A handful of 100% electric cars under 30,000 euros

In detail, Renault is offering the R5 Evolution from €26,978 and the R5 Techno from €28,912. The Renault Twingo starts at €22,461, although this model is no longer available to buy on its website. Citroën also offers two models below this symbolic amount: the New ë-C3 from €22,535.60 and its Aircross version from €25,813.53. Next come Opel with the Frontera from 27,544.51 euros, Fiat with the 500 e from 26,990 euros, Hyundai with the Inster from 23,689.12 euros, the TO3 from Leapmotor from 18,900 euros and Dacia with the Spring from 16,428 euros.

To be precise, we went through all the websites of the brands available on the Luxembourg market and we went to the end of the configuration, without options, to find out the price of 100% electric models. These prices do not include current discounts, trade-in opportunities or government grants.

Ranging from €18,900 to €28,912, each model has its own advantages and disadvantages, as well as a particular style. As well as tastes and colours, we’re interested in the technical specifications of this selection priced at under 30,000 euros, and more specifically in its autonomy.

The Hyundai Inster offers the longest range with 327 km WLTP, while the Fiat 500e and Renault Twingo offer the shortest range with 190 km. What’s interesting is to put this claimed range into perspective with the price. Dividing the price by the range, we can say that the New ë-C3 has the lowest price for one kilometre of range at 70.42 euros. It beats the Leapmotor TO3 by just a few centimes, with a range of 71.32 euros per kilometre. By contrast, the most expensive car is the Fiat 500e, with a range of 142.05 euros per kilometre. The average for this selection is €90.95 for one kilometre of range.

If the cars were bought by weight, which affects the range and fuel consumption of the vehicle, the average price per kilo for this selection of 100% electric cars would be 17.22 euros. At €14.80 per kilo, the Renault Twingo is the cheapest, while the Fiat 500e is the most expensive at €22.87 per kilo.

Let’s apply the same reasoning to the power of the vehicle. For this very limited selection, the average price is 248.15 euros per horsepower. The most expensive car in this respect is the Dacia Spring at €365.07 per horsepower. Conversely, the Leapmotor T03 is the most generous, offering a horsepower of €173.39. On average, this selection offers 100 horsepower.

The average weight for one horsepower in this selection is 14.14 kilos. Based on this figure, the Spring should be the car with the least ‘punch’, while the Renault 5, with a ratio of 11.43 kilos per horsepower, should be the most dynamic in this selection.

It’s worth pointing out that model prices are the sum of a multitude of factors and characteristics, from the engine to the finish, not forgetting reliability, reputation, equipment, style and place of manufacture. Reducing the comparison to just a few criteria is obviously simplistic.

A number of manufacturers have already announced that from 2025, they will be offering a wider range of 100% electric cars costing less than €25,000. A promise that was already made at the end of 2023… In any case, over the next four years, here are all the models that the brands have already planned or announced: the future Renault Twingo electric, Nissan Micra electric, Fiat Grande Panda, Volkswagen ID.2, Volkswagen ID.1, Cupra Raval, Skoda Epiq, Tesla Model 2, Firefly (Nio), BYD Seagull, Wuling Bingo and the Geely Galaxy E8. It remains to be seen whether the manufacturers will respect the announced specifications in terms of price, or whether these are just rumours or announcements.

Some models are already eagerly awaited. Sold for under 10,000 euros in China, BYD’s Seagull is taking a long time to arrive in Europe. The Chinese manufacturer must first complete construction of its production line in Hungary (scheduled for completion by the end of 2025) before launching its bestseller there. At this price, the little city car is likely to find takers.