Ideas are sprouting like weeds in the cabbage patch in the Electric Vehicle world’s designs, batteries, and the rush to replace fossil fuels for powering the cars, trucks, and RVs of the future. Here are a few and how they might affect the RVs of the future.
A company called Trexa is offering a new electric drive system which can be customized by “specialty vehicle developers” (does that mean RV manufacturers also?) for their own varied needs. Trexa says its platform has a scalable wheelbase which could work for “compact, microcar and ATV-size” applications. No RV sizes yet, but this could represent a step toward a new model for RV makers, similar to the chassis provided by Workhorse and Spartan to the RV industry.
Trexa says this platform “offers an unprecedented level of versatility because it contains an
entire vehicle’s drivetrain within one low-profile enclosed structure.” A number of standards
are built into this platform, including four-wheel drive and four-wheel independent suspension which is “adjustable for ride height and terrain type.”
The lithium-ion battery system is scalable, depending upon the application, making itavailable for ranges from 25 to 125 driving miles.
A company called Balqon has developed a new lithium-ion battery powered heavy duty electric vehicle that could be possibly be astep toward an electric RV. The Nautilus XE20 electric yard tractor can tow loads of up to 40 tons at a top speed of 25 miles per hour, according to a press release.
One of the stumbling blocks in the way of mass acceptance of electric vehicles is the charge time to recharge the batteries. Two companies, Aker Wade, that has fast charging technology, and Coulomb, that has the ChargePoint Network, have made an agreement to launch the first charging stations for EV’s that will bring charge you up in less than a half hour.
The first stations are set to launch in the 3rd quarter of 2010 (no word yet as to where) and will be qualified for use with a number of electric vehicle brands.
Aker Wade CEO Bret Aker noted that with coming improvements in Li-ion technology, charge times will be reduced to as little as fifteen minutes. This is the point where consumers will likely abandon gasoline for electricity–the tipping point for electric vehicles.
The big guys too are jumping in on the action in a big way. Ford is ramping up its push to get electric vehicles to market, saying that it will plow another $450 million into the alt-fuel vehicles and build a next-generation hybrid and a plug-in hybrid in Michigan starting in 2012.
Ford’s old-school Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne is being transformed into the production site of hybrid, plug-in hybrid and full battery-electric vehicles built off the company’s new global C-car platform. Ford also said it will design advanced lithium-ion battery systems for the next-generation hybrid in Michigan and will move production of battery packs from Mexico to Michigan.
It may be years before hybrids followed by EV are accepted by new RV buyers, with the possibility of electric toads coming along first. It would be a neat deal to charge your toad overnight in a campground or on the road from the motorhome. Trucks with enough umph to pull big fivers could see effective hybrids sooner than hybrid motorhomes, though. Interesting times for sure, as we try to move away from fossil fuels. And with the development of better, longer lasting and faster charging batteries, it could prove to be a big advantage to boondockers’ house power as well.
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