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Recharge Wrap-up: Range-extended EV taxis in London, 2016 Chevy Volt interior two years old

The first Metrocab range-extended EV taxis are operating on the streets of London. The cabs use a 12.2-kWh battery and two 50-kW motors, as well as a 1.0-liter gasoline range extender. Fuel economy is 98 MPGe on the ECE101 cycle, and total driving range is over 348 miles before needing to charge or refuel. Cabbies can expect to save GBP20 to GBP40 (about $30 to $60) per day on average. "The cash savings on fuel are significant, the ride and comfort outstanding, and my first customers are thrilled with the new cab," says the first operator of the new EV taxi, Preston Morris. "With its air suspension providing unrivaled comfort, panoramic glass roof for views of the city and silent powertrain, what's not to like?" Read more in the press release below. Chevrolet has had the interior design of the 2016 Volt finished for two years already, according to GM interior designer John McDougall. Beginning around 2010, GM received sketches from designers worldwide before narrowing it down to a handful of designs. Then the top three choices were molded from clay. The chosen theme was then refined for up to 18 months. "Every little thing you can imagine goes into that," says McDougall. "The glare angle from the windows, the placement of the controls, the placement of the seat. You have to create something that's beautiful and functional." Read more at GM Authority and at Inside EVs. More details have emerged about the Second Life Batteries Alliance. Vattenfall has announced a research project in partnership with BMW and Bosch to use retired EV batteries for stationary, grid-connected energy storage in Hamburg, Germany. Over 100 lithium-ion batteries from BMW i3 and ActiveE vehicles will make up a two-mWh storage unit for grid balancing, enough to power 30 four-person households for a week. The system is "compact enough to fit in a small building," says Bosch. Such storage systems are especially fit for storing and moving alternative forms of energy, which often fluctuate in supply more than electricity from a traditional power plant. Vattenhall will operate the storage unit for 10 years, with Bosch managing the batteries, during which time the three partners hope to learn more about battery applications and their performance over time. Read more at Green Car Congress, or in the press release below.

Chevy Volt sales surge with 2016 model, Nissan Leaf continues Autumn fall

The Nissan Leaf and Chevy Volt have been locked in sales combat since they arrived within a short distance of each other way back in 2010, and we continue to follow that fight closely. Though both vehicles approach driving efficiency from a different angle, they each have plugs and owners put a surprisingly similar number of electric miles on them. With the launch of its 2016 model, the Bowtie brand now appears to have the upper hand, clocking in a solidly improved performance for the month of October. According to GM's sales charts, the Chevy Volt made it into the loving embrace of 2,035 buyers last month. That's up a whopping 41 percent over the same period in 2014, and more than a 100 percent improvement from the 949-unit result in September. Now, we don't know how many of these were 2015 models and how many were the all-new 2016 edition. Dealers are, no doubt, incentivized to move the old inventory, and the latest and greatest is still only available in a limited number of states. Breaking out the sad trombones, Nissan recorded a mere 1,238 units moved in October. That's down 52.2 percent from the same month in 2014. That's also nine fewer examples than last month. Despite its recent sales travails, the Leaf still leads the calendar-year-to-date figures by a commanding 14,868 to 11,299 tally. We imagine the Japanese manufacturer is counting on an improvement in the situation once the 2016 model, with its larger, optional 30 kWh battery becomes available. You can compare these two stalwarts with the rest of the green-vehicle field in our By The Numbers post due out tomorrow. Green Chevrolet Nissan Electric Hybrid ev sales hybrid sales volt

GM to build next-gen Chevy Cruze in Mexico

As one of its global products, General Motors builds the Chevy Cruze for local consumption at assembly plants around the world: in Australia, South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, China, India, Kazakhstan, Russia, Brazil and Ohio. The automaker is expected to trim those locations for the next generation of its compact sedan, but its latest announcement has it adding a new site to the list: Mexico. As part of a $350-million investment, GM's plant at Ramos Arizpe in Coahuila will gear up for production as one of several sites that will be charged with building the next-gen Cruze. The General has yet to announce just which plants those will be, but it has confirmed that the Lordstown, Ohio, site will once again be among them. The plant in St Petersburg, Russia, which has produced the current Cruze, is being shut down, as is the Holden plant in Elizabeth, Australia. The Ramos Arizpe assembly plant currently puts together the Chevy Sonic and Captiva as well as the Cadillac SRX, but has over the course of its 34-year history handled a variety of models for the Chevy, Pontiac, Buick, Cadillac, Saturn, Opel and even Saab brands. The site handles a quarter of GM's production in Mexico, and exports 87 percent of its capacity to other markets. Invertira GM 350 mdd en Ramos Arizpe para fabricar siguiente generacion de Chevrolet Cruze 2015-03-23 - Se consolida GM de Mexico como el sexto productor global de vehiculos para General Motors Company Ramos Arizpe, Coahuila - General Motors de Mexico anuncio este dia que invertira 350 millones de dolares en su Complejo de Manufactura Ramos Arizpe, para fabricar en estas instalaciones la siguiente generacion del modelo Chevrolet Cruze. "Esta inversion, que forma parte de los 5 mil millones de dolares anunciados en diciembre pasado para todo el pais, fortalecera la presencia de GM Ramos Arizpe en la produccion de nuestra compania a nivel mundial y, por supuesto, consolidara a Mexico como el sexto productor de automoviles para GM Company, con el 7% de la produccion global", informo Ernesto M. Hernandez, Presidente y Director General de GM de Mexico. En una reunion de trabajo en la que participaron Ruben Moreira, Gobernador del Estado de Coahuila y Rogelio Garza, Subsecretario de Industria y Comercio del Gobierno Federal, el Presidente de General Motors en el pais aseguro que el Complejo GM Ramos Arizpe se ha consolidado como un iman para las inversiones de la compania a nivel global. Adicionalmente, Ernesto M.