Renault Presents City K-ZE Electric Vehicle at Shanghai Motor Show in China

French auto maker Renault has presented Kwid’s electric version in China. The brand had already talked about the electric version of their Kwid that the company was working on, and now the French maker has come out with the same at the Shanghai Motor Show in China. The electric version of the Kwid hatchback will be known as the City K-ZE and it currently will be sold only in China. Renault had already stated that the electric hatch will be on sale in China initially, and at later stages the company will also bring the electric version of Kwid hatchback to other developing markets as per the demand.

The new City K-ZE still carries the SUV inspired look that made the Renault Kwid a smash hit in the markets it was launched in. However, the City K-ZE looks quite different from the normal Kwid, courtesy the various styling changes at the front and the rear of the electric car. As far as the range of the electric K-ZE is concerned, the French company has stated that the range of the City K-ZE will be around 240 kilometers with a full battery. Not just this, the batteries in the City K-ZE will also come equipped with the quick charge option that will make the batteries go to the charge of 80 percent in just 60 minutes of charging. The French manufacturer also claims that the City K-ZE can be charged using the normal 220V domestic plug charging points found in all the homes.

Talking about the styling of the new K-ZE, it follows the recent trend of swapping the location of headlamps and LED DRLS, and looks quite fresh. As already stated the LED DRLs sit in the place where the headlamps have usually been located, while the headlamps themselves have been moved to the upper part of front bumper. The grille and the front bumper in the City K-ZE are new units and there are new alloy wheels present in the car. As far as the rear is concerned, there are minor tweaks here and there but the car still maintains the silhouette of the SUV inspired Kwid.

Talking about the interiors of the City K-ZE, we find that the rotary knob present on AMT versions of Kwid is present but that serves at the drive mode selector in the electric car. An 8-inch touchscreen multimedia system is present at the center of the dashboard and the system has features such as online entertainment, 4G WiFi and a voice recognition system. The multimedia system of the car can be accessed by a cell phone and the electric car has an always connected feature. Also present is a AC system that will regulate the air-flow in the cabin based on the pollution levels of the air in the environment. Apart form these changes, the overall feel of the interiors is the same as the Renault Kwid  

The French maker has stated that the Renault City K-ZE will start reaching other developing markets such as India only two years later. This timeline has been determined keeping the nascent electric car market of India and the lack of strong policy over developing infrastructure and promotion of electric vehicles in the country. Upon its India launch, the City K-ZE may face no direct rivalry, although the customers will have a few electric car options in the market by the time the electric City K-ZE arrives in India.