Dacia Spring vs VW e-Up!

The VW e-Up! costs £11,205 more than the Dacia Spring. On the headline specs that premium buys little measurable advantage - the two are closely matched on range, charging and space. The Dacia Spring is not just cheaper - it also offers 58 litres more boot space and lower energy use, 124 versus 144 Wh/km. On EVcarsguide's combined category scores, the Dacia Spring comes out ahead overall.

The Dacia Spring is £11,205 cheaper to buy. Running costs are almost identical - about £136 a year either way, at 8,000 miles on an off-peak home tariff. Add 5 years of charging and the Dacia Spring comes out roughly £11,325 cheaper overall. These figures cover list price and home charging only - insurance, servicing, tyres and depreciation will move the real total.

EVcarsguide estimates a real-world motorway range of about 95 miles for the Dacia Spring and 116 miles for the VW e-Up! - both below their WLTP figures, because sustained high speed is the hardest case for an EV. The VW e-Up! goes roughly 21 miles further between charging stops. A rapid charge to 80% takes around 29 minutes in the Dacia Spring and 49 in the VW e-Up!, so the Dacia Spring loses less time at each stop. So the VW e-Up! stops less often while the Dacia Spring stops for less time - pick on which you would rather do.

The Dacia Spring is the easier car for tight UK car parks: it is 62 mm narrower than the VW e-Up!. In a standard 2,400 mm bay that leaves about 817 mm of total clearance for the Dacia Spring and about 755 mm of total clearance for the VW e-Up!.

Over a 8-year ownership window EVcarsguide's degradation model projects roughly 90% battery health for the Dacia Spring and 84% for the VW e-Up!. That gives the Dacia Spring a modest edge in retained real-world range. The Dacia Spring's LFP-type pack tolerates daily 100% charging, while the VW e-Up!'s NMC-type pack lasts longest kept to about 80% for everyday use. Both batteries carry a 8-year manufacturer warranty.