The challenge for automotive manufacturers engaged in transition to electric vehicles is to make electricity accessible to all. Affordable models need to be offered to accelerate mass adoption, as not everyone can or wants to afford cars priced at €30,000. From this perspective, Luca De Meo, CEO of the Renault Group, found inspiration in Japanese kei-cars.
These are small cars with a maximum length of 3.4 meters which enjoy tax breaks and registration benefits in Japan, precisely to face the challenges of traffic congestion and parking in the chaotic streets of Tokyo and other Japanese metropolises. Renault is working on a new electric vehicle project which will be placed in the range of basic cars and could join, within the group, the Dacia Spring, a successful all-electric (BEV) model.
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Towards a Renault kei car
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Other perspectives for the new Renault 2023-2024 city car
Towards a Renault kei car
During the Future of the Car, an event organized by the Financial Times, Luca De Meo, CEO of Renault, revealed that French designers are working on an electric vehicle with a price below 20,000 euros. This detail suggests that Renault is not limiting itself to a simple task, but is developing something daring. The idea of adapting the Japanese concept of kei cars to European tastes piques my interest.
The manager pointed that out kei cars are intelligent vehicles: light, small, easy to park and incentivized by lower insurance rates. Although some kei cars have been introduced in Europe, such as the Daihatsu Cuore or the “sporty” Copen, they have not been very successful. Even the Nissan Cube, a very popular kei car at home, has met with less success on our continent.
Renault therefore seems to want to take inspiration from the concept of in the car rather than directly importing a model as Japanese manufacturers have done in the past. In fact, weight is a crucial element for the success of an electric vehicle as it greatly influences the range, while the size affects the price. Therefore, the characteristics of kei cars are perfectly suited to the current environment. The challenge is to find the right formula and mix to conquer the European market.
Other perspectives for the new Renault 2023-2024 city car
We cannot exclude the hypothesis that the electric vehicle with a price of less than 20,000 euros shares the chassis and ideas with the Dacia Spring, a project within the Renault group that could fit that purpose. The Spring is just over 3.7 meters long, offers a range of up to 230 km, has a relatively low weight for an electric vehicle (less than 1,000 kg) and if the power could raise skepticism (45 or 65 hp) , the available torque is more than adequate (at least 125 Nm).
Alternatively, and this is perhaps the most likely option, Renault could work on an existing projectlike that of the recent electric kei car called Sakura, which its ally Nissan already markets in Japan. Although it would return to an area that has not been successful in the past, ie importing a model from abroad rather than developing one from scratch in Europe.
About the impact and importance of a Extremely affordable electric RenaultDe Meo said: “At the moment I am the President of the European Automobile Manufacturers Association and we are facing some issues that we do not think are right for the industry. But at the same time we are fully aware of the need to offer solutions to the problems. And I believe that the ability to produce an A-segment electric vehicle with a low environmental impact is one such solution.”