Dacia Hipster Concept: A Lightweight, Affordable Electric Car
Dacia unveils the Hipster Concept, a 100% electric car tailored to daily life and engineered to halve the lifecycle carbon footprint of electric vehicles. Since the early 2000s, regulations and electrification have led to many cars becoming larger, heavier, and more complex, which drives up their costs. Dacia instead champions essential mobility, so more people can access an affordable electric vehicle without paying for features they don’t need.
The brand asks what will be essential tomorrow and how to open electric mobility to more drivers. Starting from a clean sheet, Dacia sets out to reinvent the people’s car. Romain Gauvin, Head of Advanced Design and Exterior Design at Dacia, explains: “This is the most Dacia-esque project that I have ever worked on. It has the same societal impact as Logan did 20 years ago, and it involves inventing something that does not exist today.”
To shape the Dacia Hipster Concept, the teams studied how people actually use their cars and focused on the essentials. Designers created an agile, practical and economical companion for everyday life. Stéphanie Chiron, Dacia Advanced Product Manager, said: “Dacia Hipster Concept has everything you could want in an everyday vehicle. Measuring just 3 metres long, 1.53 metres high and 1.55 metres wide, it has four proper seats and a boot that can be adjusted from 70 to 500 litres.” This ultra-compact footprint delivers genuine capacity that rivals cannot match today.
The Hipster Concept pushes Dacia’s weight-driven philosophy further. It weighs 20 per cent less than Spring, thanks to an Eco-Smart approach that reduces raw materials and manufacturing energy. Lower mass also means the motor uses less energy to move the car, which boosts efficiency and range while cutting running costs. The ambition is to halve the carbon footprint across the vehicle’s entire life cycle compared with the best electric cars currently on sale.
Engineered for city streets, suburban routes and country roads, the Hipster Concept provides ample range for daily journeys and typically needs a recharge only twice a week. It meets real-world needs. For example, in France, 94 per cent of motorists travel less than 24 miles per day. With Spring, Dacia made electric mobility affordable. With the Hipster Concept, the brand aims to reach drivers who still cannot find an EV within budget. New-car prices in Europe rose by 77 per cent between 2010 and 2024, far outpacing household purchasing power, so an accessible compact electric car matters more than ever.
Dacia pairs simplicity with strong design to create a memorable shape. Romain Gauvin adds: “Our ambition in reinventing the true people’s car was to give it a distinctive and memorable design. A car that can be sketched in three strokes of a pencil.” The Hipster Concept looks robust and purposeful, with four wheels pushed to the corners and no front or rear overhangs. A horizontal front end with sleek headlights gives the car a serious yet friendly face. At the rear, the full-width tailgate opens in two parts to provide easy access to the boot.
Dacia applies design-to-cost thinking throughout. Rear lights are positioned behind the tailgate window, eliminating the need for a separate glass panel. The body features a single colour with only three painted parts: the front section and the side door entry elements. Generous side protection in Starkle®, a material partly derived from recycled plastic, created by Dacia’s engineers, boosts durability, along with front and rear skids dyed in mass, in line with the brand’s Robust and Outdoor approach. The exterior door handle gives way to a lighter and cheaper strap that works just as well, underscoring the minimalist philosophy of this compact electric car.
Inside, the Dacia Hipster Concept maximises space within compact exterior dimensions. The interior mirrors the car’s cubic forms, featuring near-vertical windows and a windscreen that frees uspace. A glazed front roof section brings light and a sense of airiness, while sliding side windows save weight and cost. Four adults sit comfortably. The driving position matches that of the Dacia Sandero, which supports comfort and provides a clear view of the road. Wide door openings and a tilting front passenger seat make access to the rear easier.
Dacia redesigns the seats to strike a balance between comfort, practicality, weight, and cost—a simplified visible frame pairs with a warm technical mesh fabric. The front seats merge into a welcoming bench, a nod to iconic popular cars of the past. Openwork headrests further trim weight. Designed for real life, the Hipster Concept adapts to everyday tasks. With all four seats in use, the boot offers 70 litres. Fold the rear seat and the capacity grows to 500 litres for bulky loads. The dashboard integrates two airbags for the driver and passenger to enhance safety.
To meet varied needs, the interior is native to YouClip. Equipped with only the essentials as standard, it can be customised with Dacia’s YouClip® accessories. Eleven YouClip anchor points across the dashboard, door panels, and boot accept items such as cup holders, armrests, and ceiling lights. Connectivity stays simple and smart through Dacia’s BYOD philosophy. A smartphone docking station seamlessly links your phone and vehicle, supporting daily tasks without the need for costly built-in systems.
The smartphone acts as a digital key to unlock and start the car. Once seated, the dock becomes a multimedia screen for the driver’s preferred navigation app. It also powers the audio experience by connecting to a portable Bluetooth speaker that is compatible with YouClip. The result is an affordable EV that remains light, efficient, and practical, with the essential tech that people actually use. By focusing on weight reduction, recycled materials, and smart connectivity, the Dacia Hipster Concept demonstrates how a compact electric car can deliver everyday value while reducing costs and carbon impact.
