New Sport Car

The Renault DeZir project is the first to have been led by Laurens van den Acker and marks the start of a sequence of concept cars that will provide an insight into Renault Design's new vision for the future. DeZir stands out as an illustration of the brand's commitment to more emotional styling.

The DeZir is a two-seater coupé that Renault says stands out as an illustration of the company’s commitment to more emotional styling. With its sports car looks and ability to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h (62mph) in five seconds, or 0 to 50 km/h in just two seconds, it’s hard to disagree.

Although the DeZir is purely a concept car at this point, Renault is strongly hinting that it shows not only the direction they plan on heading with sports cars in the future, but that it is indicative of a new overarching design and styling philosophy across the entire Renault brand.

The 'Z' in the name Renault DeZir is a direct reference to Renault's Z.E. signature, and several features of its design are suggestive of two qualities readily associated with electric mobility, namely advanced technology and light weight.

DeZir is powered by an electric motor mounted in a mid-rear position to optimize weight distribution over the front and rear wheels. The vertically-mounted 24kW/h lithium-ion battery is located behind the benchseat and provides the car with a range of 160km.

Battery cooling is ensured not only by the air channelled from the front to the back of the car, but also – and above all – by the flow of air that enters through the lateral scoops concealed behind the aluminium panels on either side of the body.

Employing the same principles as the KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery System) seen in Formula 1, when the car decelerates, kinetic energy is recovered and stored in the battery. This energy can then be employed by the driver to provide a temporary power boost using a button located on the steering wheel. The car can be charged in 8 hours at 240-v, can get to 80% charge in 20 minutes at 4o0-v (3-phase) and will accept battery swapping made possible by the Better Place alliance.

The basic motor is the same as the unit used for Renault's production electric cars, although an evolution has enabled its power and torque to be uprated to 110kW (150ch) and 226Nm respectively. Through the extensive use of lightweight materials such as the Kevlar body, the DeZir tips the scales at just 830kg or 1,830 pounds. According to the French carmaker, the DeZir can go from zero to 100km/h (62mph) in 5 seconds and reach a top speed of 180km/h or 112mph.

The DeZir will debut in October at this year's Paris Motor Show, but no date has been set for its full release. According to Fast Company, by the end of 2013 the Renault-Nissan alliance hopes to produce 500,000 electric vehicles globally, including the 2011 Fluence ZE and the 2011 Kangoo ZE electric van.