Mobilize Duo is reborn Renault Twizy with 100-mile range

The Renault Group’s nascent mobility division has lifted the covers off the production version of its Mobilize Duo, the spiritual successor to the Renault Twizy.

Revealed ahead of its debut at the Paris motor show, it’s an electric quadricycle like the Citroën Ami but has been designed to offer the creature comforts of a full-size car.

For instance, it gets Bluetooth and USB-C phone connectivity, air conditioning, a heated seat and an airbag – a more comprehensive kit list than its Ami and Micro Microlino rivals.

Two versions will be available, homologated to the L6e and L7e quadricycle regulations. The former (which can be driven in the EU without a full driving licence) is limited to the same 28mph as the Ami, whereas the latter can do 50mph.

The Duo is powered by the 48V motor used in the Renault Austral mild hybrid. Renault has yet to disclose a power figure for the unit, but claimed it provides “strong acceleration” up to town speeds.

L6e quadricycles are legally limited to 8bhp, while their L7e counterparts can be boosted up to 21bhp. The L7e Microlino’s single motor puts out 17bhp, for reference.

It packs a 10.3kWh nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) battery, which yields a range of up to 100 miles on the WMTC (World Motorcycle Test Cycle) regimen used for quadricycles.

Renault said this should translate to a real-world range of around 62 miles in winter.

The company did not detail maximum charging rates but said it takes 3hr 50min to go from 20-80% on an AC connection and 3hr 25min on DC, suggesting the Duo peaks at around 3kW.

Despite measuring just 2.43m long and 1.3m wide, it has seating for two, using the same tandem interior layout as the Twizy.

That helps to give the Duo a turning circle of 6.80m – tighter than a London cab’s.

Unlike on the Twizy, the Duo’s doors – which open Lamborghini-style – feature conventional windows for weather protection.

The Duo has been designed to minimise its impact on the environment: some 40% of its weight comprises recycled materials and it’s claimed to be 95% recyclable at the end of its life.

The front and the rear bumpers are the same panel and one indicator piece is used around its exterior. The Duo uses five times fewer parts than a conventional car, Renault said.

It will be built alongside the Dacia Sandero and Dacia Jogger at the Renault Group’s plant in Tangier, Morocco, which takes 90% of its energy from renewable sources.

The sum of these efforts is that the Duo emits a third of the greenhouse gas emissions of an A-segment city car over its lifetime, according to Renault.

In similar fashion to a Tesla, the Duo doesn’t come with a physical key. It instead uses a bespoke MyDuo app, compatible with Apple and Android phones, for locking and unlocking.

Prices for the L6 version will start at €9990 (excluding incentives) in France, indicating that it will cost from around £10,000 in the UK.

The L7 version is priced from €11,600 in France, with Evo trim adding Bluetooth, a heated seat and orange accents for €900.

UK deliveries of the Duo and its cargo van sibling, the Mobilize Bento, are set to begin in late spring 2025.

The Bento trades the Duo’s second seat for a load bay with a capacity of 649 litres. 

It’s available only in L7 guise and its range is slightly reduced from the Duo’s, at 93 miles.

It’s priced at €10,900 in France (excluding VAT).