More than a quarter of a century after the first retro boom that gave us cars like the Mini, Beetle and, er, Chrysler Crossfire, Renault is about to unveil the reinvention of some icons from its own back catalog.
Last month at the Geneva Motor Show, Renault pulled the covers off its new 5, a modern electric hatch that owes a major design debt to the 1970s original. But threatening to steal the 5’s thunder are the images you see on this page, our second encounter with its big brother, the equally-retro 4.
Essentially a production version of 2022’s 4Ever Trophy concept, the new 4 is a crossover styled to resemble the massively popular car of the same name that Renault sold between 1962 and 1994. Under the skin lies the same AmpR Small EV architecture (previously known as CMF-B-EV) employed by the 5 EV and its performance cousin, the Alpine A290. While the 5 and Alpine are targeting the new electric Mini Cooper and S, the Renault 4 has its sights set on Mini’s upcoming Aceman, as well as the Jeep Avenger.
More: New Renault 5 E-Tech Is A Retro Mini Cooper EV Rival For $27,000
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Even with the test car’s camo wrap covering most of the body we can see that the production 4’s design has been toned down considerably since the 4Ever Trophy first hit the show circuit. It’s now lower, has door handles and the boxy fenders are nowhere near as outlandish. But the silhouette seems mostly unchanged and Renault appears to have kept the front and rear tweaks to a minimum.
We’re expecting to see a cheeky retro face under that nose camo and hopefully plenty of retro touches inside, though glimpses of the interior seen in these pictures reveal plenty of digital tech and thankfully no sign of a huge umbrella handle-shaped shift lever sprouting from the dash like the original had.
And even if the new 4 were to get that comedy shifter, it wouldn’t be hooked up to a wheezy old pushrod combustion engine. Instead, the 4 is set to offer the same three single motor options as the 5, in 94 hp, 121 hp, and 148 hp variants. Customers will have the choice between a 40 kWh battery or a larger 52 kWh pack, similar to the options available for the 5, providing the EV with up to 249 miles (400 km) of range. These packs support DC fast charging of up to 80 kW and 100 kW, respectively. Additionally, the 5 incorporates vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology.
Renault has not yet disclosed when it will debut the re-born electric 4, but there’s a good chance we’ll see it this fall at the Paris Motor Show in October.
- Note: This story was updated with new spy photos and information on March 11, 2024
