Insane 375kW Renault 5 Turbo 3E heading for production
Rear-drive super-hatch concept becomes reality but gets even more powerRenault has shocked performance car fans by announcing its outlandish 5 Turbo 3E concept is headed for production in 2026 as a flagship for its new reborn Renault 5 E-Tech.
Announcing it will be based on a bespoke platform and come with next-generation in-wheel motor technology good for more than 375kW – considerably more than the 280kW output of the original concept.
The advanced in-wheel tech is rumoured to be supplied by British EV powertrain specialist Protean Electric and places a power unit within each wheel, removing the need for a differential.
Renault claims its production-spec 5 Turbo 3E should be capable of 0-100km/h in just 3.5 seconds – which could have been quicker if engineers had favoured a traditional dual-motor powertrain, but outright acceleration was sacrificed for a more engaging driving experience.
The special 5 Turbo 3E also shuns the R5’s AmpR Small (formerly CMF-BEV) platform and adopts a more exotic architecture that allows for the more dramatic proportions, with just the angle of the windscreen shared between the two.
Keeping weight down, the 2026 Renault 5 Turbo 3E has a full carbon-fibre body that allowed designers to incorporate radically different aerodynamics, including a huge front splitter and rear diffuser, new side skirts and new side air intakes need to jet air to keep the rear wheels’ in-hub motors chilled.
There’s no word how many 5 Turbo 3Es the French car-maker plans to build but the nature of its construction suggests it will only be made in very limited numbers, with some predicting it will cost as much as $200,000.
It’s still not known why the 5 Turbo 3E is not badged an Alpine, considering it’s a faster version of a core Renault model, but it’s thought the French performance brand was involved in the flagship R5’s development.
Earlier this year Renault announced to carsales that, pending the overcoming of some potential ADR compliance issues, the R5 could be heading Down Under in either 2025 or 2026 – the same year as the 5 Turbo 3E arrives.
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