Renault’s Made-In-India EV To Come By 2022

The localised EV is expected to be priced under Rs 10 lakh!

• The made-in-India EV will be based on the CMF-A platform, most likely to be the second-gen Kwid.

• Launched in 2015 and given a midlife refresh in 2019, the current first-gen Kwid would be due for a generation change by then.  

• It is expected to offer at least 250km of range with a starting price of less than Rs 10 lakh.

The choice of EVs in India has been slowly but surely growing over the past couple of years. Renault has now confirmed that it hopes to add a made-in-India electric offering to its model portfolio in India by 2022.

The locally built Renault EV will be based on the CMF-A platform, which also underpins the current first-gen Kwid. Even the Triber has been derived from this localised platform. Renault’s localised EV is most likely to be a Kwid-sized model and we believe that it will be an all-electric version of the second-gen Kwid.

Since the Kwid was first launched in India in 2015 and received its midlife refresh in 2019, it is due for a generational update soon. The new-gen Kwid would likely be built on an updated version of the same platform, which would allow Renault to locally manufacture its EV variant as well. Meanwhile, the current Kwid has already been turned into an EV, i.e, the K-ZE, for the Chinese market and was also showcased at the Auto Expo 2020.

The next-gen Kwid Electric can be expected to improve upon what the current K-ZE has to offer. At present, it uses a 26.8kWh lithium-ion battery for a claimed range of 271km (NEDC test cycle). The K-ZE’s electric motor is only good for 44PS and 125Nm. Its battery is fast-charge compatible and DC charging can top up the battery from 30 to 80 per cent in just half an hour. Meanwhile, an AC fast-charger rated at 6.6kWh would take four hours for a full charge.

Renault’s made-in-India EV can be expected to feature an improved electric powertrain, likely tweaked to better suit Indian market requirements. This new EV based on the next-gen Kwid will be launched by 2022. It would likely offer a claimed range of around 250km and a starting price of well under Rs 10 lakh. The Kwid EV will likely be a feature-rich offering for the compact EV segment to take on the likes of the Mahindra e-KUV100. Tata is also planning to launch an EV in this segment based on the upcoming HBX micro SUV by 2021.