Renault Ireland has announced prices and specifications for the much-anticipated new Megane E-Tech Electric hatchback. Prices for Irish buyers will start from €37,495.
130hp motor for the base model
That entry-level price will get you a Megane E-Tech Electric with a 130hp motor driving the front wheels, powered by a 40kWh battery pack that is mounted under the floor. That battery pack can be charged at speeds of up to 85kW from a rapid DC charging point, but far more importantly for more drivers, it can also be charged at 22kW AC power, meaning that the Megane can charge pretty quickly from more affordable, more numerous kerbside charging points.
Range of up to 450km
For €41,995 you can upgrade to the 60kWh battery, which stretches the one-charge range to 450km and which also comes with significantly more power thanks to a 220hp electric motor. You can charge this bigger battery at up to 130kW from DC power, but again it keeps the brilliant 22kW AC charging system.
Standard equipment for the entry-level Equilibre model includes 18-inch alloy wheels, full LED headlights, black fabric upholstery including a fabric-covered upper dashboard, ambient lighting, air conditioning, one-touch electric windows, heated steering wheel, heated front seats, rear park assist, rear-view camera, 12.3-inch instrument cluster, nine-inch OpenR infotainment display with navigation, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, connected services including over-the-air software updates, four-speaker Arkamys audio system and two front USB-C ports.
Entry-level models also come with a standard Mode 3 charging cable (that's the one you need for public charging points), as well as lots of safety equipment and advanced driver assistance systems, including distance warning alert, traffic sign recognition, automatic emergency braking with junction assist including pedestrian and cyclist alerts, cruise control with speed limiter, driver drowsiness alert, emergency lane keeping assist with oncoming traffic and road-edge detection, hill start assist and emergency e-call.
Top-spec Launch Edition
Upgrade to the mid-spec Techno model from €39,995, and you'll get adaptive cruise control with speed limiter and lane centring, traffic sign recognition with overspeed prevention, blind-spot recognition and intervention, rear cross traffic alert with rear automatic braking and both front and rear park assist. Techno models also come with 20-inch alloy wheels, full adaptive LED headlights with automatic high/low beam, front and rear signature lighting with dynamic indicators, contrasting door mirrors and a shark fin antenna.
The interior, meanwhile, gains grey and black upholstery made from synthetic leather and recycled materials, tinted rear windows, a frameless auto-dimming rear-view mirror and multi-sense customised driving modes with 48-colour ambient lighting. Also added are dual-zone climate control, automatic wipers, height and electric lumbar adjustment for both driver and front passenger seats, the full range of Google services including Google Assistant, Maps and Play store, wireless smartphone charging, upgraded Arkamys audio system with six speakers and two rear-mounted USB-C ports.
Finally, for now, there's a top-spec €47,795 Launch Edition model that gets a different style of 20-inch alloy, as well as a gold F1 blade styling add-on, while the interior gains a nine-speaker Harman Kardon audio system, smart rear-view mirror and around view 3D camera system.
The new electric Megane is the first all-electric model to benefit from the much-hyped 'Renaulution' strategy brought in by Renault CEO Luca De Meo. It's based on the same CMF-EV platform as Nissan's new Ariya (although it's a smaller car than the Ariya) and comes with high-tech features such as Google-based infotainment system. It also gets a new Renault badge, where the famous diamond logo is now a line drawing, which actually looks like the one that was fitted to all those old Renault 4s built in Wexford in the 1970s and 1980s.
Appropriately, then, the next models to get the Renaulution treatment will be the new - but retro-styled - Renault 5 EV and the upcoming electric revival of the Renault 4.