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Recharge Wrap-up: Formula E's other events, continued record EV sales

Formula E wants fans to know that it is more than just a race. During each ePrix weekend, the electric race series hosts a variety of events. For each race, Formula E sets up an eVillage where fans can meet drivers and get autographs, learn about electric vehicles, spectate Formula E's School Series races, enjoy live music and dance performances, play games, eat food and take part in numerous other activities that don't make their way into the television broadcast. Or course, though, the race is always the main event. See more in the video above. Electric vehicles enjoyed a fourth straight month of record sales in February. Despite low oil prices, customers bought an estimated 7,881 EVs last month, up 13 percent from a year before. 52 percent of those sales were battery electric vehicles, while the rest were plug-in hybrids. BMW i3 sales dropped 77 percent over a year ago, selling 248 cars. The Tesla Model S and Chevrolet Volt sold the most, while the Ford Fusion Energi outsold the Nissan Leaf for the first time. The Audi A3 E-Tron sold 248 units (same as the BMW i3) despite low inventory. Read more at Inside EVs. Renault more than doubled its EV sales in January compared to a year before. Sales were up 104 percent, at 1,886 units (1,977 if you include the Twizy). This January marked higher EV sales for Renault than the three previous years. The biggest selling Renault EV, which also happened to be Europe's best selling EV, was the Renault Zoe, up 105 percent at 1,416 units sold. Read more at Inside EVs. Nissan's "No Charge to Charge" promotion has expanded to Orlando, Florida. This is the 27th market in the US to offer free charging to Nissan Leaf customers. Buyers and lessees get two years of free charging with an EZ-Charge card, which works with AeroVironment, Blink, ChargePoint, Greenlots and NRG eVgo charging networks. "Significantly lower operating costs and a fun-to-drive nature make owning the all-electric Leaf a cost-effective and convenient choice for Orlando residents," says Nissan EV Sales & Marketing Director Andrew Speaker. Read more in the press release below. Nissan's "No Charge to Charge" program increases to 27 cities in the U.S. with the addition of Orlando Free public, electric vehicle charging now offered to new Nissan LEAF buyers in the Orlando metro area ORLANDO – Nissan's "No Charge to Charge" promotion has officially arrived to the Sunshine State.

Nissan Sentra, Buick LaCrosse to headline LA Auto Show

We're less than a month away from the start of the Los Angeles Auto Show, and automakers have been lining up their debuts for the upcoming left-coast expo. The latest announcement comes from the show's organizers who are eager to tout the global debuts slated for next month. Chief among them will be new versions of the Buick LaCrosse and Nissan Sentra. So far all we've seen of the 2017 LaCrosse is a glimpse at the front grille, but it's already promising to bring elements of the Avenir concept to the street. The original LaCrosse was launched in 2004 and was replaced in 2010 with the current model. The Sentra nameplate has been around much longer, but the current model was launched more recently in 2013. The new version spied recently while undergoing testing is promised to be a substantial update on that model, not a complete replacement, bringing it up to speed with the latest equipment and revised styling. This represents the first official confirmation we've received of when Nissan will be unveiling the new Sentra. Mitsubishi will also be on hand with its new Outlander Sport, as well as the redesigned Mirage. They'll be joined as well by new versions of a couple of high-end models that promise to resonate with the local crowds in tinseltown. Land Rover has chosen the LA show as a suitable venue to unveil the production Range Rover Evoque Convertible that will drop the top on one of the most stylish luxury crossovers on the market. And Porsche, as we know, is gearing up to hit the track with the new Cayman GT4 Clubsport - a customer racing version of the company's little two-seat, mid-engined sports car that's been lightly modified for motorsport competition. Of course these won't be the only new metal on display at the Californian auto expo. They'll be joined as well by the likes of the new Infiniti QX30, Hyundai Elantra, Kia Sportage, and Jaguar F-Pace - many of which we've already seen. Meanwhile companies like Fiat, Ford, Mazda, Mercedes, Subaru, Volvo, Volkswagen, and Elio Motors are keeping their plans under wraps for the time being. But with mere weeks to go, it won't be long before we see what they've got in store as well.

A look inside Infiniti's variable-compression engine

We're sympathetic to anyone who had trouble understanding what's going on with Infiniti's new variable-compression engine. While we got a full tech briefing on the novel VC-Turbo back in August, the visual aids were lacking. The cutaway engine Infiniti brought to the Paris show fixes all of that. You can thank the little green and pink lines on the cutaway for making the whole idea a little more clear. Click through the gallery to see two lines – one green and one pink – that represent the different strokes allowing for different compression ratios. Remember, the compression ratio is the amount of volume in the cylinder on intake compared to the amount at the end of the compression stroke. Leave more room at the end and you lower that ratio. The length of the stroke doesn't change with this system, but where it sits along the cylinder does. Hence those two lines. The variable compression ratio allows this new turbocharged engine to maximize fuel economy when the turbo isn't needed by raising the compression ratio. It will see its first use in the next Infiniti QX50 crossover, previewed by the QX Sport Inspiration concept that's also on display in Paris, and has performance targets of 268 horsepower and 288 pound-feet of torque. After, it will migrate to other Infiniti and Nissan vehicles, with transverse front-drive-based applications first in line. Eventually, it's likely to completely replace Nissan's corporate 3.5-liter V6. We'll be poking around the engine a little more in Paris today to try and get some more info. For now, enjoy those cutaway images and those friendly little lines. Featured Gallery Infiniti VC-Turbo engine cutaway View 14 Photos Paris Motor Show Infiniti Nissan Technology Emerging Technologies engine 2016 paris motor show