Renault has sharply increased the prices of its electric and plug-in hybrid models. But he is not the only one. Far from there. Inflation is general. Tesla, the luxury electric car specialist, is now offering its Model 3 from 53,490 euros. Against 49,990 euros at the end of last spring. The electric Citroën ë-C4 is even more powerful. It now points to 39,700 euros (basic version)… against 36,300 in June. The petrol version, it only took… 1,310 euros increase at the same time. It is therefore sold for 15,490 euros less than that Citroën ë-C4 basically electric. That’s a lot.
The Peugeot e-2008 electric compact SUV has become more expensive for its part by 2,900 euros compared to June. The base price now reaches 40,950 euros, while the petrol equivalent has increased by 2,420. At stake: 14,380 euros difference between the two. At Volkswagen, the so-called zero-emission ID.3, a competitor to the ë-C4, starts right at 46,100 euros. It rose in six months by 1,420 euros, while the comparable Golf petrol only grew by 375 euros. An ID.3 therefore costs 15,400 euros more than the basic Golf. That little Renault Zoe, pioneer in the field of electrics, for its part, climbs to 35,100 euros in the basic version. Or 2,300 euros more than at the beginning of last summer. The Zoé costs twice as much as an entry-level thermal Clio (17,800 euros).
Also plug-in hybrids
Same inflation in plug-in hybrids. The hybrid Peugeot 308 took 2,820 euros to 40,870, the Citroën C5 Aircross SUV 3,000 euros to 44,750. And again, it is only a 180 horsepower version, whereas the C5 Aircross series started in June with a 225 horsepower plug-in hybrid engine. The differential with the petrol version amounts to a paltry 14,100 euros. Renault Captur plug-in hybrid small SUV increased by 1,000 euros to 37,950. The thermal version only grew by 500. The plug-in hybrid in its cheapest version costs 14,050 more than the petrol model.
According to the magazine Auto more, the price of a Tesla Model 3 has increased by 11,700 euros since last January (discounts and bonuses included). A Peugeot 308 plug-in hybrid took 4,100 euros in almost a year, a Volkswagen Tiguan also plug-in hybrid 3,700. The market is therefore not moving in the direction of a democratization of electrified vehicles. On the contrary. The cheapest electric on the market, Dacia Spring, now crosses 20,000 euros (20,800 euros against 16,990 when it was launched in spring 2021).
Raw materials: ratio 1 to 3
It is true that the raw materials used in an electric model are almost three times more expensive than in a gasoline one. This explains it. The raw material basket for an electric car now amounts to a good 5,076 dollars per vehicle, compared to just 1,851 for a conventional thermomobile. This makes a difference of more than 3,200 euros per vehicle, according to the latest study by Alix Partners published last October. Huge. Admittedly, these costs have fallen since last spring’s peak – by 37% for petrol cars, by just 25% for electric ones. But specific raw materials for electric vehicles (lithium, cobalt, nickel) have been increasing since last summer. As a result, compared to the low point in spring 2020, the total cost of raw materials remains 75% higher for electric cars, 27% for thermal cars, according to the consultant’s latest score.
It is therefore not surprising that the prices of vehicles are increasing, especially the prices of electric cars. Alix Partners emphasizes that you need to travel today… 215,000 km with an electric model to recoup the extra cost compared to a thermomobile (135,000 with the super bonuses offered by the states for the purchase of a zero-emission model) … And this, including the additional costs of raw materials, but also the comparative price of electricity and fuel. The hardest thing to make profitable is still the plug-in hybrid. You have to drive 270,000 kilometers there to erase the extra cost compared to a simple petrol vehicle.
.