Renault Kangoo ZE will get a range boost to about 275 km

The French automaker is planning on a package that will lengthen the Kangoo's full-charge range to about 275 km from its current 170 km. Renault will unveil the option on January 13th at the European Motor Show in Brussels.

Granted, the range is measured by the rather generous NEDC driving cycle, and Renault itself says real-world driving conditions will deliver a range closer to about 120 miles. That said, Renault is looking to pick up some fleet sales for its utility EV with the longer-range feature.

How well does the Kangoo sell across the Pond? Well, according to EV Obsession, the model moved 557 units in October, the most recent month tracked. By comparison, the BMW i3 came in atop the plug-in vehicle list with 1,656 vehicles sold, followed by a near dead sales heat between the Renault Zoe's 1,447 units and the Mitsubishi Outlander Plug-in Hybrid's 1,444 vehicles. Through the first 10 months of the year, the Kangoo hasn't fared quite as well, as its 3,404 vehicles sold placed it at No. 16 for European EV sales. The Renault Zoe moved 17,277 units, followed by the Outlander PHEV with 17,265.

The Kangoo Z.E. most recently made news in these pages last year when Norway's postal service, Posten Norge, ordered almost 300 Kangoo Maxi Z.E. vehicles, though there was a twist – the vans came equipped with diesel-powered heaters so that the drivers could stay warm in those legendarily cold Norwegian winters.