New Renault Captur bolder, smarter and more refined
Renault’s Capture is celebrating its tenth birthday with the launch of a new version. Internationally, over two million Capturs have been sold so far.
- Product News
- 9 December 2025
A small South African start-up, Funky Electric, hopes to introduce an affordable electric vehicle into the market no later than early 2023.
The designer of the vehicle, Stephan Theron, and his wife Adele, came across the idea during their stay in China where they own restaurants.
“In China EVs are almost old news. The Chinese government subsidises the development of EVs. We asked ourselves why we couldn’t develop an entry-level EV for inner city and suburban use that will also educate the regular man in the street in South Africa,” explained Stephan. “At the moment, EVs are all about experts arguing about battery size while the average person doesn’t know much about these vehicles,” he continued.
Stephan then approached the KL Group in China who helped him design the Funky FE-1. The vehicle seats four persons, has a curb weight of 400kg, a 4000W motor, electric windows, a multi-function steering wheel and reaches a maximum speed of about 60km/h.
According to Stephan, it has a range of about a 100km. The battery will take about 8 to 11 hours to charge from flat to fully charged. “This is only in very unlikely cases. Because the vehicle will only be used for suburban short distance runabouts, you will most likely never use up the full capacity of the battery. That means you will only have to top it up, which can be done in between load shedding,” said Stephan.
The 60v/100Ah Lead-acid battery (an upgrade to a Lithium-Ion battery is available) can be charged at a normal three-point socket.
The vehicle must still be homologated, but Stephan does not foresee any problems.
It will retail for around R190 000.
Renault’s Capture is celebrating its tenth birthday with the launch of a new version. Internationally, over two million Capturs have been sold so far.
The importance of professional training at all levels of a vehicle dealership cannot be underestimated. That is why MSX International's bespoke Advanced Dealer Management (ADM) and the Departmental Leadership Programme (DLP) are taking aim at these aspects.
Stellantis South Africa has announced the appointment of Alex Shahini as Brand Communications Manager for Alfa Romeo, Jeep and Leapmotor.
Advertisement
Advertisement
You can't buy happiness but you can buy cars and that's kind of the same thing.
Unknown
As South Africa forges ahead in the automotive landscape, a notable divide has emerged in the growing realm of new-energy vehicles.
Kenya’s automotive industry recently made headlines when Tad Motors unveiled its first range of locally assembled electric vehicles (EVs), igniting discussions across Africa about the continent’s growing capacity for indigenous mobility solutions.
Volvo Trucks South Africa delivered the first of nine new electric trucks that will be added to DSV’s (an international supply-chain operator) local fleet over the next few months.