Global EV News

[Steadfast]

I disagree having owned:

• 2014 BMW i3-REx (72 mi EV, 96 mi gas)
• 2017 Prius Prime (20 mi EV, 620 gas)
• 2017 BMW i3-REx (108 mi EV, 88 mi gas)

Both BMWs charged at home over 7 kW and had a hard boundary between EV and ICE operation. The fast DC charger took about 45-50 minutes to fully charge the battery. In stark contrast, the Prius Prime was badly designed.

The Prius Prime only charged at 3.5 kw which meant overnight and +2 hours on the road. The poor control laws kicked in the gas engine every time possible especially under 55 F (13 C?). The driver assist software was lane keeping unstable. I traded it in for a 2029 Tesla Model 3 after it burnt me out on Toyota.

A good PHEV has no mechanical transmission and the small ~600-700 cc engine drives a generator. It has fast DC charging that works in minutes, not hours. The control laws do not force ICE operation for trivial reasons. The BMW i3-REx proved that to be true PHEV just as the Prius Prime remains a bad design.

Bob Wilson

There are exceptions to just about everything. You are one of the exceptions. The analysis has been noted on several sites. Some of the manufacturers have been caught in marketing lies.

As for hybrids, they are for people who don't really understand what today's EV's can do. There is no need to worry about battery life or range. Hybrids are mostly a marketing ploy for those who have not done their EV research. There are a few exceptions. As we see the PHEV sales go down in Europe it is a sign the population are educating themselves and their friends.

 

[Steadfast]

Up, Up And Away With Another Hybrid Airliner

We are starting to see more and more of these planes about to enter the marketplace. Frankly, I am a bit surprised it is happening so quickly.

China’s electric airliner era starts with a 19-seat plane and 400 km of range​

COMAC’s CE-25A, China’s 19-seat battery-electric commuter plane, flew with a crew for the first time on Saturday in Binzhou, Shandong. Two pilots and a flight test engineer were aboard the roughly 10-tonne demonstrator, and COMAC says every system worked normally.

It wasn’t the plane’s first flight. The CE-25A had already completed 19 autonomous test flights with nobody on board since February 2, and China’s aviation regulator is now reviewing it for a type certificate.

The CE-25A: 19 seats, 10 fans, 400 km​

The CE-25A is a T-tail commuter plane with 10 electric ducted fans on the wings, five per side, instead of propellers. COMAC lists a 300 km/h cruise speed and a 400 km (250-mile) range.

China's electric airliner era starts with a 19-seat plane and 400 km of range

COMAC's 19-seat CE-25A electric plane made its first crewed flight in China after 19 autonomous tests, as certification review gets underway.

electrek.co