Automotive News

Briefs

ZF aftermarket parts for electric vehicles

Public perception of electric vehicles can focus on the electric drivetrain, which is considered quite reliable, requiring little maintenance. The brakes and chassis systems of these cars however, can be more susceptible to damage and wear than conventional vehicles due to the stresses exerted by the extra weight of the battery. ZF Aftermarket now supports automotive workshops working on electric vehicles with an extensive range of spare parts under its LEMFÖRDER, SACHS and TRW brands.

Queensland welcomes hydrogen cars

Hyundai has deployed five zero-emissions NEXO hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicles into the Queensland government fleet. The deployment underlines the Queensland government’s commitment to hydrogen and complements a 20-strong ACT government NEXO fleet. NEXO has a range of 666km (WLTP) with a refuelling time of three to five minutes, in a compact SUV with ANCAP five-star safety and the latest autonomous driving capabilities and smart driving assistance systems. NEXO is the first hydrogenpowered car in Australia, from the company that pioneered the mass production FCEV.

Dana supports technicians for electric mining equipment

Dana is supporting technical training for electrified mining equipment at Technical and Further Education (TAFE) of Queensland’s new electrification facility in Brisbane. The electric heavy vehicle technical training will prepare technicians to conduct maintenance and repair activities for the growing number of highvoltage, heavy-duty electric mining vehicles. Dana will also provide two sets of Dana TM4 SUMO motors and CO150 inverters, which are used on the Sandvik Artisan A18 battery-electric loader.

RMIT electric team gains RS support

RS Components will be supporting the RMIT Electric racing team in the Formula SAE competitions.

The RMIT Electric Racing team took the competition to the next level in 2008 and entered the first-ever electric vehicle. Every year since, Formula SAE has seen a rapid growth in the number, competitiveness and performance of electric vehicles against their combustion rivals. RS Components is a high-service distributor of electronics, automation and control components, tools and consumables, serving more than one million customers globally. “We are proud to support the next generation of innovators with the quality products RS Components has to offer. The team and I at RS wish these bright minds the best of luck in this year’s race,” Managing Director of RS Components ANZ Scott Philbrook said. Today the team counts more than 50 passionate students across a dozen faculties who demonstrate innovative thinking, initiative and commitment to the real-life commercial project. “Our project is dependent on the valuable investment by our sponsors who allow us to advance the research and development of the team, develop cutting-edge vehicles as part of the program,” Christopher Carr, Business System Head for RMIT Electric Racing said.

Honda starts testing autonomous vehicles

Honda will start a testing program for autonomous vehicles this month, taking a step toward an autonomous vehicle mobility service (MaaS) business in Japan, which Honda is planning to launch under collaboration with Cruise and General Motors.

The testing program for autonomous vehicles mobility service technologies will be conducted in Utsunomiya City and Haga Town, Tochigi Prefecture. As the first step to prepare for thorough testing, a high-definition map of the area will be created using a specialized vehicle for mapping. Once the high-definition map is ready, the autonomous vehicle, Cruise AV, will be driven on public roads to develop and test autonomous vehicles adapted to the traffic environment and the relevant laws and regulations in Japan. Honda and Cruise will jointly work on the testing program, and it will be pursued at a new operations test site to be established within a Honda facility in Tochigi Prefecture. Further ahead, Honda aims to launch its autonomous vehicle MaaS business in Japan using the Cruise Origin, a vehicle jointly developed by Honda, Cruise and General Motors, exclusively for autonomous vehicle mobility service businesses. Honda Mobility Solutions, a Honda subsidiary for MaaS business, will be the operator of the business in Japan.

AMBY ebike

BMW has called its concept version ebike AMBY which is a neologism for “adaptive mobility”. It is fitted with an electric drive system with three speed ratings for different types of roads.

The drive system enables speeds of up to 25 km/h (15.5 mph) on cycle tracks, up to 45 km/h (28 mph) on city-centre roads and up to 60 km/h (37 mph) on multi-lane roads and outside urban areas. However, insurance plates and a corresponding licence are required for the higher speeds. Users of the BMW i Vision AMBY high-speed pedelec have to constantly pedal in order to benefit from the assistance of the electric drive system. The BMW Group views the BMW i Vision AMBY as an attractive means of transport for the future in larger cities. Its modern frame geometry feels like a mixture of racing bike and sporty e-bike. The upper frame tube is crafted from four sculptural aluminium profiles. Located just before the handlebars is the smartphone integration pad, which holds the device safely in place using magnets and ensures it is highly visible. The battery is positioned in the centre of the frame. Its 2,000 Wh enables a range of up to 300 km (186 miles), depending on the riding mode. Thanks to fast charging technology, it recharges in only three hours. The drive unit, which is positioned close to the pedals provides assistance when the pedals are being turned. Power transfer is by low-maintenance toothed belt, and the transmission is integrated into the drive system. A sophisticated single-sided swinging arm otherwise unique to BMW Motorrad links the rear wheel with the frame. The rear wheel with central fastening can be released and removed easily for optimum ease of transportation. The wheel in the front suspension fork can likewise be removed in the classical way with a screw. The result is a compact construction, and the battery can also be removed and stored separately, which reduces load weight. The ebike uses familiar smartphone identification functionality (facial recognition) in the same way as the Digital Key, which was introduced by the BMW Group in an automotive industry first and turns a compatible iPhone into a digital car key.

Briefs

Lotus re-enters racing with new GT4 challenger

Lotus has revealed an all-new competition-spec GT4 challenger and at its core is the company’s Emira sports car – it marks the start of an exciting new era in performance GT racing for Lotus.

Developed in collaboration with project partner RML Group, the race-ready concept is another milestone in the transformation which is taking place at Lotus. The Lotus Emira debuted at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. Each customer car will be a homologated performance machine, hand-built with lightweight motorsport components and equipment to meet the latest safety regulations. The advanced composite bodywork makes the car exceptionally lightweight and, coupled with Toyota’s race-proven 3.5-litre V6 engine and optimised GT4 aerodynamics derived from the road-going Emira’s advanced exterior design, the Emira GT4 promises to be more than competitive. The Lotus Emira GT4 will be officially launched later this year, the company aims to build a limited number for the 2022 season, increasing production for 2023 in line with global demand.

Toyota sells its 200,000th hybrid

Toyota has achieved a significant milestone selling its 200,000th hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) in Australia. A total of 210,817 Toyota HEVs have been sold to the end of June 2021, led by Camry, RAV4, Corolla and Prius. It took until mid-2018 for Toyota to pass 100,000 HEV deliveries, almost 17 years after the original Prius hybrid was launched in 2001.

Hyundai scoops Red Dot Awards

Hyundai won 16 design awards, including two ‘Best of Best’ and 14 ‘Winner’ honours, at the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design 2021. Red Dot recognised Hyundai Motor’s new technology campaign ‘Little Big e-Motion’ as Best of Best in the Film & Animation category. Red Dot also recognized ‘Hyundai EV Infotainment System - Jong-e’ theme design applied to IONIQ 5 as Best of Best in Interface & User Experience, the company’s first win in this category. Hyundai Motor took out 14 wins across seven categories, including Film & Animation, Interface & User Experience, Spatial Communication, Apps, Advertising, Online, and Digital Solutions.

Tickford, Prodrive now Premcar – a history of engineering for Australia

Independent automotive engineering agency, Premcar is celebrating its 25th anniversary.

Premcar was first established as Tickford Vehicle Engineering in September 1996 as a dedicated local engineering outpost of Tickford’s operations in Australia, five years later the company was assisted Ford Australia in the production and development of special cars such as the Falcon XR series. In 2002 it changed names again this time to Prodrive Automotive Technology following the acquisition of Tickford by the British motorsport and automotive specialists. Then in 2012 a management buyout saw it led by current engineering director Bernie Quinn. Over 25 years Premcar and its former namesakes have helped create some of Australia’s most iconic performance cars including Ford’s GT and Falcon XR6 Turbo and more recently the Nissan Navara N-Trek Warrior and its replacement the 2021 Nissan Navara Pro 4X Warrior. The first official project under the Tickford Vehicle Engineering banner was the development of the 30th Anniversary Ford Falcon EL GT, released in 1997. Since then, Premcar has been involved in the engineering, developing and manufacturing more than 2000 global automotive projects Premcar has assisted with the local development, conversion and manufacturing of the Ford Mustang Cobra, manufactured the locally developed turbo-charged MX-5 SP for Mazda Australia and partnered with Toyota to produce the high-performance, supercharged TRD Camry and Hilux models. Following the closure of the local automotive manufacturing industry, Premcar expanded its horizons and this included working with defense specialists Thales on its Bushmaster and Hawkei armoured troop carriers and creating a cutting-edge helicopter for a major international brand. “I strongly believe that Australian automotive engineers are among the best in the world, and, as professional problem solvers, Premcar’s expertise could be applied to a much broader portfolio of projects,” Mr Quinn said. “In the end, the work we completed outside of the automotive sector has been beneficial for everyone.” These new horizons have enabled Premcar expand its knowledge base, modular electric vehicle platform for one major brand.

Bernie Quinn

Today, Premcar employs more than 180 Australians and operates from a state-of-theart 6300m2 multi-purpose facility in Victoria.

Blind Courage

Record breaker Ben Felton aims for more land speed records.

Ben Felton is a record breaker in many aspects. In March 2018 he set a new blind motorcycle land speed world record of 266.72km/h on his Kawaska Ninja ZX10R on a salt lake in South Australia with the support of his navigator Kevin Magee and communications technician Paul Simpson. A Youtube video of this is at www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AmulVFPiYM His Blind Speed team is now working on his next challenge to set a blind land speed record in a car, not just any car but an advanced electric vehicle. Mr Felton is passionate about the future of autonomous driving, and he is keen to build an electric car with advanced driver assist technology to break the record by implementing the latest driver assist technology which will allow him to drive without sight and break the 322km/h (200mph) barrier. His plans are to design and build a twin electric motor four-wheel drive racer in Australia with the help of his advisory panel which includes Bernie Rehon (BE Mech, MSc ID, OAM), Ben Sand (Honorary Adjunct Professor Faculty of Engineering and IT) and Ken Macken (Technical consultant). Blind Speed is seeking interest from industry and education institutions to partner him on this exciting project which will be an opportunity to work at the cutting edge of technology and gain valuable media attention.

For more information on the project visit www.blindspeed.com.au or contact Bernie Fehon at bernie@blindspeed.com.au or call 0417 686 404