Following its victory last year, Renault ZOE has put in yet another remarkable performance at the 2015 ZENN Monte-Carlo Rally with four ZOE models taking the top four places.

In its second appearance in the prestigious international competition, Renault ZOE led the field:

• First in the overall standings of the ZENN Rally
• Four ZOE in the top four places in the overall standings
• First in the consumption standings
• Five ZOE in the top five places in the consumption standings
• First in the regularity standings
• Four ZOE in the top four places in the regularity standings

With eight racing zones punctuated with five regularity tests in this year’s ZENN Monte-Carlo Rally (ZENN standing for “zero emissions, zero noise”), the competitors drove a total of 130 miles over seven and a half hours.  Renault entered four teams, including a press car and a blogger car. A team of individuals also took part in the rally on an individual initiative alongside the competing brands.

At the conclusion of the two-day race, these five ZOE finished in first, second, third, fourth and seventh place. The “individual” team finished fourth. Renault applauds this non-professional team and is delighted to see that the electric hatchback brought it every chance of competing strongly in an event as demanding as the ZENN Rally.

Renault ZOE had already been acclaimed by 98% of its customers for its design, performance, best-in-class range, driving pleasure and exclusive technologies. With this array of victories, Renault ZOE is once again demonstrating its unrivalled performances in the world of electric vehicles.

With some 22,000 registrations worldwide since launch, the Renault ZOE adventure continues.

Okay…show us your pinks.

Renault ZOE looks okay in pink, but we do wonder how a Tesla Model S or BMW i8 would look wearing this color.

We’ve seen lots of questionably customized ZOEs, so witnessing a pink-wrapped example isn’t surprising.

We would like to point out that customization of automobiles signifies a step beyond the appliance car idea. So, customization is a positive for electric cars, regardless of whether or not we like the path of customization that’s been chosen.

Source: Inside EVs

The first all-electric car club in the UK — the E-Car Club — is going to be experiencing some rapid growth this year, based on recent reports.

The club is apparently now set to increase its fleet by roughly 100 vehicles before the middle of 2015 — which means that the car club will have grown its fleet numbers more than 7-fold in just ~18 months.

To be exact, the E-car club is within the very near future going to be increasing the fleet from 15 vehicles to 60 — with another 50 expected to be added sometime during the next ~6 months, across its locations in the South East, London, and the Midlands.

For those that haven’t heard of the club/company before — it launched in October 2013 in east London. At the time of launch, it was offering only Renault ZOE and Fluence electric vehicles (EVs) to residents & businesses.

The company now offers higher end models such as the Nissan LEAF as well — and is planning to start offering “light commercial vehicles” such as Nissan eNV200s and Renault Kangoo ZEs sometime in the near future as well.

The club currently has roughly ~700 members (+ 15 business customers) based on figures that it has publicly shared. Members pay from £5.50 an hour and up to use EVs parked in dedicated charging spots.

The company has so far been pretty successful, hence the upcoming expansion — which is being funded by more than £1 million raised via investors. This figure reportedly includes a £500,000 investment from the Centrica-backed social impact fund Ignite.

The latest influx of vehicles is being provided by fleet services company Alphabet, which is supplying 35 electric vehicles — 23 Renault ZOEs, 5 Nissan LEAFs, and 7 Renault Kangoo ZE vans.

Renault has introduced a special version of “driving school” Zoe. It’s to allow learner drivers to familiarize themselves with the electric car in their first hours of driving.

Available since January, the Zoe dedicated to driving schools had been formalized in October, since the Paris Convention of Network driver education centers (RECs). Fitted directly in Renault factories, it has double pedals and double interior and exterior mirrors.

Read more: Automobile-Propre

The Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) has announced changes to the Plug-in Car Grant (PiCG). From 1st April 2015, buyers of eligible electric cars will be able to claim 35% of the vehicle’s OTR price as opposed to the 25% currently offered.

However, as the PiCG will remain capped at £5,000 (for the time being), these changes really only affect electric vehicles with an OTR under the £20,000 mark, such as the Renault Zoe.

To take account of rapidly developing technology, and the growing range of ULEVs on the market, the criteria for the Plug-in Car Grant is also being updated.

From April 2015, eligible ULEVs must meet criteria in one of the following categories depending on emission levels and zero-emission-capable mileage:

Category 1: CO2 emissions less than 50g/km & a zero emission range of at least 70 miles;
Category 2: CO2 emissions less than 50g/km & a zero emission range of 10 – 69 miles;
Category 3: CO2 emissions 50-75g/km & a zero emission range of at least 20 miles.

As announced in April 2014, vehicles in all categories will continue to be eligible for the full grant of up to £5,000, until 50,000 grants are issued or the end of the budget period, whichever occurs first. The new categories will better reflect the range of vehicles on the market and make them accessible to the widest range of people.

The popularity of Ultra-Low Emission Vehicles (ULEVs) continues to rise sharply, with more than 25,000 Plug-in Car Grant and Plug-in Van Grant claims submitted since the scheme began in 2010.

Even the traditionally quiet January sales market saw nearly 2000 claims and total ULEV sales in 2014 were some 4 times the level of the previous year. The UK is now ahead of France and Germany in ULEV take-up, placing this country at the forefront of this green and cheap-to-run car technology.

The acceleration in popularity is matched by the growing number of ULEV models on the market with some 25 car models and 7 van models eligible for the plug-in grant. A further 40 ULEV models from major manufacturers are expected to come to market over the next 3 years.

With the announcement of the changes, Transport Minister Baroness Kramer said:

“More and more people are deciding a ULEV is the right choice for them. They are great to drive, easily chargeable at home or on the street, and cheap to use with running costs from just 2 pence a mile.

“The government’s £500 million investment will help more models become available to suit a wide range of budgets. This thriving industry will support jobs and build a stronger economy.”

In response to the news, Dr Ben Lane of Next Green Car & Zap-Map commented:

“The introduction of the three Plug-in Car Grant Categories indicates a significant shift in future policy. The likelihood is that future grants will differentiate between all-electric and plug-in hybrid models with official CO2 emissions of less than 50 g/km, and PHEVs with CO2 of 50-75 g/km.

“Should this turn out to be the case, we would support this change as it will ensure that any future grant system will target the highest-quality electric vehicles with the lowest CO2 emissions and longest EV-only range.”

Source: OLEV