The philosophy of Renault’s low-cost subsidiary is very precise: May the others strive for whatever – with Dacia, the price alone counts. This is how the Romanians do it with their first e-car. After deducting all subsidies, the bottom line is that the jumping costs just 10,920 euros. This is a real announcement to the brave new world of rechargeable batteries, in which six-digit sums can easily be called up. Simply drive electrically – there is no better way to describe Dacia’s claim.
As a result, you shouldn’t expect any miracles from the 3.73-meter-small vehicle. The (still) poorly contoured driver’s seat is only adjustable in length and the steering wheel is not at all, you have to use the handbrake to park due to the lack of a P-lock, and you won’t find anything foamed in the interior – on the other hand, dwarfs are good for an electric city runabout Phase more than thick.
Somehow he stands there cuddly. With thick cheeks, a lot of air in the covered wheel arches and even colored ornaments, it remotely resembles a shrunken duster. The connection for the plug is not hidden under the flap on the side, but is emblazoned in the center of the front. Look here, the Dacia Spring conveys: I’m proud to be an electric car.
The trolley is not entirely new. It has been roaming through China as a Dongfeng derivative for almost a year and a half, and now it is set to conquer Europe. Private and business. The French car rental company E. Leclerc has just ordered 3,000 copies – in a rather spartan business version. The “Comfort” and “Comfort Plus” variants generally offered in autumn will appear more visually and technically enhanced.
The heart of the Dacia Spring is a small electric motor with 44 hp, which is fed from a 27.4 kWh battery under the rear seats. According to WLTP, this is enough for 230 kilometers – during test drives around freezing point the display showed at least 184. The not too lush radius is part of the philosophy – see above. Smaller power storage means fewer raw materials, lower weight and lower consumption. In the end it is the balancing act between saving and margin. And as long as the battery can carry, most of them do not even come close to driving each day.
The fact that Dacias Stromer can get to 100 km / h in 19 seconds is more of a theoretical figure. Also that there is a maximum of 125 in it – with a very high run-up even the 130 appears on the display. Because, as always, book one of the battery bible applies: dynamics and distance do not go together. More important is the eco mode, which limits the propulsion to 31 hp in favor of the range.
Either way, the juice will run out at some point. With direct current (30 kW), 80 percent capacity can be pressed into the cells in under an hour. For this purpose, the top equipment “Comfort Plus” is optionally equipped with a Combined Charging System (CCS), which has two additional pins in addition to the type 2 connection. A full charge takes eight and a half hours on a wallbox, and a good half a day on a normal socket.
Despite its brevity, there is plenty of space. Even in the back, where you can sit with your head held high, but your legs shouldn’t be too long. The luggage compartment (above the happily full spare wheel) has a capacity of 270 liters, with the backrest folded down, the Spring even packs away 1.1 cubic meters. There would also be space under the front hood – possibly the Dacia can still be carried away to a storage compartment by the start of series production.
The chassis of the front-wheel drive vehicle is extremely simple, but it gets along well because it only has to handle a ton due to the battery, which weighs only 186 kilograms. Somewhat harder springs, however, could at least be used on the German road network. And the steering should also like to convey more of the feeling that the valance and the front wheels have something to do with each other. On the other hand, the turning circle is pleasantly small at 9.50 meters.
The “Comfort” version already has air conditioning, electric windows, DAB radio and USB connection on board, while the top equipment includes parking sensors, a reversing camera and a multimedia system. There’s also a special app later. The standard feature is the good feeling of not having to worry about the battery. Dacia guarantees 70 percent of the capacity for eight years (up to 120,000 kilometers).
A cargo version should also come this year. Two-seater and with a loading area. It is therefore quite possible that the Spring will not only become a friend of the city-center residents, but will soon also attract courier drivers, pizza delivery men and geriatric nurses. Simply electric.
