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| The upcoming Euro '16 Cup and EV's: A BMW i8 wearing the Belgian Football Team colors. |
Because of my work on the EAFO project, i have been visiting regularly Brussels, and so it was possible to see how EV's are spreading through "The Heart of Europe".
Say that, slowly spreading. Unlike neighboring Holland, where you can bump into plug-ins in any given journey, here you still have to be on the lookout to spot EV's, just like in 2013, but since then a new model has landed and helped change the landscape and most importantly, people's minds...
Tesla Model S - The Californian Sports Sedan is currently the most common EV in the Brussels area, especially in the most affluent suburbs of Belgium's Capital. The fact that plug-ins have a very (Very) favorable company tax system, helps high-priced plug-ins to succeed, as it is visible in the local EV market ranking.
Another symptom of this distorted ranking, is the fact that you can see a number of plug-in Volvo XC90 and Porsche's running around in those suburbs, while more humbler EV's, like the I-Miev triplets, are more difficult to spot.
In fact, while other dealerships, like Audi, VW and especially BMW, have their plug-ins to show, Renault seems oblivious of their electric offerings in their stands, so a prospective buyer of a Zoe must have a tough job to get its hands on one, and a reason why BMW's i3 or Audi A3 e-Tron's are easier to see than any zero-emission Renault model.
One of the most quirky things Brussels has to offer when it comes to EV's, is the BYD e6 taxi fleet, despite the small numbers, 36 in total, because they are taxis and are always running around (Big batteries help), they are a relatively common sight, not Tesla-common, but close.