New Renault 5 Prototype – classic hatch returns as EV

Earlier this week, Renault’s newly appointed CEO Luca de Meo revealed that the automaker will be reviving some of its best-selling cars from before as electric vehicles. Well, the very car you see here is the Renault 5 Prototype, which is one of 14 core vehicles the company will introduce by 2025.

During the digital keynote, Renault design director Gilles Vidal described the new 5 as a charming, compact city car that no doubt harks back to the iconic R5, but yet retains its fun and mischievous character. “The design of the Renault 5 Prototype is based on the R5, a cult model of our heritage. This prototype simply embodies modernity, a vehicle relevant to its time: urban, electric, attractive,” he said.

No technical details have been revealed thus far, so all we have to go on about is design. It’s shaped and proportioned more conventionally like a modern five-door hatch, though it remains to be seen if a sportier three-door model like the R5 Turbo will make a comeback.

Renault used styling elements from the original design to hide its modern features. For example, the air intake on the upper left section of the bonnet hides the actual charging port, the front fog lamps are now the LED daytime running lights, and the tail lights include aerodynamic flaps. The number 5 is also found on the side vents, tailgate, and fog lamp housing.

At launch, the car is expected to feature Renault’s new My Link infotainment system with Google built in. It will be the first carmaker to bring Google’s range of services to a mass market vehicle. More details of the new 5 will be released later in the year. What do you think of this?

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