re seeing at currently in Formula One where you’ve got two juggernauts fighting for a world title. I think it would be great in Formula E to have something similar.
We look back over the inaugural season of the all-electric, off-road racing series.
The very first round of the highly anticipated Extreme E World Championship took place in the desert of Saudi Arabia.
Battling against extreme heat, mountainous dunes and a grid of top-class drivers, it was Nico Rosberg’s ‘Rosberg X Racing’ pairing of Johann Kristofferson and Molly Taylor that came out on top in the weekend, ahead of Andretti United and Lewis Hamilton’s X44 team.
Rosberg X Racing made it two wins from two after sealing a dramatic victory on the West African Coast.
Drivers Johan Kristofferson and Molly Taylor pipped the Veloce Racing team to the line in a two-horse final after Lewis Hamilton’s X44 Team and Jenson Button’s JBXE came together and brought on a red flag. The race was littered with incidents, with the bumpy nature of the shoreside bringing the extreme to Extreme E.
ARTIC X-PRIX KANGERLUSSAUQ, GREENLAND, 28-29 AUGUST
CLIMATE
From the blistering heat of Saudi and Senegal to the freezing temperatures of the arctic, Extreme E headed to Greenland in August for a weekend of racing like no other.
This time out, Andretti United Extreme E got the better of Rosberg X Racing during the first-ever five-car final with the Andretti United team of Timmy Hansen and Catie Munnings pipping their Rosberg X Racing rivals to the post to put a dent in their commanding Championship lead.
Following the decision to postpone the planned event in Brazil due to the ongoing COVID-19 situation, Extreme E set the stage for the first
The Bovington military base in Dorset was the chosen battleground European event in Sardinia, Italy, to highlight the impact of rising temperatures, heatwaves and wildfires.
With the circuit battered by heavy rainfall before the final, it was once again the Rosberg X Racing duo of Molly Taylor and Johan Kristoffersson that managed the challenging conditions the best to make it three wins from four rounds of racing.
for the final weekend of the inaugural Extreme E campaign, replacing the planned visit to Patagonia, Argentina, which was cancelled due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.
Despite Team X44 claiming victory at the Jurassic X Prix, it was Rosberg X Racing that sealed the very first Extreme E Championship by finishing in P4 in a dramatic final in Dorset.
Catie Munnings, one half of the Andretti United Extreme E team, discusses the role of women in motorsport and much more.
In the very first season of Extreme E, Catie, along with her teammate Timmy Hansen, has navigated some of the most challenging locations on the planet, all whilst behind the wheel of a fully electric SUV.
That is Extreme E in a nutshell, but the series has also been making waves off the track, too. Along with the series’ comprehensive sustainability goals, Extreme E has split its driver lineup equally between men and women, putting people like Catie right at the heart of one of the fastest growing motorsports in the world.
“I think it’s really positive,” she said. “I’m always one for comparing yourself to the fastest driver whether that be a boy or a girl, that’s the way that I grew up in in rally.
“Extreme E creates seats for girls which is fantastic because the fact that we’re on BBC and ITV and Sky Sports quite frequently, it’s mainstream and I think that’s the most important thing; they can be sat at home on a Sunday afternoon, turn the TV on and then see a female driver against the guys. I’ve been to schools and stuff before with the Women in Motorsport commission and we would ask the
girls ‘who wants to be a Formula One driver’ and the amount of girls that would say ‘I didn’t know you could be because I thought that was just a man’s sport’ highlighted how much talent we were losing out on.”
But it is not just a tick-box exercise from Extreme E to have women at centre stage, instead it is about showcasing the talent of female drivers and giving them the platform to inspire the next generation, as Munnings pointed out.
Andretti United have had a steady first campaign. There have been highs, such as the teams first win in Greenland, but Catie also admits there have been lows, most notably in Senegal.
“Senegal for us was an event that was tough,” she said. “We weren’t comfortable on the bumps and it was bumpy everywhere, so it was a real challenge for us because we had to limit our speed and we weren’t in a positive place where we felt we could push without damaging the car.
“It’s also about making sure that you have females that are serious about it and that they are there for the right reasons. That was really important for me. We’ve seen teams enter girls for PR and media reasons and they often don’t get the same opportunities as the guys – They’ll be out the front doing the media interviews and the guys will be developing the cars out the back and that stuff really does have an impact. Experience is kilometres in this game and it’s expensive to test; we can’t just pick up a tennis racket and practise, so for me that equality is really important.
“With Extreme E, it is in everyone’s interest for the girls to be as fast as the guys and get as fast as they can because ultimately the team result will not be there if they’re not performing. Having spoken to the other girls, it’s opened up a lot of other doors and other forms of motorsport for them just from a visibility point of view.”
Looking back over their first season, Catie and
“Saudi Arabia was new to both Timmy and I. We managed to get two Polaris buggies to drive in the sand dunes trying to learn every day, so that we had a little bit of training but when you consider we were up against people that have won Dakar and people from America that race in the sand dunes all the time, it was a new surface for us. I think we adapted really well to that and we had a decent result on the podium.
“From my side, Greenland was the most familiar surface as I’m used to mainly tarmac and gravel, but no so much the sand so we felt really at home in Greenland. We’ll have fond memories of that looking back.”
I’m always one for comparing yourself to the fastest driver whether that be a boy or a girl. ” “
Charlie
The Mustang is, without doubt, Ford’s most iconic car and so when the manufacturer decided to give its very first electric vehicle the same name, it had some big shoes to fill.
Whilst the original Mustang was instantly recognized as one of the best cars on the market, the Mach-E finds itself having to compete with a whole host of prestigious electric cars, such as the Polestar 2 and the Volkswagen ID.4.
Unlike the traditional Mustang’s, the Mach E is an SUV-crossover, but Ford has disguised the size and bulkiness of the EV with some clever bits of design. From afar, the colour of the body gives it that sleek, sporty coupé look, but under closer inspection, the extra height and size is hidden, thanks to a contrasting black finish at the rear of the car.
Ford has clearly tried to incorporate the core DNA of a Mustang into the Mach-E, and that can be
seen on certain details, like the extremely meanlooking front end, with the colour-coded grille design, and it also has the classic Mustang light design at the rear end, too.
There are some new bits, however. Firstly, there are no door handles on the outside. These have been replaced by buttons on the door pillars, as well as a pin-coded entry option (which isn’t legal in the UK). As with most new EVs, there is also the option to unlock the car with your phone.
From the outside, the Ford Mustang Mach-E is certainly one of the best looking EVs available, and whilst it may have the upper hand on its closest rivals in terms of looks, how does it compare on price and range?
The Ford Mustang Mach-E really sets the standard for electric cars when it comes to range. This model can travel up to 379 miles on a single charge, and it also set a Guinness World Record for efficiency earlier this year for the lowest energy consumption in an electric car on a journey from Lands’ End to John O’Groats.
Even the cheaper models of this car offer a range
of over 300 miles, which is way ahead of other cars in this class, including the Polestar 2 and the ID.4.
It’s also competitive on price. It still might not be cheap, starting at just over £42,500, but compared to the Polestar 2, which starts from £49,900, then it feels like you’re getting a good deal. Even compared to a premium electric SUV like the Audi e-tron, the Mustang Mach-E is significantly cheaper and beats it on range, so it really does justify its price tag.
The Mustang Mach-E has everything you want on the inside of an electric car, including a massive, Tesla-style infotainment screen that dominates the dash. Whilst the Tesla system may be slightly more advanced than the Mach-E’s, it still works well and is easy to use.
You also have a crisp and clear drivers display, but other than that, Ford has taken a minimalistic approach to the interior. There is ample storage and wireless charging bays for your phone, but other than that, there’s not a lot going on, which is how I like the inside of my cars.
Is Ford’s very first electric vehicle getting the credit it deserves?
Atkinson puts it through its paces to see how it compares to its rivals.
The heated seats are lovely and comfortable, with beautiful red stitching giving the otherwise black interior a helpful dash of colour. There is also a panoramic sunroof that bleeds lots of natural light into the car, which stops the inside from feeling overly dark and gloomy.
In the back, there is more than enough headroom and legroom, and the boot is also massive, with a whopping 402L of space at your disposal. The frunk is also spacious, with four separate bins for storage, including two wet storage spaces. For a car that looks as cool as it does, it has also ensured it is as practical as any other SUV out there.
When you think of a Mustang, you think of power, and the Mach-E certainly packs a punch. Its 351bhp and 580NM torque helps the Mach-E accelerate from 0-60mph in just 5.1 seconds, which is a decent pace for any car.
However, it doesn’t feel as sharp as something like the Polestar 2 for example, and that’s mainly due to its weight. In order to achieve its massive range, the Mach-E needs a massive battery, making it weigh in at over 500kg heavier than the Polestar 2. It might not feel as light and nippy as other electric SUVs, but you can still have quite a lot of fun behind the wheel.
There are a few driving modes to choose from with the Mach-E. You can have ‘Whisper’ which is Ford’s eco-mode equivalent, ‘Active’, which is the comfort mode alternative, and then you have the brilliantly named ‘Untamed’ mode, which turns the Mach-E into a beast. Combine that with the ‘Propulsion sound’ setting, which artificially creates the sound of a traditional Mustang inside the car, then you really can have a blast, in every sense of the word.
Of course, you won’t be thrashing this car around all the time, and when you settle down into a normal drive, it’s really pleasant and easy to drive. The regenerative braking is predictable and grinds you to a stop quite quickly when lifting your foot off the accelerator, making one pedal driving as easy as it has ever been in an electric car.
I have to admit that I’ve fallen completely in love with this car. It’s got absolutely everything you want from an electric car. From an amazing range, to being really fun to drive but sensible and practical in the same breath, It has blown all its rivals out of the water in terms of range, looks and price, and, in my mind, the Mach-E hasn’t got the attention it deserves.
Overall, the Ford Mustang Mach-E has easily established itself as one of the best cars in the electric vehicle market.
I want to go electric, that was the over-riding thought that started my project. I have been fascinated by electric cars before such thinking became mainstream but my desire to buy one was blunted by their design which I appreciate is changing but I believe still has further to go. They still lack soul.
So, I had started looking at taking a classic car or a car design I liked and converting it in the style of Vintage Voltage. The challenge here being that I am not an engineer so would need more than an extra pair of hands to help with the conversion. Somewhere in my musing I started looking at bikes, again I had seen electric bikes and was aware that there were conversion kits but a basic bike in my opinion lacks the structural soundness needed to withstand the impact an electric engine could deliver.
So where to start. Back in the recesses of my mind I could remember seeing motorized bikes odd, moped things in France in the early 70s. They were bikes built to carry an engine and were built to take a hit. The downside was that they were ugly, crude plastic things, but it got me thinking. As I started to trawl the internet searching for velo moteur or bike with engine I found images of what I was looking for. Bikes from the 50’s with an aesthetic form that is matched by an evident engineering skill. They were Italian and just about affordable for a project that could go horribly wrong and be a total write off.
Bonhams were holding a sale and I managed to pick up for twice the auction estimate (budget partially blown already) a 1950, Mosquito/ Bertocchi 38cc cycle motor, a thing of absolute beauty; bringing her into the house from the car attracted many a glance and even a thumbs up from some nearby builders. Clearly, I had the right machine but what to do next?
An inspection from a mechanically minded friend of mine confirmed that the engine, that powered the solenoid which turned the back wheel, was seized. It had to come off (gently) to be repaired. That went off to a small workshop to be patiently brought back to life, leaving me with a bike albeit it with a fuel tank, fuel lines, clutch and power cabling. The bike side of
to be properly explored as even with my limited knowledge I recognised the 1950s tyres needed work. At a basic level they were not road worthy and the rims, if they ever had them, had gone. And my bike, whilst it had been sat in a museum for past 30 years, needed to be ridden.
So, I took it off to the people at The London Cycle Workshop in Sheen (https://tlcw.co.uk/). I had previous with the team here as they had looked after a couple of road bikes of mine and they impressed, not just by being great bike mechanics but being cool with it. Hell, they have a Canadian canoe in their office. If anyone could help me get to the next level it was these guys. I was not disappointed. The team embraced the concept of what I was trying to go, looked at every part of it, fettled it and made the necessary changes. And in moment that was almost a parody of Elwood Blues “it’s got a cop motor..it’s got cop tyres” speech from The Blues Brothers they stated: “it’s got bike brakes, bike tyres, bike handling, it is a bike but more.” Great start. Then I stalled.
Matthew Margetts walks us through his journey of converting and assembling his very own e-bike.
things needed
I managed to pick up for twice the auction estimate (budget partially blown already) a 1950, Mosquito/ Bertocchi 38cc cycle motor, a thing of absolute beauty... ”
“
Fear of really mucking up took over. I had an object that everyone saw the potential of, loved the look of but how to successfully electrify her (always a she) without compromising the essence of the mechanical functionality. Various ideas such as drilling the fuel tank to hide the battery were considered but I did not want to lose the original working capability as I may need to switch back to two stroke at some time particularly if I needed to sell her. I was in a hole of ambition over talent until an encounter at an unusual garden party got me back on the road of belief that my vision could be achieved without compromise.
In August I was at G in the Dark, a mini private festival organized by the Williams Gray Foundation in support of local health charities in the Chilterns, following an invite from a friend and former work colleague, Tim Brassey. I have always known Tim as a technician - the guy who made it work. Shit got done on his watch. I also knew he was a capable, even inspired creator of concept campers that were organic, more huts on wheels than caravans, of American school buses converted into luxury mobile homes and numerous, clever, delightful automated sculptures. What I did not know was that Tim was also converting pedal bikes to electric. Tim’s HenleyeBikes has been soundly getting on with taking the pedestrian bike world electric but it was his work with mountain bikes - big chunky machines transformed with the necessary heft to go off, off road - that really stood out. My bella is a beauty but she is heavy and needs power to make her graceful. I knew Tim could make it work. But Tim did not want the project. The reticence was due in part to her age, her museum pedigree
and the fact she was very different to the norm; her perfectly chromed brakes are welded to the frame, her cherry red paint work, custom.
pressed to spot when parked. Tim had thought of everything, got the parts and made them work into the machine, the look is not compromised, it is still discernible as an object of the 50’s, even the battery is hidden in plain sight in a purposebuilt box on the luggage rack that perfectly blends in. Tim considered a shaft driven power drive in the pedal unit but this was rejected over the installation of a wheel drive - we found the front wheel could be replaced with a near copy of the original.
What Tim created more than matched my vision. But whilst looks are everything so is power and again Tim had not disappointed. Hidden power became visible when started. The Chiltern Hills posed no problem.
Now, I have more than a museum piece, I have a bike back on the road and turning heads. While I might look like Mr.Toad silently putt-putting across the countryside in the Autumn sunshine, every journey, every park up ends up in a conversation about the bike, its history, how it functions, who made it. I have been lucky; the bike came to me as a museum quality piece and the hands that have worked on it have understood this yet managed to add to it. The modernity sitting balanced with the original design brilliance of Bertocchi and Gemili, and whether it ultimately stays a barely legal ebike or returns to a museum, it will always be a piece of industrial art.
And my next project a Citroen DS, if only I can find the talent to convert it.
Yet, somehow, I managed to persuade Tim to take the project and well that is when I again got more than lucky. Tim has an eye for detail and a brain wired to consider all options. Yes, it was a non -standard job but that was the challenge. And he rose to it.
The start point was the power controls, various units were considered, rejected. Ideas such as using the existing rev unit looked at to a point where we simplified the controls. The result a small thumb accelerator on the handlebars, a minor tilt to modernity easily missed. The wiring flowed through hidden recesses, behind the tank and where it popped up simple discreet cable ties hold it in. The piece de resistance was that Tim was able to fabricate a unit for the power and battery controls that is hidden in the saddle. The guts of the workings again you would be
hard
I have been lucky; the bike came to me as a museum quality piece and the hands that have worked on it have understood this yet managed to add to it. ”
“
Coming early in 2022 is BMW’s electric SUV, the iX.
Priced at over £90,000, BMW’s latest electric vehicle will certainly occupy a place in the premium EV lineup but will also offer a range of more than 380-miles and a 0-60mpgh in 4.6 seconds.
As well as the chunky iX, BMW will also be releasing its sportier i4 gran coupé. Available from Spring, the i4 is designed to rival the Tesla Model 3, but is slightly pricier with a string cost of £51,905.
One of the most highly anticipated EVs set for release next year is the Cupra Born, which is promised to be the first true electric hot hatch.
This bundle of fun offers up to 231bhp and a 0-60mph speed in just over six seconds. It doesn’t compromise on range either, with top-spec versions offering up to 355 miles off a full charge.
Production of the Born started in September and whilst some versions of the Born had been made available towards the back end of last year, general release is set for early this year.
Also coming this year is the Volkswagen ID.5, a sporty, coupé SUV that is based off the existing ID.4.
The new ID.5 will share a lot of the specifications with the ID.4, including battery and performance, but a GTX version will also be coming which offers 300bhp.
As the world continues to transition to an electric future, we take a look at some of the electric vehicles scheduled for release this year.
The new Nissan Ariya is the Japanese manufacturers first electric SUV and is available from the Spring.
It is the brands first meaningful EV release since the Leaf, and it offers a lot more character and personality, as well as 394bph and up to 310 miles of range.
The Ariya will have to compete with the wide range of electric SUVs already available, as well as the others scheduled to be released...
Also scheduled for this year is the Porsche Macan EV.
Having recently launhed a facelifted version of the Macan, the German car giant is also planning a fully electric version under the same name. So far, we’ve seen glimpses of the interior and a few other details such as a similar performance profile to the Taycan. We’ll have to wait until later in the year for official details on pricing and specifications.
One of the quirkiest models scheduled to drop this year is the Citroën Ami; the French quadricycle that has been designed specifically for inner-city living.
It’s cheap at just £6000, but it is limited to just 28mph and has a range of just 46 miles.
Set to go on sale in the Autumn, Polestar’s latest electric vehicle will be a sleek, sporty SUV that is the first original Polestar design, rather than an adaptation of previous Volvo concept models like the Polestar 1 and 2. Despite its imminent release, details on the Polestar 3 are few and far between, but the brand is targeting a range of 310 miles to bring it in line with its other electric SUV rivals.
The Polestar 3 is said to be based on the Polestar 5 precept
The next step in Audi’s ambition to release 20 fully electric vehicles by 2025 comes in the shape of the Audi Q6 e-tron.
With the manufacturers latest electric SUV having been spotted in testing, a few rumours have emerged regarding price, range and power. Whilst these details have not been officially confirmed, the Q6 e-tron is expected to sit around the £60,000 mark and to offer a range of 400 miles.
The Mercedes EQS is a luxurious electric limousine with an impressive range of 478 miles.
What is also impressive is the cars interior, which includes leather upholstery with heated seats, panoramic sunroof and 12.8” infotainment system.
Starting from a mere £99,995, the EQS is one of the most expensive EVs coming in 2022, but thankfully, a cheaper Mercedes EQB is also on its way.
Set to rival the BMW iX and the Audi Q4 e-tron, the EQB starts from £56,645 and will have a 0-60mph time of six seconds and a range of 257 miles.
And if that wasn’t enough, the EQE will also be on its way from the summer. The all new electric saloon will go head to head with BMW i4 and the prestigious Tesla Model 3, but will come at quite a cost with a starting price of around £60,000.
The Toyota B4ZX will be the first EV launched as part of the brands ‘Beyond Zero’ range and the new electric SUV should arrive towards the end of the year.
Toyota is preparing to spend almost £10 billion on battery technology by 2030 as the manufacturer looks to become a leader in the EV space. Expected to be of a similar size to the new Nissan Ariya, the BZ4X will pack a punch with 214bhp whilst offering a practical range of 280 miles. The Toyota bZ4X marks the start of the manufacturers commitment to launching 15 pure-electric vehicles by 2025.
2022 promises to be another booming year for the electric vehicle industry, and the team at EV design firm Versinetic, have shared their predictions on what this year will hold for the sector.
Combustion car sales will continue to falldiesel by another 50% and petrol by 25% over the year. The high fuel costs at the end of 2021 will boost EV sales throughout 2022.
EVs in the EU will grow by at least another 50% taking them up to about 30% of the market, with the UK’s BEV sales growing from 200K units to about 400K units.
European sales will follow a similar trend though, with Germany and several other countries pulling ahead of the UK.
It wasn’t so long ago that there were some genuine hurdles preventing people from making the switch to an electric vehicle.
Today, we see car manufacturers releasing swathes of new models each month, boasting a range of over 250 miles, which seemed to be the psychological requirement for many people. And in the space of a few years, we have progressed from a smattering of unreliable and inaccessible chargers to there being several nationwide, reputable, reliable and easy-to-access networks collectively deploying thousands of public rapid chargers each year.
As a result of this reassurance, demand for EVs is rocketing. EV registrations increased by 186% in 2020 and there are now more than 300,000 EVs currently on Britain’s roads. And this is only the beginning. With the ban on new petrol and diesel vehicles less than a decade away, EVs are hitting the mass market and drivers of all vehicles are seeking to learn more to help them make the first step towards clean transport. This transition couldn’t have come soon enough with the recent COP26 summit highlighting how crucial it is to switch away from polluting vehicles to combat the climate crisis.
In turn, demand for convenient and reliable public charging has skyrocketed. Customers have made clear their priorities for a high quality EV charging experience: speed and availability of chargers. As an industry, we must stay ahead of the curve to ensure that infrastructure evolves at the rapid pace of the changing market.
For many drivers, speed is the number one priority for EV charging. However, choosing the right charging speed is dependent on the location and site characteristics.
For example, for en-route sites with a short dwell
time, units of 150kW that can add up to 100 miles of charge in as little as 10 minutes, are the perfect solution. At destination locations with dwell time of closer to an hour, such as retail parks or restaurants, 75kW units are most suitable.
don’t have to queue up for a charger. Drivers need to have the confidence that when they show up to a site to charge, there will be chargers available so they can plug in without having to wait. The mass market will need multiple charger sites that cater to the growing number of EVs on the roads.
As one of the UK’s largest public rapid charging networks we’ve had to adapt quickly to a changing market.
As chargepoint operators, it’s our job to ensure that the appropriate charging infrastructure is installed in the right places. A key consideration is grid connection. High powered sites require a powerful grid connection, which can be costly to upgrade so it’s important that we get the most out of it.
Availability of chargers is predicated on two key factors: number of locations and number of chargers per location.
What is becoming more apparent is the need for more chargers at each location. In early EV infrastructure, it was rare to have more than a couple of chargers at a single location.
Now it’s a very different story. As more people switch to electric and start to rely on the public charging network, we must ensure that there are enough chargers at each location, so consumers
We’ve seen demand for multiple charger sites grow and the developments in battery technology mean that more and more vehicles can charge at high power. Through utilising the latest dynamic charging technology, we’re installing sites with as many units as the grid allows, but at the right charge rate. Earlier this year, we announced our plans for 150 high powered charging hubs each with up to 12 150-175kW chargers. This will be a major boost to the UK’s public charging network and ensure drivers are supported with the best possible EV charging experience. In November, we launched the UK’s very first Kempower charging hub in Wolverhampton.
As we see more EVs hitting our roads in the coming months and years, Osprey and the other charging networks have the responsibility to ensure we configure sites correctly to enable as many vehicles to charge as possible, so we can truly achieve the transition to net-zero.
As an industry, we must stay ahead of the curve to ensure that infrastructure evolves at the rapid pace of the changing market. ”
“Osprey Charging is to install over 150 high-powered electric vehicle (EV) charging hubs across the UK by 2025.
