Control Arm (right) - Crown# 4616402 on 2040-parts.com

EV charging points 'to top 100,000 by 2020'

THERE will be more than 10 times the number of electric car charging points as petrol stations by 2020 – and that’s just one of the planned networks. According to POD Point CEO Erik Fairbairn, the conditions are beginning to emerge to allow electric and plug-in hybrid cars to flourish, leading to an explosion in charge point installations in the coming years that could top 100,000 just in POD Point’s own infrastructure. There are currently fewer than 9,000 petrol stations on British roads.

Audi A3 E-tron concept (2011) first official pictures

This is the Audi A3 E-tron concept, just unveiled alongside the new Q3 SUV at the 2011 Shanghai motor show. It’s Audi’s second A3 concept car in the space of two months – the first was a 402bhp super saloon, but this is a little more eco-conscious, with a plug-in hybrid powertrain – but both preview how the next A3 will look. Does this new Audi A3 E-tron concept still use the first concept's turbocharged 2.5-litre five-pot engine?

SAE approves new fast-charging standard for EVs, plug-ins

SAE International said it has approved a new technical standard that will dramatically reduce charging times for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles and electric vehicles. The global engineering group said the new charging standard, developed with the cooperation of more than 190 automakers, utilities and equipment builders, will allow charging times to be reduced from as long as eight hours to as short as 20 minutes. Automakers want DC direct charging to take less than 10 minutes, or roughly the time it takes to fill a tank with gasoline.The goal is to accommodate currents as high as 500 volts distributed from public charging stations.