Heavy electric cars 'not acceptable', says Dacia sales VP

A greater emphasis needs to be put on efficiency to curb the soaring weights of electric cars, according to Dacia vice-president of sales, marketing and operations, Xavier Martinet.

Highlighting Dacia’s focus on reducing the weight of its cars, particularly by only selling them with what it deems “essential” equipment, he said: “If we're serious about collectively reducing emissions, then excessive weight should not be acceptable.

“It's a philosophy that we have shown with the Spring [EV], which weighs 975kg, and intend to stand behind in future. That is a car that is driven an average of 25 miles a day at an average speed of 18mph. There's no need for a big, heavy battery or a powerful motor.”

About the larger EVs, particularly SUVs, being launched by some rivals at the moment, he said: “It doesn’t make sense. It's insanity to allow people to build two-, three-tonne vehicles that are occupied by one person and which drive just 35 miles a day.”

Examples of heavy EVs include the the BMW i7 at up to 2715kg and the Mercedes-Benz EQS at 2810kg. The Rolls-Royce Spectre is expected to weigh just less than 3000kg when it's finalised for production, while other luxury brands are expected to approach 3000kg with their upcoming launches.

Asked whether Dacia would consider taking that philosophy further and potentially develop a vehicle to rival the Citroën Ami, a two-seat, city-focused, speed-limited quadricycle, Martinet said: “There's not one answer to mobility solutions in this fragmented world, with more change coming in the next 20 years than the last 100. Everyone must come with their strengths - and if we try to copy each other, we just end up as bad copies.

“Brands need to define their values and what they stand for. I think Dacia’s strength today is that its position is super-clear.”