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Recharge Wrap-up: Atieva making EV with former Tesla talent, Holland lowers PHEV incentives

A reduction of tax incentives on company cars in Holland is expected to put the brakes on plug-in hybrid sales. Cars are taxed at an average of 25 percent, with plug-in hybrids taxed at just seven or 14 percent, depending on emissions. Taxes on PHEV company cars will increase to 14 and 21 percent. With company car leases making up a third of vehicle sales in 2014, the uptake on PHEVs "will likely go back to regular volumes," according to Volvo's Christiaan Krouwel. It could be a boon for battery electric cars, as their tax rate will remain at four percent for company cars. Read more at Automotive News Europe. Ford is testing cylinder deactivation in its 1.0-liter EcoBoost engine. On-road prototype testing has shown improvements in fuel economy of as much as six percent. Ford engineers developed a system using a new dual mass flywheel, pendulum absorber, and tuned clutch disc to allow cylinder deactivation under a wider range of speed and engine loads with less NVH. "The highest priority in the development of new combustion engines for automotive applications is the ongoing reduction of fuel consumption," says Ford's Andreas Schamel, presenting Ford's findings to the Vienna Motor Symposium. Read more at Green Car Congress or in the press release from Ford. Atieva is building an EV with the help of numerous former Tesla employees. The Silicon Valley-based startup was founded in 2007 by a former Tesla vice president, and its roster includes 12 other former Tesla employees. Already well funded, Atieva is now looking to fill its ranks with more talent, with 32 engineering positions, two recruiter positions and other job openings posted at its website. As for the EV it is working on, Atieva says it is "redefining what a car can be, by building an iconic new vehicle from the ground up." Read more at Charged EVs. Testing shows that Joule ethanol, made from recycled CO2, meets standards for use in the US and Europe. In partnership with Audi, Joule has been working toward making its recycled CO2 fuels ready for commercialization. "We are pleased to achieve another critical step towards our planned near-term delivery of fuel-grade ethanol from recycled CO2," says Joule President and CEO Serge Tchuruk. "Using waste CO2 as a feedstock, our technology has the two-fold advantage of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and producing cost-competitive, drop-in fuels." Joule will use these test results to get government approval for the use of its ethanol in highway fuel.

Audi planning S3 Plus with 375 hp?

There's a war being waged in Europe for the highest output from the smallest displacement. Alfa Romeo has managed to squeeze 240 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque out of a 1.7-liter turbo four for the 4C. Mercedes-Benz has coaxed 355 hp and 332 lb-ft out of a 2.0-liter turbo four to drive the new A45 AMG, CLA45 AMG and GLA45 AMG. But not to be outdone, the Volkswagen Group is said to be working on one of its own that will put both to shame.
The engine is reportedly being based on VW's existing 2.0-liter turbo four, only enhanced to produce a massive 375 hp and 369 lb-ft of torque. The key to getting there was poaching Friedrich Eichler, the engineer who designed AMG's aforementioned high-output engine, and mandating him to do still better.
That's all well and fine - and perfectly impressive - but just what does VW plan on doing with the new engine? A whole lot, according to reports. It's expected to power the new Scirocco and a new Golf R Evo expected to debut at the Beijing Motor Show in April, and you can bet it'll be slotted into another few applications as well. But the first vehicle expected to get it will be the Audi S3 Plus.

Audi reveals revised RS5 DTM for 2014

There existed an era in German touring car racing between when the DTM series was revived in 2000 and when BMW rejoined in 2012. During that twelve-season span, the wins were pretty evenly divided between Audi and Mercedes-Benz, the only two manufacturers who took part. Audi won six drivers' titles in that time and Mercedes won six (although Benz won considerably more constructors' titles).
Now that BMW is back in the race, though, it's an entirely different game. BMW has won the lion's share of the races in the past two seasons, taking both titles in 2012 and the constructors' title last season. The winning driver last season, though, was driving the RS5, making Audi the only one that really stands a chance of putting up a fight against BMW. It undoubtedly hopes to extend that challenge in the coming season, and this is the car with which it aims to do so.
Taking on the Mercedes-AMG C-Class Coupe DTM and the new BMW M4 DTM will be the revised RS5 DTM you see here. Bearing a stronger resemblance to the road-going RS5 you can buy, Audi's new DTM challenger benefits from a revised aero package with more streamlined side mirrors, closed rear wheel arches and reprofiled side sills. The V8 engine carries over (much as it did from the previous A4 DTM and A5 DTM) with 456 horsepower driving the rear wheels through a six-speed sequential gearbox.