6Renault’s latest baby Twingo has a new delivery in its sights with the reveal of a van version of the electric city car. Van versions of Renault’s two newest retro-styled small electric cars won’t be heading for UK showrooms any time soon, despite a strong reaction to the converted versions of both the Renault Twingo and the Renault 4. The 4 was revealed in van form for its home French market last autumn, and at the time UK bosses were said to be evaluating whether it would make sense to bring it here. Meanwhile, at the recent launch of the Renault Twingo passenger car – which is not due here until early next year – a stripped-out version was shown with a load bed instead of rear seats. That car was developed for French energy firm EDF. Speaking to Auto Express, Renault’s UK managing director Adam Wood described the decision whether to sell the commercial versions as a “head and heart” matter. He said, “The car-derived van segment is small, but we will continue to monitor the marketplace during the life cycle,” not ruling out a UK launch for either product, but ensuring it’s not imminent. “At the moment, our laser focus is to make a success of Trafic e-Tech”, he said, referring to the new mid-sized van coming early next year with advanced 800V EV architecture, an official range of up to 270 miles and a 15-80 per cent charge in around 20 minutes. Wood described the new van as a “game changer for us with electric vehicles: a significant acceleration". The Renault Group already has a small car-based electric van in the form of the Dacia Spring Cargo, which was previously the UK’s cheapest van until Leapmotor’s recent announcement of the T03 LCV. At an expected price of below £13,000 excluding VAT, the Chinese model undercuts both the Dacia and the Citroen e-C3 van, with the Spring Cargo costing from just over £13,000 plus VAT.
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