Don’t let anyone tell you that Renault can’t do a concept car. The French manufacturer pulled the sheets back on its all-electric Dezir at this year’s Paris Motor Show, and the concept is as sexy as it is absurd. Designers took a stab in an all-new direction with a pair of reverse-hinged butterfly doors that are the epitome of awesome. Likewise, the ultra-wide stance and aluminum sideblades are our kind of flashy. As you might expect, this concept makes use of a fittingly-futuristic powertrain. Renault says that under all of that curvy sheet metal there’s a full EV drivetrain on hand.

Surprisingly enough, there isn’t supercar-rivaling power on hand, though. The company puts the Dezir final horsepower figure at around 150 ponies and 166 pound-feet of torque – not exactly e-tron rivaling numbers. Even so, the concept is said to be able to dart to around 60 mph in just shy of five seconds. Check it out in our high-res image galleries below.

Live photos by Drew Phillips, Zach Bowman / AOL

Paris 2010: Renault Dezir concept is wild, twisted beauty originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 01 Oct 2010 09:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Autoblog reader Jason Wright happened upon this scarlet creature, the electric Renault DeZir concept, cruising the streets of Paris. As the spear-tip guiding the way forward for future Renault design, the DeZir is the first statement made by design vice president Laurens van den Acker – perhaps a Frenchified version of the now-dead Nagare styling. Renault calls it ‘simple’, ‘sensuous’ and ‘warm.’ Posit your own thoughts after checking it out in the gallery of high-res photos below. Hat tip to Jason

Renault DeZir concept caught on the streets of Paris originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 10 Aug 2010 10:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Renault’s home auto show in Paris this Fall will mark the beginning of a new styling direction for the brand, and that means a new concept car. The DeZir is the first major project under new design vice president Laurens van den Acker and according to Renault, it represents the vision of ‘simple’, ‘sensuous’ and ‘warm.’ From where we sit, the shape certainly fulfills the first two elements and the bright red finish is downright hot.

The DeZir wouldn’t be a modern Renault concept if it wasn’t powered by electrons, and such is the case for this coupe. Energy storage comes by way of the same size 24 kilowatt-hour lithium ion battery pack that sits under the Nissan Leaf, and the driving range remains the same 100 miles. Unlike the Leaf, the pack in the concept is configured for Quick Drop exchanges.

Propulsion is provided by a 110 kilowatt electric motor spinning the rear wheels and pushing the 1,830 pound concept to 60 mph in 5 seconds (at least according to the spec sheet). Kevlar body panels (including a pair of trick reverse-hinged butterfly doors) are wrapped around a steel tube frame chassis with double wishbones at all four corners. Renault hasn’t given any indication yet if the DeZir will be produced. High-res gallery below, full details in the press release after the jump.

[Source: Renault]

Continue reading Paris Preview: Renault DeZir concept signals new styling direction

Paris Preview: Renault DeZir concept signals new styling direction originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 05 Jul 2010 10:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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