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Recharge Wrap-up: Tesla owner's garage makeover, Lucid signs deal with LG Chem

A Tesla owner has remodeled his garage to resemble a Tesla showroom. The Model S owner, who also runs Teslainventory.com, painted one wall a very specific shade of red, mounted a Tesla logo on it, and even bought the same table and stools used in some showrooms. He also documented the transformation, and gives tips on how other fans can give their own garage a makeover. Check it out in the video above, and read more at Electrek. Lucid Motors will source lithium-ion batteries from LG Chem. Lucid's batteries will use proprietary cell chemistry developed in partnership with LG. Lucid also has a battery supply deal with Samsung SDI for its first vehicle, but says it could use batteries for other companies through its own supply business, or for specific performance variants of its electric sedan. "The differing performance attributes available from the two cell suppliers provide Lucid with maximum flexibility to select the best cell for each application," Lucid says. Read more in the press release, or at Green Car Congress. Nissan, Renault, and Mitsubishi will share an electric vehicle platform. As other automakers are building their own mass market EVs, these three are teaming up in order to be able to offer their own models at prices competitive to their gasoline powered counterparts. According to the Nikkei, EVs from the three companies will all use the same platform as the upcoming 2018 Nissan Leaf, and will share motors, inverters, and batteries. Read more from Reuters, or at Green Car Reports. Related Gallery Lucid Motors EV Prototype News Source: Electrek, YouTube: DAErik, Lucid, Green Car Congress, Reuters, Green Car Reports Green Automakers Mitsubishi Nissan Tesla Renault Green Automakers Green Culture Electric Videos recharge wrapup

Recharge Wrap-up: vehicle electrification future, Indonesia biodiesel growth

Navigant Research expects electrified vehicles (including hybrids, plug-in hybrids and battery electric vehicles) to reach 6 million sales in 2024. That's up from 2.6 million sales in 2015. About half of those sales will be plug-in vehicles in 2024, up from 19 percent in 2015. To make its predictions, Navigant took into account automaker strategies, concept vehicles, regulations and incentives, electricity and oil prices, and charging infrastructure expectations over the 10-year timetable. Navigant also says that despite the massive changes in the last five years, the next five years will be "even more impactful to the global automotive and energy industries." Read more from Navigant Research, or at Green Car Congress. Indonesia's biodiesel consumption is expected to rise dramatically over the next year. While the nation used 291 to 317 million gallons in 2015, consumption levels for 2016 could surpass 2 billion gallons, depending on blending regulation enforcement. Indonesia raised the minimum biodiesel content in diesel fuel from 10 to 15 percent in 2015 while increasing biofuel subsidies. It will raise the blend minimum to 20 percent for 2016, and plans to increase it to 30 percent in 2020. Read more at Business Recorder. Scotland's national newspaper, The Scotsman, has awarded the title of Plug-In Vehicle of the Year to the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. The paper praised the car for its ability to live up to its "ecocredentials," as well as its all-around practicality. During its long-term test, Scotsman staff enjoyed using the 32.5 miles of electric driving range to commute to and from work. The Scotsman's Steven Chisholm called the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, "an exciting prospect for anyone looking for an SUV that's easy on the wallet as well as the environment." Read more at Inside EVs. Featured Gallery Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV Concept-S: Paris 2014 View 12 Photos News Source: Navigant Research, Green Car Congress, Business Recorder, Inside EVsImage Credit: Copyright 2015 Drew Phillips / AOL Government/Legal Green Mitsubishi Alternative Fuels Biodiesel Electric recharge wrapup

Nissan reportedly rejecting Renault proposal for closer ties

TOKYO — Nissan Motor Co Ltd will reject a management integration proposal from French partner Renault SA and will call for an equal capital relationship, the Nikkei newspaper said on Monday, citing sources. Nissan's management feels the Japanese company has not been treated as an equal of Renault under existing capital ties, and a merger would make this inequality permanent, the Nikkei reported. The outlook for the alliance — one of the world's top automaking partnerships — has been in focus since the arrest in November of its main architect, Carlos Ghosn, on charges of financial misconduct. The former Nissan and Renault chairman has denied the charges against him and has said he was the victim of a boardroom coup by Nissan executives opposed to closer ties. To which, Bloomberg reported that it has seen emails in which Nissan executives were working with Japanese government officials to defend the company's independence, as Ghosn was pushing for a full merger. The emails indicate growing concern at high levels of the Japanese government, in the months before Ghosn's arrest, that his merger efforts would boost Renault and its largest shareholder, the French government, and harm Nissan, in a relationship the Japanese already saw as lopsided. The emails indicated a desire to keep the existing structure of the alliance with a "re-balancing of the shareholding" to reduce Renault's 43 percent stake in Nissan, and stated that Nissan's independence "should be respected." Nissan declined to comment directly on the emails, while reiterating that misconduct by Ghosn and his former aide, Greg Kelly, is "the sole cause of the chain of events." Renault saved Nissan from the brink of bankruptcy two decades ago and under their current capital alliance, the French company holds greater control over its much larger partner. Nissan Chief Executive Hiroto Saikawa declined to say whether the company had received a merger proposal from Renault. "Now is not the time to think of such things," he told a group of reporters outside of his house in Tokyo. "At the moment we are focused on improving Nissan's earnings performance. Please give us time to do that." Renault declined to comment on the report. Renault has argued in its proposal that an integration would maximize synergies within the French-Japanese alliance, according to the Nikkei. The Financial Times reported last month of Renault's intention to restart merger talks with Nissan within 12 months.