Nowadays, every respectable car manufacturer is building electric cars. In the not too distant past however, it was quite different.
Ten years ago, Renault already was looking into EV's. So they might not be the true pioneers, but they're EV-pioneers nonetheless.
Seven years ago, they introduced the Zoe. A mainstream electric car, and after seven years Renault thought it was time to renew it.
Renault says this is the new Zoe, but I would call it an extensive facelift. More importantly, the interior has changed quite a lot.
And that's what it's about. Also, the timing couldn't be better, but we'll get to that. First, let's have a look at the car itself.
The nose has been fully redesigned. New headlights, tighter lines, LED's which follow along here, a wider and bigger logo with blue edges...
Blue accents which of course stand for 'electric'. You must've seen blue electricity at one point in your life, right?
It's been designed in quite a wide way. If we look at the sides however, it's the same as the previous seven years.
Oh and the rear lights have been changed as well, as they should be in a facelift. I mean, I say it's a facelift... Oh well.
They're new and they have moving indicators. Also, an important improvement compared with the outgoing Zoe,
is that you're able to quickcharge it.
On the inside, the facelift was a little more extensive. For starters, I've got a 10-inch screen in front of me with the digital dials.
It's standard on all versions. Next to that, you've got this vertical screen which displays all kinds of infotainment. You can set it to your personal...
preferences. Also, the connectivity has been improved a lot. Another important thing: Renault acknowledges the fact that the...
current and outgoing Zoe featured some hard plastics, so they've installed much softer and more premium materials over here.
It's also very durable, because it's made entirely of recycled car materials like seats and seatbelts.
Over here, we've got the funny new Renault-gear lever. It has a D- and a B-mode. We already know the D from the current Zoe,
but in B-mode, you can apply one-pedal drive. That means you don't really have to brake anymore and only slow down by releasing the throttle.
That way you regenerate by using your braking energy and that's the new way of electric mobility.
And that regenerative braking brings me to the essence of this car, because there's a catch.
I said it at the beginning of this video, but a lot of manufacturers are investing in electric vehicles.
Renault was quite the pioneer, but rival PSA recently announced the new 208 which will be fully electric from the start, just like the new Corsa.
If we take a look at the numbers of this new Zoe, it has a new motor producing 100 kW, which is around 136 horsepower.
And that's the same as the PSA-power source. They also enlarged the battery capacity to 52 kWh, whilst PSA has a battery pack of 50 kWh.
Awfully similar, wouldn't you say? Also, the PSA-cars will be released around next year, whilst the Zoe will be released after the summer.
I think Renault is trying to steal some thunder. Of course, they're denying that, because they say it was time for a new Zoe.
But then, the big question for electric cars. How far can you get on a single charge? That's important, and it's a funny comparison again.
The new Opel Corsa has a WLTP-range of 330 km, the new 208 has a WLTP-range of 340 km and this Zoe has a WLTP-range of...
You expected it: 390 km. So actually, they've already stolen the thunder from PSA.
Sure, Renault can say they thought it was time for a new Zoe, but there's no doubt in my mind that this has something to do with...
the new of electric cars coming. Anyway, they're early, because production starts in the coming fall.
That means the first cars will be on the road around then, and you can count on it that there's going to be a lot of them.