NEWS FROM RENAULT LIVERPOOL
A
three day road trip from Liverpool to Wales has proved to one Renault dealer
that cars of the future will be plugged in, not filled up.
David
Kirkby, Electric Vehicle Specialist at Renault Liverpool, was keen to examine
how far the five-seat Renault Fluence Z.E. saloon would go on a fully charged
battery.
His journey
to the Bryn Bella Guest House in Betws-Y-Coed, Snowdonia is exactly 70 miles
from the dealership in Sefton Street, Toxteth, and the visit would include trips
to tourist attractions in the region.
“The
car has a real world range of around 100 miles depending on driving style and
other conditions, so it was going to be interesting to see how the trip affected
the range of the vehicle,” said Mr Kirkby.
During
his stay he travelled to various locations in the region, taking photographs
and recording a promotional video with the owners, before recharging the
battery overnight and travelling back to Liverpool the following morning.
Joan
and Mark Edwards, who run the Bryn Bella Guest House, were the first in
Snowdonia to be awarded gold by the Green Tourism Business Scheme. The B&B became the first in the
National Park to install electric car charging points for residents to use for
free during their stay, which allowed Mr
Kirkby to recharge the battery in the Fluence Z.E. , the saloon car in the
Renault electric vehicle range, on arrival.
The
range indicator, on leaving Liverpool, showed a range of 83 miles and Mr Kirkby
drove on a range of inner city, rural roads and motorways. “I drove using a
very eco style of driving with no sudden acceleration and made use of the
regenerative braking wherever possible. The range did decrease when driving up
steep gradients, but that was easily regained downhill,” he explained.
During
the journey, in road use, the Fluence Z.E. will not have emitted any harmful
CO2 emissions or pollutants. The saloon is cheap to run, largely due to less
wear and tear and low charging costs.
“The
vehicle also performed extremely well using cruise control at speeds around
55mph and as the trip went on I had no range anxiety, infact after driving 62
miles door to door, added 13 miles to the overall charge of the traction
battery,” he added.
Overnight
a full recharge took 5 hours 40 minutes, showing a 90 mile range and the
Renault Fluence Z.E. attracted much attention on its mini adventure to popular
tourist attractions in the area starting at the foot of Pen-Y-Pas, the highest
you can drive a car up Snowdon.
“After
two ascents up this steep gradient the range had reduced to 66 miles, so
descending down the Llanberis Pass towards Llanberis, I was able to let the car
freewheel down the steep gradient taking full advantage here of the
regenerative braking which I was particularly impressed with,” Mr Kirkby said.
“When
we reached Llanberis, the starting location of the two famous mountain
railways, the range indicator showed 74 miles, an eight mile regain in the
range.”
Mr
Kirkby drove on to Caernarvon where a drive round the castle attracted a lot of
interest, before heading to Greenwood Forest Park, home to the first people
powered rollercoaster.
“After
this, with the display showing a range of 42 miles it was time to head back to
Bryn Bella, for an overnight recharge, where the range on arrival was 19
miles.”
Mr
Kirkby spent more time on his return journey to Liverpool on faster roads
finding that cruising at 65mph the Fluence Z.E. performed well. “I arrived back at the
showroom with 25 miles of charge still available and covered 220 miles over
three days in an electric car which was very impressive.
“The
whole point of the trip was to prove that electric vehicles can be used to
travel to locations like this, that they can be charged and used to travel
around everyday and even whilst on holiday, which often result in longer
journeys,” said Mr Kirkby.
“It
is also to promote and encourage the fact that we need more locations to
install charging facilities.”
Renault Fluence Z.E. is available from £17,850 on the
road – taking into account the £5,000 contribution towards the car from the
Government’s Plug-in Car Grant a battery lease contract of £75 per month, based
on mileage of 6,000 per year over three years.
For
more information on Renault’s range of electric vehicles visit Renault
Liverpoool at Sefton Street, Toxteth, Liverpool. L8 6PZ. Tel: 0151 552 8000.
Ends
Ref: DPR20140
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