batteries

There are already lithium-ion batteries in some Toyota vehicles (the Prius Plug-in Hybrid, the RAV4 EV and the European Prius+, for example), but the company's standard bearer – the non-plug Prius hybrid – still relies on nickel metal hydride (NiMH) cells. But, the future belongs to ...

Imagine recharging a Nissan Leaf from a standard 110-volt outlet in, say, oh, about a minute. Far-fetched, sure, but at least one research facility thinks it has a lead on making lithium-ion batteries that can recharge 1,000 times faster than current ones. Researchers at the University of ...

Electrovaya, the Canadian lithium-ion battery maker, is ready to go full speed ahead on battery production after cutting its output and improving its technology. The company, which is launching its SuperPolymer 2.0, specifically says the new battery is less prone to fire risk because of, among ...

Fisker Automotive is accusing battery maker and former vendor A123 Systems of funny math after the latter company filed documents of its debt levels with the US Bankruptcy Court, Reuters says. The California-based maker of the extended-range plug-in Karma says A123 owes it more than $212 ...

Toyota has never been a big fan of lithium ion batteries, and has a plan in place to replace them with solid-state batteries that are three-to-four times more powerful. Toyota will commercialize solid-state batteries around 2020 and lithium air batteries – which offer a fivefold increase ...

Add UK-based Frost & Sullivan as the latest research firm to forecast a big jump in lithium-ion battery sales, implying that a jump in plug-in vehicle sales is in the making. Frost & Sullivan says global li-on battery sales will jump sixfold to $12.84 billion in 2019, up from $2.13 ...

After offering to help Boeing with its lithium-ion battery problems, Elon Musk is somewhat raising the stakes. Musk, who heads both Tesla Motors and space exploration company SpaceX, has now called the batteries in the Boeing 787 "inherently unsafe" in an e-mail to trade publication ...

Bankrupt lithium-ion battery maker A123 Systems may have gained a new owner, but will lose a lot of money in the pending sale to China-based Wanxiang Group, Reuters reports, citing an unidentified US Energy Department official. Specifically, A123, which filed for bankruptcy in October, will ...

Fisker Automotive will postpone production of its Karma extended-range plug-in vehicle until the future of bankrupt battery maker A123 Systems is resolved, Bloomberg reports, citing an interview with the automaker's CEO. During an interview at this week's Los Angeles Auto Show, Tony Posawatz ...

If you've got an older car in your driveway, which experts say is getting to be more typical lately, what happens when the battery poops out? You'll be paying $100 to $200 to pick one up at a retail parts store. But what about hybrid electric vehicles? The Toyota Prius and Honda Insight have ...