Local turf tech test expected to be a cruise for Megane E-Tech; other models also on sales shortlist.

PERFUNCTORY validation of driver assists is the only remaining pre-sale box tick for a new car tasked with re-energising Renault’s electric vehicle involvement.

Ensuring the Megane E-Tech’s impressive span of crash avoidance software is foible-free here is a factory requirement likely to occur by June and is expected to be seamless.

After that, it’s just sorting last detail for full scale shipment, says Scott Kelsey, general manager for Global Motors New Zealand, which has Renault and Isuzu utes.

“The first step is to get the car here. One will be here in May, and once that (trial) has happened, all the communication lines open up.”

That’ll be a landmark moment. Renault NZ has been watching the electric sales revolution from the side line since dropping the Zoe this time last year due to a crash test embarrassment.

Megane E-Tech is a whole new game. Renault’s first mainstream family car to go fully electric is built atop the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance's latest CMF-EV dedicated electric platform, it divests historic hatchback styling to reinterpret as an avant garde sports utility and is packed with fresh technology, including a new 'ultra-thin' battery.

Megane E-Tech isn’t the only car on Renault NZ’s mind. A version of the compact Arkana coupe crossover that has since last year been on sale in 1.3 litre petrol form is now reconciled.

The electric assist format involves a 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol engine, two electric motors and a 1.2kWh battery pack, which bumps up power and cuts economy to 4.9 litres per 100km, against 6.1 litres per 100km for the fully petrol cars.

There’s also desire to add Austral (above), a second battery hatch which sits between the Captur and Koleos, has much the same styling as the Megane e-Tech and dedicates to electrified powertrains, including a new 1.2-litre petrol engine with a 48V mild-hybrid system.

“That’s a product we definitely want to have in our market,” Kelsey says. There’s some potential of working Renault Australia on this one. “They are a little bit behind us and have slightly different requirements.”

Consideration about whether the Clio is worth returning here now that it has just released in Europe with a hybrid powertrain is also worthy, the local boss says. But that’s last on the list. “We haven’t really had any strong discussions around it.”

Aside from all this, Kelsey also has to give attention to how much influence the impending Clean Car revision might have on strategy.

Nonetheless, there’s enthusiasm to rewire New Zealand involvement into a global electric strategy Renault is now committed to, a year on from when it felt a nasty jolt when Zoe was pulled.

European NCAP retested the car after a factory big update and found it less satisfactory than the original format. Release of the slamming ‘zero stars’ verdict was awful timing, as it came out just weeks after the latest model began selling here and made the car untenable.

Zoe’s role here could well be taken by a modern reinterpretation of the Renault 5, a famous 1990s’ design, but not before 2025.

Megane E-Tech is far more advanced, particularly in respect to accident mitigation assists. Standard systems include distance warning alert, traffic-sign recognition, automatic emergency braking with junction assist including pedestrian and cyclist alerts, cruise control with speed limiter, driver drowsiness alert, emergency lane keeping assist with oncoming traffic and road-edge detection and hill start assist.

Securing the car has required patience. Right-hand drive production started last year but hindered by the semiconductor shortage and other factors.

“Their production did slow down a little bit … but they are now gearing back up and getting things sorted out, so things are starting to free up a lot more.”

Renault here might yet adopt Megane E-Tech with specifications shared with Ireland to ensure seamless supply, yet ultimately any market-share accommodations might shift closer to home.

Kelsey sees Australia finally awakening to having to also go electric as a huge positive. Last week’s big policy announcement there to support EV acceptance can only be “100 percent” good for New Zealand. The combined volume potentials are so much tastier.

“The more than happens for Australia in that space, the better it will be for the region. If we can buddy up with Australia, and it works, then we will. We have good relationship.”

Local confidence about Megane E-Tech being a starter is high enough for the Auckland-based distributor to chase customer interest, via its website.

Megane E-Tech provisions with 40kWh and 60kWh battery packs, with the bigger of those two claiming a WLTP-tested driving range of 450 kilometres and making 164kW (whereas the smaller creates 97kW and will clock 300kms between charges).

When Renault says an ultra-thin battery, they’re not talking single sheet of paper. Yet at just 110mm thick, it is a landmark, being 40 percent thinner than the unit in Zoe, yet it offers 20 percent greater energy density.

Another green edge is that the Megane's motors are electrically excited, meaning they have no magnets and use no rare-earth metals. They're also more efficient than induction motors at high speed.

The battery is low in cobalt, which is the most expensive material used in batteries and has also been called the “blood diamond of batteries” because it’s been mined in a way that imperils child workers and wrecked the environment in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Also, Renault says, the low-cobalt, high-nickel cathodes mean a pack that's better in low temperatures than the norm, as well as longer-lasting, so they claim.

This is the second use of the 'CMF-EV' platform; Nissan had first dibs with the Ariya SUV also expected to show here at some point to replace the now aged Leaf.

Renault’s adaption allows the Megane to be 4210mm long, 1770-1780mm wide and 1500mm high, riding on a 2700mm wheelbase. That makes it 150mm-shorter in body length than the petrol hatch, yet is just as roomy inside.

Though classified as a SUV, Megane E-Tech is effectively an 'inflated' hatchback shape sitting on big (up to 20-inch) alloy wheels. Renault has taken opportunity to get all fancy with the lights; the front LEDs have complex laser-cut 3D textures while the brake lights are two vertical strips, 'like a pause sign', the brand says. Smooth body surfacing, including flush-fit door handles, enables a drag coefficient of 0.29.

The cabin debuts a new 'Open-R' infotainment system, powered by Google's Android Automotive operating system, and offering satellite navigation, over-the-air updates and various Google services. Entry models have a nine inch centre screen, the more expensive ones go to a 12 inch.

Other interior features include 48-colour ambient lighting that can change colour every 30 minutes for a "living" feel, and a selection of sustainably-sourced wood, Alcantara suede and textile trims for the dashboard, seats and other interior elements.