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#391 A Big Wallet And A Smile

21 Jan , 2021 Video

00:00 Intro 02:45 Amazon Eyeing Rural Postal Service 13:15 Virgin Hyperloop Completes First Test 24:50 Meet the Tata Nexon EV 32:00 This Week in Tesla 38:00 Xcel Utility Increases EV Spend (and bills consumers for the tab) 44:55 Quebec to Ban New ICE Cars in 2035 50:15 Shout Outs and Go Home

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Car, EV, first, LE, rv, Tesla

What Drives Us episode

WDU Special: “Happy 20th Birthday, Prius”

10 Oct , 2020 Video

We spent almost two hours talking about the history and impact of Prius on the world. Current and former members of the Prius Team from Toyota join us for the first hour. It’s a great look back at one of the biggest impacts in cleaner vehicles. We’re all current and previous Prius owners and Prius enthusiasts. But when asking about previous decisions and future plans, that doesn’t mean we went easy on them.

Supercar article referenced by Tony: https://whatdrives.us/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/SuperCar.pdf

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2020, Car, EV, first, future, LE, Prius, Toyota, Vehicles

What Drives Us episode

Transport Treehouse #2

10 Aug , 2020 Video

Infrastructure Week, part 1: Kitty Adams

Our first guest for Infrastructure week is Kitty Adams, She is the Executive Director and Founder of AdoptACharger.org. Ms. Adams has facilitated the installation of hundreds of EV chargers in 10 states, and has participated in a number of CEC and CARB workshops regarding alternative fuel vehicles and EV charging infrastructure. She was successfully awarded CEC grant funding to install EV charging at the California State Parks, and most recently a GFO as part of a team to design a micro grid in a disadvantaged community. She has presented at the Electric Power Research Institute Symposium, and has consulted on EV charging projects and policies nationwide.

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California, Car, CARB, Charging, electric, EV, first, funding, LE, van, Vehicles

What Drives Us episode

#373 Body Bags are Extra

2 Jul , 2020 Video

American Airlines has started filling their planes to capacity during a pandemic.
Toyota is severely limiting the supply of the RAV4 Prime for some reason.
California is mandating that all commercial trucks be fully-electric by 2045.
2-sided solar panels that track the sun can increase energy production up to 30%.
Minnesota is suing ExxonMobile and Koch Brothers for damages caused by their disregard of their own research.
All Americans need to support the “Moving Forward” act.
Hyundai has introduced an all-electric shuttle bus.
Oslo is testing inductive charging for taxis.
Electrify American has completed their first cross-country charging network.

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bus, California, Charging, commercial, electric, EV, first, Hyundai, LE, prime, RAV4, solar, tax, Toyota, truck

What Drives Us episode

#368 Let’s Return to Better

30 May , 2020 Video

Russell spent some time with a Tesla Model Y and a Toyota Highlander Hybrid. Both reviews are available in our “Car Reviews” playlist. Make sure to check out “The Tesla Life” to get Russell’s full Model Y review.
Toyota recently introduced the PROACE van, offering a warranty of 15 years or 1,000,000 miles, whichever comes first. After that time, they promise the battery will still have 75% or more capacity remaining.
People will only return to riding the bus when they feel safe doing so. We spend some time discussing how buslines can maintain ridership by helping people feel safe.
BloombergNEF predicts that by 2040 new car sales will favor EVs over ICEs. Interesting side topic, they also predict that ICE vehicles peaked in 2017.
Volvo has taken the bold step of limiting the top speed of all new vehicles starting next year. This will be done in the name of safety, referencing the amount of vehicular fatalities attributed to high speeds.

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2017, battery, bus, Car, EV, first, hybrid, LE, Model Y, review, Tesla, Toyota, van, Vehicles, Volvo

What Drives Us episode

#364 The Exciting New Kia Labradoodle

1 May , 2020 Video

Mark celebrates his 3rd Voltiversary and tells us how reliable and amazingly efficient his 2017 Chevy Volt has been.
Chicago recently voted to implement more stringent regulations requiring new construction to be ready for EV charging.
With ridership down and reduced routes, how will the US mass transit system rebound once/if the pandemic is over?
Kia has surprised a lot of people with the unveiling of the HabaNiro, which they say will be due out by the end of 2021. This will be their first dedicated EV model.

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2017, Charging, Chevy, chevy volt, chicago, EV, first, Kia, LE, regulations, Volt

What Drives Us episode

#355 Solar Shakedown

26 Feb , 2020 Video

The guys get into a tussle over Tesla’s Gigafactory in Buffalo New York now that Panasonic has pulled out of the location. Will there ever be Solar glass?
After 40 years of trying to figure it out, scientists have finally figured out why solar panels experience a 2% efficiency drop within the first hour of operation.
Hyundai released images of a concept vehicle that is supposed to serve as inspiration for their upcoming EV vehicles.
Ford allows drivers to sign up for insurance and use their connected cars to track their driving habits. Spoiler: if you’re being paid, you’re the product.

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Car, concept, connected, Efficiency, EV, first, Ford, gigafactory, Hyundai, insurance, LE, LED, new york, oil, rv, solar, Tesla, Vehicles

audio only,Special Episode,Special Guest,What Drives Us episode

#340 Aptera CEO, Chris Anthony

10 Nov , 2019 Video

Chris Anthony of Aptera joins us for the full hour. Chris was part of Aptera generation 1, left the company, and is back to get generation 2 off the ground.

It’s not a stretch to say that even though we really want all EV manufacturers to succeed, we’ve been skeptical of Aptera. Chris is a real trooper to come on the show and answer our questions. He really knows his stuff and presents a strong case for seriously checking out Aptera. In the 10 years since the first iteration, there have been a lot of improvements and inventions that provide opportunities not previously available.

Listen for yourself and decide whether you would be interested in an Aptera.

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1000 mille ev, Aptera, aptera motors, ceo, chris anthony, EV, first, interview, LE, san diego

What Drives Us episode

#339 Inside the Tokyo Auto Show

2 Nov , 2019 Video

Jon B attended the Tokyo Auto Show and brought back photos and videos. A lot of interesting things going on.
Harbour Air (Vancouver, CA) plans to be the world’s first fully-electric airline.
According to Mary Barra, General Motors will spend more money in the next 5 years developing new EVs than in ICE development.
The Toronto Transit Commission has added 60(!) new electric buses.
Volkswagon is planning a massive switch from ICE vehicles to EVs that will see five plants around the world immediately change from ICE to EV manufacturing. Their goal is 1,000,000+ EVs per year in 2023.