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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 23 ต.ค. 2020
- BUY, LEASE OR FINANCE A RENAULT ZOE FROM OSV: bit.ly/31wgbMi
Ten Second Review
Renault's ZOE now goes further in its efforts to persuade supermini buyers of its all-electric virtues. 242 WLTP-rated miles to be exact. A fresh, more powerful 100kW R135 motor delivers stronger acceleration too, plus there's a smarter look both for the exterior and the cabin. If you've always liked the thought of an all-electric supermini but needed more convincing to buy one, Renault hopes that what's on offer here will be enough to make you think again.
Background
If you've ever hankered after an electric car, there might have been a few impediments to an impending purchase. The first wave of electric cars weren't styled very appealingly. Never a good thing. Then came a second generation of vehicles that looked more like cars but which carried price tags that read like a bad joke. Electric cars were either cheap and horrible or expensive and barely adequate. Even when we moved on a bit from that, they still couldn't offer a credible level of battery range for most potential customers. Renault though, wants to change things.
The brand has already brought us the fun Twizy lightweight city car and even a Kangoo van featuring battery power. With the improved version of this ZOE supermini though, the company's got really serious about all-electric concept, notably so with the introduction of the version we're going to talk about here with its more capable 52kWh Z.E. battery and uprated R135 electric motor.
Driving Experience
The ZOE is designed for city driving, so the steering has been geared to offer a smooth effortless feel. Likewise, the throttle pedal doesn't offer too much in the way of resistance but the brake responds to a good hoofing which seems a little odd at first. Like all electric cars, the ZOE feels eerily quiet as it pulls away, with no discernible engine noise other than a faint whine. This usually means you'll hear every bump and thump from the road as a result, but Renault has done a good job on chassis refinement and ride quality is excellent. To prevent pedestrians waltzing out in front of its silent approach, the ZOE emits a sound at low speeds but you can barely hear it at all from inside the vehicle. The 'Z.E. Voice' can be switched between three different sounds or can be completely switched off if you fancy a new bonnet ornament.
Handling is as good as you'd imagine for a car with such a low centre of gravity. The improved R135 synchronous electric motor with rotor coil has a power output that's way up on the orginal unit fitted to this car. This unit delivers the equivalent of 135PS and improved torque for faster acceleration. The motor packs a healthy 245Nm from zero rpm and drives through a single speed gearbox, helping the ZOE sprint from 0 to 62mph in less than 10 seconds and onto a top speed of 87mph. As an indication of its real world pace the 100kW model can accelerate from 50 to 75 mph in just 7.1 seconds, which is 2.2 seconds quicker than than the 80kW 110PS R110 engine, which is also still available. Of course, drive like this and you'll decimate the claimed 242 mile WLTP driving range figure.
Design and Build
Most people would walk past the ZOE and not take it for anything other than Renault's latest cute little car. Rather refreshingly for a car of this kind, its design inspiration is sophisticated and grown-up. With curvaceous flanks and neat one-box shape, it's quite a good-looking thing, especially in this revised form, where the car features full-LED headlamps, smarter bumpers and bigger LED tail lights.
The fascia's been updated too, primarily with a new 10-inch TFT instrument cluster, which is standard across the range. The dashboard has been completely redesigned to significantly improve the quality of its finishes and on 'Iconic' models there is 100 percent recycled seat upholstery. The centre of the dashboard houses the Renault EASY LINK multimedia system, which on certain models now benefits from a large 9.3-inch touchscreen. There's now an electronic parking brake too.
Otherwise, things are much as before. Some of the plastics aren't going to give Audi designers anything much to think about, but being built down to a price is very much the point of this car. It's no bad thing. The view out is extremely good as you sit rather high but a lack of seat height adjustability might prove an issue for taller drivers. As with most superminis, space in the back is more mini than super but access is good thanks to the standard five-door layout, and there's more than enough room back there for the kids. One substantial plus point is the 338-litre boot which extends to 1,225-litres should you fold the one-piece rear bench.
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Very professional very detailed with information I have not seen on other videos. From me it's a 10 out of 10 thank you sir brilliant
Thank you for watching! If you're interested in getting a Renault Zoe and want to explore your options further, fill-in this quick form and a Vehicle Specialists will get in touch: bit.ly/39YHCml
So thorough, If I had to dig for the information, it would be such a task and probably unsuccessful. Really great reviews, much appreciated.
Always our pleasure, Anthony. Many thanks for watching 👍
Fantastic detailed review!
We're glad you found it helpful, David!
A wonderful and informative, as always.
Actually I've just placed my order for a zoe 50. My first electric car, from driving ICE cars for over 35 years!
Thank you, I really like the sheer amount of work and detail you place in all your videos.
Keep up the excellent work
That's fantastic to hear, Darren! We hope you enjoy your new Renault Zoe. What made you go electric with this car?
@@OsvUkVehicleSupply good question, I looked at my life and the way the technology is progressing and felt that now is the time to move to having my main car as an electric car.
Don't be surprised that this will be the answer that you recieve from people like myself.
Thank you for asking
Enjoy your day
@@thelowlychicken Thanks for your reply, Darren. Keep us updated with how you get on with the Zoe 👍
@@OsvUkVehicleSupply absolutely 💯
Just to let you know... I've had a bmwi3 to keep me going until delivery of my Zoe on Wednesday, and driving back on a windy duel carriageway I found the i3 very unstable at motorway speeds. Just buffered around by the wind. Very scary
So glad I didn't place an order for one.
Take care
Darren
Very thorough review, so cheers for that! The Zoe's a smart, agile, lovely little car, and in its latest incarnation better than ever before. Ideal essentially for people living in southern Scandinavia or continental Europe, and you can even road trip pretty successfully with it. Activate Eco mode and chill along motorways at 90-95km/h and the battery pack lasts a surprisingly long distance even with AC going (which wasn't even possible on the previous version of Zoe), then take a break for lunch and a city walk or the like when it's time for a recharge.
Some wacky stuff about the environmental aspect at the end of the video though, no - lithium-ion batteries aren't explosive, or contain explosive elements. Some caveats apply of course but such is the case with petrol as well which nobody seems to consider. Recycling EV batteries also IS quite possible, and I can assure you nobody with a brain is shoving car batteries into landfills, jesus christ! There's far too much valuable resources in a pack to just squander them like that...
Although EV battery recycling was decidedly nascent whenever this video was published (youtube doesn't tell me but I assume 2020 or 2021), there really wasn't much to recycle in the first place as EVs were not particularly common at that time, and still aren't - except unless you live in Norway perhaps - and as mentioned in the video, a lot of EV batteries currently end up as stationary battery storage when they're no longer any good for use in vehicles, and in such a role they could continue to serve for many years - thus further reducing the need for recycling.
However, recycling IS coming along, and there's already processes which allow for recovery of 95-98% of all the materials in the battery pack, and that figure will only continue to go up from here on out. Northvolt for example is building a battery cell recycling plant right next to its Northvolt Ett battery factory in northern Sweden, so infrastructure is coming along nicely now.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts Lenny! Be sure to subscribe for more in-depth vehicle reviews - bit.ly/319ZKoT
A lot of info great review as always.
Thank you for watching, David 👍
EXCELLENT review.
10/10
EXTREMELY THOROUGH. VERY WELL presented.
If the Zoe was in 'OZ', (Australia) it would sell for about $55,000 AUD. We get NO incentives. NONE. The Government are very anti EV. (Electric Vehicles)
Thank You and regards.
Thank you for the great feedback, Terry! We appreciate your support 👍
This has really helped me with my decision to go for the Zoe. Thanks for such an excellently detailed review.
That's brilliant to hear! Thanks for watching 👍 We actually supply every make and model in the UK so we can certainly help with your next vehicle. Get in touch on 01903 538835 or click here to book a quick call at a convenient time - bit.ly/3soFVbF
How's it going?
I've had a R240 a ZE40 and now I have the 50 :) Looking forward to 3 years time :)
very true. the car looks incredibly compact but is actually quite big. The proportions remain excellent.
oh and a raised boot floor is available to £150. cant understand why they dont just fit this to all. it brings the floor level up tot the cross beam.
thank. you ...we just bought a Zoe iconic.
Glad we could help, Simon. We hope you enjoy your new car 👍
So did we! 😊
Good review, but a bit of misinformation regarding recycling: you definitely can recycle LiIon batteries to a very high degree. And fuel cell EVs always need a battery since a fuel cell simple is not capable of handling quick load changes.
So once more a point for BEVs vs. FCEVs
Love th6r zoe
11:45 - are you sure about that? What is active emergency braking then....?
At £30,000 after the government grant it is unrealistically priced for me. I could buy nearly 2 brand new Renault Clio’s for the same money. My mileage is under 10000 miles per year and it would take nearly 15 years for me to break even due to lower running costs over the Clio. What is the point? Anyway, great review, thank you.
Hi there, if you're interested in the Zoe, we're here to explore your options to make it affordable. Get in touch here: bit.ly/39YHCml
I prefer the Nissan leaf just from it having a similar range, and looking more grown up and having a better 0 -60 time
Hey Arnold, if you're interested in getting a Nissan Leaf, one of our Vehicle Specialists will be happy to find the best option for you 👍 Simply fill-in this quick form and we'll get in touch: bit.ly/39YHCml
A car is Nothing without a proper service. My Renault EV battery lost 35% capacity before warranty period but Renault denies to replace it...
Is it true this new Zoe got a zero ncap crash test rating ?
Hi Jeff, sadly yes. It scored poorly due to more stringent safety tests and the omission of certain safety features.
It’s just too cute 🥰
We're glad you like the Zoe, Carrington!
41:38 hang on a few issues here. This video was published in Oct 2020 - CCS has been around since 2012.... and at the time you published this there were over 55,000 in the UK. Whoever does your research needs to be sacked! Also you did mention the self parking, which is rubbish but you didn't mention the Lane Departure and Lane Keep Assist - but they are also rubbish so it's ok. After having a Niro nothing has beaten that yet.Also you forgot Black and Grey to the colours!
Hi Pete, thank you for your feedback and sorry for the minor errors here and there. We hope you enjoyed the review nonetheless 👍
Zoe is the best!
Latest Euro NCAP safety /crash test results for the Zoe EV 👎
So cheap to drive, especially these days compared to fossil.
If you're interested in getting a new Zoe, call our vehicle experts on 01903 538835 or book a free consultation! bit.ly/3soFVbF
The boot design & no height adjustable drivers seat at £30,000 starting price it is a definite no for me. Sounds like a tinny expensive rubbish.
Hi Nicky, are you looking for a new car at the moment?
It really is NOT attractive
Perhaps something like the Honda E is more to your tastes, Simon?
I'm afraid your comments about the batteries re landfill etc are absolute total nonsense. You really need to do your research on this before blurting out such rubbish. Firstly the batteries can be recycled but more importantly Renault already have a scheme to reuse the batteries in non automotive settings as will happen with the leased batteries.
Hi Billy, thank you for your feedback which we'll take on-board. We are committed to providing fully-researched and informative content 👍
@@OsvUkVehicleSupply well you failed very badly here - you should remove this an re-upload
This car is so over priced at £30,000. This is just a city car with
occasional motorway use. The front seats do not adjust for height both driver and front passenger. The front seat height restraints are an integral part of the front seats and can’t be removed at all. The rear windows are not electronically operated and there is no mechanical winding ability as well the only source of opening the rear windows is an antiquated clasp system.
The fast charging CCS system is not available on most trim levels but if you want this fitted you can but it will cost you an extra £1,000 on the price of the car. The only reason Renault are pricing this city car at £30,000 is related to the 260 mile fully charged battery range.
As we all know now the only way this range will be achieved is on a summers day when the temperatures are above 22 degrees C and reg- breaking is used. In the winter when temperatures are down to 5 degrees or below you will be lucky to achieve a full charge mileage range of 160 miles. For goodness sake £30,000 is just a far to higher price for what effectively is a basic city car.
Hi Alan, are you looking for a new car at the moment?
@@OsvUkVehicleSupply Hi yes I am looking for an all electric car but having looked at what is on the U.K. market at the moment well let’s just say I’m not impressed with three aspects. The first one is price and massive depreciation and the second is poor fully charged mileage range plus how long it takes to charge the batteries and the fact that the battery technology is just not up to it at the moment. CCS charging is damaging the batteries after as little as nine DC charges, not good at all. My third aspect is the battery charging infrastructure not only in the U.K. but all over Europe. I am also very worried about safety in a crash with the present battery chemistry under the floor of the car.
I am a lover of the new BYD battery technology called “the blade”. This will not catch fire on metallic impact into the battery structure.