Dacia bosses "fighting tooth and nail" to bring Spring EV to UK

Dacia's UK division is still campaigning ardently to import the diminutive Spring EV, which would be comfortably among the cheapest mainstream electric cars on sale here. 

A decision on whether to send the Spring to UK dealerships was expected to be made in January 2022, almost a year after it launched in France, but the brand has yet to confirm a launch date. 

Dacia UK brand director Luke Broad told Autocar: "We are fighting tooth and nail with our corporate team to get that car launched here in the UK. 

"We don't have confirmation whether it's a go yet, because they're working on fulfilling the huge back order they have in Europe - for me that's another string to my bow; if it's an extremely popular car in Europe, then it's fair to say it will also be extremely popular in the UK.

"There's no decision on Spring. Hopefully we get it, but in the meantime we will hybridise the Jogger and in the medium- to long-term, you will start to see the hybridisation and electrification of the brand - but only when the customers are ready and it makes sense from a cost perspective."

His comments came as Citroën revealed UK pricing for the long-awaited, two-seat Ami, which is smaller and cheaper than the Spring, but has a much shorter range and is technically defined as a quadricycle, rather than a car. 

The Spring, billed by its maker as Europe's most affordable EV, is already on sale in left-hand drive markets, but the firm has delayed a UK sales decison while it evaluates production capacity and its sales potential against the cost of a right hand-drive conversion. 

"It is looking very positive, but there is no final decision," Denis Le Vot, CEO of Dacia told Autocar late last year. "Our data suggests there are 15 million motorists in Europe who commute in their cars today - and that 60% of them use them for short distance driving exclusively. I am not saying they will all buy a Spring, but I am sure that it is exactly the kind of car that they need.