In association with Pod Point
Electric Car Awards 2024: Readers' choice
What Car? readers were given a 12-car shortlist, and asked to vote for the upcoming electric model that they're most excited about seeing in showrooms...
Renault 4
On sale Late 2025 | Price from £35,000 (est)
Renault clearly knows a thing or two about building electric cars that capture the imagination of Britain’s car-buying public. Last year, the tiny Renault 5 won our Readers’ Choice award here – before going on to repeat the feat at our main Car of the Year Awards in January. Now it’s the turn of the larger Renault 4.
This small electric SUV will face rivals that include the upcoming Citroën e-C3 Aircross, as well as the Hyundai Kona Electric and Smart #1. Previewed by the 4Ever Trophy concept (pictured above), the Renault 4 you’ll be able to buy will be toned down somewhat, but it’ll retain a similarly retro-futuristic look to that which was so warmly received on the smaller 5. There’ll be design cues that hark back to the original 4, which was sold between 1961 and 1992.
The 4 and 5 will share their underpinnings, batteries and motors; this means entry-level versions of the 4 will get a 121bhp motor and a 40kWh (usable capacity) battery, providing an official range of 186 miles. That’s less than the Kona Electric and #1 can manage, but the same as the e-C3 can officially eke out of its 44kWh battery.
For buyers who want to drive farther, the 4 will also be available with a larger, 52kWh (usable capacity) battery, boosting the range to 249 miles, along with a more powerful 148bhp motor. Given the 4Ever Trophy concept’s clearly rally-inspired looks, it’s possible that Renault will also introduce a four-wheel-drive version of the 4; this would be one of the smallest 4x4s you can buy.
Inside, expect the 4 to again take inspiration from the 5, with seating for five, a 10.0in digital driver’s display and an infotainment touchscreen of the same size. A bank of physical buttons will control the air-con; this should make adjusting the temperature easier than it would be using the touchscreen set-ups of some rivals.
We like the latest version of Renault’s infotainment; in the brand’s Scenic E-Tech electric SUV, its accurate voice control system and built-in Google sat-nav are especially impressive. It’s likely that the same system will be used in the 4.
Prices for the Renault 4 are expected to start at around £35,000, making it competitive next to the Kona Electric and #1 but pricier than the e-C3 Aircross.
In our online vote, held across Instagram and X (formerly Twitter), the Renault 4 beat the Kia EV3 SUV and Volkswagen ID 2
hatchback in the knockout stages, before seeing off the Audi A6 Avant e-tron estate and Fiat Grande Panda SUV in the final to take the Readers’ Choice title. In our Electric Car Awards, then, Renault has shown that lightning really can strike twice.
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