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Public Transportation Gets Greener, Quieter In Geneva, Switzerland

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Public Transportation is a great way to reduce pollution and traffic by reducing the number of cars on the road.  Hybrid buses reduce emissions even further.  While it is possible to find electric powered public transportation, most systems require cables, or tracks of some kind which require infrastructure, maintenance, and higher up-front costs.  Engineers in Geneva, Switzerland think they have solved those issues with a new pilot program called Trolleybus Optimisation Système Alimentation, or TOSA.

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Android Auto

Google Counters Apple’s CarPlay With Android Auto

Android Auto
Android Auto (courtesy Google)

Google announced a number of Android initiatives based on its upcoming Android L at their I/O 2014 Developer Conference yesterday. One of the more interesting features was the announcement of Android Auto. While Google announced the Open Automotive Alliance a few months ago, Android Auto gives us a better look at what exactly the OAA will eventually be bringing to the automotive market.

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Tesla Model X Could Be In Customers Hands Early 2015

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courtesy www.samochodyelektryczne.org

CNN Money is reporting that Tesla has sent out emails to customers stating that the handsome Model X Crossover should be ready for delivery by early 2015. The prototypes should be out by end of this year with customers seeing their orders by early 2015. Those very beautiful Falcon-Wing doors will be a standard feature on the Model X as well as all-wheel drive. But Tesla did say third row seating would be an option, leaving some customers a little upset over that.

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Breaking News: Tesla Motors Opens Their Patents For All

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Real-Life Tony Stark, err, Elon Musk penned a blog post today titled “All Our Patent Are Belong To You”  outlining Tesla Motor’s decision to open their patent portfolio to any automakers looking to create zero-emission vehicles.  This is a huge revelation and potentially amazing news for the future of Electric Vechicles in the United States.  Keep reading for more info.

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Google Shows Off Its Prototype Self-Driving Car

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In a blog post yesterday, Google showed off it’s prototype self-driving car with no steering wheel or gas and brake pedals. While the design is comical and cutesy it’s the technology underneath that which makes this a very cool project and should be on every tech nuts radar.

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Tesla Model X – Amazing, Yet Problematic Design

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We here at Techaeris are very enthusiastic about Tesla Motors, and the exciting things they are doing to further the expansion of electric cars.  The Tesla Model S is right up at the top of our most-desired cars list – if you’re reading, we’d still love to review one, Tesla =) – and the design of the Tesla Model X is simply stunning.  Unfortunately, it seems that Tesla is having a few issues with the Model X’s most prominent feature – the rear “Falcon Wing” doors.

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The Rimac Electric Supercar Could Finally Get Its First Investors

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photo courtesy carscoops.com
Can you imagine an electric supercar with a zero to 62mph time of 2.8 seconds and a top speed of 190mph? That’s what Rimac Automobili is building and hopes to have investors for. This sleek looking supercar is one of the most beautiful cars I’ve ever laid virtual eyes on. The low stance and broad shoulders give it an aggressive posture making it look like a wing gliding just over the ground. Rimac might finally see itself being produced with the help of investors in Hong Kong and Colombia. Rimac is based out of Croatia. 

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Land Rover Discovery Concept Is All Kinds Of Awesome

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photo credit nydailynews.com

Land Rover has always made some really awesome SUV’s from design to functionality. So it’s no surprise that their latest concept SUV, the Discovery, is beauty wrapped in steel. The first noteworthy feature is the absence of door handles on the Discovery. As a lover of minimal design and clean lines, I find door handles break up the symmetry of the body and generally are gaudy. There have been great attempts at integrating door handles into design and keeping the lines clean and crisp, the Acura NSX comes to mind. But Land Rover takes it a step further and completly does away with door handles, opting instead for a gesture controlled interface. Check out the video after the break.

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Hackers Figure A Way To Hack Tesla’s Car Locks

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credit www.autoblog.com

Corporate security consultant Nitesh Dhanjani appeared at the Black Hat Asia security conference to report that Tesla’s cars can indeed by hacked. The vehicles can be located and unlocked by cracking a six character password using already known hacking techniques. According to The Hacker News, Dhanjani says there are no major vulnerabilities in the cars major core systems but rather the problem lies somewhere else.

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Titanium Underbody Shield and Aluminum Deflector Plates Added To Tesla Model S

photo credit www.motortrend.com
photo credit www.motortrend.com

Elon Musk and Tesla Motors have announced new safety additions to its Tesla Model S electric vehicle. New titanium underbody shields and aluminium deflector plates are now being installed on all Model S vehicles manufactured since March 6th 2014. If you recall, the Tesla Model S was in the news a couple of times due to battery fires which drew a lot of media attention. Elon Musk was quick to point out that his two Tesla incidents received more press than the 200,000 gasoline incidents in the US that same year.

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Tesla Model E Shows Up In Render

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photo courtesy www.autoevolution.com

It’s been an interesting journey for Elon Musk’s Tesla Motors. The company released their first electric car, the Tesla Roadster, which was based off of a Lotus vehicle. Then a few years later they released their original design the Tesla Model S. Then there have been those instances of Tesla S car fires sprouting up here and there. 

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BMW’s New i8 Packs Sleek Design And Function

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One of the coolest looking cars we saw at The Chicago Auto Show was the BMW i8 Concept, check out the full press release below along with video and pictures.

  1. Sometimes it is time to leave the city. Escape the restrictions of everyday life. The BMW i8 is an icon of progress. It combines the energizing performance of a sports car with benchmark efficiency.BMW i8 Concept – emotional, dynamic and efficient.The concept car BMW Vision EfficientDynamics created excitement and very positive feedback at the IAA 2009. The BMW Vision EfficientDynamics made it clear that an emotional sports car with the fuel economy of a small car is no contradiction and could soon be reality. After successful initial testing of the vehicle concept, the decision for a series-production vehicle was quickly made.

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Ford C-Max Solar Energi Concept – Chicago Auto Show 2014

During Media Day at the 2014 Chicago Auto Show, I had an opportunity to speak with David McCreadie of Ford regarding their C-Max Solar Energi concept vehicle.  Mr. McCreadie is part of Ford’s Hybrid and Electric Vehicles group, and he advised that this concept has been in development for the last year in cooperation with the Georgia Institute of Technology.  The current C-Max Solar Energi concept is a 100% production model C-Max Plug-In Hybrid with the solar array and other controls added.  Keep reading for more information on this concept.

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Honda FCEV (Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle) Concept Car At The Chicago Auto Show

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There were several uniquely designed vehicles at The Chicago Auto Show one of which was the Honda FCEV (Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle). I fell in love with the sleek front end and the sweeping sides, although I have to say it will take me a bit to get used to the rear end. Check out the pics and video after the break of this concept electric from Honda.

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The Toyota FT-1 Concept Car At The Chicago Auto Show

There was a lot to see at the Chicago Auto Show, and this will probably be the first of a few articles and pics we bring you. But we wanted to start it off with a bang and boy did the Toyota FT-1 Concept car blow our socks off! What an amazing looking vehicle, we had no hands on time with it as it was perched on high away from prying media fingers. So we got the next best thing. Pictures and some info from the Toyota site, have a read through the press release and check out the photos throughout and the video after the break!

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