Spanish startup Liux is preparing to launch its small electric car, the Liux Big, on the European market during the first half of 2027 after obtaining comprehensive European approval for the model. The company wants to compete with small electric cars coming from China by focusing on reducing environmental impact, extending the vehicle’s lifespan, and carrying out the final stages of production in Spain.
The move comes in a market experiencing growing demand for compact cars in European cities, at a time when well-known brands in this sector, including Smart, have shifted manufacturing to China. Liux is attempting to offer a European alternative, but it does not claim to have a self-sufficient European supply chain; the Big’s batteries are not made in Europe, according to what TechCrunch reported from the company’s founders.
A Design That Places Recyclability at the Core of the Car
The exterior structure of the Liux Big relies on a new composite material based on flax fibers, designed so that it can later be separated, extracted, and recycled. Co-founder Antonio Espinosa de los Monteros believes that recyclability is determined not only in the laboratory, but also by how the product is built and how it preserves the integrity of its components, allowing it to be given a second life.
The company says the car can be charged at home, including with electricity generated by solar panels, and has also been designed to be easy to maintain and less vulnerable to the rapid obsolescence cycles that characterize some modern cars. However, these environmental promises do not eliminate the car’s dependence on batteries manufactured outside Europe.
L7e Approval and More Space Than Expected
Liux chose the L7e category for four-wheeled vehicles, which is slightly heavier than L6e under the European regulatory distinction. The company used the limits of this category to provide a 260-liter luggage compartment, while attempting to make the driving experience closer to that of conventional cars than light two-wheeled vehicles.
The Big will initially be offered in two versions with 15 and 20 kilowatt-hour batteries, while Liux plans to launch a version dedicated to cargo transport. Although the vehicle category does not require crash tests, the company says it has tested its maneuvering, braking, and slalom-course capabilities, emphasizing that the reduction in weight should not result from a weaker frame or reduced stability.
Limited Production and Ambitions to Expand
Liux currently has 65 employees and is preparing to increase production through three facilities in Spain, including its factory in Azuqueca de Henares near Madrid. The factory operates according to lean-management principles and carries out only the final stages of manufacturing, which explains its small size. The company says its production capacity could reach 20,000 cars annually by 2030.
More than 7,500 people have joined the Big waiting list without paying a fee. Company data indicates that the most represented group consists of city residents between 55 and 60 years old, leading it to assume that the car may often be purchased as a family’s second car rather than as a complete replacement for conventional car ownership.
What Matters in Practice?
Liux has raised €16 million so far, including European funding, and will use it to bring the urban version to market through partnerships with car dealers across Europe. It has not specified the final price, but is targeting a price below €18,000, or about $21,000, before accounting for potential electric-vehicle subsidies.
This price places the Big at the higher end of the small-car market, so Liux will need to prove that recyclable materials, ease of maintenance, and interior space justify the difference. The waiting list also does not yet prove actual demand, and the company’s success remains tied to its ability to turn the model’s approval and limited funding into regular production and deliveries. Liux is keeping the door open to partnerships with corporate fleet operators, and possibly to developing autonomous-driving functions in the future, but these plans have not yet become announced products.