New 2024 Renault 5 details emerge

Renault has released the first official details of the all-new 2024 Renault 5, providing an important update on the battery-electric hatch as nine prototypes undergo late-stage engineering development ahead of its launch next year.

The French car-maker has confirmed that the Renault 5 will be the first car based on the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance’s all-new CMF-B EV architecture created specifically for small EVs.

The new platform shares 70 per cent of parts from the CMF-B combustion platform underpinning the current Renault Clio and Captur, which slashes costs and ensures the R5 is up to 30 per cent cheaper to build compared to the ZOE – a hint the baby Renault EV could come with cut-throat pricing.

What it doesn’t skimp on is hardware. According to Renault, the R5 uses a multi-link rear suspension that, combined with a lower centre of gravity, is claimed to set a new benchmark for handling in its class.

Mirroring the bigger Renault Megane E-Tech, the R5 comes with electrically-excited synchronous motors that require no rare-earth metals and is said to offer more power than an equivalent permanent-magnet electric motor.

Renault hasn’t disclosed the battery size, but its smallest EV gets a 400-volt architecture and neatly packages the inverter, battery charger and powertrain electronics within a single box which is claimed to save around 20kg compared to the individual components used on the ZOE.

Even the heaviest item, the battery, plays its role in cutting weight and reducing complexity.

Instead of the 12 modules that made up the ZOE’s power pack, the Renault 5 features just four larger modules that neatly slot beneath the floor within the new platform.

The simpler set-up is said to save a further 15kg, while the cells themselves provide superior underfloor rigidity and enhanced chassis stiffness for better driving dynamics while also acting as insulation to reduce tyre and road noise entering the cabin.

Announcing that late-stage testing was underway, Renault admitted the R5 mules have been cunningly disguised as the current Clio.

Despite its familiar Clio skin, all nine of the advanced prototypes are said to be running the production Renault 5’s complete powertrain, including the finished item’s battery.

It’s a similar story for the suspension set-up, allowing engineers to begin the long and laborious process of finetuning the chassis and stability programs for everything from summer, rain, ice and deep snow, which explains why the R5 has spent its winter at the car-maker’s cold weather facility in Lapland.

As part of the endurance testing in northern Sweden, the small batch of Renault 5 prototypes have already endured temperatures as low as minus 30 degrees Celsius – a true test for not only the battery but also the heating, demisting, brakes, suspension system and electronics.

Confirmed for a 2024 unveiling, Renault is expected to continue to drip-feed both the design and technical highlights of the Renault 5 in the build-up to its launch next year.

Set to be one of seven battery-powered Renault models to be launched over the next five years, the Renault 5’s mission is to steal sales from the likes of the MINI Electric and Honda e.

Created to carry an affordable price tag, the reborn Renault 5 packs plenty of stylistic tributes to the original, mimicking the iconic hatch’s headlights, tail-light design and boot lid.

Once launched, an SUV version badged the R4 will also join the line-up.

Both small EVs have already been confirmed for an Australian launch, following on from the Megane E-Tech that is due in local showrooms later this year.

Performance versions will also be offered via the Alpine sub-brand, with the first A5 expected to be loosely based on last year’s wild 280kW Renault 5 Turbo 3E.

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