Launched with great fanfare with an electric car concept car foreshadowing the future Renault Twingo E-Tech, Ampère, the electric division of the Renault Group, will take the French manufacturer into another dimension. He who was already a step ahead in the electric field with the Zoé is moving up a gear with major announcements for the future and the price of electric cars.
If you closely follow automotive news, you probably didn’t miss the big return of the Twingo via a 100% electric concept car a few days ago.
It is through this surprise, which no one really expected (especially since an affordable electric car was already in the starting blocks at Renault with the R5 E-Tech) that Groupe Renault officially launched its new Ampère brand.
But what is Ampere? Let’s go back a few years, when Luca de Meo took control of the Renault Group on 1er January 2020. What followed was a massive reorganization with change at all levels and recruitment galore. The most publicized will undoubtedly have been that of Gilles Vidal, the former design director at Peugeot, who moved to the Losange side.
A year after Luca de Meo took office, he presented the Renaulution. You can also consult our file dedicated to this global strategy. The brand referred in particular to a new organization which materialized more concretely on November 8, 2022, when Renault presents the new dispatch center for its global automotive activities, where its subsidiary Ampère will be dedicated to electric cars.
A year later, Ampère became an entity in its own right and was launched with great fanfare on 1er November 2023. Here is the timeline, but in reality, what will this change for Renault?
The importance of Ampère for the (electric) future of Renault
Ampère currently employs 11,000 people, including 35% engineers, who will closely monitor the work in the ElectriCity factories (Douai and Maubeuge), Ruitz and Cléon.
In total, Ampère is expected to produce approximately 400,000 vehicles per yearAnd up to 620,000 by 2028. These figures obviously take into account the new electric Renault Twingo, which will become a production model in 2026 and whose base price will be less than 20,000 euros.
For comparison, Tesla, the current market leader, produces around 450,000 electric cars per quarter.
Ampère therefore wishes “democratize electric vehicles in Europe” upon reaching price parity between thermal and electric models by 2027/2028.
According to the brand, the B and C segments will represent 75% of the electric car market by 2030. This is why two platforms are already available: the AmpR Small platform for the B segment (formerly CMF-B EV) and the AmpR Medium for the C segment (formerly CMF-EV of the electric Renault Mégane E-Tech and Scenic E-Tech).
In addition to the launch of these architectures, Ampère also aims to reduce costs. By 2027, the company intends to reduce variable costs by 40% between the first and second generations of C-segment electric vehicles thanks to several important elements:
Electric motorization (batteries and electric motors):
- 50% reduction in battery cost per vehicle at equal range;
- 25% reduction in electric motor cost per vehicle.
Vehicle (platforms and bodies):
- 25% reduction in platform cost per vehicle;
- 15% reduction in bodywork cost per vehicle.
Operational efficiency
- 50% reduction in logistics and production costs.
Ampère has already partially achieved this objective with the future Scénic E-Tech, whose total cost of ownership (according to the company’s calculations) is equal to that of hybrid vehicles.
Overall, Ampère plans to achieve price parity for thermal engines (petrol and diesel) by 2027/2028 with the second generation of its electric models, that is to say with the heirs of the Mégane E-Tech and Scénic E-Tech and their revolutionary engine.
At the same time, the range will be expanded with the Renault 5 E-Tech in 2024 and the Renault 4 E-Tech in 2025, to which will be added the new electric Renault Twingo in 2026, presented in concept form during the Capital Market Day.
What is the current and future range?
If the range is currently based around a single product, namely the Mégane E-Tech which we have already tested at Survoltés, this will be supported quite widely from next year with one of the most popular cars expected from recent years, namely the electric R5.
Renault Mégane E-Tech
Launched in mid-2022, with a base price of 38,000 euros (excluding ecological bonus), it is the car that repositioned the brand in the electric vehicle market. It holds a 2.2% share of the European electric vehicle market and occupies first place in France among C-segment electric vehicles.
Renault Scénic E-Tech
It will go on sale early next year with a base price of around 40,000 euros. Sustainable development is at the heart of its design, with up to 95% recyclable materials. Its engines will be similar to those of the Mégane.
Renault 5 E-Tech
It will be unveiled in the first quarter of 2024 and represents the rebirth of an iconic model. The Renault 5 will offer a range of up to 400 km for an entry price of around 25,000 euros, recently reconfirmed by Renault after information suggesting a price rather around 30,000 euros.
Renault 4 E-Tech
It will be launched in 2025 and will share several elements with the Renault 5, including the AmpR Small platform and the infotainment system.
Renault Twingo E-Tech
It will be the urban electric vehicle par excellence according to Renault and it will arrive in 2026, all with consumption estimated at 10 kWh/100km, and a 75% reduction in CO emissions.2 compared to the average of European thermal vehicles sold in 2023 over its life cycle, and reduced consumption of raw materials thanks to its compactness. Made in Europe, it will be offered at an entry price of less than 20,000 eurosexcluding any bonus.
Developments on several levels, without revolution
In addition to the product aspect, Ampère also intends to modernize several elements, including the customer experience. Thus, cars will soon be able to be purchased online, although Luca de Meo pointed out that, according to a study carried out by the brand internally, around 70% of customers still want a physical space to buy a car.
During his speech, the CEO of the Renault group also talked about software and how it will be at the center of the next platforms, called “software defined”.
The software will be constantly updated remotely and will cover all aspects of the car. Enough to certainly counter the few observers who think, sometimes rightly, that modern cars have direct planned obsolescence due to rapid technological advances in the sector.
These updates will also improve the capabilities of the various driver assistance systems. At this level, Renault hopes to reach level 2+, or even 3 in the coming years. Luca de Meo has stated that he is not interested in fully autonomous cars, leaving others plenty of room to seek levels 4 and 5 of autonomy as quickly as possible. To find out what the car autonomy levels correspond to, do not hesitate to consult our dedicated file.
In the future, the Ampère range will be further expanded, with the addition of two new vehicles over the next few years for a total of seven models by 2031. With a sales target of around 300,000 units in 2025, Ampère plans to sell around one million units in 2031 and achieve an overall market share of 10% in the electric car world.
Ampère will also produce at least two models for Alpine, the next Micra for Nissan and another model for Mitsubishi. Ampère will also support Dacia’s electrification path and offer software solutions to the entire Renault Group. A hell of a program for such a young company, which nevertheless inherits all of Renault’s know-how in this universe, more than ten years after the arrival of their first electric model with the Zoé.
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