Renault ZOE Car Reviews

The Renault Zoe is perhaps the first realistic fully-electric vehicle on the UK market. Whether it will meet your needs on the other hand is a different matter.

The big appeal of the ZOE is that it's so similar to a normal, liquid-fuelled car to drive. The styling is based on the current-generation Clio and the interior is very, well, car-like, but with some nice touches such as a new TFT screen which shows the car's range.

The electric motor delivers 87bhp (60bhp in ECO mode) and can get from 0-30mph in just four seconds, making for brisk inner-city progress.

On the inside, it’s a relatively practical little car, although the battery positioned underneath the boot floor does necessitate a higher driving position. The upside of this is that the boot remains a good size at 338-litres.

The major downside of the ZOE is its price. At just over £13k including the Government's £5,000 plug-in car grant, it is a lot cheaper than all of its rivals; however, it is only really viable as a second car with a range of around 100 miles and a nine-hour full recharge time.

Background

The ZOE was first unveiled in concept form at the 2005 Geneva Motor Show. Further concepts follows at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show and the Paris Motor Show a year later. The production version was announced at the Geneva Show in 2012 and the first deliveries took place in December of that year.

Summary

The ZOE is one of the, if not the, best fully-electric car to date. However, whether or not it cuts it when compared to its petrol- and diesel-powered rivals is another matter. If you never need to cover long distances (or have a second, liquid-fuelled car) the Zoe does make sense.