Sure, the new all-electric Renault 5 E-Tech been leaked onto the internet at least, what, twice now, but I think it’s still an exciting new car and now that it’s revealed officially, with full approval of the ghost of Napoleon or whatever Renault likes to do, we have all the details. And, yes, one of those details is a baguette holder, so you can stop worrying. Let’s dig into this stylish and seemingly sensible little EV and see what’s going on.
The Look
Most obvious, of course, is the retro-inspired styling, which pulls not just from the original Renault 5 (which, remember, we got here in America as the Le Car, which you could buy at AMC dealerships if you didn’t feel like you were cut out for a Pacer, but also from the updated Supercinq from 1984 and there’s even some cues from the wide-hipped Renault 5 Turbo.
If you look at the final design, you can see the influences and references from the three main source cars, but I feel like the overall design still feels quite modern, and not cloyingly retro.
The dramatic rear fender flares are less prominent on the new EV than they were on the mid-engined R5 Turbo, but you can still see them, and there’s a tiny version of the air-exhaust outlet just outboard of the lower part of the taillights on the 2024 car, if you look carefully:
Up front, a lot more liberties have been taken with the design; the grille is reduced to a black bar joining the headlamps (which do appear to have that smiling-eye look):
The hood vent has also become the charge indicator, and there’s lots of LED light effects and blinkery going on. From the press release:
The vent grille on the bonnet of the original car has been reinvented to keep up with the times. Today, it is a charge indicator in the form of the iconic number 5. When the driver approaches the vehicle, it lights up, illustrating the close interaction between human and machine. Another example of a humanised interface is the welcome sequence of the eye-shaped LED headlights, which ‘wink’ at the driver as they approach.
The Tech
The new R5 is Renault’s first car based on the AmpR-Small platform (formerly CMF-B EV, if you’re curious) which is designed to be a small, affordable BEV platform. The car is just under 13 feet long, and Renault says the “targeted weight” should be under 3,300 pounds. Two battery packs will be offered, a 40 kWh and a 52 kWh one, and the electrons gushing from those packs will be spinning a choice of motors, a 120 horsepower one or a 150 hp one. These may not sound like huge numbers for a modern EV, but remember, this is a small EV, and I think those sound like very reasonable specs, personally. We don’t all need to be lugging around 70 to 80 kWh battery packs just to go to work or your weekly pornography outlet store runs or whatever.
The 52 kWh battery is claimed to give 248 miles of range (the smaller pack will do 186 miles, which is 100,000 times less than the distance light can travel in one second, if that helps), which is pretty great, though that’s the WLTP cycle test, so EPA range would probably be lower if this comes to America, which it very likely won’t. Sorry.
Charging speed targets the now seemingly universal metric of getting from 15% to 80% in 30 minutes, and it’ll charge at rates of 11 kW on AC and 100 kW DC. The 11 kW AC charging is bi-directional, so you can charge your small sawmill with the car, if it comes to that, which it definitely might.
These are decent specs, especially for a more city-car-type EV. America could use more EVs in this category.
The 40 kWh battery pack is made up of three large modules with 31 cells per module, and the 52 kWh one has four with 46 cells. The battery pack is set into the floor, like most modern EVs, and the press release makes no mention of any under-hood storage space, so I think we can assume there’s no frunk, which makes sense for such a small EV, where space is at a premium.
In fact, space must be at such a premium that Renault made a point to tell us about how they crammed the braking system and ESP hardware into one, solitary box. Renault cleverly calls this “One Box!” Look:
The new One Box system groups the braking and ESP functions in the same module to reduce the space required under the bonnet. It also halves the response time of the automatic emergency braking system. At the same time, the decoupled braking system delivers a consistently strong pedal feel, contributing to a better sense of connection with the car and the road for the driver, with the switch between regenerative braking and hydraulic braking taking place transparently. The brake pedal is not connected to the callipers, but to an ECU that prioritises energy recovery before switching to the braking system if necessary. The driver can also use the gear lever to select a B mode with increased regeneration.
I’m not sure I’ve read a press release that has touted one housing for braking and ESP stuff?
The Inside
I like the interior, mostly because I always liked the original interior of the R5, which also had those vertical seams across the dash:
The fabric, the press release claims, is both denim and made from recycled PET plastic water bottles.
The big LCD screens are integrated into one unit that is reminiscent of the old plastic instrument cluster, too, and the center stack infotainment screen is slightly canted towards the driver, which seems cool until you actually think about the fact that the passenger is just as likely to use controls on that screen, and then it doesn’t seem so cool.
Hey look! A column shift! Why take up space between the seats for this little make-go-forward-or-back switch, right? The column is a fine place for this.
All The Electronic Crap
Yes, yes, the new Renault 5 E-Tech has the now-expected ADAS (Anthracite Dalmatian Access Syndrome oh shit no wait it’s Advanced Driver Assist System) Level 2 system, effectively a lane keeping and dynamic cruise system, along with front and rear emergency braking, which includes locking the wheels after a wreck. I see how that’s useful for safety reasons, preventing subsequent impacts, but I hope you can easily release it to get the car off the road or onto a tow truck or something.
More eye-rolling is Reno, the car’s “avatar,” or as Renault’s press release puts it, a “virtual traveling companion.” The press release says this about the ChatGPT-enabled software:
“The feeling of empathy created will strengthen the emotional bond between the user and their Renault 5 E-Tech electric.”
Hmm. Okay.
This sort of thing sounds a little more useful, though:
“An example of technology being used to provide real benefit, Reno supports users in learning about the car and its functions. It is an EV specialist, able to answer all sorts of questions and take practical action. For example, you could ask: “Hey Reno, schedule a charge for 8am tomorrow” or “Hey Reno, how can I increase the range of my car?”.
Looking beyond electric functions, the Reno avatar can answer the 200 questions most frequently asked by customers and identified by Renault After-Sales: e.g.: “Hey Reno, how do I connect my phone to the car?” or “Hey Reno, how do I change a tyre?”
I mean, if that works, that’s not so bad?
The Baguette Holder
I know I teased it, and sorry to make you wait so long, but here’s what they’re talking about:
“A further 19 litres of storage capacity is provided by various compartments around the cabin. This space can be configured and customised using 3D-printed accessories, including a tongue-in-cheek baguette holder.”
I guess this means Renault provides you with the files, and it’s up to you to 3D print the accessories? Sure, okay, why not? But I don’t for a minute believe the “tongue-in-cheek” part. They’re just being self-conscious. You know Renault’s designers and engineers adore baguettes and the thought of being trapped in a metal box baguette-free probably makes them want to fucking scream. If you told me the baguette holder came first and the team was instructed to design a car around that, I’d believe it.
And I’d respect it.
The Price
So, Renault hasn’t officially released the pricing, but outlets like this one sure seem confident saying it’ll go for about $27,000. That seems about right, and, good, we need more EVs for under $30K! We need some for under $20K, too, but that’s not so likely to happen. Oh, and, again, it’s still not likely to come to America, so, yeah.
Somehow A Detail Of The Renault 5 Reminds Me Of David Lynch’s 1984 Dune Movie
The Renault 5 Is Exactly The Kind Of Cool, Small EV The World Needs
This Is The Electric Renault 5 Before You’re Supposed To See It
Too bad this won’t ever come to the USA. This is finally an EV that looks like a car instead of a blob of cyber-goo. The interior looks great as well, the fabric looks way nicer in my opinion to whatever is in most cars sold here. My wife or I would buy this in a heartbeat if it was here in the next 2-3 years.
Grrrr not coming to America. I had an R5 and loved it. The seats were so comfy. Perhaps Stella Dora will find wisdoms and bring it here as a Dodge Omni Vore
I’m disappointed. A baguette holder? Is that the only thing that tells me this is the culmination of a proud and strong nation steeped in tradition? Why doesn’t it have a gravelly voiced and smoking Serge “avatar” inspired by Serge Gainsbourg? Or an interior and seats in the style of Louis XIV? Or why offer it in any other color than the tricolore? Surely a missed opportunity.
This is not an Avantime. No wine bottle storage for you, peasant!
Even the Citroen AX had door pockets big enough for a bottle of wine.
They claim the sounds are designed by Jean Michel Jarre.
I, for one, would definitely buy a car that came with my own personal Jean Reno as an avatar/assistant, but I would expect it to play ‘Ronin’ on demand.
Just make sure when you’re driving through Montana you don’t accidentally have it set to “Marcus Reno” mode.
“We need some for under $20K, too, but that’s not so likely to happen.”
How many ICE cars are under $20k?
I would totally rock this car here in the US if it were here. It looks fantastic and fun.
Tbh, I think that no offering a hybrid version is a mistake. I know lots of folks that would buy it but are deterred by it being a pure ev.
On the other side, is nice that we have an ev that is sort of affordable for the people that might want one.
That would be a totally different car. It would be literally impossible to offer a hybrid version of my Bolt, for instance.
Oh, for sure. I think that it should´ve been designed as a hybrid from the get go. Now there´s no going back, it´s an attractive offer still, I just think that they could move more units if it was designed as a hybrid
Perhaps, but it would then be compromised as an EV. Euro regs are getting increasingly painful, and EVs are a good way to go. If it was built on a hybrid platform, you’d then be complaining about the lackluster range or internal volume of the EV version.
In that case they should offer a diesel version too, since a small 3-4 cylinder turbodiesel would beat a gas hybrid in mpg, without the complexity of the hybrid drivetrain
That´d be awesome, a diesel R5 would be a more direct link to the original car (well at least to the Supercinq). My father used to own a R5 GTD and he remembers that car fondly, It wouldn´t surprise me to see him first in line to buy a modern version of his car.
But Renault of Spain only offers a diesel engine in their kangoo van. It wouldn´t be impossible to fit it in an ICE R5 but they seem to be phasing the diesels out, so I wouldn´t count on them to fit a diesel engine in this hypothetical case.
“The feeling of empathy created will strengthen the emotional bond between the user and their Renault 5 E-Tech electric.”
You forgot the photo of the new interface. Here’s a link:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/HAL_9000#/media/File%3AHal_9000_Panel.svg
Holy shit a new car that looks happy instead of pissed off!
It’s happy it’s not leaving tranny and engine fluids all over the garage floor
Don’t underestimate Renault’s engineers.
Your comment automatically made the image of a Jeep pop into my mind