With the Filante Record 2025, Renault was not simply aiming to break a symbolic range record, but to demonstrate, in concrete terms, just how far electric vehicle efficiency can be pushed under realistic driving conditions. The challenge was clear from the outset: cover more than 1,000 kilometres without recharging, at an average speed exceeding 100 km/h, using a battery with the same capacity as the one found in the Scenic E-Tech electric, namely 87 kWh. On December 18, 2025, at the UTAC test track in Morocco, that goal was achieved, with 1,008 kilometres covered in 9 hours and 52 minutes, an average speed of 102 km/h, and an exceptionally low consumption figure of 7.8 kWh/100 km.
- The Filante covered more than 1,000 km
- Its average speed was 102 km/h
- Its energy consumption was measured at 7.8 kWh/100 km
An engineering approach grounded in reality, not artificial optimisation
Renault insists on a fundamental point: this performance was not achieved through artificial means. There was no oversized battery and no attempt to drive at unrealistic speeds. The specifications required sustained highway speeds, including technical stops and driver changes. The objective was to prove that a well-designed electric vehicle can meet real-world usage requirements, not just excel under laboratory conditions.
At the finish, the Filante Record 2025 still had 11 percent of battery charge remaining, which translates into roughly 120 additional kilometres at speeds above 100 km/h, highlighting the still untapped potential of the concept.
Renault Filante Record 2025Aerodynamics: the central lever of efficiency
Aerodynamics is unquestionably the cornerstone of the Filante Record 2025’s performance. Wind-tunnel tests carried out in the spring revealed an initial drag coefficient that was too high, close to 0.40. The target was to bring it down to approximately 0.30, a goal that required a significant redesign.
Jocelyn Mérigeault, aerodynamics engineer, clearly explains the scale of the work involved:
“The wind-tunnel tests last spring showed us exactly what our computer simulations had hinted at: that Filante’s drag coefficient was too high. It was close to 0.40 and we had to bring it down to about 0.30.”
Renault Filante Record 2025The main sources of drag were identified around the wheel fairings. As a result, the teams fundamentally reworked their architecture by detaching them from the central structure and mounting them directly onto the wheels. This solution freed up airflow around key mechanical components, including the suspension and control arms, which had previously disrupted the air stream.
“We streamlined the ‘wings’, and actually rearranged the architecture, detaching them from the central structure and mounting them directly on the wheels. This freed up the airflow around the mechanical components — the suspension, control arms and transmission — which had been obstructing a lot of air before.”
Renault Filante Record 2025The drastic reduction of air inlets and unnecessary openings also helped eliminate parasitic drag, optimising every square centimetre exposed to airflow.
Extreme lightweighting and advanced materials
The second major technical pillar is mass reduction. The Filante Record 2025 tips the scales at just 1,000 kg, an exceptional figure for an electric vehicle equipped with an 87 kWh battery. To achieve this, Renault relied on a combination of ultra-light materials, including carbon fibre, aluminium alloys and 3D-printed components, notably Scalmalloy.
Renault Filante Record 2025The approach went beyond material selection alone. Each component was designed to use material only where strictly necessary, optimising shapes and structures to eliminate unnecessary mass.
Onboard technologies: electronic steering and braking
The Filante Record 2025 also serves as a rolling laboratory for technologies that are still rare in production vehicles. It features fully electronic steering and braking systems (steer-by-wire and brake-by-wire). These systems not only reduce weight by eliminating certain mechanical components, but also open the door to new architectural possibilities and finer tuning of vehicle dynamics.
According to the drivers, these systems played a crucial role in maintaining precise trajectories and smooth driving over long periods, which is essential for optimising energy consumption.
Renault Filante Record 2025Tyres and mechanical efficiency
The tyres developed specifically by Michelin represent another key element. They combine extremely low rolling resistance with aerodynamic optimisation, both of which are critical at sustained high speeds. The goal was to minimise mechanical losses without compromising stability or safety during nearly ten consecutive hours of driving.
Renault Filante Record 2025Battery and energy management
The choice of using the same battery as the Scenic E-Tech electric is highly symbolic. It demonstrates that extending range is not solely about increasing capacity, but about optimising the vehicle as a whole. Energy management, combined with exceptional aerodynamic and mechanical efficiency, made it possible to achieve an efficiency level rarely seen at these speeds.
Human and technical validation
Three drivers took turns during the record attempt: Laurent Hurgon, Constance Léraud-Reyser and Arthur Ferrière. All of them highlighted the mental demands and precision required to maintain performance over time.
Laurent Hurgon described the experience as follows:
“Three hours of total concentration, with the sun setting over an almost lunar landscape. The silence is striking and you feel slightly cut off from the world, fully in your own bubble to focus on performance.”
Constance Léraud-Reyser emphasised the precision required by the electronic systems:
“The key was concentration: holding the line, optimising every movement and being smooth on the steering wheel, especially with the steer-by-wire system.”
Renault Filante Record 2025A laboratory for future production models
Beyond the record itself, Renault views the Filante Record 2025 as a development tool for future electric models. Lessons learned in aerodynamics, mass reduction and energy efficiency will gradually be transferred to production vehicles, with the goal of improving real-world range, particularly at highway speeds.
As Olivier Blanche, concept-car project manager, sums it up:
“This project was born from an obsession: achieving record-breaking efficiency. We battled the weather and aerodynamics, but what stands out most for me is the human adventure.”
The Filante Record 2025 is therefore not an isolated technological showcase, but a concrete demonstration that high-speed electric efficiency is now within reach—provided the vehicle is rethought as a complete system.
