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You'll soon be able to buy an EV in China for just $8,000 after incentives

Renault is eventually looking to sell an electric vehicle in China that will cost as little as $8,000 after government incentives kick in. According to Reuters, Renault-Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn offered the prediction at the New York Times Energy for Tomorrow conference in Paris this week. Granted, China government incentives are approaching $20,000 per vehicle, as China looks to address its cities' notorious pollution problem, so there's some wiggle room with that price. And of course, the devil is in the details, and Ghosn didn't provide any. Still, such a low-priced EV would likely challenge the dominance of China-based EV makers BYD and Kandi. And the effort would likely be lucrative, given that it has been predicted that China will become the world's largest EV market by the end of the decade. In fact, the publication EV Sales said earlier this year that as many as 300,000 EVs will be sold in China in 2016 (by comparison, Americans bought about 100,000 EVs and plug-in hybrids combined through the first 10 months of the year). BYD is expected to sell 75,000 Tang SUV units this year. With such growth expectations in mind, automakers are focusing on China for potential EV development. Earlier this year, Volkswagen Group said it signed a memorandum of understanding with China's Jianghuai Automobile (JAC) for plug-in vehicle production. Mercedes-Benz parent Daimler also stated its goal to broaden plug-in vehicle sales in China. Renault appears to be trying to make an early mark in China. Dongfeng Renault Automobile Co., the Chinese joint venture between Renault and Donfeng, is looking to start testing a self-driving electric vehicle this month. Dongfeng Renault will use a 1.5-mile stretch of road in Beijing's Caidian district for testing purposes. Related Video:

Nissan applies for 'R-Hybrid' trademark, but what is it for?

Patent and trademark filings are sort of like tasseography for those of us in the auto industry. If you know where and how to look at something, there's a lot to be figured out. Take this trademark filing from Nissan - it's similar to the Pure Drive badge found on a Versa or Sentra, but the bottom half sports the phrase "R-Hybrid." This wouldn't be remarkable if the "R" in R-Hybrid weren't the same style as the "R" in the Nissan GT-R's badge, right down to the serifs.
While it's easy to see this as grasping at straws, it makes a fair degree of sense. The R35 GT-R may be a dominant performance machine, but it's been around since 2008, which is donkey years in the automotive industry. And based on the recent crop of hybridized hypercars and racecars, a hybrid GT-R doesn't seem like such a stretch.
As Car And Driver points out, figuring out that the GT-R will go hybrid isn't hard - figuring out when it will arrive, is. The buff book rightly points out that a new GT-R isn't expected until 2017, but that designing and trademarking a badge four years ahead of time is a bit odd. Car and Driver speculates that we could see a mildly hybridized R35, although the chances do seem remarkably low. Head over to C/D for a more thorough rundown on why this just might be a GT-R badge, including comparisons with other R-badged Nissans.

Forza Horizon G-Shock Car Pack brings Nissan IDx, Subaru Brat [w/video]

With winter's icy grip around much of the nation, now may be the perfect time to sit inside at night and enjoy some video games. The latest six-car G-Shock pack for Forza Horizon 2 on the Xbox One is now here, and it gives players a very eclectic group of vehicles to race around the game's open world. This month's group of vehicles spans the decades ranging from 2015 back to 1953. The newest and only concept of the group is the 2015 Nissan IDX Nismo. Since the production chances for this retro coupe look increasingly slim, this game might be your only chance to get behind the concept's wheel. However, if you prefer driving something a bit more classic and Italian, the 1953 Ferrari 500 Mondial is available. To add one more flavor of performance, there is the 2010 Mazda Mazdasped 3 hot hatch, which is also this month's free car for download. In addition to three takes on the sports car, Turn 10 is also offering a trio of off-roaders. The quirkiest among them is the 1980 Subaru Brat GL, which features two jump seats in the back to avoid the dreaded chicken tax. If you prefer something more boxy and American, then the 1975 Ford Bronco is sure to please. Finally, for some real power to get through the mud, there's the 2013 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor as tuned by Shelby with a supercharged 6.2-liter V8 making 575 horsepower. As usual, the whole pack costs players $5 to download, or it's free as part of the season pass. Scroll down for a brief video showing all of these virtual rides off and read the press release about them from Turn 10 Studios. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. "Forza Horizon 2" G-Shock Car Pack Now Available Welcome to the New Year! Are you ready to hit the roads of "Forza Horizon 2" for Xbox One in some new rides? You better be because the G-Shock Car Pack is lighting up the new year with some amazing vehicles. Leading off the pack is a "Forza" First: the 2015 Nissan IDx NISMO is making its videogame debut in "Forza Horizon 2." The IDx prototype harkens back to Nissan's storied automotive history, with its compact size and aggressive appearance, and looks to the future with some serious under-the-hood performance. Take a spin in this gem, and you will be startled by its performance and charmed by its presence. The remaining cars of the pack also have "Horizon Festival" written all over them.