Buying a new EV for under € 20,000? You could forget that until recently. The Renault Twingo Electric came pretty close, but the Dacia Spring is the first EV of the established brands to dive below that limit. Do you have to make a lot of concessions in terms of equipment for that money, or is it all not too bad? Time to grab the Dacia configurator.
Dacia Spring Comfort
€ 17,890
Dacia keeps things clear in the first place, because the Spring is only available with one powertrain. The battery pack has a capacity of 27.4 kWh and powers a 44 hp and 125 Nm strong electric motor. Where EVs are usually known for their fast sprints, that kite does not apply to the Spring. The Dacia takes 19.1 seconds to reach 100 km / h and at 125 km / h the cake is over. The WLTP range is 230 kilometers. As standard, Dacia supplies a Type 2 charging cable for the wallbox and public use. Then the maximum charging speed is 7.4 kW. A fast charger is optional, but more on that later.
It is therefore not possible to order a variant with better performance or a larger battery capacity. Compared to the Twingo Electric, the Spring with its length of 3.73 meters is 14 centimeters longer, but it has to do with almost half the power. The range of the Spring is in theory slightly better than that of the Twingo. The price difference between the basic versions of both cars is € 2,700, of course in favor of the Spring.
Crossover-like
From the outside it almost seems as if the Spring is ready for the rougher work. This is mainly because it is a bit higher on the wheels than a regular hatchback and the plastic fenders and bumpers also contribute to this. However, the average Spring will not get much further than the urban jungle. Further decoration is at the bottom of the doors: an extra black surface with the indication ‘electric’ and in addition, the Spring has roof rails in black plastic with a silver-colored insert. As standard, Dacia paints it in the color ‘Blanc Kaolin’, optionally you can choose from the three colors ‘Bleu Cenote’, ‘Rouge Goji’ and ‘Gris Lightning’ for € 595. In terms of wheels, the choice is limited to the 14-inch steel copies shown, but the shape of the wheel covers makes it almost as if there is light metal under the car.
Dacia Spring
Central door locking with remote control is standard. Furthermore, the Dacia Spring has LED daytime running lights at the front, but the low beam is halogen. At the rear, we see the same Y-shaped light signature as on the Sandero, although the Spring’s rear lights have been designed differently. The exterior mirrors are electrically adjustable, but you have to fold them manually. Any form of parking assistance is also not available on the Comfort, so you have to rely on your own insight when parking.
Not particularly spartan
In the interior, except for the blue accents on the dashboard and the light pieces of upholstery on the seats, it is mainly austerity and black plastic that strikes the clock. However, that does not mean that you are devoid of any kind of comfort in the Spring. For example, manual air conditioning is available as standard and the windows can be operated electrically all around. Incidentally, you can also precondition the Spring and keep track of the charging status via the ‘My Dacia App’. The driver’s seat is adjustable in height, the steering wheel is fixed. On the dashboard there is an LCD screen for the driver for things like the range and speed, with a large indicator on the left that shows how much power you are using and on the right a meter that shows the remaining capacity of the battery. In its basic trim, the Spring does not have a navigation screen, but it does have a DAB + radio with Bluetooth connectivity.
Dacia Spring
A number of functions of that radio can be operated via the steering wheel. There are also the buttons for the speed limiter, cruise control is not present on the Spring. In terms of active safety systems, the EV has Active Emergency Braking. Naturally, the legally required items such as ABS, ESP, a tire pressure monitoring system and an automatic emergency call in the event of an accident (eCall) are also on board. Options are hardly available. The only things you can order are a full spare wheel for € 145 and an ’emergency charging cable’ for the socket for € 395.
You can, however, opt for a higher equipment level: the Comfort Plus. This variant costs exactly € 1,000 more than the Comfort and in return offers the multimedia system ‘Media Nav DAB +’ with support for Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a reversing camera and the ‘Orange Pack’, which brightens up both the interior and the exterior with orange. accents. Incidentally, you can only opt for the DC charger with a charging capacity of 30 kW from this equipment level. This has an additional cost of € 495. To be able to fast charge, you have to add a total of € 1,495 on top of the starting price of the Spring. With a total price of € 19,385, however, he remains well below 20 grand.