Dacia to launch new £15k EV to avoid China tariffs

• New small EV offering “true value for money”
• Will share its platform with upcoming Renault Twingo
• To be sold alongside Dacia Spring initially

It seems like the Dacia Spring has only just gone on sale in the UK, but the Romanian brand is already working on an all-new baby EV that will be just as affordable.

The currently-unnamed electric city car will be based on the upcoming Renault Twingo, which is due to hit the market next year. While that car is rumoured to cost around £17,000, Renault Group CEO, Luca de Meo, has promised a starting price of €18,000 for the new Dacia – that’s less than £15,000 at the current exchange rate. He followed up by saying the new model will “always be a true Dacia, and [will offer] true value for money.” 

Development of the baby Dacia EV is already in full swing, and the brand aims to have it showroom-ready in just 16 months – lighting quick in car industry terms. Speaking at Renault’s annual results conference, De Meo was keen to highlight the ambitiousness of the timeframe, saying, “I defy any competitor in the world to do that, including the Chinese when they come to Europe”.

Why is Dacia making another city car?

China is partly the reason why the new EV is being built in the first place. The Dacia Spring is built in China, and is subject to European tariffs on Chinese EVs. These tariffs are at risk of increasing by up to 35%, which could dramatically increase the price of the Spring. The new Dacia EV will instead be built in Europe, avoiding these tariffs and possibly replacing the Spring in time.

But that’s not expected to happen for a while, so the two EVs will be sold alongside each other initially. The new Dacia could offer some improvements over the Spring, including a longer range – the Spring currently tops out at 140 miles. The official sketch image from Dacia also shows some radically different styling, with chunky bumpers, big wheelarches and square headlights, almost like a baby SUV.

Before we see the new electric city car, we have the Dacia Bigster to look forward to. This sits at the other end of Dacia’s lineup as a mid-size SUV with petrol or hybrid power. This will be followed up by the Dacia C-Neo next year, a petrol-powered hatchback to take on the Skoda Octavia.

You can find the latest new and used Dacia deals on our sister site Auto Express