Blog of RENAULT NISSAN Alliance

New York-based David Kirkpatrick, technology commentator and founder and CEO of Techonomy, describes his first ever EV experience after a lap of Davos behind the wheel of a Nissan LEAF.
 

Watch the video to discover his verdict...

The sun might be shining but the snow is lying deep and crisp and even. And the mercury has fallen to -4 degrees C. What better way to warm up than with a mug of hot chocolate… especially when it’s heated using renewable electricity?

The Cocoa Hut at the Hub Pavilion in Davos, Switzerland, is proving a magnet for passers by, all keen to sample the latest innovation from the Renault-Nissan Alliance.

LEAF-to-home technology reverses the Nisan LEAF’s usual energy flow by using power stored in the car’s batteries to drive domestic appliances.

As the thermometer drops and night falls, the Renault-Nissan Alliance looks back on the first full day at the Hub Pavilion in Davos Promenade and ahead to a busy day tomorrow.

Overnight there had been yet another huge snowfall – locals can’t remember a winter with so much snow – so the first task was simply getting to the Pavilion. Thankfully, Swiss efficiency meant snowploughs and sweepers were out at first light clearing the way.

With the 2012 World Economic Forum not due to start officially until tomorrow, day one in Davos has been spent making sure everything is in place and that the fleet of Alliance electric vehicles – two brand new full-production Renault Fluence Z.E. models and a pair of Nissan LEAFs -– are ready for a busy few days of test drives ahead.

With high levels of security around the town ready for the influx of world leaders, drivers and cars all need security clearance, so part of the day for the team has been spent sorting the paperwork.

At the Hub itself, there’s been much interest in a third Nissan LEAF, which has been demonstrating Nissan’s innovative LEAF-to-Home technology. Electricity stored in its battery has been powering hobs heating vast pans of hot chocolate ,cups of which have been handed out to passers-by… just the thing for the sub-zero temperatures.

The Renault-Alliance team have also welcomed a number of visitors to the Hub, including Simon Sproule, corporate vice president, global marketing communications at Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., who’s over from Japan for the Forum and have chatted to the key people behind Hub Culture, including Creative Director Stan Stalnaker (see Stan's interview).

Don’t forget to come back to the Alliance blog tomorrow and discover what day two at Davos has to offer.

Creative director Stan Stalnaker explains the philosophy behind the global collaboration network Hub Culture.

The Renault-Nissan Alliance is one of the strategic partners of the Hub Pavilion which is providing an informal environment for business and political leaders and other influencers in Davos, Switzerland, for the 2012 World Economic Forum.

Meet Stan and discover all there is to know about Hub Culture at www.huculture/groups/davos/news/594/

And keep following the blog to stay up to speed with what the Alliance is doing at Davos… tomorrow, learn how Nissan LEAF can keep you warm inside!

Nissan LEAF, the award-winning pure electric vehicle, can do a great deal more than get you from A to B producing zero emissions as it goes. It can even power your house.

Nissan has developed technology that allows Nissan LEAF to provide electricity to a domestic dwelling, powering everything from lighting to laptops and heating to cooking. You could even do your ironing ‘powered-by-LEAF’!

Called LEAF-to-Home, the system harnesses the power saved in a fully charged Nissan LEAF battery – about 24kWH – to run a typical home for up to two days in the event of an emergency such as a power blackout.

Jan. 20 — Shibetsu, Hokkaido — Auto journalists put the all-electric Nissan LEAF through its paces on three powdery test courses in Shibetsu, Hokkaido, this week, in the freezing temperatures of northern Japan.

Some 230 meters above sea level, media gathered to assess the LEAF’s driving performance and handling in extreme weather conditions, icing any concerns that wintry weather could drastically reduce battery performance.

-- Renault and Nissan electric vehicles available for test driving and powering appliances during World Economic Forum in Davos --

DAVOS-KLOSTERS, Switzerland (Jan. 19, 2012)--Top business leaders and heads of state will gather next week in the Swiss Alps to debate global social and economic policy. Thanks to the Renault-Nissan Alliance, they will discover cutting-edge technology that powers cars – and even household appliances.

Policymakers, academics and CEOs from some of the world’s largest companies will meet Jan. 25-28 to brainstorm the planet’s most pressing concerns –- particularly those related to resource scarcity and energy security – at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Renault-Nissan Alliance CEO Carlos Ghosn and other executives from both Renault and Nissan will attend the annual conference.

Renault-Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn was the keynote speaker at the Automotive News World Congress on Tuesday, Jan. 10 during the North American International Auto show. Ghosn explained the evolution of Nissan's crisis management strategy, first developed during the company's historic turnaround in 1999.

Established automakers are facing one of the most dynamic and challenging times in recent memory and success will demand bold moves. Xavier Mosquet, a senior partner and managing director in the Detroit office of The Boston Consulting Group and coleader of the firm’s Automotive practice, recently sat down with Carlos Ghosn, Chairman and CEO of the Renault-Nissan Alliance, to discuss a range of industry-related topics, including the prospects for electric cars, industry consolidation, how Renault and Nissan are positioned in China and India, and the leadership challenges of pulling companies through hard times.

The innovative Nissan e-NV200 Concept makes its world debut at the 2012 North American Auto Show in Detroit and serves as more evidence of the Renault-Nissan Alliance’s leadership position in the zero-emission auto market. Based on the popular Nissan NV200 multi-usage vehicle, which is available in Japan, Europe and China, the Nissan e-NV200 Concept previews a near-future production version of a full electric vehicle. It is designed to provide businesses or families with flexible, roomy interior space, while achieving a dramatic CO2 footprint reduction.