Williams Auto Group

Innovation - Easy to Pick from a Lineup!

Sure they are best known as a car company, but at Honda, the focus has always been on human mobility.  And "Innovation is their engine".  The quest for innovative human mobility solutions drives research at Honda Robotics today.

Follow this link to learn more about how Honda is blazing the trail in human Walk Assist.  Learn more about Bodyweight Support Assist, which can help support a portion of a person's weight and reduce the load on muscles and joints.  Learn more too about Honda's research in Stride Management, for those with weakened leg muscles who are still able to walk.  See how Honda research will someday help people lengthen their stride and regulate their walking pace, helping them increase their mobility, making it easier for them to function in the everyday world.  Honda believes in The Power of Dreams.

Buy the Sizzle, Lease the Steak?

I thought I had my hands full with reading, 'riting and 'rithmetic.  How am I going to do with "Reuse, Resell, Refabricate and Recycle"?  Nissan Motors and Sumitomo Corporation aim to find out.  In this article, they announce a joint venture to recycle the lithium ion batteries slated to power the new Nissan Leaf electric vehicle due out in 2010.

The business model recognizes that after the end of normal vehicle life, the high-performance lithium-ion batteries to be used by Nissan will retain 70 to 80 percent of residual capacity and can be reused and resold to various industries as a solution to energy-storage.  Nissan and Sumitomo's intent is to create a market for these so-called "second life" batteries.  According to the Sumitomo website, "Second-life batteries present an ideal solution to the renewable-energy sector, allowing energy to be stored for later use. Such ecological application of second-life batteries would contribute to a net reduction of CO2 beyond what is achieved by the all-electric, zero-emission car".  This will also serve as a carbon-footprint offset to the generation of the electricity used by electric vehicles.

But wait, you say, these batteries are quite expensive, are they not?  How will the average driver afford them?  "This direct management of the battery's entire value chain is important to ensure that our EV customers do not bear the cost of the battery," said Hideaki Watanabe, head of Nissan's Zero Emission Business Unit. "Nissan is exploring several options including battery lease or credit model based on a monthly payment scheme. With this proposition, the total running cost, which equals the monthly battery payment plus the cost to charge the battery, is comparable to the cost to refuel a similar gasoline-powered car. Ultimately, this is a compelling economic proposition for a zero-emission car that meets all your driving needs."

So, under this proposed arrangement, I may someday buy an electric car, but lease the battery?  And the cost (including charging) should be about what we pay for gasoline?  We'll continue to keep you posted as this fascinating new technology emerges.

Can One Leaf Change Everything?

We mentioned the forthcoming all-electric, zero-tailpipe-emissions Nissan Leaf in a recent post here, now there is a fantastic photo gallery at NissanUSA.com, including the first shots we have seen of the dashboard of a fully-electric car.  Want to learn more about Nissan's  committment to making all-electric vehicles available to the mass market on a global scale?  Visit the Nissan Leaf home page!