RENAULT 5. The diamond brand took advantage of the edition of Roland-Garros 2023 to unveil the eponymous special series of the R5, expected next year. What to discover a little more about the long-awaited electric city car from Renault.
It was as part of the French Open tennis tournament that Renault presented, on May 28, 2023, a special Roland-Garros series of the electric R5 that the diamond brand should market in the second half of 2024. A model announced to be 95% faithful to the production version, which allows us to discover a little more about the contours of the future R5, called to become the new queen of electric city cars at Renault.
In any case, this is the wish of the French manufacturer, which has embarked on a vast electric program with the marketing of six models grouped together in a new entity of the diamond brand, Ampère, by 2030. The famous R5, very expected, will be totally modernized thanks to the design work of François Leboine.
For Luca Di Meo, boss of Renault, “the objective with this R5 is to make it the only electric city car in the range with a base price of less than €20,000 (excluding bonuses)”. The R5 will be manufactured in France at the Douai plant and is to take over from the Renault Twingo and even the Renault Zoé, the brand’s first electric star, launched on the market in 2013.
Photos of the electric Renault R5
Renault unveiled the first images of its electric R5 concept at the start of 2021.
What information do you need to know about the new electric R5?
Launched in 1972, the R5 remains recognizable almost 50 years later by its characteristic features. The city car will remain very compact with a big touch of modernity. “The design of Renault 5 Prototype is inspired by a cult model from our heritage. This model simply embodies modernity, a vehicle anchored in its time: urban, electric, charming” explains Gilles Vidal, Renault design director since 2020 and ex-head of Peugeot design who had already caused a sensation with his neo-retro model presented at the 2018 Paris Motor Show, the Peugeot e-Legend.
- During the presentation in May 2023 of the special Roland-Garros series, the R5 abandoned its yellow dress in which it had been unveiled in 2021 to cover itself with a metallic satin white tint similar to that of the show car of the future Alpine A290 revealed a few weeks earlier. A more sober color that we will therefore find on the color chart of the future electric city car.
- This special Roland-Garros edition, unveiled surprisingly even before the first models of the classic New R5 range even went on sale, presents a few other small changes compared to the prototype revealed in 2021. This is particularly the case on the thin side grilles positioned on the front doors, whose motifs will evoke the Cross of Saint-André, one of the symbols of the Roland-Garros stadium. On these grids, the number 5 gives way to the logo of the Internationaux de France. On the rims, a shiny blue finish brings a touch of classy contrast.
- On the model presented two years ago, we had already been able to discover that the front of the vehicle transported us to a futuristic era with a light signature that gives a rather original 3D effect. The bonnet air intake will hide the charging hatch, the rear lights will also incorporate aerodynamic deflectors, enough to give this 21st century Renault R5 a real modern cure!
- The nods to the original R5 are numerous. From the side grille to the wheels and the rear trunk, R5 enthusiasts will be delighted by admiring the flat bonnet like the roof line and the straight and sloping tailgate.
- We will also note the French flag present on the mirrors, a wink that we were more used to seeing on the latest Peugeot concepts….
- Gilles Le Borgne told the Argus that he was studying other chemistries and that the battery pack, the cooling system… will be optimized to the maximum
- This electric R5 concept is part of a vast product plan presented by Renault. The brand aims to launch 14 models by 2030, including 6 all-electric. The R5 will be one of them.
What will the price of the new Renault R5 be?
Renault has not announced any price for the moment but by peeling the product plan presented, we can assume that the R5 will arrive to replace the Zoé in the segment of the small electric city car. Therefore, it will be necessary to be clever and economical. TheArgus announces that if the R5 will aim to compete with the electric Fiat 500, Honda E or electric Mini, the objective would be to sell this new electric look R5 at 20,000 euros. For this, the technical basis could be an electrified version of a proven and profitable platform, for example the CMF-B on which the latest Clio 5 and new Captur 2 are based.
What will be the release date of the electric Renault R5?
If Renault has unveiled its plan to release six electric models by 2030, the Argus announces that the launch of the future electric R5, on which the brand is betting a lot, should take place at the end of summer 2024. And, good news for the group’s French factories, this R5 will be assembled in France, with assembly planned at the Douai factory. The electric motor, the 6AK, will be produced in Cléon, in Normandy.