Very interesting that, thanks Samsam.

I think the plan was that you’rd go to battery swap shops.

Interesting how the battery is assembled by Renault, so its the 60V modules that presumably could be upgraded.

There is an 18 month break clause in the battery lease contract I believe.

I was meaning exiting our battery contract and re-contracting from cost saving point of view rather than for tech reasons.

So I pay £70pm for my battery however as soon as I can exit my contract and enter into a new one which I can do part way through my existing lease contract…I believe….then I will instantly make a saving. Something I plan to look when the release clause allows.

but I think there is a possibility that we could get a better battery contract deal without waiting 4 years

There is a possiblilty that you can switch battery in a few years. I am going to say around 2017 – 2018. This new battery would probably be in the next Zoe version, could have a higher energy density and would give you more range. Renault have hinted at this possibility. Would probably require a software upgrade and stuff so it might not be free. I am closely watching Renault battery development. Then again, I am hoping to replace Zoe with a Tesla Model 3 when it become available if money will stretch 🙂

Predicted range will always be a prediction.. there are to many variables for the car or any app to take into consideration.. Road surface, temperature, headwind, geography, road type, throttle position, etc.. You will find this out if you use the “Direct Consumption” screen.. I always try to adjust this to the lowest possible number without loosing speed.. You will notice that there can be a 2 – 4 kW of a difference before you see the speed change.. On a clear summers day with no hills and a smooth road this is easy.. it becomes impossible on a country road in Ireland during a storm.. so my range suffers.. I always see people here getting 100miles with relative ease.. I have never been beyond about 70 miles.. I am hoping this will change 🙂

In order to maintain speed a certain amount of energy has to be spend but that does not necessarily have to come from the battery.. Going down a steep hill mean the energy comes from gravity.. Having hurricane force winds behind you means it comes from the wind.. Similar, going up hill or against a strong headwind means you will use more energy..

The NEDC test is done in controlled circumstances which are the same for all cars and it predicted Zoe could do about 230km.. Basic physics can give you a predicted range, which I believe the app does, but it will never be 100% accurate.. Depending on where/how/when you drive, not even close..

Sorry if this has been discussed elsewhere.. Just felt I needed to mention it..

I also wonder if the battery management system,balancing etc,would talk to a different make of battery? I would love to keep the old battery for projects, but too much cost I fear?

I don’t know; I’m not them. But I am certain they won’t remotely disable your car. I don’t have a copy of the battery or sales agreements; but there may be clues in there.

Someone posted an article about it having “DRM” and it was shared all around the web (ultimately leading to that tweet from Renault). They’d lose way too much face the day they remotely stopped someones car; and that’s before the possible legal cases.

Just because we don’t know what they’d do, doesn’t mean they’d do this. It’s cost them a lot more in bad PR than the battery would cost them and like I said; stopping your car doesn’t magically get them their battery back anyway.

Craig – there is a clause on our battery contract that means we can exit our battery contract at some point and then enter into another agreement. I haven’t looked at this clause yet as I know it is too early for me to do so but I think there is a possibility that we could get a better battery contract deal without waiting 4 years. Something I plan to look at later.

Well that’s a very endearing view of business but what, in your opinion, will Renault do to “get them the battery back” ?