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Solid-state batteries: Why Toyota's plans could be a game-changer for EVs

Word out of Japan today is that Toyota is working on launching a new solid-state battery for electric vehicles that will put it solidly in the EV game by 2022. Which leads to a simple question: What is a solid-state battery, and why does it matter? Back in February, John Goodenough observed, "Cost, safety, energy density, rates of charge and discharge and cycle life are critical for battery-driven cars to be more widely adopted." And risking a bad pun on his surname, he seemed to be implying that all of those characteristics weren't currently good enough in autos using lithium-ion batteries. This comment is relevant because Goodenough, professor at the Cockrell School of Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin - it so happens, he turns 95 today - is the co-inventor of the lithium-ion battery, the type of battery that is pretty much the mainstay of current electric vehicles. And he and a research fellow at U of T were announcing they'd developed a solid-state battery, one that has improved energy density (which means a car so equipped can drive further) and can be recharged more quickly and more often (a.k.a., "long cycle life") than a lithium-ion battery. (Did you ever notice that with time your iPhone keeps less of a charge than it did back when it was shiny and new? That's because it has a limited cycle life. Which is one thing when you're talking about a phone. And something else entirely when it involves a whole car.) What's more, there is reduced mass for a solid-state battery. And there isn't the same safety concern that exists with li-ion batteries vis-a- vis conflagration (which is why at airplane boarding gates they say they'll check your carryon as long as you remove all lithium-ion batteries). Lithium-ion batteries may be far more advanced than the lead-acid batteries that are under the hood of essentially every car that wasn't built in Fremont, Calif., but as is the case with those heavy black rectangles, li-ion batteries contain a liquid. In the lithium-ion battery, the liquid, the electrolyte, moves the lithium ions from the negative to the positive side (anode to cathode) of the battery. In a solid-state design, there is no liquid sloshing around, which also means that there's no liquid that would freeze at low operating temperatures. What Toyota is using for its solid-state battery is still unknown, as is the case for the solid-state batteries that Hyundai is reportedly working on for its EVs.

Toyota reveals cause of heartbreaking failure at Le Mans

Toyota was set to become only the second Japanese automaker to win the grueling 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race. But on the last lap, the No. 5 TS 050 car, which was being driven by Kazuki Nakajima, suffered a technical issue that resulted in a sudden loss of power. In a team statement, Toyota Gazoo Racing has revealed that the culprit was a "defect on a connector on the air line between the turbocharger and the intercooler." The defective air line connector, according to the statement, resulted in a loss of control over the turbocharger. The team isn't sure why the connector failed and is continuing to analyze the component to get down to the root cause, the team said in the statement. During the race, the team was able to get the No. 5 car running again by modifying the control settings. The fix, however, came a little too late as the vehicle could not complete the lap under Le Mans' maximum final lap time of six minutes and limped its way to 45th place. While the team is working hard to find the fix – to avoid a similar type of failure in the future – it claims there is no relation to the engine issues that were experienced by the two TS 050 cars at Spa during the World Endurance Championship in May. You can read Toyota Gazoo Racing's full statement here. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Image Credit: JEAN-SEBASTIEN EVRARD via Getty Images Motorsports Porsche Toyota Racing Vehicles le mans 24 hours

Toyota recalling 10k vehicles to fix wiper switches

Toyota has announced a voluntary recall covering approximately 10,000 cars in the United States. Affected models include the 2013-14 Camry and Camry Hybrid, 2013-14 Avalon and Avalon Hybrid, and the brand new 2014 Corolla.
The problem, as Toyota explains it, is that, "During manufacture of the wiper switch assembly in the involved vehicles, certain contacts on the switch terminal could have been manufactured incorrectly." This could lead to a short in the circuit when the wiper switch is moved between "off" and "mist," and thus, cause the windshield wipers to stop working. Not good.
Toyota will contact owners via first class mail, and the vehicles can be repaired at dealerships, free of charge. Have a look below for the automaker's official statement.