Is this a replacement for the Dacia Spring? Cheap new electric car spotted testing

• New Dacia small EV spotted testing
• Likely to replace the Spring
• Will share parts with the Renault Twingo
• Around 160 miles of range possible
• Reveal expected later this year
• Prices could start from £15,000

This is the new Dacia electric city car. It doesn’t have a name yet, but it’ll serve as an alternative to cars like the Leapmotor T03 and BYD Dolphin Surf when it goes on sale next year.

You might be thinking “Hang on a minute, Dacia already makes the Spring. Is this going to replace it?” Well, the answer is sort of…

New Dacia small EV: why is Dacia making another one?

The Dacia Spring went on sale in the UK in 2024, and it’s the joint-cheapest electric car you can buy in the UK along with the Leapmotor T03. It costs just under £16,000, is dirt cheap to run and comes with a decent amount of standard equipment.

So why is Dacia now making another car of the same size and at a similar price? Well the answer, sadly, is political.

The Dacia Spring is built in China, and that means it’s subject to hefty European tariffs. This could, in time, push the price up significantly, so Dacia is working on a new model which will be built in Europe.

These cars will be sold alongside each other to begin with, but it’s almost certain that the new Dacia EV will replace the Spring in the UK and Europe in time.

New Dacia small EV: batteries, motors and range

Under the skin, this new Dacia will share parts with the recently-revealed Renault Twingo. This will keep the costs down, and it gives us a pretty good idea of the power options.

The Twingo is only available with one motor and battery combination: an 80hp motor driving the front wheels and a 28kWh battery. It also has up to 163 miles of range, so you can expect similar stats from Dacia’s new car.

That’s actually 20hp less than top-spec versions of the Dacia Spring, but it’s also around 20 miles more range. There’s another benefit to this car being based on the Twingo as well.

One of the Spring’s biggest downsides is the way it drives. It rolls around through corners, there’s very little grip from the budget tyres and it’s noisy on the motorway.

By contrast, the Twingo is a joy from behind the wheel. It handles really nicely and it’s comfortable over bumps, so a new small Dacia based on this car could be a huge improvement over the Spring out on the road.

New Dacia small EV: design

These camouflaged spy shots are your first glimpse at Dacia’s new electric car. They may not show much, but you can tell from the side that it’s the same platform as the Renault Twingo.

It has the same wheel-at-each-corner stance as the Renault, and the stubby bonnet is similar to that car as well. Being a Dacia, it has a more boxy shape to the curvy Twingo. That upright front end looks rugged, like most Dacia models do.

At the rear, the high-set taillights are very Twingo-esque, but they have a square shape rather than the semi circle lamps on the Renault.

New Dacia small EV: when can I buy one?

This new electric city car is likely to be revealed in full later this year, with sales starting in 2027. We expect prices to start from around £15,000, keeping it in line with the Dacia Spring and Leapmotor T03 and making it a few grand cheaper than a BYD Dolphin Surf.

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