I don't know much about them other than you are right they do not have rapid charge (3.3 I think), do not share same battery tech as Zoe, requires a lease (not necessarily a bad thing), and wouldn't trust the rumours that Renualt are going to write off lease agreements in the future. Not sure there is any difference between mrk 1 to mrk 2 in battery tech, just looks.

 

I wouldn't assume battery hire will be dropped for definite... its a nice rumour, but treat it as such.

MK1 and MK2 Kangoo is just cosmetic front end.
3kw charging I believe, on a Type 1 cable.
Proper handbrake, just made to look like something off a plane lol

 

These are great vans.
They only have a slow 3.3kw charger and a usable range of approx 85 miles on a single charge.
Ideal if you do lots of short trips as you can keep topping up as and when.
These currently being used with THE PET SITTING COMPANY

 

85miles? We just about get 50miles.

 

Great vans for urban, short stop start driving. More nimble than the diesel equivalent as well as all the other advantages, Also no loss of boot space having exactly the same payload as a standard Kangoo.
Mk1 vans are the same as MK2 except for the charge outlet on MK1 being offset on the bonnet and with a type 1 cable necessary. This has a slightly smaller fitting on the car end. I think they changed over at end of 2012.

 

The Phase 2 Kangoo has the charge port under front central blue renault badge, which opens like a flap to reveal a type 2 socket. The Phase one has a more plain front end with the offset charge flap revealing a type 1 socket.

All Kagoos have a 20kWh battery and a 40kW motor. The handbrake is mechanical. There's no regen settings, regen is very strong, and also puts the brake lights on. We've all got used to one pedal driving now, hardly ever needing to press the brake pedal.

Charging is only 3.5kW, which is fine if you can charge overnight, not so good if you need a top-up during the day. Interior is basic. The heater is pants, as it is in most 1st gen EV's. The only pre-heating you get is via a basic digital timer on the dash, whereby you set your departure time, and it pre-heats the cabin from 1 hour prior to departure only if you're plugged into the charger, otherwise you get into a cold van.

As with most EV's, it's extremely nippy up to 30mph. It has a max speed of 81mph by means of an electronic speed limiter. It feels like it's wanting to go faster when it hits the 81mph limit, and just suddenly stops accelerating. Although anything over 60mph really starts eating the battery, since the aerodynamics are brick-like.

It has no traction control, and you have to be careful not to wheel spin when pulling out of junctions. It takes a bit of getting used to, and after 18 months we still accidentally wheel spin at least once a week.

Battery rental is £35pm plus VAT (£42pm inc) for 9,000 miles pa. Typical range in summer is 80 to 85 miles, in mid winter around 65 miles.

It's nowhere as nice inside as an env-200, but it's a lot cheaper to buy, despite the battery lease. There's not a lot of choice if you're looking for a small electric van. If the basic nature of it doesn't bother you, and since you've already got experience of EV driving, then it's certainly worth considering. We're happy with ours. 18 months after we bought it, if I had to buy another van right now, I'd probably still go for the Kangoo because of the cost difference between it and the env-200.

 

I've driven both. Had the Nissan van out on a 24 hour test drive. Spent about 2 hours with a Kangoo Phase 1. The Kangoo rides better but the eNV-200 has rapid charging.


Both have resistance heat which kills winter range.

Kangoo has an optional but rare diesel heater. Nissan has optional seat heaters. Either help a lot in winter, especially if you are doing a lot of short trips.



If range is important you may want to wait a few months to see if the either van gets a battery pack update.

 

It comes down to price IMO. The nv200 bar it's harsh ride when empty is a better van. Rapid charging and ideally a 6.6kw charger would be amazing but your paying 2-4 times more than the Kangoo.

The renault rides nice and is nice to drive but it's a renault so take out a warranty on it. They are way more unreliable than the Nissans. But again it's the price difference.

 

It comes down to price IMO. The nv200 bar it's harsh ride when empty is a better van. Rapid charging and ideally a 6.6kw charger would be amazing but your paying 2-4 times more than the Kangoo.

The renault rides nice and is nice to drive but it's a renault so take out a warranty on it. They are way more unreliable than the Nissans. But again it's the price difference.

'Renaults being less unreliable than Nissans' That may have been the case along, long time ago but I would say it's more to do with an indoctrination that says because it is of French origin, it is inferior to something of Japanese origin. In any case they are part of the same group and share the same technology now so all that is different is the badge in effect. It's very much a globalised industry but Renault have been a major innovator in the EV world. Hats off to them when most manufacturers have built 'compliant' hybrids of dubious merit.

 

Thanks for all the comments above. It would suit us down to the ground, not needing a rapid, low mileage (sub 10k pa) and potentially saving £800 pa in fuel costs, net of battery rental. There is a 61 plate one on Autotrader for £3100 Renault Kangoo not to far away; current car is an 03 and pretty sh****d; However....

Just did a warranty quote online £83 PER MONTH !!!. There goes any fuel saving. Not even worried about the battery as it is lease, just things like charger or motor but £83 pcm kills it dead.

 

I spotted that car the other day, steal isn't it.

Quick question, you consider extended warranty for an EV but not an ICE? Or is that +£83 over the cost of ICE warranty?

 

No, neither of our ICE cars have warranties but they I can go to a reliable local garage and get pretty much everything fixed. EV's are pretty much main dealer only so costs would be higher. I have no idea how much a charger or motor would cost but I'll bet they are not cheap because of the low volume of production. My EV was bought new on a 2 year PCP so no worries about that. My replacement EV will also be new with a warranty throughout my 3 year PCP. Hopefully in a few years there will be more garages able to deal with EV's and we wont be stuck with the dealer monopoly on repairs.

Going back to the van, I may go and have a look as it has been about for a while. It would pretty much pay for itself in a couple of years, especially if fuel price increases continue.

 

The Phase 2 Kangoo has the charge port under front central blue renault badge, which opens like a flap to reveal a type 2 socket. The Phase one has a more plain front end with the offset charge flap revealing a type 1 socket.

All Kagoos have a 20kWh battery and a 40kW motor. The handbrake is mechanical. There's no regen settings, regen is very strong, and also puts the brake lights on. We've all got used to one pedal driving now, hardly ever needing to press the brake pedal.

Charging is only 3.5kW, which is fine if you can charge overnight, not so good if you need a top-up during the day. Interior is basic. The heater is pants, as it is in most 1st gen EV's. The only pre-heating you get is via a basic digital timer on the dash, whereby you set your departure time, and it pre-heats the cabin from 1 hour prior to departure only if you're plugged into the charger, otherwise you get into a cold van.

As with most EV's, it's extremely nippy up to 30mph. It has a max speed of 81mph by means of an electronic speed limiter. It feels like it's wanting to go faster when it hits the 81mph limit, and just suddenly stops accelerating. Although anything over 60mph really starts eating the battery, since the aerodynamics are brick-like.

It has no traction control, and you have to be careful not to wheel spin when pulling out of junctions. It takes a bit of getting used to, and after 18 months we still accidentally wheel spin at least once a week.

Battery rental is £35pm plus VAT (£42pm inc) for 9,000 miles pa. Typical range in summer is 80 to 85 miles, in mid winter around 65 miles.

It's nowhere as nice inside as an env-200, but it's a lot cheaper to buy, despite the battery lease. There's not a lot of choice if you're looking for a small electric van. If the basic nature of it doesn't bother you, and since you've already got experience of EV driving, then it's certainly worth considering. We're happy with ours. 18 months after we bought it, if I had to buy another van right now, I'd probably still go for the Kangoo because of the cost difference between it and the env-200.

Im considering renting one of these for a month to see if its viable for me business. Im a carpenter travelling into london about 45 miles one way. Just not sure how much load it can take with my tools etc and how this will effect my range... I dont have many tools maybe 80 - 100kg... Do you have any experience loading it up?

 

100kg is like a fat passenger so I don't think it would effect range much. You should be able to manage that but it's better off to check it will just incase,

 

We've had loads more than 100kg in ours. The good thing is that there's so much torque in the electric motor, that when you set off you forget it's fully loaded. You lose a bit of acceleration, and the handling changes naturally as the centre of gravity is higher. As for the range, honest we couldn't tell the difference.

However, what I would say is 45 miles each way is too much for a return trip on one charge. Unless you have guaranteed destination charging, I don't think it's going to work out for you. Motorway speeds, using the heater and winter all reduce the range, so you may be needing 4+ hours charge in London before you can return home. Remember, the van only charges at 3.5kW, which equates to roughly 12 miles of charge per hour.

 

My Fluence has resistance heating (so I'm told) but it's still managing OK this winter. It had 70 miles of range this week. That's on damp roads with soft winter tyres (not low-resistance types either)

So resistance heating should not be a big problem especially if you heat the vehicle before setting out.

 

@Dblock did the new motor and charger solve the issues? Any idea what the cost was or did they not saw as it was warranty work. Still pondering a kangoo as several 2012 cars now around the £3k level but stories like yours worry me with a potential huge bill to keep it running. I get the impression from your post that the dealer network just keep fitting parts until it solves the problem. Fine if under warranty but expensive if not.