Tag Archives: battery

The Biggest Risks Of Counterfeit Batteries (And How To Spot Them)

March 25, 2024 David

A counterfeit battery is unlikely to have undergone the identical standardized testing as unique gear producer (OEM) batteries, that means commonplace security measures will not be current. In the case of lithium-ion batteries, thermal runaway may end up in uncontrolled heating as much as excessive temperatures, inflicting electrolyte leakage, smoke, hearth, and probably damaging the machine and igniting bigger fires which will injure individuals too. Most correctly examined batteries from the best brands have controls that forestall the battery’s inner temperature from breaching this threshold and resulting in thermal runaway, however counterfeiters aren’t deeply involved about doing that a lot work earlier than producing them.

So, what do you look out for? As the FBI notes, it is best to keep away from third-party purchases of batteries and get them from approved sellers or distributors that check with nationally acknowledged testing laboratories. Many producers promote straight and/or will present an inventory of trusted distributors. Any battery that appears too low-cost, ships too quick, or makes out-of-the-ordinary endurance guarantees might be not the upstanding battery it claims to be. If the batteries are already in your fingers, you will wish to look out for poor packaging, misprinted or misspelled labels, and ensure the batteries have a “UL” in a circle image to adjust to certification necessities, not that these symbols cannot be faked. A couple of of the above precautions may help make sure that when your battery dies, your machine is not taken with it.

Featured

BMW iX xDrive50 Launched In India, Priced At Rs 1.4 Crore

March 23, 2024 Prafful Singh

The newly launched range-topping variant will get a bigger 111.5 kWh battery pack and a 635 km WLTP-claimed vary

The BMW iX will get a brand new range-topping ‘xDrive50’ variant.
It is priced at a premium of Rs 19 lakh over the entry-level xDrive40 variant.
Packs a bigger 111.5 kWh battery pack with a WLTP-certified vary of 635 km.
Gets a dual-motor setup, producing 523 PS and 765 Nm.
No options adjustments made to the iX save for inclusion of larger 22-inch alloy wheels.

The BMW iX has simply acquired a brand new top-spec variant referred to as the ‘xDrive50’, priced at Rs 1.4 crore (ex-showroom pan-India). It is priced at a premium of Rs 19 lakh over the already out there entry-level xDrive40 variant. The top-end xDrive50 will get a bigger battery pack and a extra highly effective motor, thereby enhancing the efficiency, in addition to the claimed vary.

Design and Features

The design of the brand new variant stays roughly the identical over the already current xDrive40 variant. However, the top-end xDrive50 will get the 22-inch alloy wheels as commonplace.

In phrases of options it will get a 12.3-inch digital driver show, a 14.9-inch data system, Harman Kardon Sound System with 18 audio system, wi-fi telephone charging, and a panoramic glass roof.

Also Read: BYD Seal Garners 500 Bookings Since Its Launch

Its security web contains a set of superior driver help techniques (ADAS) similar to adaptive cruise management, lane-keep help, and blind spot detection.

Performance

The BMW iX xDrive50 boasts a bigger 111.5 kWh battery pack which gives a WLTP-certified vary of 635 km. It is paired with two electrical motors, one every on the entrance and rear axles, making it an AWD system. It produces 523 PS and 765 Nm, which makes a 0-100 kmph run doable in simply 4.6 seconds.

Charging

The iX xDrive50 helps quick charging of as much as 195 kW.

Here is the charging time:

195 kW DC Charger – 10% – 80% in 35 min

50 kW DC Charger – 10% – 80% in 97 min

22 kW AC Charger – 100% in about 5.5 hrs

11 kW AC Charger – 100% in about 11 hrs

Also Read: Volkswagen ID.4 India Launch Timeline Revealed, Will Rival Hyundai Ioniq 5

The BMW iX xDrive50 goes up towards the Mercedes EQE SUV, Jaguar I-Pace, and Audi Q8 e-tron.

Audi Q6 e-tron Unveiled: All-new Electric SUV With Up To 625 Km Range, New Interior

March 20, 2024 Prafful Singh

The Audi Q6 e-tron is the EV based mostly on the shared platform with Porsche and contains a 94.9 kWh battery pack

The new Q8 e-tron, Audi’s latest electrical SUV, slots beneath the Q8 e-tron in its international EV lineup.
Makes international debut in two variants: Q6 e-tron quattro and SQ6 e-tron.
Gets an all-new cabin structure with curved built-in screens on the sprint and a devoted touchscreen for the entrance passenger.
Offered with a 94.9 kWh battery pack having a WLTP-claimed vary of as much as 625 km.
India launch attainable in 2025; costs for the totally loaded quattro model might begin from Rs 80 lakh (ex-showroom).

Audi has simply taken the wraps off an all-new electric offering and it’s known as the Audi Q6 e-tron. It is predicated on the Volkswagen Group’s new PPE (Premium Platform Electric) structure, and will likely be positioned beneath the Q8 e-tron within the luxurious marque’s lineup.

A Real Looker

The Q6 e-tron has an aggressive face due to the chunky grille and break up lighting setup with the LED DRLs positioned within the higher portion of the fascia. Customers also can personalise the headlight setup on their Q6 e-tron by opting from eight lighting signatures for the Matrix LED items.

From the edges, the Q6 e-tron has the acquainted silhouette of Audi SUVs and it has been supplied with a dapper set of alloy wheels. Moving to the rear, it will get linked OLED taillights having six OLED panels, that includes a complete of 360 segments to generate a brand new animation each 10 milliseconds. Audi has additionally made the rear lighting piece extra purposeful as it could actively talk with the automobiles following the Q6 e-tron. It will notify the automobile tailing the Audi EV a couple of sure site visitors situation or accidents forward by exhibiting key warning symbols.

The Q6 e-tron has been unveiled alongside its barely sportier sibling, the SQ6 e-tron, which will get blacked-out particulars and totally different alloy wheels.

As the primary Audi mannequin based mostly on the brand new PPE platform, right here’s how its dimensions evaluate to the model’s present flagship EV SUV:

Dimension	Audi Q6 e-tron	Audi Q8 e-tron



















Length	4771 mm	4915 mm



















Width	1993 mm	1976 mm



















Height	1648 mm	1632 mm



















Wheelbase	2899 mm	2928 mm

Although the Q6 e-tron is wider and taller than the Q8 e-tron, the latter has its benefit when it comes to total size and the longer wheelbase on provide. Thanks to the extra footprint, the Q8 e-tron additionally has additional legroom contained in the cabin.

All-new Audi Interior

As a brand new addition to the household, the Q6 e-tron brings with it the brand new design language for Audi interiors which will likely be seen on future fashions as effectively. You can discover that almost all of the dashboard is all-digital now, with curved dual-integrated screens for the motive force and central display screen. It nonetheless has three screens on provide – an 11.9-inch digital driver show, an enormous 14.5-inch infotainment unit and a ten.9-inch show for the co-passenger. There is not a touchscreen interface within the console completely for local weather controls, which have been moved as much as the central show solely. The co-passenger display screen has ‘Active Privacy Mode’, which helps in stopping distractions to the motive force.

The Q6 e-tron additionally will get an elective augmented reality-based heads-up show to indicate data akin to pace, site visitors indicators, and navigation symbols. Audi has additionally improved its voice assistant, which is called ‘Audi Assistant’ by integrating Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) to understand over 800 voice instructions. It learns constantly based mostly on person behaviour and thus offers help to the particular person driving.

There’s additionally a light-weight bar alongside the highest of the dashboard, spanning from the left entrance door to the suitable one. It has three features, beginning with a welcome perform and signifies when the automobile is locked/unlocked. Secondly, it additionally displays the dynamic flip indicator lights however with out instantly changing the normal indicator signages within the digital cluster. Lastly, it additionally reveals the cost degree and the charging course of.

Other gear on board consists of an 830W 20-speaker Bang & Olufsen 3D sound system, a 360-degree digital camera, wi-fi telephone charging, and a set of superior driver help techniques (ADAS).

While the Q6 e-tron usually has a darker cabin, it nonetheless has a dual-tone theme with chrome accents however the SQ6 e-tron has an all-black cabin.

Also Check Out: Tata Punch EV Window-breaker, WPL Cricketer Ellyse Perry, Gifted The Same Broken Glass

Details Of Its Electric Powertrains

Audi is providing the global-spec Q6 e-tron in two variants at first: Q6 e-tron quattro and SQ6 e-tron, their specs detailed beneath.

Specification	Q6 e-tron quattro	SQ6 e-tron



















Battery Pack	94.9 kWh	94.9 kWh



















No. of electrical motors	2	2



















WLTP-claimed Range	625 km	598 km



















0-100 kmph	5.9 seconds	4.3 seconds

While each have an all-wheel-drive (AWD) setup, Audi will likely be introducing rear-wheel-drive (RWD) variations of the EV afterward, relying in the marketplace. There can even be a RWD Q6 e-tron having a smaller 83 kWh battery pack that will likely be unveiled at a later date.

The 100 kWh battery unit (complete capability), with 800-volt electrical structure to help quick charging of as much as 270 kW, will be juiced up from 10 to 80 p.c in simply 21 minutes. Audi is providing it with an on-board 11 kW AC charger as normal that may totally energy up the battery in a single day. The German carmaker can even offer a sooner 22 kW AC charging choice to its clients at a later stage.

There can also be a intelligent new fast-charging possibility for stations that solely help 400-volt know-how. In such a situation, the Q6 e-tron makes use of financial institution charging, which divides the 800-volt battery setup into two batteries having equal voltages, for parallel charging with as much as 150 kW. Depending on the state of cost, each halves of the battery are first equalised after which charged concurrently. This know-how is very like what’s seen on trendy smartphones that includes bigger batteries with the intention to guarantee their environment friendly operation and scale back possibilities of battery injury.

Also Read: Tesla India Launch Timeline Accelerates With New EV Policy For Reduced Import Tariffs

Expected India Launch And Price

Although the Audi Q6 e-tron has solely been formally confirmed for Germany and another European markets for now, we consider will probably be India-bound someday in 2025, together with the SQ6 e-tron. Expect the totally loaded quattro model to have a beginning value of Rs 80 lakh (ex-showroom). It will likely be a premium different to the likes of the Volvo C40 Recharge, Kia EV6, and Hyundai Ioniq 5.

GM Thinks Tetris-Shaped Batteries Could Be the Key to Better Cooling

March 20, 2024 Prafful Singh

General Motors has plans to function 4 battery crops, with one in Lordstown, Ohio already pumping out cells. With the flexibility to make its personal batteries comes the potential for customized configurations and kind components, one thing the corporate is contemplating taking to the intense. A current patent from GM exhibits batteries not formed like rectangles or cylinders, however Tetris-like blocks meant to accommodate extra environment friendly cooling channels.

The doc is presently simply an software, nevertheless it was printed very just lately in late February, with a current file date as effectively. All of this appears to point it is a new concept out of the automaker that it might have wished to guard rapidly. It begins by saying how battery cells are presently cooled, a minimum of in GM’s case. In vehicles just like the Hummer EV, we all know that is achieved on a module-by-module foundation with a cooling plate on the backside of the cells. In this patent, GM claims this technique can result in uneven cooling, which ends up in untimely battery degradation. As a aspect observe, different corporations use different cooling strategies to fight this phenomenon.

GM’s concept is to make the cells in a tough “L” or “C” form in order that two cells mixed will go away a number of tunnels between the cells the place a cooling channel could be added. GM even has some uncommon diagonal shapes in there.

Cars

How To Properly Check Your Car’s Transmission Fluid Level

March 17, 2024 David

Some automotive transmissions work equally to issues like a smartphone battery — they are not usually supposed to be opened up by the proprietor, particularly if they do not have the experience crucial to take action.

These, appropriately sufficient, are often known as “sealed” transmissions, “lifetime” transmissions, or one thing comparable. Though transmission fluid won’t need to be changed very often, broadly speaking, it’s nonetheless susceptible to the type of put on and tear that can soiled the transmission over time, in addition to gradual depletion of fluid.

It’s attainable — and crucial at instances — to vary or change the fluid of a sealed transmission, however this is not advisable as an at-home job. The main distinction is that the all-important dipstick is not current in a sealed transmission, because it is not designed to be monitored by the proprietor in the identical manner as different extra conventional transmissions are.

With circumstances like these, and with the recognition of sealed transmissions in newer automobiles, your mechanic will be capable of present the very best service. When it involves your transmission fluid, then, the essential factor is to know when you possibly can test and rectify any points with it your self, and when you possibly can’t. An beginner contact might end in a way more costly restore invoice down the road.

VolvoCars

Volvo Cars companions with and invests in Breathe for next-generation quick charging

March 13, 2024 David

Volvo Cars has partnered up with Breathe Battery Technologies (Breathe), turning into the primary automobile firm to get entry to the newest model of its patented, algorithm-enabled charging software program to be used on our new-generation totally electrical vehicles.

By integrating Breathe’s software program in Volvo Cars in-house-developed battery administration platform to optimise and enhance the efficiency of our charging know-how, we are able to present Volvo clients with even sooner charging occasions and an enhanced general driving and charging expertise.

We will implement the brand new know-how in our new-generation totally electrical vehicles, the place we anticipate it is going to scale back the time it takes to cost your totally electrical Volvo from 10 to 80 per cent charging state by as a lot as 30 per cent*, whereas sustaining the identical vitality density and vary. Even higher: the charging time enhancements will final throughout the total battery life cycle with out impacting its well being standing.

The collaboration with Breathe is the results of a sourcing settlement for its flagship product, Breathe Charge, and represents the newest funding by the Volvo Cars Tech Fund, our company enterprise capital arm. It displays our ambition to steer the event of premium electrical vehicles and change into a totally electrical automobile maker by 2030.

Sharing our ardour for electrical mobility and pleasant driver experiences, Breathe is a London-based start-up that develops battery administration software program with the intention of contributing to sooner, higher and extra sustainable electrification.

“The investment and commercial partnership with Breathe helps us address a familiar pain point for electric car customers and makes our charging performance even more competitive,” says Ann-Sofie Ekberg, CEO of the Volvo Cars Tech Fund. “Faster charging times, in the range where customers typically fast charge, represent a major step in the right direction as we continue to boost electric mobility and make it available to more people.”

Software-defined batteries
Unlike conventional stepped charging, which depends on pre-determined guidelines, Breathe’s software program makes use of adaptive charging to dynamically management the battery in actual time, leading to considerably shorter charging occasions.

Using algorithms, the software program manages the charging course of in keeping with the battery’s well being to ship the perfect driver expertise whereas avoiding the danger of lithium plating, which may hurt the battery’s efficiency and lifespan.

Our funding in Breathe helps place us for an all-electric future, but it surely additionally suits with our ambitions of reaching web zero greenhouse fuel emissions and turning into a round enterprise by 2040. While lowering charging occasions for our vehicles, the know-how achieves this with out the necessity to change battery pack design or mine additional supplies, with out extra environmental impacts.

Also, since it’s totally suitable with the {hardware} utilized in our new-generation totally electrical vehicles, scaling will likely be straightforward as a result of we anticipate our electrical gross sales to extend considerably within the coming years.

“We’re very pleased with this investment and sourcing agreement with Volvo Cars, and support their exciting journey towards full electrification,” says Dr Ian Campbell, CEO of Breathe Battery Technologies. “Deploying our technology at scale on Volvo’s next-generation EV platform opens doors to innovative car designs and performance improvements. We share a profound passion for electric mobility, and convenient, fast charging is one of the cornerstone enablers for the future we strive towards.”

The Volvo Cars Tech Fund was established in 2018 to put money into firms and know-how areas that remodel the automotive trade, akin to electrification, AI, autonomous driving, sustainability and digital commerce. The Tech Fund makes strategic investments to assist start-ups thrive and collectively speed up the transformation of the worldwide mobility trade.

*Different battery packs will end in various charging occasions. Testing indicated cost time enhancements starting from 15-30%.

BMW

Peter Lamp honoured with prestigious worldwide award for battery analysis, growth and industrialisation.

March 9, 2024 Prafful Singh

Munich / California: The North American Advanced Technology Battery Trade Association (NAATBatt) has introduced Dr. Peter Lamp with the organisation’s Lifetime Achievement Award at its annual convention.

This award recognises people who’ve made excellent contributions to the development of battery applied sciences over the course of their profession on both a enterprise, technological or regulatory degree. Previous award winners have included Dr. John Goodenough, Dr. M. Stanley Whittingham and
Dr. Akira Yoshino, who obtained the Nobel Prize for his or her contributions to the event of the lithium-ion battery, in addition to Robin Zeng, Chairman of CATL.

The recipients of the annual awards are chosen by the affiliation’s Board of Directors, comprising over 60 world-renowned battery specialists and representatives from the battery business. Peter Lamp has labored on the BMW Group for 23 years and has been a formative affect within the subject of battery cell know-how at BMW since 2008. Today he is likely one of the firm’s foremost cell know-how specialists.

“Having Peter in our ranks and being able to benefit from his exceptional expertise and passion is something very special for me. We sincerely congratulate Peter and thank him and his team for their contribution to our success. The deep expertise we have in battery cell development makes the difference now and in the future — I am convinced of that.” says Dr. Florian Preuß, Senior VP High-Voltage Battery and Charging.

Peter Lamp provides: “Winning this award in the USA is without doubt one of the highlights of my career. Even on such occasions, however, one should never forget that it is always a team effort. We have always strived to actively shape the global development of technology. In so doing, we ensure that the very best technology makes its way into our products, where it can impress and delight BMW drivers all over the world.”

The BMW eDrive know-how fitted within the BMW Group’s electrified fashions in the present day is now in its fifth era, which is testomony to the event progress achieved for the reason that BMW i3 launched in 2013. The arrival of the Neue Klasse fashions in 2025 will mark the debut of the sixth-generation tech, which is able to convey additional main advances when it comes to all customer-relevant traits, similar to vary and charging time.

Technology

These Makita Tools Will Help Make Cleaning Your Car A Breeze

March 8, 2024 David

If you are simply beginning out with Makita’s battery line, you may all the time hit two birds with one stone by buying a equipment. Makita’s 18V LXT Brushless Blower Kit comes with the blower energy device, an 18V 4.0Ah battery, and a battery charger to get you began. Now, you might be considering a blower is a strange Makita tool to make use of whereas detailing your car. On Makita’s web site, it clearly states {that a} blower can be utilized to dry your car after a wash as an alternative of utilizing towels, which might trigger streaks and scratches.

This blower equipment comes with a 4.6 out of 5 score from over 900 patrons. It can ship as much as 116 mpg and a full 459 cfm whereas having a variable velocity set off and cruise management lever, so you’ve got full management of the quantity of air coming from the blower. It’s additionally extremely light-weight, coming in at 6.5 kilos, so your arm will not get drained too fast whereas making an attempt to dry off your automotive. Additionally, it comprises a brushless motor, so it’s going to last more and have much less upkeep than brushed motor instruments.

Featured

BYD Seal Bookings Open, India Specifications Revealed

February 28, 2024 Prafful Singh

The electrical sedan can be supplied with two battery pack choices and selection of rear-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive

The BYD Seal may be booked for a token quantity of Rs 1 lakh forward of its launch on March 5.
In India, it would include two battery pack choices: 61.4 kWh and 82.5 kWh.
It will get each rear-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive setups with a WLTP-claimed vary of as much as 570 km.
In India, will probably be supplied in three variants: Dynamic Range, Premium Range, and Performance.
It is anticipated to be priced from Rs 55 lakh (ex-showroom).

The BYD Seal is scheduled to be launched in India on March 5 and its order books at the moment are open. If you have an interest within the Seal, you’ll be able to e-book the electrical sedan by paying a token quantity of Rs 1 lakh, and you may anticipate its deliveries to begin from April 2024. We have additionally acquired a maintain of the specs which you’ll be able to try right here.

Dimensions

Length	4800 mm
Width	1875 mm
Height	1460 mm
Wheelbase	2920 mm
Boot Space	400 litres
Frunk	50 litres

The BYD Seal is much like the Toyota Camry in size. Being an EV, it comes with a frunk (entrance trunk) storage and in addition will get a boot area of 400 litres.

Battery Pack & Range

In India, the BYD Seal can be supplied with two battery pack choices and completely different ranges of efficiency primarily based on the variant. These specs are detailed under:

Battery Pack	61.4 kWh	82.5 kWh	82.5 kWh
Electric Motor	Single	Single	Dual
Power	204 PS	313 PS	560 PS
Torque	310 Nm	360 Nm	670 Nm
Claimed Range (WLTC)	460 km	570 km	520 km
0-100 kmph	7.5 seconds	5.9 seconds	3.8 seconds

The Seal additionally helps DC quick charging of as much as 150 kW, utilizing which its battery pack may be juiced up from 30 to 80 p.c in simply 26 minutes.

Features & Safety

The BYD Seal would be the carmaker’s third providing in India and can characteristic a few of the quirky particulars that caught our eye within the BYD Atto 3 electrical SUV. Inside the Seal, there’s a rotating 15.6-inch touchscreen infotainment system which helps wi-fi Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. It additionally will get a ten.25-inch digital driver’s show, two wi-fi telephone chargers, 8-way energy adjustable driver seat with reminiscence perform, a heads-up show, heated and ventilated entrance seats, and a panoramic sunroof.

Also Read: Skoda India Sub-4m SUV Confirmed To Arrive In 2025

For passenger security, the Seal comes outfitted with 8 airbags, ABS with EBD, entrance and rear parking sensors, hill maintain help, a 360-degree digicam, ISOFIX little one seat anchors and a full suite of ADAS options which incorporates adaptive cruise management, lane preserve help, blind spot monitoring, and auto emergency braking. The BYD Seal has additionally acquired a 5-star crash check security ranking from Euro NCAP and ANCAP.

Expected Price & Rivals

Prices of the BYD seal are anticipated to begin from Rs 55 lakh (ex-showroom) and will probably be an inexpensive rival to the BMW i4. It can even act as a substitute for the Hyundai Ioniq 5, Kia EV6, and Volvo C40 Recharge.

Wearables

5 Tips That Might Help Stop Your Apple Watch From Dying So Fast

February 27, 2024 David

Numerous the Apple Watch’s useful choices for retaining the display screen on, rising visibility, and so forth generally is a drain on the battery — to a degree. If you do not contemplate them needed, turning a few of them off (or shortening durations) can reduce on the pressure.

Reduce the period of time the show stays on when not in use by opening the Watch app in your iPhone and choosing the Watch Tab. Then choose Display & Brightness.
Tap Wake Duration, then choose a shorter period of time (15 seconds is the minimal).
Save extra display screen energy by stopping the show from robotically turning on if you increase your wrist. From the Watch app’s Display & Brightness menu, flip off the toggle subsequent to Wake on Wrist Rise.
App transitional and graphical results can even deplete extra battery. Open the Watch app to the My Watch tab and choose Accessibility, then choose Reduce Motion and faucet the toggle to close results off.
Alternatively, turning on Low Power Mode (iOS 9 and later) can save on battery energy, although it does shut off plenty of choices.
Open Control Center on the Apple Watch and faucet on the battery proportion readout, then faucet Low Power Mode. You can select to maintain it on for one, two, or three days.

When in Low Power Mode the always-on show, TIme in Daylight monitor, coronary heart charge and blood oxygen measurements, exercise reminders, and double-tap gestures will all be turned off.

Automoto Hub