Dacia Spring: a scandalous price increase according to Fabien Roussel?

The leader of the French Communist Party Fabien Roussel points to the increase in the price of the Dacia Spring electric car but is mistaken in associating it with the ecological bonus.

Guest on France 3 on February 19 in the program “Dimanche en Politique”, Fabien Roussel discussed hybrid and electric cars. However, known for his often provocative comments, the secretary of the French Communist Party made this accusation, which certainly caught our attention:

“You know the scandal of Renault, the Dacia Spring made in China, it is sold in France for nearly €20,000. Since the government increased subsidies for purchasing an electric car, Renault has raised the price of the Dacia by €4,000 to pocket the money, it’s always the French who pay in this story!”

https://twitter.com/Fabien_Roussel/status/1627287372344791040

The Dacia Spring has increased its prices since 2021

Let’s review the timeline of the Dacia Spring. The electric car started taking orders in spring 2021, before its launch in September of the same year. At that time, the base price was €16,990. It was at the beginning of October 2021 that the price first increased by €100, then an additional €300 in December.

Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and the surge in transportation costs, the Dacia Spring’s price rose again. The hatchback jumped by €1,000 in April and €600 in May. The brand also justified a new increase in June by €510, citing restyling improvements as the reason. This brought the price close to €20,000, but it was not over. The final increase occurred in October 2022, by €1,000.

Here are the successive price increases for the Dacia Spring, verified by our team:

€16,990 at launch in September 2021
€17,090 in October 2021
€17,390 in December 2021
€17,690 in March 2022
€18,690 in April 2022
€19,290 in May 2022
€19,800 in June 2022
€20,800 in October 2022

A baseless scandal, but a truly significant increase

Claiming that the Dacia Spring increased its prices in correlation with the rise of the bonus is completely false. Firstly, because the €6,000 bonus was available at the launch in September 2021 and remained so until December 31, 2022. Additionally, the bonus… was reduced on January 1, 2023, to €5,000 for all income levels, except the lowest earners who are eligible for €7,000. There is no link between the bonus and the Dacia Spring, since the bonus did not change when the car’s price increased.

Dacia Spring 2023 — The Dacia Spring’s price increased by nearly €4,000, but before the bonus adjustment… (©Dacia)

Fabien Roussel is completely mistaken in claiming that the French are paying for this increase. However, he could have pointed out the obscene rise in the base price. From €16,990 to €20,800, it’s a jump of €3,890, or +23%! Much higher than the average inflation rate (6% in one year according to INSEE). But this is not the only vehicle to have increased in price, already with Renault’s Twingo E-Tech (+€3,900 since late 2020), and the ZOE as well (+€3,000 in a year). The same trend is seen at Stellantis with the Fiat 500 Electric (+€5,500 since 2020) or the Peugeot e-208 (+€2,600 in three years).