Trafic Alert
November 18, 2025
Alex KiersteinVans don’t have to be stylish to get work done, so when they are—like the Renault Trafic E-Tech—it gets our attention.
Something is happening in the commercial van space that seems completely unnecessary. Vans look cool now. At least some of them. The ancient Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana still hold some anachronistic appeal, but it’s in spite of and not because they look highly styled. But something like the Hyundai Staria, available elsewhere mainly as a commercial vehicle, looks so sci-fi as to be objectively appealing. Where I live, the no-less-futuristic Rivian vans are common, crawling quietly around the neighborhood in stark contrast to the anti-styled and very loud UPS vans. Add Renault’s Trafic E-Tech EV van to the mix.
The company previewed the styling and some other light commercial vehicles based on this architecture earlier this year, but now it’s officially going on sale. And European roads are going to be a little more interesting because of it.
It uses the Renault Group spin-off Ampere’s dedicated EV platform, a form of which underpins the new 5 and Twingo EVs, and features 800V quick-charging capability and (initially) a long-range nickel manganese cobalt battery. (A shorter-range lithium ion phosphate battery will be available later.) It has a rear-mounted 201 hp, 254 lb-ft e-motor as well, so it should be a robust performer.
While there’s a hint of ID Buzz to the front fascia, particularly the high-mounted marker lights, it’s much more futuristic and much more adventurous. The driving lights are hooded by the grille surround. The slab sides of the panel version have intricate character lines to add some visual appeal to what is otherwise a wide expanse of nothingness. Slim rear taillights pull off the neat trick of looking interesting in the minimum possible amount of space. Even the interior’s driver-angled center screen gives it a bit of an air of a fictional spacecraft cockpit.
I can’t find any hint that Renault is considering selling the Trafic stateside via its Nissan or Mitsubishi partners, but stranger things have happened. We have a bevy of European-style vans here, from the Ford Transit to the Ram ProMaster—the latter of which is weird enough to be French. (Its designer, Mike Robinson, is actually an American and while the ProMaster is badged as a ton of different models, the fundamental design is the Fiat Ducato.) The EV version of the Trafic seems to be, stylistically, not too far off of what Mitsubishi is doing right now. (Even Nissan is swiping the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV’s styling nearly verbatim for its Rogue Hybrid.) Mitsubishi could use some compelling models, and we could use more handsome vans on the road. Make it happen.
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