Honda finally has a name for its first electric SUV, not to mention more precise timing. As Roadshownotes, the automaker has revealed that this EV people hauler (not pictured here) will be called the Prologue when it arrives in early 2024. You'll also see the promised Acura SUV sometime in calendar 2024, although that vaguer promise suggests this model will trail its more mainstream counterpart.

The company still isn't providing much detail about what the Prologue will entail, although it reiterated that both the Prologue and its Acura counterpart will run on GM's Ultium batteries. Don't expect that tie-up to last long, though, as Honda also promises EVs in the second half of the decade based on a new "e:Architecture."

The Prologue could be one of Honda's most important cars in recent memory. The company plans to shift completely to EVs by 2040, with 40 percent of major-market sales either using batteries or hydrogen fuel cells by 2030. If the brand is going to meet those goals, it needs to roll out broadly appealing EVs rather than relatively niche models like the Honda E compact. The Prologue will start that course and show just how well Honda can transition away from combustion engines.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is calling on its sister agency to implement stricter regulation related to automated vehicle technology. In a letter it sent to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) at the start of February (via CNBC), the NTSB says the regulator “must act” to “develop a strong safety foundation.” What’s notable about the document is that NTSB chair Robert Sumwalt frequently cites Tesla in a negative light to support his department’s suggestions. The automaker is referenced 16 times across the letter’s 15 pages.

For instance, in one section, Sumwalt writes of NHTSA’s “continued failure” to implement regulations that would prevent driver-assist systems like Autopilot from operating beyond their intended use. “Because NHTSA has put in place no requirements, manufacturers can operate and test vehicles virtually anywhere, even if the location exceeds the AV control system’s limitations,” Sumwalt writes. “For example, Tesla recently released a beta version of its Level 2 Autopilot system, described as having full self-driving capability. By releasing the system, Tesla is testing on public roads a highly automated AV technology but with limited oversight or reporting requirements.”

This is not the first time the NTSB has criticized both Tesla and its sister agency. When it held a hearing last year on the deadly 2018 crash that killed Apple developer Walter Haung, Sumwalt expressed frustration with both the NHTSA and Tesla. “Government regulators have provided scant oversight,” he said of the former while blasting the automaker for not responding to its recommendations. But there’s little the agency can do beyond issuing recommendations. As part of its role in investigating traffic accidents, it does not have the authority to regulate or even enforce any of the safety measures it suggests. That responsibility falls to the NHTSA. Under the Trump administration, the agency has mostly let state regulators decide how to approach the question of automated vehicle technologies.

Honda is revealing more about its first EVs for the US — and not surprisingly, they'll be decidedly larger than the Honda E. US sales chief Dave Gardner told the AP and others that Honda would sell two electric SUVS in the US for the 2024 model year. While further details were unsurprisingly scarce, one model would sell through the upscale Acura badge. Both would have previously hinted-at GM electric technology underneath, although Honda would supply the rest.

You'll hear more about the SUVs later this year, Gardner said. He added that there would be hybrid versions of popular models, although he didn't name them. The company currently sells two dedicated hybrids, the Clarity and Insight, as well as partly electrified versions of the Accord and CR-V.

We wouldn't expect these models to look too much like the SUV E:concept from September 2020. The production version of that vehicle was headed to China, and its two-door coupe design likely wouldn't get much traction in North America.

Honda doesn't have much choice. With President Biden expected to bring back tougher emissions standards and otherwise make a push for electric cars, Honda could be in trouble if it doesn't lower its emissions averages with more EVs and hybrids. There's also the matter of competition. With Ford, GM and other rivals planning to electrify large parts of their lineups in the years ahead, Honda risks being left behind in the US (and abroad) if it sticks with combustion engines.

Canoo has already given us a peek at the van and delivery vehicle it plans to launch, and now the company has unveiled images of its first electric pickup truck built on the same electric platform. According to the company, pre-orders will start in Q2 of this year, with the truck's release due in early 2023. The design certainly takes a different approach from Tesla's edgy Cybertruck, and is even going to stand out as electric pickups from Rivian, Ford and others start to hit the streets.

Executive Chairman Tony Aquila said in a statement that this truck "is as strong as the toughest trucks out there and is designed to be exponentially more productive...We made accessories for people who use trucks – on the job, weekends, adventure."

The specs promise more than 200 miles of range on a charge, with up to 600 HP and 550 lb-ft of torgue in a dual-motor configuration, and a payload capacity of up to 1,800 pounds. At 76 inches, it's one inch taller than Tesla's Cybertruck but notably shorter than GMC's 81.1-inch tall Hummer EV. It's also short in length compared to those competitors at just 184 inches, although a pull-out bed extension brings the total length to 213 inches. The Hummer EV is 216.8 inches long while Tesla's truck reaches 231.7 inches.

When that extender is out, the bed is eight feet long, big enough for a 4x8 sheet of plywood, assuming you don't want to break up the space with modular dividers. Their design also includes side steps, flip down side tables, and a front compartment with a flip down table and storage section. The truck also has plugs to make exportable power available on all sides of the vehicle, in case you're in need of a generator. Canoo hasn't revealed full specs or a price, but we should find out more about this truck soon.

At this point in its history, Volvo’s Polestar brand is best known for making upscale EVs like the $60,000 Polestar 2. That’s what makes its latest project, Re:Move, so unusual. It’s a three-wheeled electric sled that came out of a remote collaboration between the automaker, industrial designer Konstantin Grcic, electric motorcycle maker Cake, aluminum manufacturer Hydro and Wallpaper Magazine. The group says they set out to re-envision what last-mile delivery could look like in a post-pandemic world. Re:Move is the result of that collaboration.

Polestar

There aren't many details on the EV just yet, but Polestar says it's designed to be compact enough to drive in most bike lanes while carrying approximately 600 pounds of cargo. The frame is also made from fully recycled aluminum. As a cyclist, I’m not sure how I feel about sharing a bike lane with what is essentially an oversized e-bike, but at least it’s better than a parked FedEx or UPS truck forcing cyclists into a car lane.

What’s more, Polestar seems serious about turning Re:Move into something that could eventually make its way to city streets. The company says it will unveil a working version of the Re:Move this fall. In the meantime, it will host an SXSW session detailing the work that went into the design on March 17th.

If you’ve ever watched MotoGP (motorcycle) racing, you might have wondered how the camera appears to stay level even while the bike turns left and right, nearly becoming horizontal. Saftari was curious about this himself and, rather than simply answering the question, he built a gyroscopic camera rig that allows the camera […]

Read more on MAKE

The post Motorcycle Gyromount Always Delivers Perfect Video appeared first on Make:.

If you’ve ever watched MotoGP (motorcycle) racing, you might have wondered how the camera appears to stay level even while the bike turns left and right, nearly becoming horizontal. Saftari was curious about this himself and, rather than simply answering the question, he built a gyroscopic camera rig that allows the camera […]

Read more on MAKE

The post Motorcycle Gyromount Always Delivers Perfect Video appeared first on Make:.

Riding a bike can be fun, great exercise, and, if you live in a city conducive to it, a great mode of transportation. According to author Scott Bennett who lives in Vancouver BC, Canada, a city with a high bike theft rate, he “wanted to have some peace of mind […]

Read more on MAKE

The post Secure and Track Your Bike with this Arduino-Based GPS Lock appeared first on Make:.

Riding a bike can be fun, great exercise, and, if you live in a city conducive to it, a great mode of transportation. According to author Scott Bennett who lives in Vancouver BC, Canada, a city with a high bike theft rate, he “wanted to have some peace of mind […]

Read more on MAKE

The post Secure and Track Your Bike with this Arduino-Based GPS Lock appeared first on Make:.

A company called Studio Diip has created a motorized go-cart. For fish. Though "why" is the first question that comes to mind, at this point we're only able to give you the "how." When Little Dory starts to swim in a particular direction, her movement is captured by a top-mounted web cam, processed by a Beagleboard and used to steer the Arduino-controlled carriage under her bowl. As seen in the video after the fold, that lets her follow her muse outside the aquarium's confines. We're hoping this experiment makes it beyond the lab one day, as we're pretty damned curious to see where a fish wants to go. ("Away from the cat" or "towards the ocean" seem like safe bets.)

Filed under: Misc, Transportation

Comments

Source: Studio Diip