2024 Renault 5 retro electric car caught on camera, due next year

The 2024 Renault 5 electric car has been photographed testing in Europe, ahead of its overseas introduction next year – and it is high on the wish list for Renault Australia.

These images captured by Drive's spy photography partners in Europe show the showroom version of the Renault 5 will not stray far from the retro-inspired styling of the concept unveiled at the start of 2021.

It is the modern reboot of the Renault 5 city hatch – the predecessor to the Clio – sold by Renault through the 1970s and 1980s, and one of its most iconic models.

The retro Renault means as much to French motorists as the Mini does to the British.

European showroom arrivals are due to commence in 2024 – with prices that could start from €25,000 ($AU41,000).

An Australian launch is yet to be confirmed, though the local distributor of Renault says it is high on its wish list.

The Renault model is due to be followed closely by a high-performance Alpine hot-hatch version – due later in 2024 – wearing the A290 badge.

Compared to previous spy photos of the Renault 5 – as a 'test mule' with the bodywork of the current petrol Renault Clio over the electric-car chassis – the latest prototype appears to be wearing the final production bodywork.

Changes compared to the concept include traditional front door handles in place of pop-out units, different 'hidden' rear handles, regular side mirrors, less aggressive flared wheel arches, and smaller alloy wheels (but in the same design as the concept).

Underpinning the Renault 5 will be a new electric-car platform known as 'CMF-B EV', which is set to be shared by a retro reboot of the 1960s Renault 4 hatchback, as well as future small Renault electric vehicles.

The architecture shares 70 per cent of its parts with the CMF-B platform used under the Renault Captur SUV, Clio hatch and Nissan Juke small SUV – and is said to make the new electric car 30 per cent cheaper to manufacture than today's Zoe electric hatch.

The Renault Zoe is currently priced from £29,995 ($AU57,000) in the UK – which could suggest a price for the Renault 5 below $40,000 in Europe, if Renault scales its profit margins down alongside the lower manufacturing cost.

Powering standard versions of the Renault 5 is expected to be a 100kW electric motor on the front axle, mated to a circa-50kWh battery for an estimated 400 kilometres of lab-tested driving range.

Renault has confirmed the new Renault 5 electric hatch will use more advanced multi-link independent rear suspension – which is uncommon on cars of this size – for improved driving dynamics.

Due to follow close behind the Renault 5 is a hot-hatch version, the Alpine A290, which is expected to upgrade to a 160kW electric motor for 0-100km/h performance in less than seven seconds.

The 2024 Renault 5 is due to be unveiled – and arrive in European showrooms – sometime next year, built in a factory in France.

It is on the wish list for local showrooms, with the boss of the Renault Australia, Glen Sealey, telling a media briefing earlier this year: "There is significant interest from us in the Renault 5. We think it would work well in Australia.

"However it’s too early to discuss timing and pricing. It remains on our radar and on our wish list if and when it becomes available. If it is made in right-hand drive [and to Australian homologation requirements], we’ve got our hand up."