Green Vehicles Inc. was a manufacturer of electric cars that operated in California from 2008 to 2011. Their best-known product was the Triac, a three-wheeled car that never entered production.
Green Vehicles was co-founded by Ehab Youssef and Mike Ryan in the wake of a failed ZAP! dealership originally in Los Gatos, California. Disappointment in the state of the battery electric vehicle industry at the time led the small company to take on the ambitious goal of making the world's most sustainably made, energy efficient freeway commuter.
In 2008, the company changed course, abandoning its manufacturing base in China for an 80,000 sq ft (7,400 m2) facility in Salinas, California in order to make changes to manufacturing operations more consistent with the principles on which the company was founded. Green Vehicles recently applied to the state of California and received supplemental funds to implement Design for Manufacturability and Design for Environment changes before increasing commercial production volumes of the Triac 2.0. [1]
VEDA (Vehicle, Efficiency & Data Assistant)- an advanced IT system incorporating a proprietary BMS, data logging, motor controller access and navigation that has been introduced by the company. The company has held details close to its chest, but has said that the system will be part of the commercial Triac2.0. [2]
The Triac freeway commuter uses a three phase 30 kW Permanent Magnet motor, and has a top speed of 80 MPH and a range of 100 Miles.
The Triac uses a 144V lithium-ion battery pack
The Triac is a lithium-ion powered three-wheeled street legal car. Under most state laws, three-wheeled cars are classified as motorcycles. The first commercial deliveries started in November, 2009 as part of an Early Adopters program.
The company claims that the freeway commuter's design for reducing energy consumption, superior battery solution, and higher efficiency drivetrain offer commuters the most environmentally friendly means for meeting their daily transportation needs. Although Green Vehicles has not publicly released the name of their battery supplier, they have confirmed that they are headquartered in California.
On July 30, 2010, Green Vehicles was awarded a grant for over $2,050,000 by the California Energy Commission to assist the company's efforts to scale up manufacturing operations in Salinas, California. [3]
On July 18, 2011, Green Vehicles announced it had ceased operations, citing a lack of capital. Virtually all of its funding had come from state and local government grants. [4]
A hybrid vehicle is one that uses two or more distinct types of power, such as submarines that use diesel when surfaced and batteries when submerged. Other means to store energy include pressurized fluid in hydraulic hybrids.
A compressed-air car is a compressed-air vehicle fueled by pressure vessels filled with compressed air. It is propelled by the release and expansion of the air within a motor adapted to compressed air. The car might be powered solely by air, or combined with other fuels such as gasoline, diesel, or an electric plant with regenerative braking.
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A compressed-air vehicle (CAV) is a transport mechanism fueled by tanks of pressurized atmospheric gas and propelled by the release and expansion of the gas within a pneumatic motor.
GS Yuasa Corporation is a Kyoto-based Japanese company specializing in the development and production of lead acid and lithium-ion batteries, used in automobiles, motorcycles and other areas including aerospace and defense applications.
The Commuter Cars Tango is a prototype ultra-narrow electric sports car designed and built by Commuter Cars, an electric car company based out of Spokane, Washington.
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The Progressive Insurance Automotive X Prize was a set of competitions, programs and events, from the X Prize Foundation, to "inspire a new generation of super-efficient vehicles that help break America's addiction to oil and stem the effects of climate change." Progressive Insurance was the title sponsor of the prize, the centerpiece of which is the Competition Division, within which a 10-million-dollar purse was divided between the winners of three competitions.
A123 Systems, LLC, a subsidiary of the Chinese Wanxiang Group Holdings, is a developer and manufacturer of lithium iron phosphate batteries and energy storage systems.
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Mahindra Electric Mobility Limited, formerly known as the Reva Electric Car Company, is an Indian company based in Bangalore, involved in designing and manufacturing of compact electric vehicles. The company's first vehicle was the REVAi electric car, available in 26 countries with more than 4,000 of its different versions sold worldwide by mid-March 2011. Reva was acquired by Indian conglomerate Mahindra & Mahindra in May 2010. After the acquisition, the company launched the electric hatchback e2o in 2013. Today, the company sells electric vehicles in different segments – the electric sedan eVerito, the electric commercial vehicle eSupro, and the Treo range of low maintenance, lithium-ion battery-powered three-wheelers. Recently, Mahindra Electric became the first Indian car manufacturer to cross 170 million kilometers traveled on its fleet.
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Triac, by Green Vehicles Inc., was a two-seat three-wheeled concept car unveiled in 2010–2011. The company went out of business in 2011.
Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) Loan Program is a $25 billion direct loan program funded by Congress in fall 2008 to provide debt capital to the U.S. automotive industry for the purpose of funding projects that help vehicles manufactured in the U.S. meet higher mileage requirements and lessen U.S. dependence on foreign oil. Of the 108 requests made, 5 were approved to receive $8.4 billion, with the majority of that amount under repayment.
The patent encumbrance of large automotive NiMH batteries refers to allegations that corporate interests have used the patent system to prevent the commercialization of nickel metal hydride (NiMH) battery technology. Nickel metal hydride battery technology was considered important to the development of battery electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) before the technology for lithium-ion battery packs became a viable replacement.
CODA Automotive Inc. was a privately held American company headquartered in Los Angeles, California. The company designed and assembled lithium-iron phosphate (LiFePO4) battery systems for automotive and power storage utility applications, and electric cars. Miles Automotive partnered with Hafei and Qingyuan Electric Vehicle to establish Coda Automotive as an affiliate company. The name CODA comes from the musical term for the concluding passage of a piece of music. CODA Automotive has said that it chose the name because its electric vehicle technology represents an end for combustion engine vehicles, and the start of the electric vehicle era.
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Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited, abbreviated as CATL, is a Chinese battery manufacturer and technology company founded in 2011 that specializes in the manufacturing of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage systems, as well as battery management systems (BMS). With a market share of 32.6% in 2021, CATL is the biggest lithium-ion battery manufacturer for EVs in the world, producing 96.7 GWh of the global 296.8 GWh, up 167.5% year on year. It grew even further in 2022, increasing its market share to 37%. The company plans to have a manufacturing capacity target of more than 500 GWh by 2025 and more than 800 GWh by 2030.