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BMW has demonstrated how cars of the future could change their body colour at the touch of a button, using E Ink.

Unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show, last week, the German car maker’s innovation was fitted to the iX Flow featuring E Ink concept, enabling it to seamlessly switch from black to white.

Frank Weber, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Development, said: “Digital experiences won’t just be limited to displays in the future. There will be more and more melding of the real and virtual. With the BMW iX Flow, we are bringing the car body to life.”

The coating provides a new level of personalisation for BMW drivers – building on existing technologies that enables drivers to customise the interior of their car – but also serves to improve efficiency and safety.

A lighter colour can reduce reflect sunlight more effectively, helping to reduce interior temperatures, while in cooler weather, a dark outer skin will help the vehicle to absorb noticeably more warmth from the sun.

In both cases, BMW says selective colour changes can help to cut the amount of cooling and heating required from the vehicle’s air conditioning.

Changing the vehicle’s colour can also help to make it more visible in adverse conditions, or if it’s parked at the roadside.

E Ink technology is most commonly utilised in eReaders, such as the Amazon Kindle, but has been adapted by BMW so it can be applied to the car’s body like a vinyl wrap.

The coating contains many millions of microcapsules, with a diameter equivalent to the thickness of a human hair. Each of these microcapsules contains negatively charged white pigments and positively charged black pigments.

Depending on the chosen setting, stimulation by means of an electrical field causes either the white or the black pigments to collect at the surface of the microcapsule, giving the car body the desired shade.

BMW unveiled the iX Flow featuring E Ink alongside a new flagship M60 version of its electric SUV that offers 619PS and a 357-mile range.

The ‘hot’ iX is the brand’s second electric car to get an overhaul from BMW’s M Division, following the debut of the i4 M50. By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

Mercedes-Benz has revealed the Vision EQXX concept, an electric saloon with the capability to cover 620 miles on a single charge in real world driving.

The car achieves its impressive efficiency through a combination of aerodynamics and the use of lightweight materials.

It uses a 100kWh battery, which is ultra-compact, with a footprint that is 50% smaller and 30% lighter than the 107.8kWh pack used in the Mercedes EQS.

The EQXX is capable of achieving an efficiency figure of 6.2 miles/kWh, double that of the EQS.

“Electric range sounds easy but is a complex technical challenge. The easiest way is to put a bigger battery in the car. However, this leads to diminishing returns due to size and weight. This is definitely not the smartest route and it’s also not the best use of scarce resources.

“With the Vision EQXX, we’re presenting the results of an extraordinary challenge: we pushed efficiency to a totally new level. And we explored new ways to increase the range of an electric car,” said Joerg Bartels, vice president for Vehicle Engineering and Overall Vehicle Functions at Mercedes-Benz.

As a running and driving prototype, the EQXX showcases the potential capability of future Mercedes EQ models. The new battery technology, for example, will feature in production models by 2024.

The EQXX is said to sit one segment beneath the upcoming EQE saloon, suggesting it serve as an electric equivalent to the C-Class when it goes into production.

Mercedes EQXX interior

Mercedes-Benz has already announced plans to become a fully-electric car brand by the end of the decade, following a ramp-up in the development of zero-emission vehicles.

The German car maker says it will offer electric models in all segments by the end of the year and, from 2025, it will only launch electric platforms. By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

Sony is launching a mobility company and is considering moving into the electric vehicle (EV) market.

The Japanese tech giant made the announcement at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.

Sony chairman and president Kenichiro Yoshida said: “With our imaging and sensing, cloud, 5G and entertainment technologies combined with our contents mastery, we believe Sony is well positioned as a creative entertainment company to redefine mobility.”

At CES 2020, Sony announced Vision-S, an initiative aimed at contributing to the evolution of mobility and exhibited a prototype vehicle at its booth.

Following the 2020 show it started public road testing in Europe and started verification tests of the safety and user experience of the imaging and sensing technology installed inside and outside the vehicle, and the human-machine interface (HMI) system.

Further 5G driving tests were held in April 2021.

At CES 2022, Sony has been exhibiting an SUV-type prototype vehicle – Vision-S 02.

Yoshida says that Sony sees mobility as an “entertainment space” where passengers could choose individual entertainment options and use 5G internet connection.

Bakar Sadik Agwan, senior automotive consulting analyst at GlobalData, said: “Over the past decade, Sony Group has strengthened its position in the automotive supply chain.

“Over and above semiconductors and electronics for automotive sector, the company’s capabilities now include image sensors, AI, cloud, 5G and autonomous technology.

“The EV concept Vision-S 01, which was also codenamed ‘Safety Cocoon’ surprised viewers with the Level 2 autonomous capabilities of the vehicle and ‘Time-of-Flight’ sensors capable of detecting and recognizing people/objects.

“Top-notch technological features in its first concept resulted in positive market sentiments for Sony, regarding its capabilities to manufacture EVs.

“Sony’s mobility vision aims at developing technologies centred on safety and security, adaptability, and entertainment. The company, also a leader in the entertainment business, aims to utilise its capabilities and equip its EVs with unique entertainment experience, which at this point of time, is differentiating Sony from other automakers.

“However, it will be worthy to wait and see if the entertainment/infotainment features could create a difference for Sony in the EV market.

“Above all factors, Sony will have to face fierce competition from fast growing global automakers including Tesla, Toyota, Ford, Hyundai and GM, which are much ahead in the race.”

Sony says it will establish an operating company ‘Sony Mobility Inc.’ in the spring of 2022, through which it intends to explore entry into the EV market. By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

New electric vehicle (EV) charge points, installed at home and in the workplace from May, will be pre-programmed to switch off during peak hours to ease pressure on the National Grid.

A ‘randomised delay’ of up to 30 minutes, when there is high demand from motorists, will also be introduced as more company car drivers make the switch to EVs away from diesel and petrol.

New chargers will not operate from 8am to 11am and 4pm to 10pm, but owners and fleets will be able to override the preset times to take account of night workers and people who have different schedules. 

Public chargers and rapid chargers, on motorways and A-roads, will be exempt, reports The Times.

Tanya Sinclair, policy director for UK and Ireland at ChargePoint, said: “Concerns surrounding the UK’s grid to support the charging of electric vehicles is mounting.

“The challenge for the Government, and perhaps the wider electricity system, is ensuring the ‘smartness’ in every charger is actively used by consumers, and managing the load represented by the legacy charging infrastructure already in the field which is not smart.”

The National Grid has estimated that 80% of EV drivers will use smart charging by 2050 and this will help balance almost half of the UK’s energy demands brought on by the move to zero emissions driving.

It says that around 45% of homes will actively help to balance the grid, offering up to 38GW of flexible electricity to help manage peaks and fill troughs in demand.

Smart changing means EV owners can plug in their vehicles and a management system will top up the vehicle at times that will be most beneficial to manage energy demand.

It also allows drivers and fleet operators to manage their charging stations remotely, implement new features automatically and gather data about how chargers are being used and by whom.

Government consultation on smart charging

The move to a default off-peak charging setting was first mooted in a Government consultation on Electric Vehicle Smart Charging, in 2019.

In its response to the consultation, published recently, it said that many respondents raised concerns about defining a specific off-peak time period in legislation, suggesting it could result in a secondary peak in demand.

Based on the feedback, it said it would adopt a more “nuanced approach” by mandating that smart charge points must prompt users to input a charging schedule and they must be preset to offer users a charging schedule that by default prevents EVs from charging at peak times.

During first use, the user must be given the opportunity to edit or remove this setting, it said. The user must also be able to remove or edit this default setting at a later date.

Peak times will be defined in legislation as 8am to 11am and 4pm to 10pm on weekdays. This time window, the Government says, is consistent both with its internal projections of expected EV demand, and with various external studies of EV charging patterns.

It explains that mandating the setting of a default charging mode will help mitigate the risk that some users do not engage with smart charging offers, and instead charge during peak times.

Importantly, it adds, mandating that users must be informed of and prompted to edit the pre-set charging schedule during first use of the chargepoint will help mitigate the risk that any default setting causes confusion and negatively impacts the user experience.

The consumer override and edit functions will ensure that users can turn off or edit their charging schedule, for example where they wish to sign-up to a DSR service such as a smart tariff.

Defining a peak time period in legislation instead of an off-peak period could encourage greater variation in approach amongst charge point sellers, thereby helping to mitigate the risk of a default mode requirement causing secondary peaks in demand, it argues.

However, it says it will monitor the effectiveness of this approach “closely” as part of our post-legislation evaluation.

The upcoming 2021 Smart Systems and Flexibility Plan will outline the steps that Government is taking to help drive the uptake of smart charging offers, including work to help ensure that consumers have confidence in the smart charging market.

Ben Fletcher, associate director of EV at Moixa, said: “Concerns surrounding the grid being able to support charging of electric vehicles aren’t new and the Government’s proposed plans around smart charger capabilities are a good way of answering this.

“The challenge is ensuring consumers are given the right tools to put them in control, and allow them to intelligently charge in an easy, flexible way that is convenient for them.

“Intelligent EV charging not only allows individuals greater control over the power in their vehicle but also enables greater access to cheaper, greener energy.  In turn, this ensures that drivers can decide when they want their vehicle to be ready by and the system then optimises when the vehicle charges.”

Moixa, through its Smart Battery hardware and Gridshare software, facilitates smart energy storage and sharing. “We facilitate and interpret interactions between energy storage devices and the grid, enabling data driven optimisation,” explained Fletcher.

“This means we can alleviate the demand on the grid and pave the way for smart EV charging, as well as help companies manage energy storage using advanced analytical data.

“Intelligent home charging is critical to help EV owners save money on their energy bill by tapping into cheaper energy rates while also enabling more renewable energy on the grid by integrating with increasingly agile tariffs.”

News of the charge point ‘switch off’ comes after MPs on the transport committee warned that unless charging habits change the charging needs from millions of new EVs will cause blackouts to parts of the country.

In a report – Zero emission vehicles  – published by the transport committee in July, the MPs set out a series of recommendations to Government to boost the production and purchase of EVs. By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

HMRC has clarified the tax policy concerning the VAT treatment of the charging of electric vehicles (EVs) via public charge points and at home.

The tax authority says that the standard rate of VAT applies to supplies of EV charging through charge points in public places.

It has also explained when input tax can be recovered for charging EVs for business purposes.

HMRC says that supplies of EV charging through charge points in public places are charged at the standard rate of VAT. There is no exemption or relief that reduces the rate of VAT charged.

There is a reduced rate of VAT for supplies of small quantities of electricity, known as ‘de minimis’.

The de minimis provision only applies if the supply of electricity is all of the following: ongoing; to a person’s house or building; and less than 1,000 kilowatt hours a month.

The de minimis provision does not apply to supplies of EV charging at charge points in public places.

This, says HMRC, is because these supplies are made at various places such as car parks, petrol stations and on-street parking, not to a person’s house or building.

In addition, these supplies are not usually an ongoing supply to one person where the rate of supply can be calculated.

HMRC says that it is possible to recover the input tax for charging an EV if all of the following apply: you are a sole proprietor; you charge your electric vehicle at home; and you charge your electric vehicle for business purposes.

HMRC says you should work out how much of charging your EV is for business use and how much is for private use. VAT is recoverable only on the business use amount. The usual input tax rules apply.

It means businesses cannot reclaim VAT on electricity used by an employee to recharge a vehicle at home, even when the charging is for business journeys.

However, HMRC’s policy on petrol/diesel is to allow VAT recovery when an employee fills up their car and is reimbursed by their employer.

As a sole proprietor, HMRC says it is also possible to recover the input tax for charging your EV for business use at other places. The usual input tax rules apply.

The rate for recovery of input tax for charging EVs is the same as the VAT rate charged on the supply of electricity.

For employees charging an EV (which is used for business) at home, HMRC says the VAT cannot be recovered, because the supply is made to the employee and not to the business.

For employees charging an employer’s EV (for both business and private use) at the employer’s premises, the employee will need to keep a record of their business and private mileage so that the employer can work out the amounts of business use and private use for the vehicle.

HMRC says it is possible to recover the full amount of VAT for the supply of electricity used to charge the EV. This includes the electricity for private use.

However, you will be liable for an output tax charge on the amount for private use. This is because a ‘deemed supply’ has been made.

Alternatively, you can recover VAT on only the business element. The usual input tax rules apply. By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

New vehicle supply challenges will persist in the automotive industry throughout 2022, warns analyst KPMG.

Figures released by the SMMT at the end of November 2021 showed UK car production had declined 41.4% in October – the fourth straight month of decline and the weakest October since 1956 as firms grappled with the global shortage of semiconductors which led to production stoppages.

In October, Fleet News reported that fleet operators and company car drivers faced delays of more than one year for certain new car and van models, while others are being delivered with missing features.

Richard Peberdy, UK head of automotive at KPMG, said: “Frustratingly for manufacturers and consumers alike, 2022 will start with the same supply shortages that have limited production throughout 2021.

“Despite investment going into increasing chip production, the backlog of demand for the variety of sectors and goods that require them means that supply challenges will persist in the automotive industry throughout 2022, albeit these will probably ease as the year goes on.

“As component supply issues ease, production will increase to meet pent-up vehicle demand.

“But I’d argue that we are entering a ‘new normal’ for car manufacturing and we won’t again see the levels of over-production and discounting that we did pre-pandemic.

“Instead, manufacturers will focus volume on more profitable vehicles and markets.

“Demand will change too and in light of sustainability concerns and hybrid working, consumers will be rethinking what they drive and how they access and pay for mobility more widely.” By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

New vehicle supply challenges will persist in the automotive industry throughout 2022, warns analyst KPMG.

Figures released by the SMMT at the end of November showed UK car production had declined 41.4% in October – the fourth straight month of decline and the weakest October since 1956 as firms grappled with the global shortage of semiconductors which led to production stoppages.

In October, Fleet News reported that fleet operators and company car drivers faced delays of more than one year for certain new car and van models, while others are being delivered with missing features.

Richard Peberdy, UK head of automotive at KPMG, said: “Frustratingly for manufacturers and consumers alike, 2022 will start with the same supply shortages that have limited production throughout 2021.

“Despite investment going into increasing chip production, the backlog of demand for the variety of sectors and goods that require them means that supply challenges will persist in the automotive industry throughout 2022, albeit these will probably ease as the year goes on.

“As component supply issues ease, production will increase to meet pent-up vehicle demand.

“But I’d argue that we are entering a ‘new normal’ for car manufacturing and we won’t again see the levels of over-production and discounting that we did pre-pandemic.

“Instead, manufacturers will focus volume on more profitable vehicles and markets.

“Demand will change too and in light of sustainability concerns and hybrid working, consumers will be rethinking what they drive and how they access and pay for mobility more widely.”  By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

Do you remember what your mobile phone looked like in 2003? It probably allowed you to text, call and maybe play Snake II. That is, if you had one at all.

These days, our phones offer endless entertainment opportunities which can be fun, but dangerous in the context of driving a vehicle.

Drivers who pick up their phones when behind the wheel are gambling with their own lives and the safety of others – as they are four times more likely to crash.

Last year on Great Britain’s roads there were 368 collisions, of all severities, where use of a mobile phone was assigned as a contributory factor.

The UK Government has recently announced that it will tighten the rules around mobile phone use while driving.

It will now be illegal to hold a phone and use it for virtually any purpose when behind the wheel.

This change is hugely welcome, as the initial legislation which banned mobile phone use while driving was passed in 2003, well before the age of the smartphone, and focused on interactive communications only.

Of course, distracted driving is a problem that expands beyond mobile phones. Playing loud music, eating or drinking, having a conversation with a passenger, reaching into the glove box or lighting up a cigarette could all divert a driver’s attention away from the road.

People cannot always safely multi-task while driving, especially if the second activity is time-consuming or complex.

Any secondary activity puts extra demands on the driver, which may reduce their driving standard.

For example, it may cause the driver to become less observant or to make poor decisions about how to control the vehicle safely.

This lower standard of driving means a driver is more likely to fail to anticipate hazards and this can, of course, result in accidents.

Distracted drivers can:

■ Be less aware of what’s happening on the road around them.

■ Fail to see road signs.

■ Fail to maintain proper lane position and a steady speed.

■ Be more likely to ‘tailgate’ the vehicle in front.

■ React more slowly and take longer to brake.

■ Be more likely to enter unsafe gaps in traffic.

Distracted driving is by no means a trivial matter, it can lead to serious and fatal collisions.

Road accident data suggests that in 2020, ‘distraction in vehicle’ contributed to 2,034 accidents and ‘distraction outside vehicle’ contributed to a further 914 collisions.

Alarmingly, research undertaken by Ipsos Mori shows that using a mobile phone while driving is often indicative of a deep-seated and irresponsible attitude towards the road.

In order to make our roads safer for all, we need to instil the notion that distracted driving is as much of a taboo as drinkdriving.

To achieve this cultural change, we should use a range of tools, tougher penalties, consistent enforcement and targeted campaigns aimed at shifting attitudes. By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

Osprey Charging has opened a new high-powered electric vehicle (EV) charging hub in Croydon.

The hub is located in Purley Cross Retail Park and features six rapid chargers, ranging from 75kW to 175kW

It is part of a wider rollout of more than 150 charging hubs that are being delivered across the UK by Osprey Charging, in a £75 million programme.

Ian Johnson, CEO of Osprey Charging said: “London drew a line in the sand with the expansion of the ULEZ zone in the city, sending a clear message to Londoners to rapidly switch to cleaner modes of transport.

Our new hub in Croydon – one of the most powerful of its kind in the city – will give current and future EV drivers in London access to reliable and convenient charging.

“Our nationwide hubs roll-out will see large-scale charging infrastructure deployed rapidly, at the scale required to serve the mass market of EV drivers hitting Britain’s roads in the coming years.”

The number of EVs in the capital has increased by 95% in 2021 compared to the previous year, leading to greater demand for public charging infrastructure. The Mayor’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Delivery Plan estimates that by 2025 London may need up to 4,000 rapid charging points.

Osprey’s £75 million UK-wide EV charging hub rollout will see a total of 1,500 150-175KW rapid chargers installed across 150 sites nationwide over the next four years.

The new Croydon hub is adjacent to a number of retail outlets including Starbucks, Aldi and Smyths Toys, allowing drivers to charge their cars whilst they shop. The hub also supports major transport routes into the city and sees 18,500 cars pass by every day.

Osprey Charging has entered a new partnership with Bonnet to open up access to EV charging to drivers using the Bonnet app 

 Patrick Reich, co-founder and CEO of Bonnet, said: “It’s an exciting time to be partnering with Osprey. One of the key stumbling blocks to EV adoption is the lack of public rapid charger availability and confusion around how to use different public charging networks.

This partnership offers Osprey’s state-of-the-art rapid charging experience through the Bonnet app, which simplifies membership, payments and gives drivers real-time chargepoint info straight from the operator.”  By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

This is something that I have mentioned in my book Electric Cars – The Truth Revealed. The charger infrastructure is growing but there are rural areas that need investment.

Fleets have highlighted issues with electric vehicle (EV) charging in rural areas and storms that cause power outages at an Association of Fleet Professional (AFP) webinar.

Members of the AFP’s Kerbside Charging Group, including James Rooney, fleet engineer at Centrica, David Fisher, fleet manager at Virgin Media O2, Dale Eynon, director of DEFRA Group Fleet Services and Simon Gray, head of fleet and travel at SSE, voiced their concerns.

Dale explained that operating a fleet that largely functioned in rural places was presenting particular challenges.

He explained “Large parts of the areas that we need to reach have literally nothing in the way of charging facilities. The public infrastructure is currently very much based around motorways and A roads.

“There are potential solutions, however. One promising avenue is charger sharing, which means that we may be able to access private charging points on a pay-per-use basis using an app. We are also looking at increasing our return-to-base charging capacity, although this has limits.”

Meanwhile, Gray explained the issues that the recent Storm Arwen had highlighted in terms of using EVs to respond to emergency situations. “We had 700 engineers on the ground during Arwen who were trying to restore essential power to homes and businesses,” he said.

“The situation did raise a fundamental question – how do you keep EVs running during a power outage?

“We’re looking into answers to this conundrum and alternative resources may include options such as mobile chargers. Our view is that there will be solutions to this issue but that we just need to identify them.”

The meeting, held yesterday (Wednesday, December 15), was also told about the AFP’s plans to draw up a national heat map showing where kerbside charging was needed. Based on feedback from 160,000 fleet drivers, this should be available early in 2022.

Paul Hollick, chair at the AFP, said: “Every day we are hearing from fleets, especially van fleets, that want to speed up the electrification of their operations but are being hampered by the problem of charging for drivers who do not have a drive or access to a charger.

“This is generally thought to be about 40% of drivers across all fleets but, when it comes to light commercial vehicles, we believe the figure to be nearer 70%. That means good availability of kerbside charging is essential if van electrification is going to be a success.

“We are in the process of a massive data gathering exercise among operators from both within and outside the AFP to gather postcode information for potential and existing EV drivers who need access to a kerbside charger.

“This is, we believe, an essential task and should open the door to much more widespread fleet EV adoption, much faster, than would occur if government and charging companies were simply trying to estimate where provision was required.” By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News