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Tag: Electric automotive

Holcim Orders 1000 Volvo FH Electric Trucks

Posted on by dishanth
Holcim Orders 1000 Volvo FH Electric Trucks

ZURICH – In a monumental move towards sustainable logistics, Holcim Group, one of the world’s largest cement manufacturers, has placed a groundbreaking order for 1000 Volvo FH electric trucks. This landmark deal marks the largest sale of electric 18-wheelers to date, signaling a significant shift towards decarbonized mass haulage on European roadways. The move is a strategic step in Holcim’s commitment to achieving net-zero emissions in cement logistics by 2050, according to Holcim CEO Jan Jenisch.

Driving Towards Net Zero in Cement Logistics

Holcim’s ambitious order of 1,000 Volvo FH electric trucks is a pivotal component of its broader strategy to slash Scope 3 transport carbon emissions and advance its 2050 net-zero roadmap. With the building materials industry grappling with substantial fleet pollution responsible for over a quarter of global value chain emissions, embracing e-mobility emerges as a viable solution to mitigate the outsized climate impact of freight transport.

The Volvo FH electric truck is a groundbreaking heavy-duty truck. Holcim’s colossal order now propels the commercialization of electric semi-trailers in Europe to new heights. As charging infrastructure continues to improve, major logistics players like Holcim are making strategic moves to convert their diesel fleets to electric, targeting reduced emissions and lower maintenance costs than traditional combustion vehicles.

Holcim’s substantial tender is expected to play a crucial role in accelerating the adoption of electric freight in Europe, with the potential for a quicker return on investment being an attractive proposition for other manufacturers to expedite their exploration of electric fleets.

Vehicle Automation on the Horizon

Holcim not only envisions a shift towards electric vehicles but also expects vehicle automation to play a significant role in the transition. Research and development pilots for vehicle automation are already underway in Germany, leveraging the latest Volvo FH electric truck models as a foundational platform for autonomous hardware. Holcim aims to integrate automation into its vision for decarbonized haulage, creating a seamlessly optimized material delivery system down to the turning wheels at each plant.

Germany is also developing an innovative catenary power system for electric transport trucks that will reduce fossil fuel usage and carbon emissions from the freight industry. The concept involves building overhead power lines along motorways that will connect to compatible vehicles like the Volvo FH electric truck while driving. Sensors and software in the trucks detect the cables above and automatically raise current collectors, allowing the electric motor, battery pack, and braking system to be powered by the overhead electric catenary.

This allows the trucks’ battery capacity to be smaller and lighter since they don’t need to store energy for the entire route. Instead, the catenaries continuously charge the batteries like electric trains and public transit trams, granting the trucks unlimited driving range while under the cables. Germany’s priority freight corridors between industrial hubs will be electrified first. The country allocated $73 million towards installing overhead cables on the autobahn in 2023. If the network expands as envisioned, trucking companies can utilize cleaner electric hybrid trucks for most routes without stopping and charging for long periods.

The numbers associated with this order of Volvo FH electric trucks are substantial and represent a significant leap toward sustainable practices in the building materials industry. Holcim’s strategic investment in electric semi-trucks underscores its commitment to sustainable practices and sets a precedent for the broader industry to embrace innovative solutions for a greener future.

 

 

 

 

Source   Happy Eco News

The ShAPE Aluminum Recycling Method Could Change The Industry Forever

Posted on by dishanth
The ShAPE Aluminum Recycling Method Could Change The Industry Forever

Our Lives are Built with Aluminum

Aluminum is one of the most widely used industrial materials available today. It exists in our cars, our boats and ships, and in the buildings we live in.

In the EV industry, the importance of aluminum cannot be overstated, given that it is required to create the casing of the batteries that power the vehicle. The benefits of aluminum come down to its strength and its weight.

However, mining the raw materials that go into aluminum harms our environment. Bauxite is a mineral used in the creation of aluminum, and the mines that pull the ore out of the ground are responsible for acres of deforestation, water pollution via the Bayer process, air pollution due to the temperatures required to forge it, and other environmental impacts.

The aluminum manufacturing industry has been taking steps to reduce its reliance on new aluminum, though current technology still requires a sizeable amount of new aluminum to recycle scrap aluminum.

However, a new technology has been created that could eliminate that need entirely. This is how the ShAPE aluminum recycling process could change how we procure aluminum.

What is it, and How Does it Work?

The Shape aluminum recycling (Shear Assisted Processing Extrusion) process is an innovative new method of recycling aluminum created by the United States Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Washington.

This process was created primarily for the automotive industry so as to reduce the reliance on freshly created aluminum and cut the environmental impacts of creating EVs. The process was also created in collaboration with Magna, a leading mobile technology company.

This process could reduce 50% of the embodied energy and 90% of the carbon dioxide emissions output by reducing the amount of aluminum required by mining. The ShAPE aluminum recycling process is unique because it doesn’t require any pre-heating step to remove impurities in the scrap aluminum.

It works by rotating the aluminum on a die in the ShAPE aluminum recycling machine while being pushed through a small opening. Combining rotation and deformation ensures that the metal elements are distributed evenly, eliminating the need for a pre-heating process.

In testing to ensure that the aluminum produced by ShAPE aluminum recycling is as strong as they think, they used electron microscopy and electron backscatter diffraction to create an image of the placement and microstructure of the metal particle within the finished product.

They did this test using aluminum 6063, also known as architectural aluminum. They found that this aluminum product was uniformly strong and lacked manufacturing defects that would otherwise cause the aluminum to fail in its application.

They also found no impurities in the metal, which is important due to the fact that the metal they used was entirely recycled, and raw scrap metal is full of impurities.

While incredibly promising, EV technology currently relies on industries and industrial methods that are incredibly damaging to the environment. The EV industry is working hard to eliminate this contradiction of being eco-friendly yet requiring damage to the environment to be created.

With the ShAPE aluminum recycling method, there could be significant changes to multiple industries, not only the automotive industry. A lead researcher on the project, Scott Whalen, said, “We are now working on including post-consumer waste streams, which could create a whole new market for secondary aluminum scrap.”

While current methods are being used, the environmental damage cannot be understated. However, in the future, using this new method, things could change forever for the better.

 

 

 

 

Source Happy Eco News

EU Parliament confirms 2035 ban on new petrol and diesel cars

Posted on by dishanth
EU Parliament confirms 2035 ban on new petrol and diesel cars

The law, which requires that manufacturers achieve a 100% reduction in CO2 emissions from new cars sold in the EU by 2035, received 340 votes for, 279 against and 21 abstentions.

It sets an intermediate target of a 55% reduction in CO2 emissions for cars compared with 2021 levels and a 50% reduction for vans by 2030.

Low-volume manufacturers – those producing 1000 to 10,000 new cars or 1000 to 22,000 new vans per year – may be given an exemption from the rules until the end of 2035.

Those registering fewer than 1000 new vehicles annually will continue to be exempt thereafter.

By 2025, the European Commission will present methodology for assesssing and reporting the lifetime CO2 emissions of new cars and vans. Every subsequent two years, it will publish a report to evaluate the EU’s progress towards zero-emissions road mobility.

Then, by December 2026, it will monitor the gap between the legally determined emissions limits and real-world fuel and energy consumption data; and draw up methodology for adjusting manufacturers’ specific CO2 emissions.

Existing incentives for manufacturers selling more zero- and low-emissions vehicles (0-50g/km of CO2) will be adapted in line with sales trends, said the EU Parliament in a statement. These are expected to fall as uptake of battery-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles increases.

The legislation was agreed in October 2022 and will now be sent to the Council of the European Union for formal approval. This will take place in the coming weeks.

Jan Huitema, the EU Parliament’s lead negotiator for the law, said: “This regulation encourages the production of zero- and low-emission vehicles. It contains an ambitious revision of the targets for 2030 and a zero-emission target for 2035, which is crucial to reach climate-neutrality by 2050.

“These targets create clarity for the car industry and stimulate innovation and investments for car manufacturers.

“Purchasing and driving zero-emission cars will become cheaper for consumers and a second-hand market will emerge more quickly. It makes sustainable driving accessible to everyone.”

Numerous manufacturers have existing electrification targets that put them on pace to comply with the new legislation.

French brands Renault and Peugeot also aim to go all-electric in Europe by 2030, while Volkswagen aims to reduce its carbon emissions per vehicle by 40% compared with 2018 levels by 2030.

Premium makers have also made headway on electrification: 41% of Volvo’s 615,121 new car sales in 2022 were plug-in hybrid (23%) and electric (18%), while Mini’s best-selling model was the Mini Electric.

Other manufacturers, such as Dacia, have plotted a different course: the Renault-owned company plans to meet CO2 targets by building lightweight, fuel-efficient ICE cars, critical to maintaining the brand’s price advantage.

Nonetheless, its sole electric car, the Dacia Spring, was one of Europe’s best-selling EVs in 2022, beating the likes of the Cupra Born, Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Polestar 2.

 

 

 

 

Source Autocar

Tevva gets go-ahead for electric truck manufacturing in UK and mainland Europe

Posted on by dishanth
Tevva gets go-ahead for electric truck manufacturing in UK and mainland Europe

The company is today (11 January) celebrating the achievement of European Community Whole Vehicle Type Approval (ECWVTA) for its 7.5-tonne battery-electric truck. In doing so, regulators have deemed the model as compliant with relevant safety and environmental standards. This is a prerequisite to selling any new vehicle models within the European Union (EU).

Tevva states that this model has a range of up to 180 kilometres (110 miles) per charge and that it can charge to 90% of this maximum range within five hours using existing charging technologies. It is marketed as a solution for urban routes and last-mile deliveries for international routes. The model is manufactured at Tevva’s factory in Tilbury, Essex, with the brand eyeing new manufacturing locations elsewhere in Europe for the future.

The first Tevva 7.5T Electric Trucks were delivered to commercial customers in the second half of 2022. The first one off the assembly line was purchased by Kinaxia Logistics in September 2022, for use on a trial basis in the first instance.

With the confirmation of the ECWVTA, Tevva is anticipating sales of up to 1,000 electric trucks this year, predominantly to the UK market. Customers on the brand’s books include Travis Perkins, Expect Distribution and Royal Mail. Royal Mail is notably working towards a net-zero value chain by 2040, with plans to operate more than 5,500 electric vehicles (EVs) and increase charging infrastructure investment by spring this year.

Tevva’s founder and chief executive Asher Bennett has called the ECWVTA “the most important landmark [the company] has reached to date”. No other pure electric truck of this size has received the Approval yet.

 

 

The news will be welcome amid the ongoing uncertainty around EV battery manufacturing in the UK. Britishvolt this week wrote to existing investors confirming that it is in talks to sell a majority stake, in order to safeguard a sustainable financial future for the development of its Gigafactory in Blyth.

In the coming months, Tevva is set to deliver its first 7.5T hydrogen-electric trucks to customers, following the first public launch of the model at the Road Transport Expo in Warwickshire last summer. Combining a hydrogen fuel cell system with a battery-electric design extends the vehicle range; this model touts a range of up to 435km (270 miles). Tevva is then exploring heavier hydrogen trucks of 12 tonnes and 19 tonnes in the longer term.

Bennett said: “We are on a mission to make sustainable trucks accessible at scale and believe our technology will empower the transport sector and the governments of Europe to meet their net-zero goals. By embracing both hydrogen and electric fuel sources, we can rethink the energy mix in transport, reduce strain on our electricity grid and accelerate electric truck adoption.”

 

Trucks in the clean transition

The UK is set to end the sale of new diesel and petrol heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) weighing 3.5 tonnes to 26 tonnes from 2034. A later deadline of 2040 has been set for heavier models. These targets, set under the 2021 Transport Decarbonisation Plan, are in support of the UK’s legally binding 2050 net-zero climate goal.

EU lawmakers are currently being pushed by large fleet operators to set similar targets. More than 40 corporate members of the Climate Group’s EV100 coalition signed an open letter to EU lawmakers last month, asking for emissions targets for HGVs and a deadline on ending the sale of all new trucks which are not zero-emissions. Supporters of the letter included PepsiCo, Unilever and Henkel.

 

 

 

 

Source edie

Irizar’s ieTram EV to be installed along London bus route

Posted on by dishanth
Irizar’s ieTram EV to be installed along London bus route

The streets of the UK capital will soon be traversed by the bus of the future after Transport for London (TfL) announced the rollout of 20 new electric buses which are expected to be in place along the 358 route (Crystal Palace to Orpington) by 2023.

The vehicles – known as the ieTram – were purchased by Go Ahead, the city’s largest bus operator, from e-mobility manufacturer Irizar. As part of the deal, the Spanish company will also be installing the electric charging infrastructure.

 

 

The details of the new EV public transport technology

This technology uses an inverted pantograph system that connects to the roof of the bus. With this in place, the new vehicles will be capable of recharging in under ten minutes upon the completion of a route.

According to a release from Irizar: “The buses will be powered by state-of-the-art batteries… and will be charged between trips using two fast charging inverted pantograph systems to be installed at Crystal Palace and Orpington Bus Stations, allowing the buses to be charged in less than five minutes and enabling them to perform the required service effortlessly.”

Thus far, pantograph technology has only been installed on one other bus route in the city (the 132, from North Greenwich to Bexleyheath).

The speed at which it allows recharging is a marked improvement on what TfL’s fleet can typically do, as the vast majority of London’s 850 electric buses must charge overnight in a garage.

For Irizar, the 12-metre-long buses also mark the company’s first foray into right-hand-side driving.

London has been working hard to make its transportation networks more sustainable. As a part of its Bus Action Plan, this move marks the latest in TfL’s efforts to have a zero-emission bus fleet by 2034. There is a hope, too, that with additional funding, this target can be brought forward to 2030.

 

 

Source Sustainability

The bo e-scooter and docking station is a reinvention of a troubled e-thing

Posted on by dishanth
The bo e-scooter and docking station is a reinvention of a troubled e-thing

E-scooters are an interesting form of “e-thing,” our term for the devices that are popping up in our Cambrian explosion of micromobility options and devices. As one reader noted recently, “Long live the eThings! This is a wonderful period of exploration.” The Bo e-scooter is a very different beast than the shared e-scooters from Lime and Bird that people complain are begriming sidewalks around the world. Almost all of the problems with e-scooters start with rental e-scooters, where people may not know how to ride them properly and park them anywhere. Nobody who owns a Bo e-scooter is going to abandon it in the middle of the sidewalk—it costs $2,400.

The problems with regular e-scooters are legion: The wheels are small and hard. When I was riding one in Lisbon on their marble sidewalks, I thought my teeth would shake out. Since the rider is standing, the center of gravity is high and this makes them unstable. They are great fun and useful transportation, but it certainly seemed to me that they could be a lot better, and probably a lot safer.

 

 

The Bo appears to address many of these problems. According to Bo CEO Oscar Morgan, “We spent 3 years developing the Bo M for everyone who can see the potential of the e-scooter, but who finds today’s scooters too unsafe, impractical for daily use, or simply not well designed.” It has what they call Safesteer, described as “a one-of-a-kind dynamic steering stabilization feature to increase rider safety and enjoyment.” Unusually for an e-scooter, it doesn’t fold.

“Aware that to some it is controversial, we made a conscious decision to eliminate the fold, launching Bo M with an unbroken Monocurve chassis,” said Bo CTO Harry Wills. “Bo M is designed for commuters traveling home to work who value exceptional ride, safety, and reliability above all else. Creating this new category, between a traditional e-scooter and an e-bike, our research discovered that the majority of people seldom or never use the fold. It represented a point of weakness, so that directed us to this final design.”

The Bo has 10-inch pneumatic tires and a special shock-absorbing deck so that it is not teeth-rattling. It has a 31-mile range, a 500-watt motor, regenerative braking, and a top speed of 24 miles per hour, depending on regulation. And of course, there are anti-theft systems and GPS tracking.

One of the big benefits of e-scooters is they are light and fold up, so you can take them wherever you go. The Bo does not fold and it weighs 40 pounds, which makes it a different kind of e-thing. So the company has also designed a different kind of storage. It’s a docking station with a monolithic, vertically integrated solar PV panel that charges an internal 2-kilowatt-hour battery in the day and charges the Bo M at night.

Morgan commented in a statement: “An essential feature of the Bo team is that we are scooter users, as well as designers and engineers. When we compared car ownership to life with the Bo M, security and ease of charging stood out as areas of opportunity to build a great rider experience. Bo M is highly efficient, with energy consumption as low as 15Wh per mile. This opened up the potential for a compact, stand-alone charge and security solution which could deliver meaningful range.”

My first reaction was that this is silly. If you have an e-thing that only consumes 15-watt-hours per mile and “can consume less energy in a week of commuting than a single hot shower,” then why bother? I really don’t think it makes much sense to park a scooter out in the rain on an expensive docking station when it is in front of a house with a big garage where you could plug it into a small charger.

 

 

However, the docking station doesn’t need an electric outlet so it can be put anywhere. One can imagine many places where this might be useful, including commuter train stations and office buildings that now have vast concrete parking garages. Cities and employers would be better off just giving people these instead of building those lots.

Perhaps the more important feature is the security technology, which is impressive. A secure place to park is one of the three pillars of the e-revolution. The security system is based on its own three pillars: mechanical, e-secure, and service-secure:

Mechanical-secure: Inaccessible, high-tensile steel pins deploy through the Bo M, fixing it securely to the base plate of the Bo E.
E-secure: Tamper sensors trigger high decibel audio alarm, camera filming, and live playback along with 4G notification to your smartphone. This is all synced with Bo M’s onboard alarm, GPS tracking, and audio alarms.
Service Secure: Bo is building the specification for an insurance product that reflects the increased safety of the vehicle when secured with Bo E.
E-scooters are an interesting niche. It is clear we have to separate the issues that come with shared scooters compared to privately owned units. A Swiss study found that shared e-scooters do not replace cars, but trips taken by foot, bike, or public transport. It also found that privately owned scooters last much longer and have a much lower carbon footprint. The Bo E is a very different e-thing.

We have noted before that e-bikes and e-scooters are climate action, and welcome the Bo to the party.

 

 

Source Treehugger 

ECD Automotive goes the extra mile building fully-custom electric Land Rover Defenders

Posted on by dishanth
ECD Automotive goes the extra mile building fully-custom electric Land Rover Defenders

The world of aftermarket tuning has never failed to amaze us. Tuners have been building cars that range from being capable of running 7-seconds in street-trim, to perfect classic restorations as reliable as your new Camry. While we all love the rumble, fire-spitting, E85 smell of tuned internal combustion engines, we can’t deny that the last decade has seen an impressive rise in electric engines, both from the OEM and aftermarket sides.

An Innovator like Bisi Ezerioha of Bisimoto made his name off of building and racing Hondas. Now he’s putting all his expertise into mind-blowing electric vehicles. The revolution is diverse, however, and while Bisi comes from a car-tuning background, companies such as E.C.D. Automotive Design is approaching their business from an enthusiast perspective.

E.C.D went from having a passion for classic Land Rovers, to building a Tesla-powered Defender with no bolt left unturned. Best of all, customers can now build their very own, fully-custom Land Rover Defender through E.C.D. Automotive Design. We talked to E.C.D.’s Co-Founder, Elliot Humble, to find out how this works and the level of quality and parts on these vehicles.

 

How E.C.D. Automotive Design Started

 

 

Elliot and Tom Humble, brothers from England 40-miles away from the Lode Lane Factory that produced the Land Rover Defender, founded E.C.D Automotive Design. The brothers met Scott Wallace, another automotive enthusiast that would soon become the third partner in the company.

“We founded E.C.D. as car-enthusiasts first,” said Elliot Humble, E.C.D. Automotive Design Co-Founder. “My brother, Tom, and a friend named Scott Wallace were both in Florida for other reasons, and one night over a pack of beer they daydreamed up E.C.D. The next day, Tom quit his job and started building out E.C.D.’s business plan. I left school to join them on this venture.”

In 2013, the three musketeers opened their very first workshop/showroom, working 18-hour days, tearing down Land Rovers, and rebuilding them to their few clients’ wishes. At some point, E.C.D. realized that outsourcing some of the work locally wasn’t ideal, and they had to make a decision. After a small talk, they determined that E.C.D. will have to go all out with a mission to build the highest-quality custom-builds – all in-house.

“The main thing was finding and working with the correct partners to evolve the electric integration to our classic cars. We found that in Electric Classic Cars (ECC).”

The decision led to a complete expansion, with a 30,000 square-foot facility. The facility allows them to do everything in-house, from paint and bodywork, to the final touches and delivery of the projects. This finally gave E.C.D. Automotive Design what they were looking for: complete control. In 2017, the company announced their newest addition, the new Malibu Design Studio in California. This expansion inspired Elliot to look back in remembrance of how it all started.

 

 

“Before E.C.D., I was a student over in England. I didn’t have any previous experience working on trucks like we do now, but I knew I loved them,” said Elliot. “Nowadays, I’m our operations manager, where I do everything from increasing our productivity on-site at the Rover Dome to figuring out how we’re going to make our clients’ wildest dreams come to life.” With the clients’ wildest dreams reaching very high, the evolution of these builds went from custom restorations with LS1 engines, to going full electric with Project Britton.

 

The Land Rover Defender’s Enthusiast Attraction

 

 

Before Land Rover turned into a luxury icon that every celebrity has to have, it was known to be an agriculture four-wheel drive SUV. Land Rover first came on the scene in 1948. With inspiration from the Jeep Willys, the Series I came with a steel frame under an aluminum body. The Land Rover continued building its reputation, but it wasn’t until 1990 that the name “Defender” was born. The Defender stayed on the scene until 2016 when it ceased production, making it a legendary milestone in Land Rover’s history.

Today, enthusiasts from around the world seek this platform for complete restorations. With E.C.D. being the largest and leading authority in custom restorations of these Defenders and classic Land Rovers, they had to push the envelope. Enter Project Britton, the Tesla-powered electric Defender 110. Better yet, customers can now customize and build their very own electric Defenders.

“No, we did not have any formal connection with Land Rovers. My brother, Tom Humble and I grew up near the Jaguar Land Rover plant and have always loved Land Rovers, though,” said Elliot.

 

E.C.D.’s Tesla-Powered Land Rover Defender

 

 

E.C.D. had to restore Project Britton from the ground up. Everything from upholstery to miles of wiring had to be gone through in order to produce this electric Defender. The Tesla-motor allows the Defender to deliver 450 horsepower, which bolts the vintage SUV to 60 mph from a stop in just five seconds courtesy of the 100-kWh battery pack. In addition to the impressive torque, the Tesla-powered Land Rover Defender has over 220 miles of range on tap, with five hours of charge needed to get there.

“At the end of the day, we’re doing this with deep love of older Defenders and a passion to keep them on the road by modifying them to fit into our client’s lives,” E.C.D. Co-Founder Elliot Humble said. “Whether it takes figuring out how to engineer an electric engine into a restored Defender or color-matching the paint to match a favorite shirt, our world-class team can breathe life to our clients’ wildest dreams.”

 

Project Britton Build Specs

 

 

E.C.D. Automotive Design were able to take a 107-horsepower gas guzzler, and turn it into a masterpiece that delivers well over four-times its original power, all with an electric motor. With the tremendous increase in power, the original parts are no longer able to withstand the abuse.

The first parts to go when you send instant torque to the wheels are the axles. The company’s standard procedure is to test each project for 750-miles. This allowed them to find the right upgrades for the axles. The whole car features E.C.D.’s Air Ride suspension, and equipped with high-performance Brembo brakes.

To maintain its off-roading capabilities, a set of BF Goodrich Rugged Trail T/A tires sit on all four-corners, wrapped around 18-inch Hawke Osprey Design silver wheels. This not only gives the Defender an aggressive look, it also gives it the capabilities to go with it.

 

The Defender’s Interior And Exterior Upgrades

 

 

Enhancing the looks of the Defender is no easy feat. After all, its iconic looks stood the test of time. This meant that the taste in design was critical. E.C.D. painted the exterior in Cool Khaki Grey with an Alpine White roof, along with some silver accents to go with the wheels. The team also paid special attention to bold accents around the shell, like the heritage-style grille, swing-away wheel carrier, sidesteps with the SVX silver inserts, and the front-runner roof rack and ladder.

On the inside, the Recaro Expert S seats wrapped in sand beige Porsche Nappa leather provide comfort and support to the driver and passenger. Aside from their great looks, the Recaro seats are both heated and ventilated. While the gauges are all electric, the steering wheel bridges the gap back to classic with its Evander Wood finish. The wood finish continues, this time in a teak wood finish, on the flooring of the rear cargo, with a matching teak wood storage bench that not only gives it an incredible look, but also offers plenty of storage.

 

 

Technology is far ahead of its original age, with an Alpine Floating Halo infotainment system. The system comes with Bluetooth capabilities and WiFi, as well as three charging pads for your phone. Project Britton also features remote start, blind spot monitor, backup sensors, as well as front and rear cameras. Since E.C.D. isn’t new to electric conversions, they were able to go through all the hoops to make this build 50-state legal – a complete game-changer that justifies its high-cost.

 

The Process Each Land Rover Build Goes Through

 

 

With projects like this giving customers complete freedom over their build, the team at E.C.D. has to ensure quality is top-notch throughout the challenges that arise. “Each build is a one-of-one vehicle,” said Elliot. “Each client goes through our detailed design process and is able to choose everything, from the type of stitching to the exterior trim color. When they bring the car onto the line, it follows our streamlined process. The build goes through 20 stations, spending 5 days at each station.”

In spite of the 20 stations taking 100 days to build, the company has been producing 60 cars per year and in the process of scaling up to 100 cars per year. “From start to finish, the build receives 2,200 hours of labor, and it takes customers 14 months to receive their vehicle,” said Elliot.

 

E.C.D. Electric Defender Cost

 

 

The question is, how much would it cost you to build an electric Defender with E.C.D.? Since each build is completely different from the one before, it’s nearly impossible to put a precise price-tag on your dream build. However, the company estimates that your very own Land Rover Defender will be in the range of $200,000 to $300,000.

The number seems extremely high, but when you look at the specs of the vehicle, the amount of engineering that goes into it, the level of customization you have, and the quality of the end-product; it all makes sense. Given that many new SUVs are knocking on the mid-$100,000 door, it’s clearly much cooler to pay the extra money and daily-drive a vintage Defender.

“We restore Land Rovers because we love them. Our passion for these British cars is what got us here in the first place. As long as people love the trucks as much as we do, we’ll continue restoring them. Soon, we plan to branch out from old Land Rover Defenders and Range Rovers to take on electric conversions for classic Jaguars,” Elliot passionately explains.

Just when you think E.C.D. has reached a level where they aren’t looking for improvement, Elliot tells us: “There is always room for improvements and our three quality control departments add those amends as the truck moves through our industry leading digital QC process.” We are excited to start seeing these vintage Land Rovers on the streets and seeing the evolution of the company and how far Tom, Elliot, and Scott can take it.

“Our success comes from being outsiders in the industry. We live by our motto, ‘To evolve not to exist,’ and we are constantly looking for ways to improve the business. Since none of us had worked in the automotive industry in this capacity, we’re able to see things from a different perspective and offer innovative services to our clients,” he concluded. Elliot promised that this year will see some more exciting projects that support their motto and philosophy, and HotCars will be right there to cover it.

 

 

Source Hot Cars