G. David Felt

Leclanché Energy Storage Solutions of Switzerland has achieved a significant breakthrough in the safety of performance Lithium-ion batteries for use in EVs. Leclanché has taken current Lithium-ion cell production to the next step by adding a special fire-retardant additive to its electrolyte formula composition lowering the risk of thermal events by close to 80%. Verified by independent nail penetration tests has confirmed the companies claims of significantly lowering risk of thermal events with fire. The non-flammable electrolyte additive provides enhanced cell safety option for rail, truck, bus and auto EV markets. Intertek Germany, renowned third-party testing lab conducted a series of industry standard nail penetration tests on Leclanché 60 Ah cells. During this test with the cells punctured and the resulting internal short circuit, these cells exhibited a far lower risk of fire than the same cells without the fire-retardant additives. Risk of fire to passengers onboard and expensive lithium-ion battery recalls causing disruptions, world leading energy storage solutions company Leclanché is leading the global markets in reducing these risks that auto makers have to take on to build and sell EV solutions. To quote Leclanché: “While the entire battery industry continues to place considerable R&D resources into the development of solid-state batteries, there’s a critical need to enhance the safety of today’s high energy density lithium-ion cell technology. Most efforts, until now, adversely impact the performance or longevity of cells. Leclanché has been able to develop a high performance and high energy density lithium-ion cell exhibiting high safety characteristics without any negative impact on performance or longevity. As technological advancements continue to be developed, this is a crucial improvement in state of the art cell technology, that does not require breakthrough technology that could still be several years away from commercial availability” said Pierre Blanc, chief technology officer, Leclanché. Leclanché Willstatt Germany production facility that has built Lithium-ion cells based on their water-based process for the last 10 years will be the site for production of these new fire-resistant cells with availability starting Q1 2023 to OEMs. Quote: According to Anil Srivastava, CEO, Leclanché, “Our breakthrough should encourage manufacturers waiting on the side-lines for next generation solid-state batteries to move forward with their advanced fleet vehicle designs today – safe lithium-ion batteries have arrived and Leclanché has them.” View full article

Wow, this sucks for Europe. Anti-speeding tech and 'black box' now mandatory in new EU cars (msn.com)

Very cool about Rivian ramping up production. Electric truck maker Rivian's stock surges as deliveries triple (nypost.com)

Not sure where your pulling your numbers, but Ford reported their Monthly June Sales that is outperforming the industry as June Sales showed a 31% increase in sales, not 5%. Edit: Adding actual link to the release info: https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2022/07/05/ford-june-sales.html

Good first review of the Cadillac LYRIQ. 2023 Cadillac Lyriq First Drive Review: The New American Luxury Songbook (insideevs.com)

Not for use by Auto EVs, but very cool tech that is being explored for long term storage of power for end use at homes and businesses which could include charging EVs. Climate change: 'Sand battery' could solve green energy's big problem - BBC News This is but one of many stories out this week on looking at better ways to store energy, especially when green energy generation produces more than is being used at that time by humans.

If ya ever get out to Washington look me up, happy to BBQ some food for you.

Awesome, thank you for sharing. Great picture of you both, so glad you have similar interests and can enjoy spending time together. I am like that with my oldest sister, we get along real well and have similar interest too.

Celebrated a family members birthday with Surf n Turf dinner tonight.

Saw this GMC, not sure of the year, but cool to see today.

This is the kind of thing that will sink Tesla faster than anything. Ignoring the racist crap going on in their factories. Tesla's Big Problem Keeps Growing (msn.com) Ouch this is not good for GM initially, but if it helps them ramp up other products faster as they work out the kinks in producing the Hummer on the Ultium Platform, it could really benefit them over other companies. GM is making just 12 electric Hummers a day at its Detroit factory despite a waiting list of 77,000 buyers, report says (msn.com)

Hope everyone had a good 4th of July celebrating our 246th birthday as a country. Ribs was the meal at my house. Came out really well I think, fall of the bone juicy. Pictures start from fresh on the grill, then checked every hour till 3hrs of cooking, then slathered in our homemade BBQ sauce and 15 min later off the grill.

Wish GM would get their e-crate motors up and selling. I know the ramp to get production vehicles out is ahead of the performance catalogue, but I would sure love to see what the options are for conversions with e-crate motors.

Very cool to see that the Rivian R1S is finally getting some attention as they ramp up production of this SUV. I find it cool that it can hold 3 children's seats across, far more room than most vehicles.

Very cool and weird that the trailer wiring would not work. Very cool, look forward to a picture of your JGC once it is all detailed and looking pretty. Agree leather in hot weather sucks. OUCH Would love to see a picture of you and your sister as she sounds very tiny next to you. Have a Great week Robert.

@trinacriabob @oldshurst442 Awesome pictures, thank you for snapping and sharing. That 442 that I know Olds would love got me thinking about the future of auto's and while Oldsmobile is a dead brand and I just finished watching Demolition Man where you see a supposedly 23rd Century modern electric Olds Dealership and then the Demolition man in a old 442 with Sandra Bullock smashes out the store front had me thinking of a GM modern 442 electric version. So originally the 442 stood for 4 barrel, 4 speed transmission, and dual exhaust. 1965 is when Olds broke GM's internal rule about mid-size auto's having V8's biger than 330 cubic inches in size and the Olds 442 changed to represent 400 cubic inches, 4 speed transmission and dual exhaust. 1968-72 Oldsmobile 442 values are holding steady, for now - Hagerty Media I now wonder if GM could not make a modern 21st century EV as a 442 which would be 4 electric motors, 4 doors and dual roof panels as a modern performance sedan to compete against Tesla Platinum and other performance luxury sedans. Thoughts?

Very Cool Read. Even though it's rare and valuable, 1-of-15 Ramcharger Max... | Hemmings

Look forward to hearing about how the Auction goes Robert. Wishing your sister and you all the best. If you have not figured it out why we are laughing is that the down numbers mean little to nothing right now as the overall industry is hurting with supply chain issues and as each OEM brings certain manufacturing back in house rather than rely on China or other Asian rim production, we will see things return to more normal situation as is expected. GM is one of the first that is expected to get back to normal by the start of 2023 as they reacted early on to looking at what would be affected and bring back to North America production of critical components. Ford started following at well and I expect them to both bounce and surpass Asian and European auto companies as they move forward in their change over from ICE to EV. GM Has 95,000 Cars To Sell, But It Can’t – 24/7 Wall St. (247wallst.com) This story is a perfect example as to why they had a 15% drop. Unless one is in a Must Have to Buy situation, it makes no sense to buy an auto now especially an ICE one that has to have parts added after manufacturing. The big thing about this is that it will push a surplus of auto's back onto the lots to sell of ICE and EVs but then smooth back out to a JIT system once production of the electronics gets going here again in North America.

Just got back from a run to Costco and was surprised to see at the Bank of America in rat rod fashion running a very cool Chevy and I found what I think was the year or general era. late 1930's Chevy like this one that I found online. Some times I really wish my eyes could also be a camera to snap a picture and store it to share. Hopefully I will see it again and not be in crazy holiday traffic.

Happy 4th of July Weekend Everyone!!!

Have you considered instead of the OEM battery, an upgrade of a Lithium-ion auto battery that will last much longer and give a better performance response to the system? I have them in my autos and other coworkers have them and they work great.

How is that any different than the Pickup Failure Benz did of just Badge Engineering the Navero built by Nissan? Mercedes has their FWD appliance autos to compete against so many basic entry-level autos, badged autos by others and the list is long for their failures as much as their wins. You also are showing your ignorance as while Genesis does not sell their Ubber 6 figure luxury auto's here, they do in the asian rim and have plans as an EV to sell them Globally. I know others have posted about this and I know I have posted in the past. Just like Mercedes makes and sells select autos in the US, same with every other auto company. G90 Long Wheelbase is their competitor to the S-Class and offers just as much customization and can go well beyond $150,000 dollars depending on how the 1% crowd chooses to customize it. Genesis G90 Design | GENESIS Here is a basic config I did of things I liked and it came out to $140,563 US dollars.

Seems the Germans are no longer the standard of Luxury Auto's. Koreans have taken the lead. Specifically, Genesis leads as the best Luxury line of auto's according to the J.D. Powers survey. https://www.linkedin.com/posts/jd-power-and-associates_jdpowerawards-activity-6947586440616665089-8Hta?utm_source=linkedin_share&utm_medium=android_app

Totally agree with you and @oldshurst442 on this story. I think Musk is going to be hurting at other auto companies ramp up production and he is still struggling with very dated EVs. They hit some major points: Some Highlights From Car Wars 2023-2026 Projections: Inventory will be a problem for a while. There are about 1 million vehicles on dealer lots right now; traditionally there are 3.2 million, and pent-up demand will increase to 6 million units this year. A record 61 new vehicles, on average, will launch in each of the next four years, for a total of 245 new models anticipated to hit the market for the 2023-2026 model years, including a high number of low-volume nameplates. In the past the average was 41 new models a year. There will be 182 different crossovers by the 2026 model year, and CUVs will account for 51 percent of the total sales volume, making it very crowded. The segment will include a growing number of jacked-up wagons. The number of body-on-frame trucks will grow from 61 for the 2022 model year to 85 for the 2026 model year while automakers increasingly discontinue car lines. Fleet demand is not being fulfilled right now, which means 25 percent of annual sales demand have not been met. It is creating a jam-up that will take years to resolve. The Escalade ESV gets 14 mpg on average mix of highway and local driving. So a full tank of gas gets me 490 miles of driving. I do not drive much since I work from home, but with Summer finally here, I have used it to get decking as after 23yrs I have to replace my worn-out decking on my massive deck I have on the house. The deck is a two-part space with the first one being 20 feet wide x 16ft deep. Second lower section is 16 feet wide x 16 feet deep, so been making runs up to a small town of Sultan that has a wood mill. Here I can get my 20ft and 16ft lengths of decking, so I have no seems at 99 cents per foot compared to buying them from Home Depot at $2.49 a foot. big savings so worth the gas to drive and pick up what I need for a few days of replacement. I did my last drive yesterday, so hoping to finish up by tomorrow the deck and have a nice relaxing safe space. Happy Canada day to all. Happy Fourth of July to all.