Renault could bring back petrol-powered versions of the Megane and Scenic after bosses confirmed it is readying a new multi-fuel platform that will underpin the next generation of its C-segment cars.
While it has been created predominantly as an electric architecture, Renault boss Fabrice Cambolive said it has also been designed to accommodate plug-in hybrid and range-extender powertrains.
Cambolive said it will be “a dedicated EV platform” but “if [sales of EVs] are not so rapid as expected, perhaps you can complete this EV pace with some extensions like a range-extender or plug-in hybrid, and that's what we are working on”.
A launch date for the new platform is likely to be around 2030, said Cambolive. When it arrives, it will be joined by four new models, although not all are expected to sit on the new platform. He said: “Out of the eight [cars promised in our ‘Renaulution’ plan], four are already launched and we want to launch four more.”
Cambolive added that "the next challenge, after launching the first line-up of the C-… B- and A-segments, will be how to renew our C-and D-segments", and although “a dedicated EV platform works very well on the B-segment”, a multi-energy plan is best for larger models.
Renault Group CEO François Provost said this new platform and next wave of cars are important for the brand “to continue our mission to rule the C-segment, and especially to grow in northern Europe”.
While Provost and Cambolive were coy about the details of which cars the platform will underpin, the timing opens the door for it to be used for a new generation of the CMF-EV-based Megane (which was launched in 2022) and the Scenic (which appeared in 2024). This would allow Renault to bring back combustion power to the nameplates, which are currently sold exclusively as EVs.
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Until electricity prices start falling as a consequence of the switch to renewable energy I cannot the take up of EVs exceeding 50% of car sales as there will be enormous public resistance from the sizeable minority of drivers that cannot charge overnight on a low cost tariff. They are going to get clobbered even harder if the Govt introduces a pay by mile tax surcharge. The EU car manufacturers are already being to say that the transition to EVs by 2035 is looking unobtainable without causing significant damage and loss of employment in the automotive industry so I guess the UK will be under pressure to follow in step, regardless of whether or not Reform form the next Govt. As I see it there is a huge task upgrading the national grid to move power from where it is now being generated - off shore and from remote areas where wind turbines can to sited to areas of population, industry and commerce. It is going to take £billions of investment and no end of planning arguments to get a new infrastructure built to virtually abandon power generation from fossil fuels. The Govt have already rowed back on replacing gas boilers and are now finding that the easy win of persuading consumers to switch to EVs is harder than they predicted.
I've got a 2024 Megane. A lovely smooth, quiet car that drives as nicely as the Clubman Cooper S that I owned previously. Am I looking forwards to replacing it with an added engine, more noise, more vibration, more servicing (mini brake pads don't last) more pollution? So I can store 200 miles extra range in the tank? If I need to go more than 200 miles in a day (very rare) I just hook up to one of the many fast chargers for 15-30 mins while I'm taking a break from just driving 200 miles. I usually pass the same people I was just in the coffee shop with, filling up their cars at the petrol station. I know of very few EV owners that would want or need to swap back to petrol. But the customer is always right and Renault need to sell cars. I just don't understand the obsession with range that has grown up around EVs. I see plenty here in the SW that have been driven to the UK on holidays from Europe. Don't these people know they are in a range limited EV ??!!
This is unfortunately a backwards step if correct but you see a lot of the manufacturers doing this to hedge their bets, it also means combi platforms that aren't particularly focused on either disopline which isn't so great for the final product or consumer experience.
This is a transition period so it is in a lot of ways to be expected.
whatever the eventual timeline, the vast majority of new car sales will be electric in the not too distant future.