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Hong Kong is a popular place to be for many travelers. Scattered throughout the 200 islands, Hong Kong has a population of more than 7 millions. Hong Kong is situated in China in Eastern Asia, near the South China Sea. After being a part of Great Britain it was included within China only in 1997. It is a place that sports a diversity of culture, religion as well as style of living.

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South Africa’s Department of Science and Technology (DST) recently hosted the country’s first solar car race. However, the department had a much more significant role in the development of the Joule electric Multi-Purpose Vehicle (MPV). The car was designed and built by Optimal Energy, a company born in 2005 with the help of the DST Innovation Fund. DST have contributed about US$ 4.5 million of the 6.2 million required to develop the car, which was launched at the Paris Motor Show last week.

The Joule is a 6 seater mini MPV with a top speed of 135 and the normal nippy acceleration of an electric car. It is designed to be able to accept a range of battery packs and can accommodate 1 or 2 packs giving it a range of up to 400 km. This range identifies it as a car suited to urban use.

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Filed under: Scion, Toyota, LA Auto Show, USA

Toyota’s entry-level and hip Scion brand needs a bit of a pick-me-up, as the marque’s sales are down even in the face of high fuel prices here in the United States. Scion could end up getting that new product it so desperately needs in the form of Toyota’s radical new iQ. According to Motor Trend, the new iQ will make its debut in production form as a Scion at the upcoming LA Auto Show, and your humble scribes will be in attendance. If true, the new iQ will give Scion an edgy new product to do battle with the likes of the smart fortwo.

Toyota’s iQ features a novel new 3+1 seating arrangement, which allows three normal-sized adults plus one extra spot behind the driver for small kids or an adult in emergencies. Its closest competitor in size, the fortwo, seats only two adults. We’ll see if this rumor, which would be very good news for Scion, turns out to be true when we get to LA.

[Source: Motor Trend]

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This is a guest post by Dave Harcourt of Pretoria, who is active in information transfer for agricultural processing in Africa, mainly via the DIGIVU Blog.

South Africa, recently dogged by electricity shortages at the state-run generator (Eskom), is innovating strongly in the energy sector. I will be discussing examples of this innovation in future posts, but now for the first of several reports on newsworthy energy related events in South Africa.

South African Solar Challenge 2008

South Africa’s Department of Science and Technology (DST) was one of the supporters of the South African Solar Challenge 2008 solar car race, which ended at the Innovation Hub in Pretoria this week. Solar car races are by no means new, but this is the first time one has been run in South Africa. The race, which was noted in a recent post on solar cars, was organized by the Advanced Energy Foundation.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Porsche

Quash the electric Cayman rumor. Ruf Automobiles has a long history of taking already fast sports cars from Porsche and making them extraordinarily fast. That typically happens by means of adding more displacement, more boost, more fuel etc. Now, founder Alois Ruf is taking inspiration from the hydroelectric power station in his home town to create a battery-powered 911. The traditional 911 flat-6 engine has been dispensed with in favor of a 204 hp electric motor that generates 479 lb-ft of torque. Ruf worked with Camarillo, CA CALMOTORS on the motor and battery integration for this first concept. Energy storage is handled by lithium iron phosphate batteries supplied by Axeon. The combined capacity of the 96 cell system is 50.7 kWh and the charge time is 10 hours. That’s enough to give an estimated range of 150-200 miles although it’s not clear what kind of driving style it would take to achieve that. That 1,200 lb battery pack means the 4,200 lb eRuf concept weighs about 1,000 lbs more than a regular 911. The instant torque of the electric motor means the electric Porsche should be able to accelerate to 60 mph in under seven seconds. That’s neither regular 911 nor Tesla territory, but Ruf will surely find ways to cut the mass. No word from Ruf on when or if it will ever offer this car to customers but if someone comes along with an inordinate amount of disposable cash, Ruf will probably replicate this car.

[Source: Ruf]

Continue reading Ruf reveals electrically powered 911 instead of Cayman EV

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