Meet the cute, capable and affordable Renault 5 E-Tech. Will this reborn icon make Europe relevant in the electric car era?

The 2025 Renault 5 E-Tech Electric has been unwrapped at the Geneva motor show and from our first look at the reborn French icon this could be one of the most desirable EVs not a lot of money can buy.

Priced from less than €25,000 ($41,500) in Europe, the retro Renault 5 E-Tech Electric has already been locked in for a launch in Australia, although timing has yet to be announced.

But when the small hatch does rock up it will rival the likes of both the cut-price BYD Dolphin and more expensive MINI Cooper Electric.

READ MORE: Cheaper than a BYD Dolphin or MG4! New Renault Twingo to be reinvented as $33,000 electric vehicle

READ MORE: Aussie pricing announced for Renault Megane E-Tech electric vehicle

READ MORE: Driven: Renault Megane E-Tech

Beating both for looks, Renault cleverly stayed faithful to the well-received 2021 concept of the same name, keeping its styling that draws direct inspiration from the Renault 5 that was first launched back in 1972.

Once introduced, the Renault 5 will be followed by two more retro recreations that include production cars based on the Renault4Ever concept and the even cheaper EV based on the recently revealed Renault Twingo concept that could undercut even the cheapest BYD EV.

When they arrive all will be based on the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance’s ‘AmpR Small’ platform (formerly CMF-BEV), which shares as much as 70 per cent of parts from the CMF-B combustion platform that’s used for the current Renault Clio.

Using off-the-shelf parts means the latest R5 is up to 30 per cent cheaper to build compared to the outgoing Renault Zoe, with some of that saving contributing to its reasonable pricing.

That said, despite cutting costs the new architecture still manages to package a sophisticated multi-link rear suspension, instead of a basic torsion beam arrangement most budget hatchbacks employ.

That bodes well for the R5’s ride and drive and hints it could top the class for fun.

Measuring in at 3900mm long and 1800mm wide, the new Renault 5 E-Tech is actually only a fraction smaller than the current Clio mini, but should offer much more space thanks to its relatively long 2540mm wheelbase that provides seating for up to five and a large 326 litre boot.

Keeping weight down engineers have created a new inverter that alone saves 15kg, while more mass is saved by switching to nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) batteries that use a unique layout that sees the cells batched into larger square-shaped modules.

The result is the smaller 40kWh battery weighs in at 240kg, while the bigger 52kWh battery tips the scale at 300kg.

This translates in a small battery-powered car that weighs around 1372kg – 100kg less than the Renault Zoe that replaces it with its tiny 22kWh battery.

The Renault 5 with the largest 52kWh battery, meanwhile, weighs in at 1449kg.

From launch, the R5 will come with just one front-mounted electric motor that will be offered with either 70kW/215Nm, 90kW/225Nm or 100kW/245Nm. The two lower-power outputs come with the 40kWh battery while the most powerful motor gets the larger 52kWh power pack.

Choose the French hatch with the middling power output and the small R5 should be capable of a 0-100km/h dash of less than eight seconds and a top speed of 150km/h.

The R5 can even tow up to 500kg.

For those pining for a spiritual successor to the old Renault 5 GT Turbo the French firm has an answer in the shape of the incoming Alpine A290 that’s expected to deliver as much as 160kW.

More relevant to most small EV hatch buyers will be range and with the 40kWh battery the little Renault should be capable of covering up to 300km on a charge while with the bigger 52kWh power pack travelling up to 400km should be possible.

As far as recharging goes, cars with the smaller battery get 80kW DC charging while the 52kWh R5s can be topped up at up to 100kW.

All models can supply up to 11kW to external devices via its charging port, with the small Renault EV designed to become part of the electrical grid.

Within, like the bigger more expensive Megane E-Tech that’s already on sale in Australia, the Renault 5 gets twin-screens that combine both the instrument cluster and the 10.1-inch Google-powered infotainment system.

Differing from the bigger hatch, designers look like they’ve had lots more fun creating the R5 cabin, from the use of mustard-coloured fabrics that wrap the seats and door cards to the soft-touch finish that’s used on the dash as a reference to the first Renault 5.

As well as colourful the cabin also uses up to 18 per cent of the car’s material content is recycled, which includes up to 41kg of plastics. Renault’s latest EV is also said to be 85 per cent recyclable.

Back outside, new details introduced for the production R5 include moon crescent-shaped headlamps that are said to replicate a human pupil. Cheekily, when you approach the car with the key fob in your pocket the same lamps wink to welcome you back to your car.

Other fun design highlights are replicating the ’70s R5’s bonnet bulge, but instead of using it as a vent it’s a screen to display the vehicle’s charging status. When full the small LED screen takes the shape of a number ‘5’.

Elsewhere, the pint-sized EV gets a trick aero including a tailgate claimed to add as much as 8km of range on a cruise, while wind-cheating wheels and slatted tail lamps that add a further 15km.

Other changes involved in the transition from concept to production reality include adding proper door handles, thickening the pillars for better roll-over safety and, finally, slapping on a pair of conventional door mirrors.

Renault Australia has yet to announce exact timings for the Renault 5 E-Tech Electric’s arrival Down Under or even give an indication of timings, but production has been confirmed to begin at Renault’s factory in northern France from mid-2025.