With 38,000 examples of the pioneering Nissan LEAF sold globally so far and sales of game-changing Renault ZOE city car just about to start, the Renault-Nissan Alliance’s Zero Emission strategy is right on target according to the man who should know.
 
Visiting the Paris Motor Show, Hideaki Watanabe talks about the success of LEAF and the Alliance’s ambitious plans to have 1.5 million electric vehicles on the road by 2016.
 
He also reveals how the Alliance is stepping up deployment of its Quick Charger programme which will allow EV drivers to recharge their batteries to 80 per cent capacity in just 30 minutes.

With its modern looks, extended range and easy to drive attitude, the new Renault ZOE – launched at this week’s Paris Motor Show and in showrooms shortly – is going to make a significant contribution to the company’s EV sales.
 
Renault is on target to sell 20,000 electric vehicles across Europe in 2012, a figure that will rise considerably in 2013 as ZOE completes the company’s four strong EV range joining Kangoo Z.E., Fluence Z.E. and Twizy. Foucher has a soft spot for Twizy a car she says is ‘a real Renault.’ “It’s innovative, different and fun: there’s nothing else like it on the roads.”
 

Renault’s new ZOE electric city car is taking pride of place alongside the new Clio at the Paris Motor Show this week.

Revealed by Alliance boss Carlos Ghosn to a huge number of journalists from all over the world, ZOE not only wears Renault’s new ‘face’, it embodies the company’s progress in four areas: design, innovation, environment and quality.

On the eve of the Paris Motor Show, we’ve been out and about on the streets of the French capital trying to find out what Parisians think about electric vehicles.
 
Do they know all there is to know about cars like the Nissan LEAF and Renault Fluence Z.E. or are there still many misconceptions?
 
Watch our video to discover the word from the street… and then come back to the blog over the next few days to find out the truth from our experts at the show.

The atmosphere at the Paris Show is going to be electric… thanks to the Renault-Nissan Alliance.

Both companies will be showing a number of pure electric vehicles – some already in production, some future concepts – proving that the Alliance really is the world leader when it comes to zero emission mobility.

Big excitement today as Nissan showed off the TeRRA FCEV concept that it's going to bring to the Paris Motor Show later in September.

What's an FCEV I hear you ask? Simple, it stands for Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle. What's a fuel cell then? Even simpler; it's like a battery that uses fuel. You put hydrogen in, it gets combined with oxygen, which generates electricity that goes to turn the wheels and power the car. And the only thing that comes out of the exhaust is water. How? Because if you combine hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O2) you get H2O – water.

Electric delivery vehicles are perfect for busy inner cities where the lack of tailpipe emissions and their near silent running make life far more pleasant for those who live or work there.

Equally significantly, there’s ample opportunity to recharge batteries with growing networks of regular and quick chargers available on the streets.

But EVs could have an even bigger role to play in rural areas. Nissan is about to start field tests to see whether EVs – charged overnight at home – might, in fact, provide a lifeline for residents in areas where regular fuel stations are closing down due to falling demand from an ageing and shrinking population.

The phrase ‘looking for leads’ is about to take on a whole new meaning for the Portuguese police, for they have just taken delivery of eight Nissan LEAF electric vehicles. And leads – of the electrical variety – come as standard!

The zero-emission cars, which have flashing blue lights and clear ‘Policia’ markings, will be used by Portugal’s PSP (Policia de Segurança) urban security force mainly as part of its Safe Schools Programme.

Winning an award or two would normally be something to shout about… but the all-electric Renault ZOE supermini does everything in silence. So we’ll just have to whisper that ZOE has won a pair of ‘green’ awards.

The Next Green Car Awards 2012, run by the UK’s leading eco-conscious motoring website, has hailed the zero-emission Renault ZOE as its top supermini, highlighting its ‘impressive’ acceleration and ‘normal’ prices.

World Food Programme and International Committee of the Red Cross to experience the 100% electric Nissan LEAF for 6 months

Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. and Fleet Forum today handed over a 100% electric Nissan LEAF to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the World Food Programme (WFP), signaling the start of the Electric Vehicle Demonstrator Programme.