Car Moon

After the sporty DeZir rear-wheel drive coupe, the funky Captur three-door crossover and more recently, the practical R-Space minivan, Renault is ready to share its latest concept model with the Frendzy, which was unveiled today ahead of its world premiere at the 64th Frankfurt Motor Show later this fall.

The Frendzy is a fresh take on the small van segment where Renault is currently represented by the Kangoo series that is available in both leisure and commercial versions.

French car manufacturer Renault will use the Geneva Show to unveil the Kangoo Maxi Z.E., the newest member of its EV family that will go on sale in autumn 2011. Available in two or five-seat configurations, the Kangoo Maxi Z.E. has a maximum carrying capacity of 4.6 cubic meters (162.4 cubic feet), thanks to the 40 cm longer wheelbase (1.3 ft) than the Kangoo Z.E., while the load length is 2.9 meters (9.5 ft).

Renault has released pictures and details of the 2011 Kangoo Express Z.E. pure-electric van it showed at this week's International Commercial Vehicles Show in Hanover, Germany. It is the first of several production EVs Renault plans to launch over the next few years and the first all-electric van to be developed and built by a vehicle manufacturer - or so the company claims.

Following the Fluence Z.E. all-electric sedan concept's unveiling at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show and last December's presentation of the Kangoo Van Z.E. prototype at the COP 15 (United Nations Climate Change Conference) in Copenhagen, Renault today unveiled the finalized designs of both models.

The French automaker said that customers in Europe and in a few more select countries including Singapore, South Africa and Russia, who are interested in the two models can pre-reserve their vehicle at "www.renault-ze.com" with first deliveries expected in the first half of 2011.

The Fluence Z.E. will be built at the OYAK-Renault factory in Bursa, Turkey, on the same production line as the internal combustion engine-powered versions of Fluence.

Renault is stepping up its product offensive with the presentation of a new Maxi version of its second-generation Kangoo. With the Maxi, the French firm completes the Kangoo's range that includes the compact three-door and five-door models.

With an overall length of 4.60 metres or 181.1 inches, the Kangoo Van Maxi is 384mm longer than the standard Kangoo Van. All of this extra length has gone to the wheelbase that now measures a whopping 3.1 metres or 122 inches, meaning its 65mm longer than that of the standard Mercedes-Benz S-Class!

Renault took advantage of the Annual General Meeting of its shareholders today in Paris, France, to unwrap a more production-like version of its Kangoo Be Bop Z.E. concept that was first seen at the 2008 Paris Motor Show. What's really significant about this new prototype is that it features technology very similar to what will be used on the first all-electric Nissan vehicle due to be launched in the USA and Japan in 2010 and the rest of the world from 2012, as well as the equivalent Renault EVs in 2011, beginning with a family saloon in Israel, and a utility version of New Kangoo in Europe.

The best description we could think of for Renault’s Paris Show Z.E. concept car is a Kangoo of the not-so distant future. And truly enough, the Z.E., which by the way stands for Zero Emissions, is indeed based on the new Kangoo Be-Bop that also made its world premiere at the Paris Motor Show. The concept study utilizes the Renault-Nissan Group’s new electric drivetrain that will be massed produced in the beginning of the next decade. -Continued

More specifically, the Z.E. is equipped with a 70kW (95hp) electric motor which delivers torque of 226Nm with energy being provided by a latest generation set of lithium-ion type batteries.

Other notable features on the Z.E. Concept is include the use of heat-reflective paint and insulating bodywork that limits variations in temperature between the exterior and the interior of the car and the roof top solar panels that power a temperature regulation system.

The latest model to join Renault’s Kangoo family is the all-new Be-Bop which is essentially the production version of last year’s Kangoo Compact Concept. Scheduled to be unveiled at the Paris Motor Show, the four-seat Be-Bop with the cool two-tone paint scheme comes equipped with a large sliding glazed roof and rear tailgate window that rolls down for a near-convertible experience. Hit the jump below to watch the official video or click here to read our detailed post on the Be-Bop that also includes a high-resolution image gallery. -Continued

This funky looking three-door minivan is the Kangoo be-bop and it will be officially unveiled at this week’s Paris Motor Show. Based closely on the Kangoo Compact Concept that was revealed at the 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show, the latest addition in the Kangoo family features the same convertible roof configuration seen on the prototype car, with a fully glazed, forward-sliding roof and a retractable rear window. -Continued

The model also comes with fully adjustable and removable individual rear seats that are mounted 9cm higher than the front seats, producing an amphitheatre arrangement. The capacity of the luggage compartment ranges from 174 to 1,462dm3 depending on whether the seats are in their rearmost or foremost position.

According to Renault, passengers can access the rear seats either through the front doors, using a handle that folds down the back of the front seats or if you’re feeling a bit more adventurous, by climbing into the rear seats through the open tailgate and the gap between the rear seats. Just be careful you don’t get into any sticky situations.

The Kangoo be bop differs from its sibling by being shorter at 3.87 meters, as well as through some styling details, like the two-tone paint job, the black headlamp masks, the restyled bumpers, and 16-inch alloy wheels along with the higher ground clearance that has been raised 20mm compared with the conventional Kangoo.

Powertain options will include two diesel engines, the 85HP 1.5-liter dCi and the 100HP 1.5-liter dCi which comes with a particulate filter and drives through a six-speed gearbox and the petrol 105HP 1.6-liter unit.