Renault to end production of the Zoe electric hatchback

Renault has announced that it will end production of its Zoe electric hatchback in March next year, according to reports from automobile-magazine in France. This marks the end of an iconic car that sold in large numbers across many markets globally.

Around 420,000 Renault Zoe EVs have been produced since production started back in 2012. The city electric hatchback was introduced to the Australian market  in 2017, but by 2020 Renault Australia decided to remove the car from the local market citing lower-than-expected demand.

In 2020, Renault sold around 100 examples of the Zoe in Australia, making it one of its lowest-selling models. 

During that time it was available, an 80 kW motor was eventually offered up from the launch 68 kW version. Both motors produced 220 Nm of torque.

This was offered with a 7 kW AC charging at a time when DC charging was very limited across the country. With a 41 kWh battery pack on this hatch, 300 km of range was on offer to buyers.

Initially, the Zoe was sold directly to governments and business customers but eventually, regular customers were able to purchase one.

Pricing was set from $44,470 for the Life variant while the more premium Intens variant fetched $45,970 in 2018. Due to declining sales in 2020, Renault reduced the price of a new Zoe by up to $14,000 in some cases.

As of the writing of this article, there are two 2018 Renault Zoe up for sale on the used market with both white examples listed in Western Australia. These were the previous generation with the 68 kW motors.

Given the low total number of new sales of the Zoe, it has become a rare sight to spot one on our roads today. 

Now with production ending in Europe where the Zoe still has popularity, the iconic electric hatchback will be in the history books as one of the pioneering city electric cars to ever hit our roads.

The Renault Zoe will be replaced by the new Renault R5 hatchback which is yet to go into production. The estimated timeline for that is in 2024 as well.