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Recharge Wrap-up: Car2go launches in Brooklyn, Green Fleet Car of the Year Award announced

The Car2go carsharing service is starting operations in Brooklyn next month. Beginning October 25, the service will offer 400 Car2go edition Smart Fortwo vehicles for point-to-point travel. Members pay a one-time sign-up fee, and are charged by the amount of time the use the vehicle (fuel and insurance is free). Drivers can find a car using the Car2go app or website, and can return the car to any non-metered parking spot within the 36-square-mile Brooklyn Home Area. Car2go is offering free membership and 30 minutes of credit for those who sign up early with a special promotional code. Learn more in the press release below. Renault and the Eco2charge consortium are working to bring better EV charging to France. They are providing research and development aimed at turning simple charging stations into "fully fledged energy ecosystems" through a smart grid. This grid would coordinate charging, consumption and energy storage in a way that increases efficiency and decreases cost. Read more in the press release below. The Renault-Nissan Alliance could source EV batteries from suppliers other than Nissan, according to CEO Carlos Ghosn. This news comes after recent questions of whether or not Nissan would scale back battery production in the US and UK. Ghosn says, "At the moment, we continue to produce our own batteries and we are open to outside sourcing, period." He also denies any plans to shutter Nissan's battery production facility in Tennessee. One source of batteries the alliance will look to is Korea's LG Chem. Read more at Automotive News Europe. The first-ever Green Fleet Car and Truck of the Year Awards will be presented at the Los Angeles Auto Show. The presentation on November 20 will be part of the LA show's Connected Car Expo. Nominees are selected by Bobit Business Media, with finalists picked by readers of Green Fleet, Automotive Fleet, Work Truck and Business Fleet magazines. The winners will be chosen based on performance, fuel economy, emissions, safety, capacities and other similar factors. Read more in the press release below. car2go Heads To Brooklyn Brooklyn To Be First To Launch Point-To-Point Carsharing Service In New York City Area On October 25th car2go North America LLC, the fastest-growing global carsharing company, announced today that it will be launching its pioneering carsharing service in Brooklyn on October 25th, marking Brooklyn as car2go's 29th market and the very first in the New York City area.

Angry Nissan Leaf Driver may make 'Rolling Coal' illegal in New Jersey

It's always a few bad apples who ruin polluting just for fun for the rest of us. That time-honored American tradition of being rude for laughs, otherwise known as 'rolling coal,' might become illegal in New Jersey, if a Nissan Leaf-driving politician gets his way. The politician in question is State Assemblyman Tim Eustace (D-Bergen), who was purposefully hit by a blast of dark smoke recently while driving his Leaf on the New Jersey Turnpike, according to NJ.com. This personal experience of what he called "just youthful ignorance" is encouraging him to submit a bill (A3583), which, "Prohibits retrofitting diesel-powered vehicles to increase particulate emissions for the purpose of 'coal rolling'; prohibits the practice of 'coal rolling.'" If you're caught violating the law, you would be hit with a fine from the state Department of Environmental Protection. Of course, the Feds say it is already illegal to modify an exhaust system in a way that allows coal rolling. Rolling coal has become a bit of a meme recently, with videos of laughing truck drivers spewing their modified exhaust pipes at green cars, pedestrians and bikers around the country. Eustace told NJ.com that, "People had been telling this has been going on, but I hadn't seen it. I was surprised to experience it myself." Perhaps a coal roller in New Jersey will be surprised, too, when the first big fine hits. News Source: NJ.comImage Credit: YouTube Green Nissan Green Culture Diesel Vehicles rolling coal

Nissan could have bought a stake in Aston Martin as early as 2012

Aston Martin has a very interesting future ahead of it. While the British brand appeared to be struggling with aging tech for a while, fresh investment from Daimler may have shown a light toward the future with the brand getting engines and electronics from them. Also, former Renault-Nissan top exec Andy Palmer has jumped ship from the French/Japanese automaker to become CEO of the much smaller sports car company. Interestingly, though, new reports from unnamed Nissan sources have indicated that Palmer has been pushing to work with AM for years.
Three unnamed company insiders told Reuters that Palmer made attempts to convince Renault-Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn in 2012 and 2013 to invest in Aston Martin, but his proposals were shot down both times for unspecified reasons, according to Automotive News. "We looked carefully at the proposal but we passed on it," said one of the sources.
You can easily see why Palmer was eying Aston Martin even back in 2012. It's no secret that the British sports car mavens were in need of extra funding, well before the Daimler investment. Building vehicles these days is only getting more expensive with stronger safety and emissions requirements. Just look at the brand's desperate hope to get a side-impact crash exemption to keep selling its models in the US as an example.