Environment minister goes electric for a week

Denis Naughten TD, Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, is driving an electric Renault Zoe ZE 40 during the course of his normal duties this week, writes Brian Byrne, including between Dáil Éireann and his constituency of Roscommon-Galway.

The Renault Zoe has the longest range of any mainstream electric vehicle, which Renault estimates at up to 300km in real-world driving.

VW's electric future in Frankfurt showcar

A further update of Volkswagen's ID Crozz concept electric car will feature at next week's Frankfurt Motor Show, writes Brian Byrne.

The vehicle is in an SUV format, and the incorproation of the battery into the floor means there's 'lounge' space inside, according to VW.

It should look pretty smart, and VW says it is a direction for a future production model.

Merc app to see if you should go hybrid, electric

Mercedes-Benz has developed a smartphone app that will work out whether its owner should switch to a hybrid or an electric car, writes Brian Byrne.

Scheduled to go online at next week's Frankfurt Motor Show, the EQ Ready app can record real journeys made by the user, analyse his or her everyday mobility behaviour and compare it with numerous parameters of electric and hybrid vehicles.

This makes it possible to try out e-mobility in a virtual yet realistic way. The EQ Ready app also recommends which alternatively powered model from smart or Mercedes-Benz best matches the user's individual behaviour.

EQ Ready can now be downloaded from for IOS and Android. The catch? It's currently only applicable in Germany, but the company will roll it out in other markets.

Nissan unveils new Leaf

Nissan has unveiled its new Leaf, which will go on sale in first European markets in January, writes Brian Byrne. It will arrive in Ireland in February.

The car has a longer range than the current Leaf, at 240km up from 172km. A bigger battery to be made available next year will offer more than 480km.

The new Leaf is a little longer and wider than the outgoing car, and will be available with high-level autonomous driving technology. Nissan’s ProPilot autonomous driving system allows the Leaf to drive itself in stop-and-go traffic and in single-lane highway journeys, even around curves. The car will also be able to self-park.

A new accelerate/brake function of the accelerator pedal means that one-pedal driving is possible for 90pc of normal driving needs.

At the launch in Tokyo, the company says it expects the new car to achieve at least twice the annual sales of the first generation model, which totalled 47,000 worldwide last year.

The original Leaf was introduced in 2010, but faces a much more competitive market today with electric cars being offered or imminent from every major manufacturer.

Mercedes electric concept A for Frankfurt

This teaser for a Mercedes-Benz Concept EQ A hints at an electric car that will be revealed at Frankfurt next week, writes Brian Byrne.

It follows the WQ crossover concept shown at Paris last autumn and is built on the M-B Modular Electric Architecture.

The company plans to have 10 electric vehicles on sale by 2022, and the production version of the EQ A — likely to be a small hatchback on the lines of the GLA — will probably be one of the first.

Mini electric concept for Frankfurt

This is the Mini electric concept which will debut at Frankfurt the week after next, writes Brian Byrne.

With the production version not due until 2019, we'll be waiting for a while before it gets space in your local Mini showroom.

It's almost 10 years ago since the Mini E prototype test car was produced and given to 600 users to test it in real life conditions. Because of the battery size, it was only a 2-seater.

What was learned from that test was used in the development of the BMW i3.

The upcoming concept follows the reveal of the first plug-in hybrid Mini, a variant of the Countryman, last spring.

We'll see the concept at Frankfurt.

Audi to fit solar panels on car roofs

It does follow a kind of logic, doesn't it, that electric cars could be charged by solar panels? writes Brian Byrne.

Well, yes, but not yet. Though Audi has partnered with a California based solar panel maker to devise panels for the roofs of its e-tron electric cars, they won't actually charge the motor battery.

At first anyhow, the panels will be used to power auxiliary systems like air-conditioning and heating. Reason? — because the output from a panel of that size wouldn't be able to add many miles range even in the sunniest of climes.

One of the first of the brand's all-electric models will be the e-tron Sportback next year, shown in concept form above for the 2017 Shanghai Motor Show.

VW decides to put electric microbus into production

Volkswagen is to make an electric version of its Microbus, to be called the ID Buzz, sometime after 2022, writes Brian Byrne.

The vehicle will be the second in a series of specific electric cars under the ID brand. The first, a 4-door compact called the ID, is scheduled for 2022.

Announced at the Pebble Beach annual car event in Florida, the ID Buzz will also have a cargo carrying variant.

VW has said it plans to have more than 30 all-electric models by 2025.

Special low emissions trade in offer from BMW

BMW is offering a special €2,000 ‘Lower Emissions’ allowance on trade-ins against all of its cars which have emissions of 130g/km or less, writes Brian Byrne.

The incentive is open to owners of diesel Euro 4 (EU4) emission standard vehicles or below, who can trade-in their vehicle for a new BMW i, BMW iPerformance model or low-CO2 emission models. This scheme includes progressive vehicles in the range such as the BMW i3 and i8 and will run until 31 December, 2017.

It is also available towards suitable Mini vehicles.

The allowance offered will be in addition to any other government or retailer incentives that are currently in place.

Full details are available here. http://www.bmwco2.ie/contentv3/

'More state aid for charging stations' - survey

Renault Zoe Electric car.

Further government investment for electric vehicle charging points around the country would be welcomed by a majority of Irish drivers, writes Brian Byrne.

That's the view expressed to AA Ireland in a survey of almost 5,000 motorists, where 37.4pc of respondents ticked the 'strongly support' box, with a further 33.3pc noting they 'somewhat agree'.

A higher proportion of  men than women were in agreement with the proposal.

New app shows Irish EV charge points

More than 900 electric vehicle charging points in Ireland are now part of the Zap-Map app available for both Apple and Android platforms, writes Brian Byrne.

The app provides live information from ESB ecars, and shows the status of any charging point in real time.

This enables an EV driver to see if any particular point on their route is available or in use, and pick accordingly.

Zap-Map is owned by Next Green Car Ltd, which published the nextgreencar.com website.

The app is used 45,000 times a month by owners of the some 110,000 electric vehicles in the UK, and Zap-Map's Melanie Shufflebotham hopes that this latest move will help accelerate the uptake of EVs across Ireland.

Death sentence date for internal combustion engine?

Whether it is a chicken or egg situation, the accelerated demise of the internal combustion engine has been well flagged in recent weeks, writes Brian Byrne.

Volvo's decision announced a while ago that it will only produce all-electric or hybrid cars from 2019 was the kick-starter in the public mind, and this morning's news that the UK is to ban all petrol and diesel new cars by 2040 puts a timeline on the matter. This follows a similar move in France announced by President Macron.

BMW is the latest to move, announcing that a new all-electric Mini will go on sale in 2019 as part of a plan to electrify all its brands and models. The company expects that up to a quarter of sales will be of electrified vehicles by 2025, by which time it will be producing a range of EVs.

BMW says regulations and incentives in different markets will play a significant role in the kind of vehicle powertrains it offers, but with Europe's second and third largest car-buying countries now laying down an end-of-game date, the electric side of things will only accelerate.

Volvo going completely electric

All new Volvos from 2019 will have an electric motor in their powertrains, writes Brian Byrne.

The company will launch five fully electric cars between 2019 and 2021, three of which will be Volvo models and two of which will be high performance electrified cars from Polestar, Volvo Cars’ performance car arm.

Others will be a range of petrol and diesel plug in hybrid and mild hybrid 48 volt options on all models.

Honda boosts research for autonomous, electrification

Honda plans to have fully autonomous cars capable of city driving by 2025, writes Brian Byrne.

That indicates the Japanese company is determined not to be left behind in a race where giants like Ford and Nissan plan vehicles with similar capability by as soon as 2020.

In a strategy named 'Vision 2030', Honda also plans to have two-thirds of its models lineup powered by petrol hybrid, plug-in hybrid, electric cars and hydrogen fuel cell powertrains by 2030.

The Clarity FC car above is already in production, and will be joined this year by a pure electric variant.

Electric 9-3 drives closer

If it looks rather like an old Saab 9-3, well, that's because it is based on the old Saab 9-3, writes Brian Byrne.

But this NEVS showcar from China is all-electric, and previews what the company that bought the bankrupt Saab technology but not its name will be showing at the Shanghai Consumer Electronics Show this month.

The saloon and an SUV derivative will feature all-electric powertrains developed by NEVS, as well as modern connectivity and remote control applications.

The company has made a deal with Chinese car leasing company Panda to provide 150,000 of the production models up to 2020.

EVs to lift off in 2025 — Continental

A major shift to electric cars won’t take until 2025 according to automotive components giant Continental AG, writes Brian Byrne.

Outlining its Strategy 2020 programme, the company says a continuing reduction in battery prices for EVs will have kicked in by then, and it expects around a third of all cars sold will be electrically powered. That penetration is likely to rise to 60pc just five years later.

Continental announced yesterday that it is increasing its spend on electric drive units development by €300m but will maintain its current level of commitment to internal combustion powertrain systems until at least 2025.

A decline in interest in diesel cars is becoming more evident in Europe since the 2015 Volkswagen emissions scandal, which will impact on Continental’s Powertrain Division, though not significantly across the whole company’s financial performance.

Skoda showcases its electric future

Skoda is showing its electric car thinking at the Shanghai Auto Show with this Vision E, writes Brian Byrne.

The first car from the 120-year-old carmaker to be completely powered by electricity, it has two electric motors and a claimed range of 500km.

The Vision E features a number of semi-autonomous driver assistance technologies, including a Traffic Jam Assist, autopilot for motorway driving, and a car park autopilot.

Skoda plans to have five fully-electric cars in its range by 2025.

Ford ceases Europe e-Focus production

Ford has ceased production of the electric version of its Focus in Europe, saying ‘volumes are not strong enough’, writes Brian Byrne.

With just 131 units sold in 2015-2016 in all European markets, any medium term continuing sales will be of imports from the US.

The car had been built at the Ford Saarlouis plant in Germany, alongside the versions with normal powertrains.

The company will concentrate its electrification programme on petrol-hybrid vehicles, with an emphasis on LCVs such as a hybrid Transit Custom going on trial this year.

A 225km-range battery was introduced to the Focus EV last year, but clearly didn’t make an impression with customers. Ford says it may return to the pure EV passenger car business when that market matures.

Electric version of Berlingo Multispace

Citroen has produced an electric version of its Berlingo Multispace van-derived car, writes Brian Byrne.

Dubbed the E-Berlingo Multispace, the vehicle has a range of 170km and is designated by the company as a 'volume' car, alongside its variants powered by petrol and diesel engines.

The batteries are housed in a sub-frame on either side of the rear axle, so the passenger and cargo capacity hasn't been compromised.

There are normal and rapid charging modes, the latter allowing a 50pc recharge in 15 minutes, or 80pc in half an hour.

The E-Berlingo Multispace will launch in its first European markets in May.

Jaguar shows upcoming electric SUV

Jaguar has released this picture of its upcoming electric SUV, the I-Pace, on test, writes Brian Byrne.

The vehicle is based on a concept shown at the 2016 Los Angeles Auto Show.

The car will be on a dedicated platform which JLR is developing for electric cars, and a production version is expected to be shown before the end of this year.

The company says it will have a 350kms range with electric motors on each axle providing AWD capability, and the performance is expected to be something over four seconds to 100km/h.

Jaguar says it will also be producing further electric cars.