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Nissan gets it on with the loud "Karaok-e" van concept

With a minivan, you can pack it with a half dozen friends to shuttle them to a big party. But that involves some boring time in traffic. With the Nissan Townstar Karaok-e you can skip that boring step because the van is the party. That’s the idea behind Nissan's modified Townstar Evalia is a one-off project recently shown in Europe. ItÂ’s an exercise that transforms the van into a mobile karaoke lounge. The bulk of the modifications are in the rear of the van. A 32-inch video monitor for graphics and lyrics is the centerpiece along with the exotic sound system. There are also fancy lights in the ceiling and the cabinetry, and they're synchronized the to the beat of the music. There's no mention in the press release if the van comes with a “donÂ’t dance while driving” warning. This all-electric seven-seat Townstar Evalia—which Nissan rather cosmically claims is intended to inspire “well-being and happiness”—further features a number of apps that allows passengers to show off their vocal chops, record their performances, and share them on social media platforms. The brand hasnÂ’t ignored the exterior, which features a juicy wrap enhanced by a couple of hashtags. The neon-like roof attachment would almost certainly have impressed Donna Summer. The Townstar Evalia in Europe shares close ties with the Renault Kangoo van. It comes in a long wheelbase configuration with options for five or seven seats and is available with either fully electric or gasoline powertrains. Nissan offers no hint that this particular Townstar variant might enter serious production, and we doubt that even a groundswell of interest from the public would get the company to start building them. But we bet there are limo services that might be interested, and certainly some upfitters that could put together something similar. Of course, that's as long as said customer has the will and the means.  

EZ-Charge program will get rolled out for all vehicles [UPDATE]

UPDATE: It appears that Chargepoint has pulled out of the program. It looks like a myriad of vehicles will be eligible for the single-card recharging program under NRG Energy's NRG eVgo division. The EZ-Charge platform that Nissan said last month would allow Leaf owners to use multiple vehicle recharging networks with a single card will soon be offered to other plug-in vehicles. eVgo will start sending out EZ-Charge cards this summer to various markets in Northern and Southern California and Texas as well as the Pacific Northwest, Phoenix, Nashville and Washington, DC. EZ-Charge uses a single card that is good for eVgo stations as well as stations within the ChargePoint, Blink and AeroVironment networks. It will debut in 10 EZ-Charge markets on July 1. By mid-2015, 15 more markets will be added. Nissan announced the 'No Charge to Charge' program last month at the New York Auto Show. Nissan said at the time that Leaf buyers would get two years of free charging, but individual charging sessions were limited to 30 minutes at CHAdeMO stations and an hour at the more-common Level 2 stations. The automaker also estimated that the 25 markets included by next year account for more than 80 percent of US Leaf sales. Take a look at NRG's press release below. NRG eVgo Introduces New Convenience to Electric Vehicle Charging First-of-Its-Kind EZ-Charge All-Access Card gives EV drivers convenience to use chargers from multiple charging providers PRINCETON, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--This summer, NRG eVgo, a subsidiary of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG), will roll out the EZ-Charge (SM) platform, a first-of-its-kind initiative that will offer electric vehicle (EV) drivers the ability to access multiple EV charging networks with a single all-access card. "For too long, EV drivers have been limited to only the chargers that were in their network meaning they might drive past a number of charging stations in other company's networks before they could get to one they could use with their current provider" The EZ-Charge platform will enable drivers of any electric car make or model to carry a single access card for charging on multiple networks, much like consumers today carry a single credit card to access multiple retailers.

Porsche wins the 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans

The question going into this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans was whether or not the Porsche 919 Hybrid would be able to combine its qualifying pace with race reliability. After battling neck-and-neck with Audi's R18 for most of the race, the answer is a resounding yes. Not only did Porsche drivers climb the first two spots on the podium, they did so without any major mishaps on track. This win is the first overall trophy for Porsche since 1998. Audi previously won the last five races, and 13 of the last 15. Corvette also returned to the winner's circle, with the No. 64 C7.R taking winning the GTE Pro division. The victory is the first class win for Corvette since 2011. KCMG won the LMP2 class in ninth overall. With 45 minutes to go the No. 98 Aston Martin crashed out of first place in GTE Amateur, giving the class win to SMP Racing's Ferrari and second place to the Patrick Dempsey Racing Porsche 911 RSR. For the full list of official results, click here. The GTE Pro class proved to be just as exciting as the P1 class, with a four-way battle for first after four hours into the race. For most of the race, the battle at the top went back and forth between the two German manufacturers. An tire puncture in the No. 7 Audi gave up the lead to Porsche, and moments later a crash forced the No. 8 into the garage. But a three-minute replacement of the front and rear bodywork kept the Audi in contention. As the race wore into the night, Porsche maintained a slightly faster pace than Audi. Nick Tandy took the lead on Lap 253 early Sunday morning, and car No. 19 never gave up the top position. The win is the first for all three drivers of the No. 19 – Nico Hulkenberg, Earl Bamber, and Nick Tandy. A lap behind in second was the No. 17 Porsche. The Audis fought reliability problems late in the race but still finished third with the No. 7 R18. The GTE Pro class proved to be just as exciting as the P1 class, with a four-way battle for first after four hours into the race. As the Aston Martin cars dropped away, the lone Corvette Racing entry took over, followed by a charging AF Corse team Ferrari 458 Italia. The Corvette and Ferrari continued to trade places in the final hours until gearbox trouble forced the No. 51 Ferrari out of contention. It was eventually passed by the other AF Corse car, No. 71. Nissan experienced all the pain of a first-year effort with its front-wheel-drive GT-R LM Nismo.