Updated Renault Zoe on sale 01 | 11 | 2016
RENAULT’S UPDATED all-electric car, the Zoe, is now on-sale at Scottish dealerships with prices starting at £13,995. More significantly is the fact, the new model has a range of 250 miles. (Related: EVs to overtake petrol by 2020)
Ok, so the basic car retains the old model’s 149-mile range, but the higher-trim levels all get the new, bigger 41kW battery with a boosted 250-mile range. Those extra 101 miles will cost you an additional £3850: the 41kW car starts from £17,845, including the government’s plug-in car grant.
The range — deliveries will start in January — now also includes a new Signature Nav trim. This gets heated leather seats, a Bose stereo, rear parking camera and 16in alloys.
This high-spec model sits alongside the established Expression Nav (£13,995) and Dynamique Nav (from £18,595) models which both feature sat-nav as standard.
Unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in September, the latest Zoe — when fitted with the bigger 41kW battery — also gets a fast charge option. Costing £750, the ‘Q90’ quick charge feature allows an 80% charge in just over an hour. The downside: adding this option reduces maximum range to 230 miles.
Sensibly, Renault has also released its own range estimation, in addition to the 250-mile figures from the NEDC. Renault believes the new Zoe will capable of 186 miles in real-world conditions. That eases it comfortably ahead of its main rival, the Nissan Leaf.
Two new apps also allow owners to to locate public charge points across Europe: Z.E. Trip and Z.E. Pass are accessed from the car’s R-Link infotainment system.
Renault continues to offer customers monthly battery lease rates from £49 to £110 per month, or the option to buy the batteries outright. That means existing Zoe owners will also be able to benefit from the new, improved battery fitted to the very latest version.
Frustratingly though, they won’t be able to achieve the 250-mile range of the new model, simply because the latest Zoe features a number of other upgrades that can’t be retro-fitted. They should though be able to achieve around 200 miles, which is still pretty impressive.
And while new options include 17in alloys (£310) and remote services (£150) — which allow you to set your car’s air-con or heater from your smartphone — there’s also the choice of a new range of external colours, including Mars Red and Titanium Grey complement Zircon Blue. The top-spec Signature Nav gets an ‘exclusive’ Ytrium Grey.
Related: Renault to supply power to Techeetah
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Jim McGill