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Jeep unveils all-electric Wrangler idea SUV

Jeep unveils all-electric Wrangler concept SUV

The Jeep Wrangler Magneto concept is an all-electric SUV based on a 2020 two-door Jeep Wrangler Rubicon.

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EMBARGOED FOR 12:01 AM MONDAY, MARCH 22nd.

Jeep has unveiled a new all-electric version of its iconic Wrangler SUV, but consumers will likely have to wait at least a few years to buy one.

The brand presented the Wrangler “Magneto” as a concept vehicle on Monday. This means that it is a custom product that is usually developed by automakers to measure customer interest or to point out the future direction of a vehicle or brand.

“It’s a sustainable, stealthy climbing group,” said Jim Morrison, vice president of the Jeep brand in North America, during a media event. “It’s a zero-emission concept vehicle with Jeep 4×4 capability that is being taken to the next level.”

Jeep executives have said that every Jeep will offer some form of electrification in the future, but an all-electric version of the Wrangler has not been confirmed. The company recently began selling a plug-in hybrid electric version of the Wrangler under the new name “4xe,” a game for the brand’s off-road reputation combined with electrification. Plug-in hybrid electric models have batteries like electric vehicles, but also a conventional internal combustion engine.

The Jeep Wrangler Magneto concept is an all-electric SUV based on a 2020 two-door Jeep Wrangler Rubicon.

jeep

The Jeep Wrangler Magneto concept is based on a 2020 two-door Jeep Wrangler Rubicon. To make it an electric vehicle, the engineers swapped out its internal combustion engine and some supporting parts for electrical components like four batteries and an electric motor.

The vehicle is capable of up to 273 foot-pounds of torque and 285 horsepower. The Magneto runs 0-60 mph in 6.8 seconds. The company has not approved the vehicle’s electric range.

The most unique thing about the Magneto is that it has a six-speed manual transmission that electric vehicles don’t need because of their engines. Mark Allen, head of Jeep design, said the vehicle had “the best features” of an automatic transmission but the “direct drive feel” of a manual transmission, which is vital for off-road enthusiasts.

The Magneto was featured along with several other custom or concept vehicles for the Jeep Easter Safari, an annual off-road event for the brand in Moab, Utah. Jeep regularly uses the off-road event as a test site for the performance of its vehicles and as a means of measuring customer interest in new products.

“The Moab Easter Jeep Safari has been a tradition for more than half a century,” said Morrison. “It’s a place where we can connect with our die-hard off-road enthusiasts and those who are most loyal to our brand.”

Concept vehicles for this year’s Jeep Easter Safari include (from left to right) Jeep Red Bare, Jeep Magneto, Jeepster Beach and Jeep Orange Peelz.

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Porsche’s bold EV plans do not embody an all-electric 911

Porsche's ambitious EV plans don't include an all-electric 911

The fully electric Porsche Taycan Turbo.

Source: Porsche AG

The German luxury car manufacturer Porsche assumes that it will significantly increase sales of fully electric vehicles in the coming years. Don’t expect an EV version of its iconic 911 sports car, if any.

Porsche boss Oliver Blume said the 911 will be the “last Porsche that seeks full electrification” if it ever becomes fully electric. This is despite the announcement of a new plan for at least 80% of the vehicles sold, which are to be electrified by 2030.

“The 911 is our icon. We will continue to build the 911 with an internal combustion engine,” he told reporters during a media call prior to his annual meeting on Friday morning. “The concept of the 911 doesn’t allow a fully electric car because we have the engine in the back. To put the weight of the battery in the back, you couldn’t drive the car.”

Porsche reports that 17% of vehicles sold worldwide last year were electrified, including a third of sales in Europe.

“Very sporty” 911 hybrid

“Electrified” can be a fully electric vehicle like the Porsche Taycan or hybrid and plug-in hybrids that combine electrification with combustion engines, which Porsche is currently also offering. According to Blume, a “large part” of Porsche’s vehicle sales by 2030 will be purely electric.

The “majority” of the 20% of its sales that won’t be electrified by 2030 will be the 911, he said. That doesn’t mean that no changes will be made to the car. He said the company was working on a “very sporty hybridization” of the car, citing the lessons learned from a Porsche hybrid racing car.

The company is also investing $ 24 million in “e-fuels,” which should contribute to another new goal for Porsche to be carbon neutral by 2030. Porsche representatives said e-fuels are climate-neutral. They said they could behave like gasoline and enable owners of current and classic vehicles to drive more environmentally friendly.

“Porsche is aiming for a climate-neutral balance in the entire value chain by 2030,” said Blume. “We are the first major automobile manufacturer and want to be a role model for the automobile industry in order to achieve this goal.”

For perspective, General Motors recently said it plans to be all electric vehicles by 2035 to be carbon neutral by 2040, while smaller automakers like Volvo plan to be carbon neutral by 2040, including supplying electric vehicles by the end of 2040 this decade.

Profitable electric vehicles

Porsche CFO Lutz Meschke said in a separate media call that the automaker’s transition to electric vehicles will be profitable. This is a change from EVs in the past few years from other automakers, most of which have been sold at a loss to meet regulations.

Meschke said the Taycan is currently profitable and on a “very good path” to achieve double-digit margins. Porsche has set itself the goal of improving its operating profit by a cumulative 10 billion euros by 2025 and then by 3 billion euros per year.

“We have to earn the same money with EV products as we do with our combustion engine models. That is a must,” said Meschke. “Otherwise we will not be able to achieve the same level of profitability as in the past. That is our goal.”

Despite the coronavirus pandemic, Porsche set a new sales record last year of 28.7 billion euros, exceeding the previous year’s figure by more than 100 million euros. At 4.2 billion euros, operating profit was slightly below the previous year’s figure.

Porsche’s EV goals are the same as those of parent company Volkswagen. The German automaker announced efforts earlier this week to significantly increase mass adoption of electric vehicles, including building six battery cell factories in Europe by 2030. The company, which also includes brands like Audi and Volkswagen, is slated to be climate neutral by 2050.

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GM unveils all-electric Chevy Bolt EUV and redesigned, less-expensive Bolt EV

GM unveils all-electric Chevy Bolt EUV and redesigned, less-expensive Bolt EV

2022 BOLTS EUV

Source: Chevrolet

General Motors is taking another step towards its zero-emission future.

The Detroit-based company presented a new, fully electric Chevy Bolt Electric Utility Vehicle (EUV) on Sunday evening in addition to its redesigned Chevy Bolt Electric Vehicle. The new Chevy Bolt EUV is designed to bring out the best of the Chevy Bolt, which was first launched in 2017, but in a larger and longer SUV-like ratio, according to GM executives.

The vehicles are the first from Chevrolet to be equipped with GM’s Super Cruise semi-autonomous motorway driving system, which uses facial recognition to determine if the driver is paying attention so they don’t have to touch the steering wheel while the system is in operation.

Super Cruise is restricted to more than 200,000 miles of restricted-access freeways in the US and Canada that have been fitted with a lidar card to support the onboard system of cameras, radars and sensors.

The new 2022 Bolt commercial vehicle, which starts at $ 33,995, is about 6 inches longer than the Bolt EV and has a “modern, muscular design, roomier interior, and plenty of rear legroom.” The vehicle has a “distinctive front end with a shaped grille”, standard LED headlights and an upscale interior, according to GM managers.

2022 BOLTS EUV

Source: Chevrolet

The revamped 2022 Bolt EV, which starts at $ 31,995, includes a number of new design updates. GM cut the starting price for the new Bolt EV by more than $ 5,000 from the 2021 model, which starts at under $ 37,000, as the cost of battery technology dropped.

The hatchback features a more upright bumper cover or fascia and updated interior seats that are “more comfortable with a triangular geometric pattern and contrasting stitching that offer a more upscale appearance,” said Jesse Ortega, chief engineer of the new Bolt EV and EUV on a media call with reporters.

Both new vehicles have an infotainment color touchscreen with a diagonal of 10.2 inches and an integrated climate control “for clean, intuitive user interfaces”.

The Bolt EV has a range of 259 miles when fully charged, while the Bolt EUV reaches 250 miles. Using the myChevrolet Mobile App, drivers can view their current charging status, adjust their charging settings and set up notifications.

“As of 2017, we’ve sold more than 100,000 Bolt EVs worldwide and our owners have accumulated more than 1.2 billion miles of EV trips,” said Steven Majoros, Chevy vice president of marketing, to the reporter. “Bolt EV helped make Chevrolet the best-selling EV brand, and current Bolt EV sales increased 26% in 2020.”

The new and refurbished vehicles are part of the company’s plan to bring 30 new electric vehicles to market worldwide by 2025. The updated Bolt EV was due to hit the market last year, but GM delayed the vehicle due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We’d like to fit all of them into an electric vehicle, and the new Bolt EUV and redesigned Bolt EV are critical to that,” GM President Mark Reuss said in a statement. Industry analysts have been expecting the Bolt EUV to expand the company’s EV platform for years.

Both vehicles are powered and powered by GM’s Battery Electric Vehicle 2 platform, which was first launched in December 2016 with the Bolt EV. Since then, the company has only sold about 79,000 vehicles.

Later this year, the company’s next generation EV platform with a new battery system called the Ultium is expected to launch with the 2022 GMC Hummer EV Sport Utility Truck (SUT). Initial availability of the Hummer EV this fall starts at $ 112,595.

The Bolt EV and EUV are set to help GM reassure EV buyers, while the company expands its Ultium platform to lower the cost of next-generation EVs. Ortega told reporters it was “not intended” to move the Bolt EV to the Ultium platform.

The vehicles are part of GM’s plan to bring 30 new electric vehicles to market worldwide as part of a $ 27 billion investment in electric and autonomous vehicles from 2020 to 2025.