Automotive News Europe — 2024-05-17
Automotive Industry
Renault will relaunch plug-in hybrid drivetrains with a 300-hp four-wheel-drive option for the Rafale midsize crossover.
With a new plug-in hybrid powertrain on its flagship Rafale SUV, Renault is "keeping the door open" to PHEVs, even though it has halted sales of its first two E-Tech PHEV models, the Captur small SUV and the Megane compact hatchback and station wagon, CTO Gilles Le Borgne said.
The Megane and Captur PHEVs were launched in 2020, but the Megane has been discontinued in favor of a new, different full-electric Megane that debuted in 2022.
Sales of the Captur PHEV, which cost about 10,000 euros more than mild-hybrid versions in France, ended in April 2024 ahead of a face-lift for the model. The PHEV model accounted for about 5% of Captur sales in France in 2022.
Renault will re-introduce PHEVs on the new Rafale midsize crossover, the brand’s flagship model. With sales starting this autumn, the Rafale will have a 300-hp four-wheel-drive PHEV option based on a 1.2-liter, three-cylinder engine. An electric motor will power the rear axle.
The Rafale PHEV will have an all-electric range of up to 100 km (62 miles) from a 22-kilowatt-hour battery. Total range (ICE plus battery) is up to 1,000 km, Renault said on Thursday.
Renault did not release a price or C02 emissions figures.
Le Borgne said this week (May 2024) at a Renault event at the group's technical center near Paris that even though the Captur and Megane PHEVs have been discontinued, Renault still has the capability to offer technology on small and compact cars, as well as midsize vehicles such as the Rafale.
“We are leaving the door open,” he said.
With sales of full-electric vehicles slowing, plug-in hybrids are enjoying a renaissance in Europe.
Sales of vehicles with the powertrain grew 17% to more than 153,000 in the first quarter, while EV sales were up roughly the same amount, 19%, to 253,000 during the quarter, according to figures from market researcher Dataforce.
The Espace midsize SUV, which uses the same platform as the Rafale, could also get a PHEV option, although Renault has not confirmed that.
The Captur and Megane PHEVs were based on an older 1.6-liter, four-cylinder gasoline engine. They used a 400-volt, 9.8-kilowatt-hour battery that allowed up to 50 km (32 miles) of mixed-use driving in full-electric mode, with a top speed of 135 kph (84 mph). CO2 emissions were 32 g/km.
The EU plans to re-evaluate the utility factor – or the percentage of kilometers that can be driven in full-electric mode – for PHEVs following criticism that many owners do not plug them in enough. A recent EU report based on in-car monitoring devices found that PHEV emissions are 3.5 times higher than bench-tested WLTP certification.
Le Borgne said Renault had proposed a warning system that could disable a PHEV if it was not being sufficiently used in full-electric model.
"The problem is not with the technology. We need to force drivers to change" their behavior, he said.