Category Archives: ZOE E-Sport

Electric Vehicles Are Testing the UK’s Love of Small Cars

Electrification is raising new challenges for compact models, as costly batteries push carmakers toward large, luxury EVs with high price tags.

It’s 4 p.m. on a wet Monday in southeast London, and we’re trying to parallel park uphill, a necessary if unpleasant rite of passage for any city driver. Our electric car, a bright red Ora Funky Cat, has been through a battery of such rites today — hauling furniture, ferrying passengers, avoiding pedestrians — and takes to London’s streets like it was made for them. On the slippery surface of a narrow road, the Ora EV excels: At just over 4 meters (13 feet), it’s easy to parallel park.

The Funky Cat is a head-turning EV with a fun design to match its name; there’s a hint of Porsche in the flared front fenders and squat haunches. The Asian-made car, which went on sale last fall, is also prowling around a sweet spot in the UK’s EV market: models small and light enough that a modest battery can push them a decent distance. Of the 72 electric cars available in the UK, nine have batteries with a capacity under 50 kWh. Just two EVs in the US do.

The UK has a long tradition of popular small cars, perhaps best exemplified by an iconic Mini Cooper chase scene in 1969’s British classic, The Italian Job.

Read more: Bloomberg

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2030 UK petrol and diesel car ban: will it be delayed?

From 2030 drivers won’t be able to buy new cars powered solely by petrol or diesel, but what does this mean for you and could the ban be delayed?…

Under current Government plans, the sale of new cars powered solely by petrol and diesel will be banned from 2030. The move, announced in 2020, is intended to encourage more drivers to choose electric cars, and reduce emissions from vehicles across the UK.

Hybrid cars which can travel ‘significant’ distances on electric power alone will remain on sale until 2035, when it is expected that they too will be banned in favour of fully electric cars. The Government has yet to define what qualifies as ‘significant’.

According to official figures, electric cars currently account for around 16% of new car sales, with hybrids accounting for about 12% and plug-in hybrids 7%. Combined, that means such cars have accounted for more than a third of sales.

It’s important to note that only new car and van sales will be affected by the ban – you’ll still be able to buy used cars and vans powered solely by petrol or diesel.

In this story, we’ll cover the details of the proposed ban, including how it came about, how it affects car buyers, and whether you should still consider buying a new petrol or diesel car in 2023.

Read more: WhatCar

 

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Renault Actually Considering Production Of Hot Zoe RS

Fingers crossed that it will make it!

Renault ZOE E-Sport

The pint-sized Zoe is far from being the most exciting electric car out there, but it’s a whole different story with the bonkers E-Sport concept. Unveiled earlier this year in Geneva, the zero-emissions city car had a pair of electric motors good for a combined output of close to 460 horsepower (343 kilowatts) and a torquetastic 472 pound-feet (640 Newton-meters).

As it turns out, Renault Sport is actually analyzing the prospects of coming out with a high-performance Zoe that would carry the “RS” suffix. In an interview with Autocar, the go-faster division’s boss, Patrice Ratti, admitted

“we are thinking about doing a Zoe RS but it is a big study that will take time.”

He went on to specify the hot e-hatch is being considered thanks primarily to the developments made in battery technology, thus making the Zoe RS a feasible project worthy of being evaluated for a potential production model.

Renault ZOE E-Sport

If green-lighted, the Zoe RS (see render here) will go through some significant changes compared to the concept. Besides being subjected to steering and chassis modifications, the batteries would also have to be tweaked in order to boost range over the E-Sport, which had enough juice for a mere 15 minutes while being driven at full throttle. For the sake of comparison, the regular Zoe ZE 40 you can actually buy can cover up to 250 miles (400 kilometers) between charges as per the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC).

Should the road-going model get even close to the concept’s performances, it’s going to be a little electric beast. Renault Sport said the show car would do 0 to 62 mph (100 kph) in just 3.2 seconds. Top speed was electronically capped at 130 mph (210 kph), a process which took less than 10 seconds from a standstill.

Renault ZOE E-Sport

But Renault Sport has bigger fish to fry right now as it’s gearing up to introduce the all-new Megane RS. Slated to debut on September 12, the newest performance model carrying the diamond logo will premiere at the Frankfurt Motor Show.

Source: InsideEVs