The new Dacia Spring arrives in September. No, it isn’t a bubble car. It is a sub-four-metre electric SUV with chunky lines and a price tag that will make competitors sweat. We are talking about a starting price below 18,000 euros. That is roughly £15,000.
Dacia CEO Katrin Adt confirmed the timeline. The car is built on a radically simplified philosophy. Less is more. The goal is strict. The car has only what you need. Nothing else.
Development Speed and Philosophy
They developed this car in 16 months. That is faster than the Renault Twingo, its mechanical sibling. The Twingo took 21 months. Unprecedented for a European automaker. Fast-tracked? Yes. Cut corners? According to Adt, absolutely not. They just stripped away the excess.
Adt used to work at Mercedes-Benz. There, engineers packed cars with features. Here? They take things out. It is fascinating. It is also proof of Dacia’s brand consistency. Essential. Cool.
“Therefore, this car has strictly what the current customer needs, and nothing else.”
The team in Romania excels at reduction. That is their skill. That is their advantage.
Design: Not Another Twingo
Look at the prototypes. You see the skeleton. It shares structure with the Twingo. But the skin is different. David Durand, Dacia’s design boss, wants a clear distinction. If they look too similar, the brands eat each other’s lunch. That is bad business.
The Spring has a taller, more defined bonnet. Two-box silhouette. Boxy LED headlights. A large grille-like graphic where a radiator should be. The side windows are borrowed from Renault, including the rear quarter glass. But the rear lights? Squarer. Conventional. Different from the Twingo’s hoops.
Inside, it shares the dashboard layout. Recycled materials. A less colorful palette. Google-based 10-inch touchscreen in the middle. Digital driver display. The movable rear seats from the Twingo? Probably gone. Replaced by a traditional bench. Cheaper. Simpler.
Specs: Range and Performance
The motor is an 80bhp unit on the front axle. Battery is 27.5kWh. Range should hit 163 miles. DC charging at 50kW.
Is it fast? No. Is it efficient? Yes. It beats the entry-level BYD Dolphin in price and charging capability. It beats the old Spring significantly. The Leapmotor T03 might offer more range for the money (175 miles for ~£16,000), but the Spring will undercut it. Barely.
Availability and Price
UK buyers. You wait until 2027. Right-hand drive Twingo production starts in early 2027. The Spring follows. You might see the finished car earlier, but you can’t drive it home yet.
Right now, the old Spring is still sold. Updated. Still made in China. Tariffs could hike the price by 35 percent. The new Spring is made in Europe. No tariff risk. Cheaper to produce. Cheaper for you.
Patrice Lévy-Bencheton put it bluntly. They define the product based on real needs. Real usage. Not features. Position it as the most affordable EV. Defend that position. Always.
Why a Second EV?
Frank Marotte, during a financial call, said Dacia is committed to increasing BEV share. Increasing volume. Helping the Renault Group’s CAFE scores. The old Spring is one of the cheapest EVs. This new one will be cheaper. Better. Built closer to home.
You won’t wait long for more news. The industry is moving. Fast.
The market wants cheap electric transport. Dacia heard. They just stripped away everything except the essential. The result arrives in September. The price hits the market next year. Whether that is low enough for your bank account? Well. That depends on how much you actually need.
