• Millions more electric vehicles on the road could make the US power grid more resilient. 
• An innovation called vehicle-to-grid technology, or V2G, lets EVs supply electricity to the grid in times of need, but it’s still in early stages. 
• Someday, EVs could store large amounts of energy and help the US shift to renewable energy sources. 

As the US speeds toward a future filled with electric vehicles, it’s reasonable to wonder how much more demand the power grid can take. After all, during a recent heatwave, California’s grid operator urged customers to limit charging their cars to avoid blackouts. 

However, energy and transportation experts say that with some planning, utilities are fully capable of handling more clean cars plugging in. Better yet, electric SUVs, trucks, and buses can strengthen the grid if deployed smartly. 

EVs can store energy for when it’s needed most

When electric cars are parked (which is most of the time), their batteries can collectively become a valuable asset to the greater grid, experts say.

Someday, millions of vehicles could use special bidirectional chargers to absorb energy when it’s plentiful and release it back to the grid as needed, helping utilities manage heatwaves and other spikes in demand. This vision rests on something called vehicle-to-grid technology, or V2G. 

Experts like Matthias Preindl, an electrical engineering professor at Columbia University, also anticipate that V2G could help wean the country off dirty energy sources. Solar and wind power are intermittent, so turning the lights on when the sun isn’t shining or the wind isn’t blowing requires storing energy for later. Electric cars could do just that, he said. 

“If we want to go to 100% renewables, which is now the target of many states, that requires a lot of batteries,” Preindl told Insider. “And cars seem to be the only really viable solution at the moment.”

If much of the US fleet goes electric, the amount of battery storage available is enormous: The National Resources Defense Council estimates that the 14 million EVs expected to be on California’s roads by 2035 could power all the state’s homes for three days. 

There’s a long road ahead

Although V2G is already being implemented in limited ways (mainly through pilot programs), there are hurdles to the technology going mainstream.

For regular EV owners to supply energy to the grid on a large scale, automakers, charging firms, and utilities will need to standardize the process, Andrew Meintz, a chief engineer at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, told Insider. Participants will also need to get paid by utilities for their contributions, he said. 

A more feasible use case for V2G in the short term could be with large fleets, Meintz said. Amazon, for example, has the money and sway to work with utilities, vehicle makers, and charging companies to iron out the kinks. 

EVs are already helping out the grid on a small scale

Highland Electric Fleets, which provides electric buses and charging infrastructure to school districts, has experimented with V2G as another revenue source since 2021. This summer, its two V2G-enabled school buses in Massachusetts pushed power to the grid almost daily to help the local utility handle periods of high energy consumption, Sean Leach, the firm’s director of technology, told Insider. It’s planning more extensive V2G projects in Vermont, Maryland, and elsewhere. 

“At the end of the day, let’s use these buses for what they can do. These batteries are huge. They spend a lot of time not doing anything because the routes are very predictable for schools,” Leach said. Right now, the firm gets emailed requests to offload energy, but it’s working to automate things. 

It’ll take a lot of work before we see millions of EVs seamlessly assisting the larger grid. But some vehicles can already share energy locally in useful and interesting ways. Ford’s F-150 Lightning pickup can provide emergency backup power to customers’ homes, so long as they have the right at-home charger. Upcoming trucks from General Motors promise to do the same.

Edward J. Klock-McCook, a principal at the sustainability think tank RMI, told Insider that if it becomes popular enough, this sort of capability could benefit the grid much in the same way that a full-blown V2G future would. Armed with the big batteries in their Lightnings and Chevrolet Silverado EVs, homeowners could supply their own electricity during blackouts or when the grid is stressed. 

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Sales into large fleets, not including sales into dealer and manufacturer fleets, increased 21% month over month in October to 148,721 units, according to an early estimate from Cox Automotive released Nov. 4.

Combined sales into large rental, commercial, and government fleets were up nearly 49% year over year in October. Sales into rental and commercial were both up 58% year over year, while sales into government fleets were down just slightly at 0.3%. 

Fleet Share of Retail Sales Increases

Including an estimate for fleet deliveries into dealer and manufacturer channels, the remaining retail new-vehicle sales were estimated to be up 5.9%, leading to an estimated retail sales pace, or seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR), of 12.8 million, up 0.9 million from last month’s pace, or 7.4%, and up 1.2 million, or 10.3%, from last year’s pace. The total fleet market share was 14.1% in October, a 1.9% gain from last month and a 2.9% gain from last year. For context, total fleet sales volume was 227,602 units in October 2019, representing a 17.1% share of total retail sales.

“In October, we saw a slight uptick in fleet share month over month,” said Charlie Chesbrough, senior economist of Cox Automotive, in a news release. “It’s too soon to tell, but this could be the beginning of some manufacturers leveraging the fleet ‘relief valve’ by shifting more of their sales to fleet as they see retail sales soften a bit due to consumers facing economic uncertainly and affordability concerns.”

Among manufacturers, GM had the largest fleet increase over last year, followed by Stellantis and Ford. Meanwhile, Kia and Hyundai had the largest fleet declines compared to a year ago.

Originally posted on Vehicle Remarketing

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If you like affordable, mid-engined two-seaters, the 1980s were your decade. Fiat (and, a bit later, Bertone) offered the X1/9, Toyota sold MR2s, and even General Motors got into the act by creating the Fiero. Available from the 1984 through 1988 model years, the Pontiac Fiero showed plenty of promise but ended up being mostly disappointing, in some ways echoing the career of the Chevy Corvair of a couple of decades earlier. Today’s Junkyard Gem is a once-spiffy 1986 Fiero GT, found in a self-service yard near Denver, Colorado.

After a long and painful development period stretching all the way back to John DeLorean’s XP-833 Banshee (which ended up being a major influence behind the original Opel GT), the Fiero finally debuted in 1983 as a 1984 model. The top-of-the-model-range GT appeared the following year.

The Fiero was built as a notchback coupe and as a fastback, with all the GTs being the latter type.

I couldn’t get the engine lid open, but this car would have left the assembly line (in Pontiac, Michigan) with a 2.8-liter V6 rated at 140 horsepower.

This car has a five-speed manual transmission, making it a credible rival for Toyota’s MR2. 

The 1986 MR2 was less powerful than the Fiero GT (112 horsepower versus 140), but also scaled in significantly lighter (2,459 pounds against the Pontiac’s 2,780 pounds). The MR2 also cost less, priced at $11,298 while the Fiero GT cost $12,875 (that’s about $30,540 and $34,805, respectively, in inflation-adjusted 2022 dollars).

Meanwhile, the $6,998 Honda Civic CRX two-seater lured away many potential Fiero buyers despite being a front-engined/front-wheel-drive car, and the $7,186 Ford EXP/Mercury LN7 also put a dent in Fiero sales. I can’t find a price for the 1986 Bertone X1/9, but it cost a hard-to-believe $13,990 in 1984.

GM still was using five-digit odometers in many vehicles by the middle 1980s, but this Fiero has a six-digit unit and thus we can see that it nearly achieved 150,000 miles during its driving career.

The 1984-1987 Fiero suffered from a parts-bin suspension design, with the front suspension borrowed from the Chevrolet Chevette and the entire rear transaxle/suspension assembly lifted from the front end of the Chevrolet Citation. For the 1988 model year, GM finally spent the money to design an improved Fiero-specific suspension … and then promptly put a halt to production. Highly publicized fires and quality-control problems for the 1984-1987 cars had done their damage, and just over 25,000 of those better-handling Fieros were sold.

I used to see a lot more of these cars during my junkyard travels, but now my personal junkyard Fiero sightings are down to a couple per year.

I still see Fieros on race tracks, however, so the Fiero news isn’t all bad!

Here’s in-car video from one of the Salty Thunder Racing Fieros on the High Plains Raceway track.

Just like a hang glider.

It looks like a billion francs.

When hitchhiking home from college, always wait for the Fiero that doesn’t have the Iron Duke four-cylinder.

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Toyota’s Gazoo Racing division gave the track-only Supra GT4 a round of significant updates in preparation for the 2023 season. Using the extensive feedback provided by race car drivers and mechanics, the company improved the coupe’s brakes, handling, and engine.

Racers requested better handling and higher cornering speeds, and Toyota delivered by redesigning the braking system, developing a new setting for the ABS system, updating the roll bars, and fitting adjustable dampers provided by German firm KW Automotive. Toyota adds pilots will have the opportunity to put these improvements to good use thanks to a more powerful engine with an optimized torque curve.

Power comes from a turbocharged, 3.0-liter straight-six whose horsepower output depends on the race series it’s tuned for, though its maximum torque output checks in at 487 pound-feet. The six exhales through an Akrapovič exhaust system, and its cooling system has been made more effective, though details about the modifications weren’t released. It spins the rear wheels via an automatic transmission.

Riding on 18-inch OZ Racing wheels, the Supra GT4 features Brembo-sourced brakes, an OMP Racing seat for the driver, and a roll cage. It further stands out from the street-legal, regular-production model with a track-specific body kit that notably adds a huge rear wing. The list of standard features includes a traction control system and a digital instrument cluster, while options include suspension travel sensors.

The updated Toyota GR Supra GT4 Evo is already on sale globally, and pricing starts at 186,000 euros (around $186,000). Teams currently racing the last evolution of the Supra GT4 can purchase an upgrade kit to bring their car to Evo specifications. The coupe is scheduled to make its track debut at in January 2023 at the 24 Hours of Daytona, which is the first round of the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge season.

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Volkswagen said it was going to offer a GTI 40th Anniversary Edition model when it revealed what was new for the 2023 model year, and now we finally get to see it.

This special model marks 40 years of the GTI in the U.S. (not the world), and it’s an exclusive model for our market. The package is sure to appeal to enthusiasts who want all the performance options in an intriguing visual package. It starts with the basic S trim, but adds the DCC adaptive dampers, speed-sensitive steering, unique 19-inch wheels and summer performance tires usually reserved for the top-of-the-line Autobahn trim. It also starts at $34,150 for the manual, which is thousands cheaper than the $40,000+ Autobahn trim. If all you want is performance and appearance, this Anniversary Edition model looks like a sweet deal.

The appearance package put together by VW is a neat one. Two exclusive paint colors are available, including Tornado Red (pictured) and Urano Grey. Also optional (but not exclusive to the model) are Opal White Pearl and Pomelo Yellow Metallic. All the Anniversary Edition models will have black roofs with black mirror caps. Decals on the door sills feature a honeycomb design and “40” to note it as the Anniversary Edition. Those 19-inch wheels we mentioned earlier are the same as you’ll see on the European-spec GTIs, and they also feature a red pinstripe accent around the outer rim.

On the inside, you’ll get a “40” clasp at the bottom center of the steering wheel. Plaid seats come standard, and if you get the manual, you’ll get a golf-ball inspired shift knob instead of the new square knob on the regular GTIs. The DSG-equipped models — priced at $35,950 — have the same shifter that looks like a beard trimmer.

Volkswagen says it plans to sell approximately 1,500 units of the 40th Anniversary Edition car. It will go on sale at some point mid-model year. 

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Kim Kardashian was spotted on her 42nd birthday this Friday emerging from her gleaming new Range Rover hybrid.

A source informed DailyMail.com that the upscale $125,000 automobile was a surprise birthday present from Kim’s mother and ‘momager’ Kris Jenner.

The reality star took the Range Rover to her nine-year-old daughter North’s basketball game and brought along her eldest son Saint, six.

We say ONLY a $125k Range Rover for Kim K? SLUMMING IT?

Just kidding. Happy Birthday! Enjoy.

Spies, what’s your VERDICT on the WHEELS?

Full article and more pics at the link…

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A new tax-efficient short subscription scheme for electric vehicles has been launched to target company employees.

The Electric Car Scheme has launched a new salary sacrifice product that offers vehicles on 12-month contracts, in partnership with car subscription firm Onto, which was launched by former Jaguar Land Rover product strategy and innovation manager Rob Jolly.

He said: “This partnership is an exciting proposition for employers and employees alike. As the shift to electric cars continues, we want to continue making electric cars accessible to all and provide customers with a cost-effective, hassle free, flexible experience that also makes them feel good about their impact on the planet.”  

The new subscription model differs from traditional leases available through salary sacrifice, which have multi-year terms and typically lock out startups by requiring that any company using the scheme have traded for two years or more.

The Electric Car Scheme chief executive and co-founder Thom Groot said: “More than 80% of employees in the UK want their next car to be an electric car, and it’s only right that the government rebate for electric cars is made accessible to as many people as possible.

“Subscriptions have been a great way for people to try driving and owning an electric car.  Now The Electric Car Scheme can help more people try electric car subscriptions and make this step as affordable as possible.”

People eager to get into an electric car without a huge upfront cost or long commitments can now get one via subscription for as little as £222 a month through their employers.

Salary sacrifice allows employees from participating companies to pay for leases or subscriptions with their pre-tax income, meaning they can enjoy savings of between 30 and 60%.

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If you had to pick a place to crash your car, a public restroom is probably pretty low on the list. Not that crashing anywhere is desirable. Even worse would be if that restroom was a particularly historical one. That’s exactly what happened to a driver in Japan with a weird little Toyota.

According to a police report provided to Japanese news outlet Sankei Shimbun, someone working for the Kyoto Association for the Preservation of Ancient Cultures thought they had shifted their car into drive, but were actually in reverse. The outcome was backing right into the Tosu, at the Tofuku-ji Zen Buddhist Temple in Kyoto. The Tosu is the large restroom for the monastery, and the oldest toilet of its type in Japan. And that’s really old: the temple, which is a complex of 25 smaller ones, was founded in 1236 and mainly completed in 1255. Reports indicate this awesome 20-hole outhouse is 500 years old.

The crash ended up damaging doors and pillars, but an employee at the temple told Sankei Shimbun that they will be repairing the building. It certainly won’t be the first time the temple has had to be repaired. Multiple times in the centuries since it was built, the temple has caught fire, and most of the buildings have been completely rebuilt at some point in time, though many are still more than a century old. Whether this poor driver will be able to repair his reputation and retain his job are less certain.

But besides the temple, we were surprised to see the car that was involved. In the photo at the top, you’ll see the wrecked car is a Toyota WiLL Vi. It was a compact car with some really funky styling. The rounded shape and the rear window hanging over the trunk are reminiscent of some ’50s cars. But the thick strakes and simple surfacing are much more in keeping with styling of the early 2000s, which makes sense as the car launched in 2000, and was only built until the end of 2001. 

It was one of three Toyota cars made to fall under the WiLL brand, which encompassed all kinds of products from various manufacturers, including simple home goods. The design of these cars was really the strange part of them. The Vi and the more futuristic-looking Cypha, were quirky compacts that used platforms shared with the far more normal Vitz/Echo and the Toyota bB/Scion xB. The Vs was larger and based on the Corolla.

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The electric vehicle revolution will be subsidized.

China has been at it for more than a decade, incentivizing purchases, backing homegrown battery makers and blocking foreign firms from competing. Europe has followed suit with generous aid both for consumers and companies.

Now that electrification has taken root globally, and there’s a climate change believer in the White House, the U.S. has jumped into the fray in a bigger way than ever before. First, there was the $7 billion tucked into the infrastructure bill last year. Then, hundreds of millions made available by invoking the Defense Production Act. And now, the mother of them all, the Inflation Reduction Act, which extends generous tax credits to buy, build and charge EVs, and localize the battery supply chain to power them.

All this global competition gets a lot of attention, but there’s another subsidy battle raging within America’s shores: a cutthroat fight among states to land EV and battery investments.

There were lots of headlines following Ford’s announcement a year ago that it would invest $11.4 billion in Tennessee and Kentucky to build two new EV hubs, the largest outlay in its history. General Motors also set a company record with its $6.5 billion investment in Michigan early this year.

What often ends up in the finer print of stories about these developments — if it gets mentioned at all — are the tabs that taxpayers pick up. States rarely disclose the amounts in full, instead dribbling them out over months in bits and pieces, or in response to public information requests. Even then, calculating a full package is like putting together a jigsaw puzzle.

Bloomberg dove into this in depth in this story yesterday, which coincided with a new report from Good Jobs First, a vocal critic of corporate incentives. Among the sweeping policy questions the nonprofit researcher raises: Why should states subsidize EVs when consumer demand is clearly taking off?

Also complicating matters: the notion that electric vehicles may end up being job killers, more so than job creators, if you net out all the losses linked to internal combustion drivetrain components that no longer will be needed.

Good Jobs First does a detailed analysis of some of the deals states have cut with car companies and battery manufacturers. Georgia’s $1.5 billion incentive package for Rivian, for example, prominently touts average annual wages of $56,000. One needs to scroll down 130 pages to find that the wage floor is $20 an hour, which works out to about $36,000 a year. The state’s economic development agreement also allows Rivian to use “employee leasing” companies to count toward its job-creation goals.

In Kansas, the incentive deal for Panasonic that Good Jobs First values at $1.27 billion includes some favorable clauses for the Japanese battery company. According to the report, Panasonic has to invest capital for five years to win income tax credits, but doesn’t have to guarantee certain levels of employment or wages. If the factory is unprofitable and doesn’t owe any tax, the state is still obligated to pay out money each year, as long as the investments are made.

People on the left and the right of the U.S. political spectrum say corporate incentives can be wasteful and unnecessary. Even state officials who participate in the “tax-break industrial complex,” as the Good Jobs First report calls this phenomenon, acknowledge that it’s an unsavory game. But the feeling is they have little choice if they want to compete for these new jobs.

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