Europcar pre-orders 500 electric vehicles from Renault, coming to rental fleets in 2011

Filed under: EV/Plug-in , Europe/EU Avis isn’t the only rental car company interested in Renault’s electric vehicles (EVs). Europcar announced last fall that it would work with the Renault - Nissan alliance to put EVs into the rental fleet in Europe (and Australia and New Zealand) sometime in 2010

Avis will rent out Renault electric vehicles starting in 2011

Filed under: EV/Plug-in , Renault Renault Fluence ZE concept - click above for high-res image gallery For those in Europe that want to try out life with a battery electric car but aren’t necessarily ready to commit full time, Avis may have just the deal for you.

Geneva Preview: Renault will not bring latest, close-to-production Twizy

Filed under: EV/Plug-in , Renault , Geneva Motor Show Renault Twizzy ZE concept - Click above for high-res image gallery Renault ’s all-electric Twizy concept was by far the quirkiest vehicle at the Frankfort Motor Show last fall. For the Geneva Show that starts soon, Renault is sadly not bringing the closer-to-production version that was on display last November in Valladolid, Spain

Smart move? Daimler reportedly teams with Renault for next-gen minicar

Filed under: EV/Plug-in , MPG , Nissan , SMART , Renault , Lightweight , Daimler 2009 Smart Fortwo - Click above for high-res image gallery The Daimler brain trust of Dieter Zetsche and Thomas Weber has reportedly struck a deal with Renault / Nissan to develop its next generation of minicars due out in 2014 or so. As you would expect, Daimler will get a new Smart Fortwo out of the deal while the Franco-Japanese conglomerate will use the design for unknown future models that could bear both the Nissan and Renault nameplates.

Renault-Nissan partners with 18,000 Japanese hotels on electric vehicle charging stations

Filed under: EV/Plug-in , Nissan , Renault , Japan Nissan Leaf - Click above for high-res image gallery Electric car drivers in Japan will soon have yet another place to power up their silent rides: the 18,000 hotels affiliated with the All Japan Ryokan Association .

Better Place raises another $350M in series B venture funding

Filed under: EV/Plug-in , Renault A group of equity investors led by HSBC have expressed a big vote of confidence in the electric vehicle infrastructure concept being proposed by Better Place with a new $350 million funding round. The investment, which values the company at $1.25 billion, is expected to close by the end of March and includes $125 million from HSBC for a ten percent stake in Better Place.

French president Sarkozy signs letter of intent for electric vehicle test using renewable energy

Filed under: EV/Plug-in , Renault Renault Fluence ZE Concept - Click above for high-res image gallery Renault and five other corporate partners, along with French president Nicolas Sarkozy, signed a letter of intent today for a new electric vehicle test in France. The main intent of the 50-vehicle test will be to demonstrate that battery-powered vehicles charged from renewable sources have a lower overall life cycle CO2 impact than comparable internal combustion vehicles

Renault unveils 2010 electric vehicle ad, says Twizy EV is coming to India

Filed under: EV/Plug-in , Renault , India Renault’s 2010 EV ad - Click above to watch it after the jump Renault is justifiably excited about its four-car line-up of electric cars, which includes the Fluence EV sedan , the Twizy EV , the Zoe Z.E. and the Kangoo Z.E. These four vehicles will enter production in the next few years, but it’s never too early to start letting the world know about this via a slick TV commercial.

Zetsche reportedly says Daimler to pick new compact car partner by mid-2010

Despite rumors of Daimler and Renault collaborating on a four-door Smart model, no official tie-up between the two companies has been announced. That could change next year when Daimler will reportedly decide who its small-car partner will be.

Better Place’s Renault Fluence EV to sell for under $20,000

Filed under: EV/Plug-in , Renault , Better Place Renault Fluence ZE concept - click above for high-res image gallery While Better Place has made no secret of its partnership with Renault , the company has always put an emphasis on the cheap cost-per-mile aspect of their business model instead of on the cars themselves. Better Place founder and CEO Shai Agassi is now slightly refining the message to emphasize the cheaper up-front cost of the EVs, including the Renault Fluence, instead of the running costs. Perhaps he’s learned a lesson from Nissan head Carlos Ghosn

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