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This Leaf glows in the dark

Pessimists may say that it's weird to have an all-electric vehicle look like it's radioactive. But when it comes to an effort by Nissan Europe to publicize the idea of using solar energy to power one's house or car, that'd be missing the point. Either way, the car looks pretty cool. Nissan is looking to get more people to go solar across the pond, and has given an all-electric Leaf a special glow coating to get the point across. Nissan worked with inventor Hamish Scott to create a special coating that allows the Leaf's paint job to absorb enough sunlight to give off a glow for as long as 10 hours of darkness. Go up to the Nordic countries, and that's still not long enough to get through a winter's night, but for most of the Continent, that'd certainly be sufficient. Better yet, the coating, which catches ultraviolet energy, is fully organic, though it'd take some smart science people to figure out how that's the case. But the coating is said to last a quarter century, which is a little longer than Leaf batteries are expected to last. Check out Nissan's press release below and take a look at the 55-second video from Nissan UK. The manufacturer worked with inventor, Hamish Scott, creator of STARPATH, which is a spray-applied coating that absorbs UV energy during the day so that it glows for between eight and 10 hours when the sun goes down. While glowing car paint is already available, as are glow-in-the-dark car wraps, the bespoke, ultraviolet-energized paint created especially for Nissan is unique thanks to its secret formula made up of entirely organic materials. It contains a very rare natural earth product called Strontium Aluminate, which is solid, odorless and chemically and biologically inert. Feb. 12, 2015 Nissan in Europe is first car maker to apply glow-in-the-dark car paint EV pioneer Nissan is first manufacturer to partner with similarly innovative inventor to create paint that uses UV energy absorbed during daylight to glow at night Increasing numbers of LEAF owners expanding sustainability efforts by installing solar panels to their homes ROLLE, Switzerland – Nissan in Europe has become the first manufacturer to apply glow-in-the-dark car paint to showcase how its market-leading, all-electric LEAF is helping more and more people convert to solar energy at home Various third-party companies have applied non-organic glow-in-the-dark paint to vehicles before, but Nissan is the first car maker to directly apply such technology.

Why this could be the perfect time for Apple to make a car play

While the automotive and technology worlds have been pouring billions into autonomous vehicles (AVs) and preparing to bring them to market soon as shared robo-taxis, Apple has mostly sat on the sidelines. Of course, Apple is the last company to ever make its intentions known, and the super-secret tech cult giant hasn't been totally out of the AV game based on the clues that have slipped out of its Cupertino, Calif., citadel over the past few years. Related: Apple self-driving cars are real — one was just in an accident News first broke in 2015 that it had assembled an automotive development team, in part by poaching high-profile talent from car companies, to work on a top-secret self-driving vehicle project code-named Titan. (Thank you very much, Nissan.) Apple also subsequently broke cover by making inquiries into using a Northern California AV testing facility and receiving a permit to test AVs on public roads in California. But then as the AV race started to heat up in the last few years, Apple reportedly began scaling back its car activities by downsizing team Titan. More recently, Apple's car project has shown signs of life with the hiring a high-level engineer away from Waymo and luring one Tesla's top engineers and a former employee back to Apple. It also inked a deal with Volkswagen to provide a technology platform and software to convert the automaker's new T6 Transporter vans into autonomous shuttles for employees at tech company's new campus. That is a far cry from giving rides to Wal-Mart shoppers, like Waymo is doing as part of its AV testing in Phoenix. But this could be the perfect time for Apple to enter the AV market now that ride-sharing is reaching critical mass and automakers and others are planning to deploy fleets of robo-taxis. Apple could easily establish a niche as a high-end ride-sharing service – and charge a premium – given its cult-like brand loyalty and design savvy. The growth of car subscription models could also play in Apple's favor since is already has many people hooked on paying for phones in monthly installments – and eager to upgrade when a new and better model becomes available. To achieve this, some believe Apple will fulfill co-founder and CEO Steve Job's dream of building a car. And as the world's first and only $1 trillion company it's sitting on a mountain of cash that certainly gives it the means. But other tech darlings like Tesla and Google have discovered how difficult it can be to build cars at scale.

L.A. Auto Show: Genesis X Convertible, Toyota Prius and more | Autoblog Podcast #756

In this episode of the Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Senior Editor, Green, John Beltz Snyder. The Los Angeles Auto Show wrapped up this week, and we talk about some of the highlights from the show, and the events surrounding it, like the new Toyota Prius, Genesis X Convertible concept, new Lucid Air trims and the Lucid Gravity SUV. John talks about traveling to Sweden for the reveal of the Volvo EX90. They also talk about the cars they've been driving, including the Nissan Leaf, Nissan Kicks, Mercedes EQB and Jeep Wagoneer. They also shoot the breeze about late fall beer, courtesy of an email from a listener. Send us your questions for the Mailbag and Spend My Money at: Podcast@Autoblog.com. Autoblog Podcast #756 Get The Podcast Apple Podcasts – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes Spotify – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast on Spotify RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown 2022 L.A. Auto Show 2023 Toyota Prius Genesis X Convertible concept Lucid Air Pure and Touring Lucid Gravity SUV Volvo EX90 Cars we're driving Nissan Leaf Nissan Kicks Mercedes-Benz EQB 300 Jeep Wagoneer Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on Apple Podcasts Autoblog is now live on your smart speakers and voice assistants with the audio Autoblog Daily Digest. Say “Hey Google, play the news from Autoblog” or "Alexa, open Autoblog" to get your favorite car website in audio form every day. A narrator will take you through the biggest stories or break down one of our comprehensive test drives. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.