Shockingly affordable. Dacia’s international motto does not apply to any car as well as to this Dacia Spring Electric. It is not only the first fully electric Dacia ever, but it will also soon be the cheapest EV you can buy in Europe! The Dacia Spring Electric can be found in Dutch showrooms in the second half of next year.
Electric cars are still far from affordable for everyone, but if it is up to Dacia, that will change very quickly. Starting in the second half of next year, you can step into the Spring Electric, a fully electric compact five-door hatchback that is also equipped with cool crossover-like design elements. Before we highlight the car, a little explanation. During what should have been the Geneva Motor Show in March this year, Dacia presented the Spring Concept to the world. This very production-ready-looking concept car was a concrete forerunner of what would eventually become the cheapest EV in Europe. A final production version of that study model was presented just eight months later: the Dacia Spring Electric. We do not yet have Dutch prices, but knowing Dacia, the brand will undoubtedly do everything it can to fulfill the price promise. To save development costs, Dacia did not develop its Spring Electric from scratch. In fact, we are dealing with a version of the Renault K-ZE adapted for the European market, which has been on sale in China for a while. The K-ZE is in turn an electric version of the Renault Kwid, developed specifically for growth markets. Are we still there?
Dacia Spring Electric
Design
Well, then the really important things. The Dacia Spring Electric is a 3.73 meter short five-door hatchback that is 1.62 meters wide and 1.51 meters high. This makes the electric Dacia only 14 centimeters longer than the Twingo from sister brand Renault. In terms of design, Dacia remains very faithful to the Spring Concept from earlier this year, as expected. The Spring Electric also has a muzzle very similar to that of the Renault K-ZE with two-layered front lighting. At the top is the ultra-flat LED daytime running lights, one floor below the actual headlights. The closed radiator grille is decorated with chrome-colored design elements that add a bit of fun to the high and rather sturdy front. The charging point is hidden behind the Dacia logo. The Spring Electric has relatively square wheel arches with thick black plastic edges. Together with the large ground clearance, it gives the electric Romanian a crossover-like appearance. The simply-shaped rear lights feature Dacia’s new Y-shaped light signature that we recently saw on the new Sandero and Logan. Those who want to dress up the Spring Electric can opt for an option package that brings a whole collection of orange accents to the EV. The Spring Electric has wheels that Dacia calls ‘Flexwheels’, steel specimens with hip-looking wheel covers that can be clicked to suggest that the car is on light metal.
Space
The dashboard of the Spring Electric is almost one on one from the Renault Kwid with which the Dacia shares its base. The cockpit is simple in design, but looks quite complete. Behind the new steering wheel introduced in the Sandero are just analog clocks, but in between is a 3.5-inch display that can be controlled via buttons on the steering wheel. Between the front seats is a simple rotary knob with which the ‘transmission’ of the Spring Electric can be set in D, N and R. The luggage compartment of the Spring Electric is remarkably large at 300 liters. Especially when you consider that the storage space for the optional spare wheel is not included in those 300 liters. If you throw the back seat flat, you should be able to bring 600 liters of material, according to Dacia. The front door compartments, together with the glove compartment and the storage space in the center console, have a volume of over 23 liters. Four electric windows are standard as is central locking. You do have to pay extra for things like air conditioning, the Media Nav infotainment system (with Apple Carplay and Android Auto) and electrically adjustable exterior mirrors. After all, the savings must come from somewhere. Further indulgence that is optionally available: parking sensors and a reversing camera.
Dacia Spring Electric
Specifications
Then the question of questions: how powerful is the Spring Electric and how far can you get with it? Well now. The small EV has a 44 hp and 125 Nm strong electric motor that is linked to a 26.8 kWh battery pack. With this, the electric Dacia should be able to reach a range of 225 kilometers. Just according to the WLTP cycle. The top speed is 125 km / h. With a 30 kW DC charger, the package can be filled up to 80 percent of its capacity in less than an hour. You need 5 hours on a 7.4 kW Wallbox to fill the package completely. If you plug the Dacia Spring Electric into a 3.7 kW Wallbox, you have to take 8.5 hours to fully recharge an empty battery. No wallbox? No problem. If you hang the Spring Electric at home, the package will be completely full again in just under 14 hours. Still loading stress? Then activate the Eco mode while driving. This reduces the power to 31 hp and the top speed is limited to 100 km / h. Using a telephone application, the My Dacia App, you can not only keep track of the charging status of your Spring Electric, but also switch the climate control on or off remotely. You probably guessed it, but the powertrain is also identical to that of the Renault K-ZE on which the Spring is based.
Safety
Reading the name of the already mentioned ancestor of this electric Romanian, the Renault Kwid, may cause you some concern. Global NCAP rammed various versions of the Kwid into the wall in 2016 in India. Even a version with a driver’s airbag – until recently often optional in India – failed to score a single star. In the meantime, the Kwid has been radically modernized and for the European market, Renault has done its best to raise the safety level to a higher level. For example, the Spring Electric has ABS, ESP, six airbags, an SOS button to activate the emergency services, automatic lighting and an automatic emergency braking system as standard.
Dacia Spring Electric
Prices and versions
As mentioned, no Dutch prices are yet known. We do know that there will be two versions that each have two prices: one where the battery is included in the purchase price and one where you actually rent the battery pack. In addition, a small order version will be available. The latter has a loading depth of 1.03 meters, can carry 800 liters of stuff and has a loading capacity of 325 kilos. The Spring stocking is not finished yet. Dacia first introduces a variant specially devised for a car-sharing program. The part springs are available in white and gray and include extra wear-resistant upholstery and floor mats. On the outside you will soon be able to distinguish them from the regular versions thanks to their black door handles and side mirror caps. We conclude with a trivial fact. Did you know that the Spring Electric is not the only derivative of the Renault K-ZE? In China there is also a Venucia E30 and a Dongfeng T1EV!