Electric Cars News

Audi India finally took the wraps off the e-Tron for the public in India at the launch of its new dealership in Gurugram. The e-Tron is Audi's first fully electric model and is an SUV at that. It will be launched in India by the end of 2019.

The all-electric version of the Hyundai Kona exploded in an owner's garage in Montreal, Canada recently, prompting an investigation by the automaker. According to the owner - Piero Cosentino, the Hyundai Kona Electric was parked in his garage when the incident happened and according to him was unplugged from the charging point. The blast blew the garage door off in the process, while also leaving the roof partially destroyed. Local firefighters managed to douse the fire and no one was injured. Hyundai Canada has now launched an investigation into the incident.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has confirmed that people would be soon able to stream videos on digital platforms like Netflix and YouTube in parked Tesla electric vehicles. "Ability to stream YouTube and Netflix when car is stopped coming to your Tesla soon! Has an amazingly immersive, cinematic feel due to the comfy seats & surround sound audio," Musk wrote on his Twitter handle.

Government's proposal comes at a time when the auto industry has been witnessing decline in sales and automakers are demanding reduction in GST rates to uplift sales.

It also slashed the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on EV chargers from 18 per cent to 5 per cent, an official statement said after the 36th meeting of the council.

Green energy solutions provider Magenta Power has introduced India's first portable electric vehicle charging grid. The company's new ChargingGrid Series is the country's first fully integrated, unmanned, payment enabled open network of smart charging solutions. The portable grid is available in a number of configurations that makes it compatible across and four and two-wheeled electric vehicles, both old and new. The ChargeGrid series is available in a number of versions with the ChargeGrid LITE being the most affordable at Rs. 11,799. The ChargeGrid PRO has 2 variants PRO-3P and is priced at Rs. 32,499, while the PRO-T2 is priced at Rs. 39,499. The top-of-the-line ChargeGrid Ultra is priced at Rs. 48,699. The unit can be installed in a number of locations including offices, malls, and residential societies, according to the company.

The number of plug-in hybrid and all-electric cars in the world crossed the 3 million mark at the end of 2017. It went up to 5 million by the end of 2018 and is expected to go to 13 million by 2020. This is one reason why most manufacturers are making sure that they have an electrification strategy in place so as to cater to the rising demand of electric vehicles. While many manufacturers have already defined their electric path, Citroen is still in the midst of rolling out its electrification strategy, but the plans are in place.

Britain's auto industry, seeking to swerve Brexit obstacles, is accelerating toward electrification as consumers shun high-polluting diesels, driven by rapid advances in technology and greener government policy. Four famous car brands born in Britain but now foreign-owned -- German-held Bentley and Mini, Indian-backed Jaguar Land Rover, and Chinese-controlled Lotus -- have each this month outlined plans for purely electric models to sit alongside their petrol vehicles.