Dacia Spring review

There are two distinct driving experiences to driving the Spring: with and without passengers. Without passengers is preferable because you can enjoy the theatrical body roll, bouncing ride and perky acceleration (only up to about 30mph, mind) without recrimination.

Add other people to the mix and you start to feel bad for them flailing about. Still, dial it right back and the Spring is usefully laid back, and that spongy suspension soaks up bumps nicely.

Dacia says it’s put a bit of effort into recalibrating the steering feel after European journalists complained the early models were too light and lacking in feel. The wheel does feel firmer than on the pre-facelift car, but it’s still fairly effortless to get around.

Does it feel really slow?

The 65 version tips the scales at a mere 984kg, and the lower-powered car is another 8kg lighter than that. Whatever the Spring lacks in outright shove is more than made up for by the fact it’s not a two-tonne whopper. It’s perky around town thanks to the sluglet of electric torque (92lb ft for the 45 and 83lb ft for the 65, weirdly) off the line, and can keep up with traffic well enough.

It does start to get a bit out of breath on the motorway (and noisy too, with seemingly absolutely zero sound insulation), but with only 140 miles of range and that's not going to be a problem for very long.

Otherwise, our only real complaint was the front and rear parking sensors, which seem to have a mind of their own particularly when sat in queuing traffic. The other ADAS gizmos – speed limit warning, lane keep assist etc – can be quickly switched off with two presses of a physical customisable shortcut button below the touchscreen.

Will it take ages to charge? 

Again, the 30kW peak fast charging rate sounds like you’ll be stuck plugged in for days, but with a 26.8kWh battery it’s all relative. You’ll fill up from 20 to 80 per cent in 35 minutes on a suitable fast charger, while it’ll take just under four hours on a 7.4kW plug, or just under 11 hours on a three-pin.

At current average electricity prices that means around £15 to fill up the whole battery on a public charger and around £6 to do it at home.