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      Mercedes-Benz design chief Gorden Wagener on the EQS' Hyperscreen: 'Bigger the better' – Roadshow

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      The Hyperscreen will be optional on the upcoming EQS.
      Mercedes-Benz
      This story is part of CES, where our editors will bring you the latest news and the hottest gadgets of the entirely virtual CES 2021.

      Mercedes-Benz on Thursday unveiled the Hyperscreen, a massive single-piece infotainment screen that will be available on the upcoming EQS electric luxury sedan. Gorden Wagener, Daimler’s chief of design, talked to reporters in a virtual roundtable to explain more about the Hyperscreen and how it became a reality. Wagener says the idea for the Hyperscreen first came about years ago, and it all started with a sketch on the wall at Mercedes’ now-shuttered interior design studio in Como, Italy. (Mercedes has since opened a new design studio in Côte d’Azur, France. Nice work if you can get it.) “I saw the sketch and said, ‘That’s amazing, let’s make that happen,'” Wagener says. “And we did make it happen! We made it feasible with a partner, and that really amazes me. We have a vision, a little sketch there, and we made it a reality.”

      The Hyperscreen spans 56 inches in total, the entirety of the dashboard, and it has about 377 square inches of screen. It’s technically three separate displays under one glass panel, all of which are OLED units with super high resolution, but the transition from screen to blank glass looks seamless. “The bigger the better,” Wagener says.When equipped with the Hyperscreen, the only physical controls on the EQS’ dashboard will be the start button and the light switch, and Wagener says that isn’t something that Mercedes will backpedal on — so don’t expect new Mercedes models to bring back more buttons and switches five years down the line. “We were pushing for the elimination of hard keys because it makes it clean and modern,” he says. “It’s a completely different thing to operate. As designers we love simplicity.”It spans 56 inches in total.
      Mercedes-Benz
      The Hyperscreen will be optional, with the EQS getting a setup similar to the 2021 S-Class as standard that will have a standalone gauge cluster screen and separate infotainment screen in the dash. Wagener wouldn’t give that many specifics about the base system, but he says that the EQS was designed with the Hyperscreen in mind. “We started with the Hyperscreen, that was the focus point,” says Wagener. “We always have one eye on the standard version, but we did not want to compromise the high-end version.”The dash of the S-Class (and ostensibly the base EQS) is dominated by a huge slightly curved trim panel, which is available in a multitude of wood, carbon-fiber, aluminum and piano black finishes. Fancy trim is a hallmark of any luxury car, so I ask Wagener how the Hyperscreen-equipped EQS will make up for the lack of that panel. “When the whole instrument panel is screen you have less space for traditional trim materials, but the Hyperscreen itself is the jewel of the interior,” he says. “It’s glossy, it has mega resolution, it’s sexy and simple. Seeing it in that size and brightness, it’s so much more beautiful than any trim material would do.”The passenger side of the Hyperscreen can show animated displays.
      Mercedes-Benz
      There will still be fancy trim, such as chrome strips around the screen and wood pieces on the center console and dashboard, but Wagener says, “We’re moving away from traditional trim materials to digital trim materials” when it comes to Mercedes’ electric cars. The passenger side of the Hyperscreen can display animated patterns or image galleries, making it essentially a virtual piece of trim. “Once you use it and can animate it, put up pictures of your loved ones, it’s so much more valuable and rich and luxurious than what you’re used to.” Wagener also pointed out the propellor-esque analog air vents, which he described as “hyperanalog.”The Hyperscreen is the type of innovation that designers dream about, stuff that’s typically reserved for concept cars, and Wagener didn’t mince words about how excited he is about it. “We will always put beauty first, we will never do an awkward solution. I’m so happy I can’t even believe it that this design vision became a reality.”

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      Mercedes S Class Electric Car’s Full Dashboard Curved Display Unveiled

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      Mercedes Benz Hyperscreen
      Mercedes EQS electric limousine will be the first production vehicle to receive MBUX Hyperscreen

      For the electric version of new S-Class, Mercedes has come up with a new-age dashboard made entirely of a curved display screen that spans across the width of the cabin. Called the MBUX Hyperscreen, the new piece of technology incorporates three screens into one. This could redefine automotive dashboards in the foreseeable future.
      Mercedes MBUX Hyperscreen
      The MBUX Hyperscreen incorporates three displays – the instrument panel, infotainment system, and an entertainment screen for the front passenger. The central and front passenger displays benefit from OLED technology for better picture quality and pack in haptic feedback.
      As you can imagine, fabricating such a sophisticated plastic panel loaded with multiple elements requires a special process. The curved unit is moulded in three dimensions using a special three-layer coating which Mercedes calls as the ‘Silver Shadow’. The company claims that the process renders the display unit a high quality surface impression while reducing reflection and making cleaning easier.
      With the help of ambient lighting, the MBUX Hyperscreen gives an optical illusion of floating. Provisions for the AC vents on given on both sides of the single-piece panel.
      Mercedes Benz Hyperscreen
      Based on an evolution of the current Mercedes S Class’ operating system, the Hyperscreen’s software architecture is claimed to be radically easy to operate and ‘extremely eager’ learn. Thanks to the AI, the system adopts a zero-layer menu system which displays relevant information at required time based on user preferences thereby avoiding the need to scroll through several items or use voice command.
      Features
      According to data collected by Mercedes from the earlier generation of the MBUX system, the most commonly used features include navigation, media and telephone which are integrated into the central display. The AI offers as many as twenty additional features as and when the user requires them. Examples include seat ventilation, massage, location-based suspension ride height increase.
      The passenger side of the screen also can support up to 7 custom profiles with the AI improving the overall experience. This display is subjected to country-specific safety regulations. When not entertaining the front passenger, that part of the screen turns into an animated display of stars to enhance the overall ambiance.
      [embedded content]
      The Mercedes MBUX Hyperscreen will be an optional extra in the eagerly anticipated EQS electric luxury limousine which is slated to be launched later this year. The same piece of equipment is expected to be offered by the upcoming EQS SUV as well. Knowing Mercedes, the Hyperscreen will eventually make its journey down the product portfolio.
      Mercedes has been a trend setter when it comes to interior design and technology. We won’t be surprised to see similar dashboard features from other OEMs in the coming years. More

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      Volvo's second EV to enter production in 2021 as sales recover – Roadshow

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      A second EV will soon be produced alongside Volvo’s XC40 Recharge all-electric SUV.
      Volvo
      Volvo has arguably been the auto industry’s most vocal legacy carmaker in its push for electrification. On Thursday, the company announced another step in its plans to add batteries and strip internal combustion power from its lineup of cars and SUVs.The Swedish automaker said in a statement that it will triple EV production capacity at its plant in Ghent, Belgium, even as its first all-electric Recharge models are only just now hitting North American dealers. The statement confirms that Volvo’s second pure EV will enter production in 2021, following on the heels of the XC40 Recharge, a small crossover SUV that’s also produced in Belgium alongside its plug-in hybrid sibling. The unnamed EV is tipped to debut in March.

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      The electric-car ramp-up will take the Ghent plant to around 60% EV by 2022, and Volvo is widely expected to add battery-powered vehicle assembly at its other plants around the globe, including its newest factory outside of Charleston, South Carolina, which presently assembles the company’s S60 sedan in both internal-combustion-only and hybrid varieties. Volvo plans to begin assembling its XC90 flagship SUV at the same plant in 2022.Volvo, a subsidiary of China’s Geely, previously announced a company goal to have half of its global sales be from EV models by 2025. The balance would be internal combustion-powered vehicles with some level of electrification, whether hybrid or plug-in hybrid. In December, Volvo revealed plans to eventually take all electric motor production in-house.Volvo sold 661,713 vehicles in 2021, a 6.2% drop year over year. Sales were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but touts the company’s strongest second-half sales in history, with sales rising 7.4% year over year to help to offset a much steeper 21% first-half drop.
      2021 Volvo XC40 Recharge has big power and a little frunk
      See all photos More

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      Maruti WagonR Electric Car Launch Plans Cancelled

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      Maruti WagonR Electric Test Mule Spied Recently Near Company Plant
      Back in 2018, 50 test mules of the WagonR electric car were flagged off by Maruti Suzuki – To be tested across India

      Maruti Suzuki WagonR Electric has been one of the most spotted, yet to be launched EV on Indian roads. Test mules of WagonR Electric have been captured all across the country, including in hill stations like Kufri where Maruti would have been trying to do sub 0 temperature testing.
      Launch of this electric car was expected to take place in 2020. But that did not happen, Covid19 pandemic was believed to be the reason. But now, a new report from Economic Times claims that the plan to launch WagonR electric in India has been shelved. This comes at a time when the test mules of WagonR electric or what was claimed to be XL5 EV, continues to be on test near company plant in Manesar.
      Techno Commercial Viability Issues
      The Maruti EV project had already faced multiple delays in the past. Though there is no update from Maruti Suzuki, ET’s sources have confirmed that the company has decided to halt the project due to “techno-commercial viability issues”. The WagonR Electric was going to have considerable number of imported components which would have led to increase in its costing.
      With the increase in costs, Maruti wasn’t sure if the pricing of the product could be appropriate for it to become a big number churner. Most Maruti products manage good monthly sales of 3-4K units or more. Hence, Maruti didn’t want to bring in the WagonR EV if it would have been able to manage just triple digit sales.
      Maruti WagonR electric test mules in Nov 2018
      Interestingly, Toyota was also planning on an EV for India which would have been based on the Maruti EV, however with the discontinuation of WagonR EV, the Toyota’s project also will get shelved. As per earlier report, Maruti had plans to launch WagonR electric at Rs 12 lakhs. Interestingly, Tata launched an electric SUV at Rs 14 lakhs last year.
      Journey Till Now
      Maruti had started the WagonR electric project in 2018 by commencing testing on 50 units of WagonR which were based on the model sold in Japan. Later in 2019, Maruti built new prototypes too which were based on the Indian WagonR and continued with testing.
      Way Ahead
      While the WagonR project has been shelved, Maruti will still be looking forward to bringing in an electric car for the Indian market later in the future. We expect that the new Maruti EV for Indian market will now come around 2023 and it might land up being a cross-over or an SUV, considering the growing liking of Indian customers for those body types.
      In the meanwhile, Suzuki has set up a dedicated Lithium-ion battery plant in Gujarat which shall start operations around mid-2021. This plant will help Suzuki to plan on full-hybrid and EVs in the future, and additionally provide the cost-advantage through heavy localization of components.
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      Tata Nexon Electric Owner Shares Range, Battery Details – After 220 kms Road Trip

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      Tata Nexon Electric
      One major concern for electric car owners is its single-charge range especially in India where charging stations are limited

      Tata Nexon Electric is the most popular electric car in the Indian market currently. The prime reason being its popularity is its affordability. Offered at a starting price of Rs 13.99 lakh and going up to Rs 16.25 lakh (both prices ex-showroom), it is the most affordable electric car out of the limited options currently.
      In a country, where EVs are still at a nascent stage with limited charging infrastructure, its single-charge range becomes extremely crucial especially for consumers who love to go on long trips out of the city. On previous occasions, Nexon EV has returned an average single-charge range in a region between 170-180 km.
      Details of Journey & Power Cosnumed
      However, in the latest case, a Nexon EV owner, Manu M has managed to obtain a range beyond 220 kms. In a post on Facebook, Manu M shares details of his journey with his family from his home in Thevalakkara, Kollam to Aazhimala temple, Trivandrum in Kerala and the return journey on the electric UV.
      On 27th December 2020, Manu went on a road trip with his parents with the total journey covering a distance of 220.6 km. Starting with a fully charged battery, the onwards journey marked the owner covering 109.7 km.
      Tata Nexon Electric Road Trip Details
      During this, battery level dropped from 100 percent to 52 percent at the end of the first half of the journey. This meant that the car consumed an average of 114 Wh/km during the first half while the owner stated that the last 5-10 km consisted of steep climbs which could have consumed more energy.
      Recharging the battery
      On his return journey, the owner covered 90.7 km before stopping to recharge Nexon’s battery which had fallen from 52 percent to 17 percent. In this part of the journey, the electric crossover consumed an average of 128 Wh/km. Using a DC fast charger, the owner juiced up the battery pack from 17 percent to 95 percent in 1 hour and 21 minutes and consuming 25.5 kWh of power. The fast charging he used, is free till 9th Feb 2021.
      Tata Nexon Electric Fast Charging
      In the final leg of the journey, the owner covered a distance of 20.1 km consuming 123 Wh/km while the battery level dropped from 95 percent to 86 percent. The owner adds that during the entire journey, the air conditioner was on and the family took 3-4 stoppages in between. These values can vary depending on driving nature, traffic and terrain.
      Available in three trims- XM, XZ+ and XZ+ Lux, Nixon EV is offered with Tata’s Ziptron EV powertrain technology which consists of an electric motor paired to a 30.2 kWh lithium-ion battery pack providing a claimed range of 312 km and an output of 127 bhp and 245 Nm of peak torque. The battery pack gets an IP67 waterproof and an eight year standard warranty. More

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      Tesla sweetens new EV purchase with Full Self-Driving trial tossed in for free – Roadshow

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      Hurry, this deal won’t last. For real.
      Tesla
      Tesla CEO Elon Musk is out here making marketing moves on Twitter as we head into the final few days of 2020. Tuesday evening, Musk tweeted that anyone who purchases a new Tesla will receive three months of the company’s Full Self-Driving mode free of charge. Access to the software, which remains in beta and not complete, typically costs $10,000 extra just to experience it.
      All Tesla cars delivered in the final three days of the year will get three months of the Full Self-Driving option for free. Delivery & docs must be fully complete by midnight Dec 31st.— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 29, 2020

      All new Teslas come with a form of the firm’s Autopilot system, a Level 2 partially automated technology on the SAE’s scale of autonomy, but Full Self-Driving hopes to one day live up to its name. The company rolled out the technology to limited groups of drivers earlier this year and plans expand the invites to those who paid for the option to take advantage of the features. Even Tesla says the system may do the wrong thing at the wrong time, so it’s definitely not ready for hands-free driving, but many owners found it works well with lots of supervision.

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      To take advantage of Musk’s latest flash deal, buyers need to complete all documents and take delivery by Dec. 31 at midnight, so it’s probably best to shop Teslas currently in stock if you really want the Full Self-Driving freebie. We also heard earlier this month Tesla authorized its staff to toss in free Supercharging once again for anyone purchasing a new EV as the automaker pushes for record deliveries in 2020.We won’t know if the tactics worked until early next year, but Musk is sort of the master of spurring fans to purchase when it counts.

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      Tesla vehicles might be able to call 911 in the future – Roadshow

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      May as well put that network connection to good use.
      Tesla
      Tesla CEO Elon Musk loves a good tweet, and he regularly engages with owners of his company’s electric cars on the social media platform. One of his latest responses is a bit more than that — it might actually help save lives in the future.A Tesla owner this week asked Musk if it was possible for Tesla vehicles with network connections to be able to dial 911, to which Musk responded, “Absolutely.” According to the tweet, the owner needed to call emergency services, but his phone’s network was lacking signal. His Tesla’s connection, however, was active.

      An idea is just an idea until it’s put into practice, and it’s unclear when Musk intends to roll this feature out. Tesla does not operate a public relations department to field requests for comment, so we likely won’t receive any sort of timeline before the feature is announced as part of a future update. While firmly in the “good idea” corner, dialing 911 through a vehicle’s network connection isn’t in the “new idea” corner. GM’s OnStar also uses its built-in network connection to route imperiled owners to the correct emergency service. OnStar is a subscription service, however, and that money helps pay for things like having a staff of advisors to help customers who press OnStar’s overhead emergency button. It’s unclear if Tesla, lacking similar infrastructure, will simply dial 911 on the owner’s behalf and route the call to the car’s speakers.

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      2021 Tata Nano Electric Spied With Digital Speedometer – Jayem Neo

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      Tata Nano Electric – Jayem Neo
      The Tata Nano EV with standard airbag and ABS would be an interesting proposition in the current scenario

      Back in November 2017, Tata Motors and its long-standing collaborator Jayem Automotives announced a partnership to introduce electric version of the Tata Nano under the Jayem Neo brand. The Neo was originally supposed to be inducted into Ola Electric’s fleet with a reported order size of 400 units.
      After a delay of almost 2 years, in mid-2019, it was reported that Ola Electric secured a debt fund of INR 40 cr from Tata Motors Finance to purchase Jayem Neo EV as city taxi. Now, a 2021 Tata Nano electric test mule has been spotted in Akurdi, Pune.
      Tata Nano EV / Jayem Neo yet to see the light of day
      It’s been over three years since the first announcement but the Tata Nano EV a.k.a. Jayem Neo has neither been introduced as an urban taxi nor as a private vehicle. However, it seems Tata and Jayem haven’t completely ditched the project as evident from the recent spotting of an undisguised Neo test mule. Spy shots are credit to Pravin Nair, who shared the images on Rushlane Spylane Facebook Group.
      As far as design is concerned, the Jayem Neo is identical to the now-defunct Tata Nano but it does not feature Tata branding anywhere. This particular mule features black bumper to keep the costs low. Closer observation reveals that the Neo EV is equipped with a fully digital instrument display which is mounted above the center console.
      [embedded content]
      Specifications
      Based on the spy video from Smiley Tamilian Tech above, the Tata Nano EV is powered by a 17.7 kW, 48V (23 hp) electric motor supplied by Electra EV, which also supplies electric powertrain to Tiago and Tigor. According to the original arrangement made 3 years ago, Tata Motors was supposed supply Jayem with complete body panels of the car and the Coimbatore-based company was supposed to install the electric powertrain and retail it.
      Tata Motors discontinued the Nano as the poor demand did not justify re-engineering the vehicle to meet the latest vehicle safety norms. However, if the company still hopes to leverage the small car’s untapped potential in the emerging electric vehicle market, then a comprehensive safety update is necessary.
      Tata Nano Electric Specs
      Launch Plans
      Whether it is going to be marketed as Tata Nano EV or Jayem Neo, the urban runabout would have to be fitted with driver airbag, ABS, front passenger seat belt reminder and reverse parking sensor as standard. Top speed will be 85 kmph. It is also FAME II certified.
      The Tata Nano Electric will have a maximum range of 203 km. With AC on and 4 adults on board, the vehicle should return a range of around 140 km. We think that, with a silent powertrain and appropriate marketing strategy, the Tata Nano EV could be an interesting proposition as both urban taxi and a private vehicle. More