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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"Multi-fuel"platform? Multi-ENERGY platform!
This is what hybrids should always have been. A plug-in EV with enough range on fully electric for most journeys with a small back up, low emission charger engine for occasional long distances. It will mean smaller vehicles with a decent range. No need for a huge, heavy vehicle with an enormous lithium battery (and build / disposal carbon footprint) just to do 180 miles down the motorway in winter. Needs to be designed to encourage owners to prioritise mains charging though.
The A3 is just a standard PHEV with a traditional IC engine and slightly larger ev battery. Has the issues you correctly mentioned. I like the Mégane E-tech but down the motorway in winter into a headwind 160 miles range? This may not be an issue if you live in the south east or travel between cities, but in more rural areas it can be hard work to find an available charging point after 140 miles.
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.