Renault 4 E-Tech: Can the small electric crossover be as popular as the “4L” ?

Renault has d& That’s it! at the 2024 Mondial de l'Auto, the R4 E-Tech inspired by the iconic “4L”. Transformed into a 100% all-new small SUV ;electric, it will have to seduce a new audience.

After the R5, Renault wanted to breathe new life into another of its models that had made automotive history: the Renault 4. The popular car par excellence in the 60s and 70s, the iconic “4L” had disappeared from the production lines in the early 90s. Nearly 35 years later, the French manufacturer has unveiled its all-new Renault 4 at the 2024 Paris Motor Show.

The city car of the time has adapted to the codes of the time. More robust and ultra-connected, the future R4 is a small SUV intended for families. Like the new R5, revealed in February at the Geneva Motor Show, but also the latest Megane and Scenic models, the R4 will also be 100% electric. So it's still a risky bet for the diamond brand that is reducing its most popular models to electric power alone, therefore selling at higher prices. While we wait to find out if the R4 E-Tech will be as successful as its predecessor, let's discover it.

The main information about the R4 E-Tech

• The new Renault 4 does not share, and this is quite normal, the dimensions of the one produced in the 60s. 49 centimeters longer (4m14 vs 3m65), 31 cm wider (1m80 vs 1m49) and 7 cm higher (1m57 vs 1m50), the small Renault has changed size. From a city car, they have become a small SUV.

© RéRégis Aumont/Linternaute

• The silhouette of the new Renault, however, remains quite faithful to its original appearance. that of the “4L”. The very vertical grille, the flat hood and roof, the slightly raised ride height, and even the trapezoid-shaped rear quarter panel are all elements that recall the old version.

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• At the rear, the modernized lights are as oval as the headlights are round on the front. The tailgate, electric on some versions, is also very vertical. The new brand logo is not used, only Renault is written in full while a 4 indicates the name of the model.

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• On board the car, if you have already climbed into the new R5, move along, there is nothing to see (or almost). The R4 E-Tech takes the dashboard of its little sister, with in particular two 10-inch screens and the same multimedia functionalities with OpenR Link which benefits from integrated Google. Where the R4 stands out, and Its advantage is that it has the One Pedal function which allows the vehicle to come to a complete stop without pressing the brake pedal thanks to the regenerative braking system, which is used with two paddles located behind the steering wheel.

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• While the rear passengers are very cramped in the new R5, the space is much more appreciable in the R4. The increased wheelbase and the 22 centimeters more of the electric crossover allow this habitability much more generous to travel in much better conditions.

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• On some versions (Techno and Iconiq), the new R4 benefits from a canvas sunroof, yet another nod to the version from the last century. The opening is very large, measuring 92 centimeters long and 80 wide. Enough to make all passengers enjoy it on beautiful spring and summer days. Versions without sunroof are equipped with roof bars.

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The engines

No surprises under the hood. As expected, the future Renault 4 will use the engines and battery packs of the Renault 5. The customer will therefore have the choice between the 40 kWh battery that will power a 120 horsepower electric motor and the 52 kWh battery associated with the 150 horsepower engine. The diamond brand announces 300 kilometers of autonomy in the WLTP cycle for the first and 400 kilometers for the second.

In terms of recharging, the two batteries go from 10 to 100% in 3h30 with the AC (alternating current) charger of 11 kWh and 15 to 80% in 30 minutes with the 100 kWh DC (direct current) fast charger for the 52 kWh battery and 80 kWh for the 40 kWh battery.

When will the R4 E-Tech be released?

Unveiled in October 2024, the new Renault 4 will be manufactured in Maubeuge, in the North, in 2025. Its marketing should begin in the end of the first half of the year.

What will be the price of the new electric Renault 4?

We don't know yet. But Luca de Meo, CEO of the Renault group, left a clue at the opening of the Mondial de l'Auto. The starting price of the future Renault 4 should be under 30,000 euros. That would be €5,000 more than the entry-level Renault 5 (not yet available at that price), which seems pretty consistent for a vehicle aimed more at families. It remains to be seen whether a €30,000 car can be popular. Not sure at all.