Marketed as the Le Car in North America, the Renault 5 was a sporty little runabout that debuted in 1972 and ceased production in 1996. It's set to return next year, however, in the form of the 100% electric Renault 5 E-Tech.
The new five-door vehicle was first announced by Renault back in 2021. At that time, it was essentially just a concept. Fast-forward a bit, and the Renault 5 E-Tech (or R5, for short) is now in physical production-ready form.
It will be officially unveiled in February at the Geneva Motor Show and should be commercially available in Europe next summer, with prices starting at €25,000 (about US$27,636).
The vehicle will be assembled at Renault's plant in Douai, France.
Although little has been provided in the way of specs, we do know that the R5 features a 100-kW (136-hp) electric motor and a battery range of up to 400 km (249 miles) per charge. Drivers will be able to power electrical devices with the battery when the car is parked.
As compared to the original Renault 5, the R5 E-Tech sports more rugged wheel arches, a more streamlined soft-top roof profile, and boxier bodywork overall. The original's bonnet air intake has been transformed into a charging port, plus "discrete" LEDs illuminate the bonnet logo and other accents on the front end.
Prospective buyers can register their interest via the Renault website. And they should take note that the company plans to introduce Super5 and R5 Turbo models further down the road.
Interestingly enough, the Renault 5 E-Tech isn't the only electrical reimagining of the original model that we've seen. Just last year, the automaker collaborated with French designer/interior architect Pierre Gonalons to create the one-off Renault 5 Diamant.
Source: Renault
