Autonomy challenge – Renault Zoe ZE50 R135

In this new autonomy challenge of #CircutorElectroChallenge we drive a classic, Renault Zoe ZE50 R135, up to the limit of its autonomy, using, as always, our best #Efficient and calm #Driving skills.

The first Zoe was marketed almost a decade ago and was the best-selling electric car in the world in 2017. The current model has finishes and battery capacity that greatly improve those of that first model designed to move only around the City, in fact the Zoe has been the most used car in car-sharing fleets throughout Europe and is still, for example, the car of the SomMobilitat Cooperative.

This is a car designed to move with agility in urban traffic, make things easy while looking for parking in the center, but maintaining a good interior habitability and trunk capacity to store purchases, thanks to its 4-meter depth. length and a very compact design.

These data show us some of the characteristics of this pioneer of electromobility. Circulating with the "B" position of your gearbox, this version with a 100 kW engine has quite good energy recovery. On the other hand, its profile, not very aerodynamic, penalizes it as a joke on fast roads.

We are intrepid and given the capacity of its battery we dare to launch a long format challenge in which we will combine different types of roads and terrain profiles. We will go to Amélie-Les-Bains on the A7 and we will return inland crossing the Pyrenees through the Col d'Ares.

It's 09:30 on Saturday and we have our Renault ZOE 100% charged in the RAPTION 50 at the CIRCUTOR headquarters, in Viladecavalls, the vehicle indicates an estimated range of 368 km just when we start our challenge.

At 10:40 a.m. we make the de rigueur stop in the L'Empordà service area, where it's time to take a control photo and restorative coffee. After 128 km on the highway, the car indicates a consumption of 12.9 kWh/100 km, we have a 70% battery left and 258 km of autonomy, with these data we could go calm although in the last few minutes the the force of the tramontana, which we will face until Perpignan.

It's 12:00 pm and we reach our furthest point from today's challenge. We are in the middle of the Pyrenean mountains where we make a stop to enjoy nature and Catalan culture. We have driven 186 km, with an average consumption close to 14 kWh/100 km and, most importantly, we have done it with half the battery, although the weather conditions are adverse and the vehicle indicates a remaining range of 169 km .

We trust our abilities and we do not connect the car to the REVEO charging points that are in the municipal car park in the beautiful town of Les Banys. However, we still have the ascent to Col d'Ares right in front of us.

It's 2:30 p.m. and we resume the challenge with Pep Ruiz, a great friend and co-driver. The road to Prats de Molló is very fun, and the landscape is impressive but, once we pass the town, we have 11 km left to reach the 1,513 m of the Ares pass and to add intensity, about 6 km from the top it begins to snowing, some curves already have curdled snow on the asphalt and traction is difficult, today we miss the traction four of other challenges.

At 3:30 p.m. we reach the top of Col d'Ares, under a very beautiful snowfall. The climb has passed the energy bill, we only have a 26% battery, the car tells us 68 km of autonomy but our destination is 150 km away. Can we do it without a stop to recharge?

To complete the lap we will have to "go down" at a rate of 9.13 kWh/100 km. Hard? ... no one said this challenge would be easy.

We have a secret weapon "Regeneration" and that is that, in this second phase of the challenge, we have a drop of almost 1300 m. Lever in position "B" and,... Let's go!

On the south face, on the way to Camprodon, the snow has turned into fine rain, less worrying but, equally, it makes us take these first curves with caution.

40 minutes later, we are in front of the Ripoll monastery, where we pass a new checkpoint. Here, the panorama is already more reassuring, the Renault Zoe has done a very good job, and so have we. We have driven 41 km, deducting only 1 kWh from the battery, thanks to the unevenness, which has allowed us to regenerate 2.7 kWh, therefore, our consumption has been 3.7 kWh in this section, at a rate of, effectively , 9 kWh. If we can continue like this, we will finish the tour without any problem. Too bad we have already lost more than two thirds of the height we had at the top of the pass.

It is 5:00 p.m. and the C17, on the way to Vic, goes down quite empty of traffic, advantages of driving on a Saturday. We have completed 309 km of our route, the battery still retains 10% and an indicated autonomy of 44 km. This challenge will be very tight!

Once we have passed the small elevation of Tona, we descend to Granollers in the midst of denser traffic but at a good pace.

5:45 p.m., from Barberà del Vallès, the C58 climbs and... indeed, Tortuga in sight! It has been a few km since the battery indicator has changed to orange and, finally, red, we have added 358 km of challenge and both the turtle and the warning that the vehicle manages energy have appeared, reducing engine power, to help us to reach the destination, our garage space, where we will let this champion sleep to take him to the Circontrol recharging laboratory on Monday.

On Monday at 8:00 a.m. we arrived at the laboratory, without problems, having driven the last 12 km by highway and city, avoiding the highway, at a more moderate speed and in the company of the tortoise.

Autonomy Challenge Results - Renault Zoe ZE50 R135

It must be remembered that the objective of these challenges is to know the autonomy limits of the vehicle and allow future owners to drive calmly since, in case of need, they can, from time to time, drain the battery to reach the destination and the vehicle can do so. . In fact, although it indicates that there is no autonomy, we know that in the test carried out by EcoBest in November 2021, the Renault Zoe can do more than 25 km after indicating that the battery is depleted.

An interesting aspect is that the car displays on the screen not only the energy consumption, in kWh, along the journey, but also how much energy we have recovered by braking. In our repta it has been 5.5 kWh. More than 10% of the total battery capacity.

Conclution:

As the good Miguel Ríos would say, the old rockers never die, and the thing is that the Renault Zoe, despite having been on the market for a decade, is still, without any doubt, one of the best options to enter the market. world of the electric car, especially since there are quite a few second-hand units at a very interesting price.

Special Thanks:

Clarifications:

The Solidarity Tour is a 20 km route starting and finishing at the Circutor headquarters in Viladecavalls, which runs along very twisty secondary roads with slopes of up to 250 m.

The EcoBest tour is a 60 km mixed route that includes approximately 50% motorway, 25% city and the rest on interurban roads, very similar to the distribution of the WLTP cycle.

All our challenges are based on achieving maximum autonomy, in real traffic conditions, using efficient driving techniques and moderate speeds, always above the minimum marked on each road.