With every car maker working on developing lost cost electric cars in India, Renault doesn’t want to be left behind in the race. Renault is working on an affordable electric car and has confirmed the launch of its first electric car in China. The electric car will be based on the Renault Kwid hatchback that will be an affordable car as China prefer low-cost electric vehicles.
Carlos Ghosn, the Chairman, and CEO of Renault announced that their engineers are working on developing a low-cost electric Renault Kwid to launch in China. Also, he confirmed that Renault Kwid EV will be a well-engineered low-cost hatchback car. Once the car is successful in China, it will be exported to India, Brazil and Middle East countries as well.
Renault Kwid EV will be a low-cost Hatchback
The journey of electrifying vehicles in India has started earlier than the government’s goal of electrifying all the passenger cars by 2030. Also, Tata Motors and Mahindra have taken the tenders to offer Tigor EV and E2o plus respectively.
Ghosn told that Renault Kwid EV is at the advanced stage of development and China is considered the key market that is expected to drive the adoption of electric vehicles worldwide. He added that keen pricing is the way to success in countries like China and India and Renault Kwid will provide a low-cost base to develop an electric car. Renault strives to keep the costs low with features and specifications that customers want in a city car.
Renault Kwid EV to travel 140 km on Single Charge
The Renault Kwid EV will be called as e-Kwid and will travel a distance of 140 km on a single charge that will be sufficient for intracity trips. Renault E-Kwid is expected to be powered by a lithium-ion battery pack. However, Renault-Kwid electric is not expected to deliver very high performance with its limited power electric motor.
Renault E-Kwid is not expected to come to India soon as inadequate charging units and costs are still the major issues. Renault engineers said that costs for making a typical electric car are 60 percent more than its conventional petrol or diesel version. Meanwhile, Renault can rein in components costs like battery packs (partially possible if Renault Kwid EV clicks in China) Renault is unlikely to bring the car in India.
Source: autocarindia.com