2010 Nissan 370z (black On Black Six Speed Touch Screen Nav Button Start Loaded) on 2040-cars

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Recharge Wrap-up: Fisker takes apart Finland assembly, Nissan Leaf sales in Europe expected to grow 25%

The Fisker Karma's Uusikaupunki, Finland production lines are being dismantled. The lines, operated by Valmet Automotive in the same plant that assembles the Mercedes-Benz A-Class, have been idle since Fisker's money woes brought them to a halt in 2012. Fisker, which has since been purchased by Wanxiang, and Valmet are still in talks over future collaboration. Read more at YLE. Nissan expects a double-digit percentage growth in Leaf sales in Europe in 2015. Nissan Europe's Jean-Pierre Diernaz puts that number at around 25 percent over 2014's record sales. Part of this is due to much lower prices than earlier model years, thanks to government incentives and lower production costs than earlier model years. Diernaz also said that the e-NV200 van will make up about 20 percent of Nissan's EV sales in Europe. Read more at Automotive News Europe. EV drivers pay less on average in taxes than gasoline vehicle drivers in every state except Virginia. Some states impose extra taxes and registration fees for EVs to make up for lost revenue from fuel taxes, but EV drivers still come out ahead, even when compared to high-mileage cars like the Toyota Prius. Even in Wisconsin - which might follow Colorado, Nebraska, North Carolina, Virginia and Washington in added EV fees - those who drive electric should fare better. Virginia, however, charges EV drivers an extra $114 annually across two added fees, while gas drivers would only get dinged about $35.10 in gas taxes in a 50-mpg car. Read more at Green Car Reports. Two hydrogen-powered electric bus prototypes will be deployed on a trial basis Hamburg, Germany. The Solaris articulated electric buses use fuel cell range extenders from Ballard. The buses were unveiled on December 18, and will go into operation in January 2015. The German government is funding the trial, and Hamburg aims to cease the purchase of diesel buses by 2020. The new-generation fuel cell system in the two Hamburg buses improve upon Ballard's previous design by using fewer parts and exhibiting less parasitic power loss from the integrated air compressor and coolant pump. Read more at Ballard's website. Featured Gallery 2012 Fisker Karma: Second Drive View 30 Photos Related Gallery 2013 Nissan Leaf View 55 Photos News Source: YLE, Automotive News Europe, Green Car Reports, BallardImage Credit: Copyright 2014 Drew Phillips / AOL Green Fisker Nissan Alternative Fuels Transportation Alternatives Electric Hydrogen Cars recharge wrapup

World's cheapest Nissan Leaf costs just $9,460

If you thought electric vehicles were expensive, head on over to Rotterdam in the Netherlands. There, you can buy a Nissan Leaf for the amazingly low price of just 7,450 euros ($9,460 US). Or, if a practical delivery van is more your style, check out the Nissan e-NV200 Visia Flex, which is absurdly priced at 4,950 euros ($6,400). Now, you might be thinking, those prices don't seem right, and this isn't a case of Nissan slashing the price like someone in I Know What You Did Last Summer. Instead, these deals are already and unsurprisingly being called the "world's best EV incentives." The great deals - available to businesses only – are due to generous national and local government incentives that are designed to take dirty vehicles off the road. Things like scrappage incentives (worth 2,500 euros, or $3,240) and free parking for EVs as well as home charger incentives stack up until they bring the price of a new EV down to the levels listed above. Jordi Vila, the managing director for Nissan Netherlands, told Automotive World that, "By scrapping older vehicles and incentivising buyers to replace them with zero-emission electric vehicles, Rotterdam is taking a huge step in improving air quality." As great as these deals are, it turns out that most car buyers are unaware of EV incentives. This is too bad, since there is a short but interesting history of tremendous deals on plug-in vehicles, like the $10,000 discount on the Mitsubishi i-MiEV (or the $69/month lease on that thing). For pure "dollars off" value, though, nothing beats the $30,000 in total incentives that maybe be available in some Japanese prefectures for hydrogen vehicles, which might expand all the way to free H2 cars.

FCA-Renault revival may hinge on willingness to cut Nissan stake

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Renault are looking for ways to resuscitate their collapsed merger plan and secure the approval of the French carmaker's alliance partner Nissan, according to several sources close to the companies. Nissan is poised to urge Renault to significantly reduce its 43.4% stake in the Japanese company in return for supporting a FCA-Renault tie-up, two people with knowledge of its thinking also told Reuters. It is still far from clear whether any concerted effort to revive the complex and politically fraught deal can succeed. FCA Chairman John Elkann abruptly withdrew his $35 billion merger offer in the early hours of June 6 after the French government, Renault's biggest shareholder, blocked a vote by its board and demanded more time to win Nissan's backing. Nissan representatives had said they would abstain. The failure, which FCA and Renault blamed squarely on the French government, deprived both companies of an opportunity to create the world's third-biggest carmaker with 5 billion euros ($5.6 billion) in promised annual synergies. It also shone a harsh light on Renault's relations with Nissan, which have gone from frayed to fried since the November arrest of former alliance Chairman Carlos Ghosn, now awaiting trial in Japan on financial misconduct charges he denies. REVIVAL TALKS Italian-American FCA — whose brand stable encompasses Fiat runabouts, Jeep SUVs, RAM pickups, Alfa Romeo luxury cars and Maserati sports cars — has so far turned a deaf ear to suggestions by French officials that its merger proposal could be revisited. But since the breakdown, Elkann and his French counterpart Jean-Dominique Senard have had talks about reviving the plan that left the Renault chairman and his Chief Executive Thierry Bollore upbeat about that prospect, three alliance sources said. Renault and a spokesman for FCA declined to comment. One of Elkann's senior advisors on the Renault merger bid, Toby Myerson, was expected at Nissan headquarters in Yokohama on Monday for exploratory discussions with top management, two people with knowledge of the matter said. Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa is likely to attend. Myerson did not respond to a message from Reuters seeking comment. The meeting comes amid mounting strains that may preclude compromise, after Senard warned Saikawa that Renault was prepared to block key Nissan governance reforms in a dispute over board committees.