Interior
The 5’s interior melds the clean-cut styling of the Mégane with a brutalistic look inspired by the classic 5 Turbo.
The 10.0in instrument and infotainment screens are encased in chunky plastic shrouds designed to recall the homologation special’s analogue gauges, while the seats feature thick, corduroy-style padded inserts.
The dashboard, too, is inspired by the rally car, protruding into the cabin like a shelf and trimmed in one of several distinctive textiles depending on the chosen spec level.
Techno, for example, features swathes of denim. In all cases, leather is omitted, and 18% of the car’s material content is recycled, including 41kg of polymers.
Design
The “retro futuristic” shape of the new Renault 5 E-Tech does more than merely remind people of the great days of the original R5, according to its designers.
Group design boss Laurens van den Acker believes it gives the marque an iconic look and shape with the same kind of long-lasting ability as the BMW Mini or Fiat 500; perhaps even the Porsche 911.
The adoption of the new R5 shape was a highly pragmatic decision made by group CEO Luca de Meo when he first arrived in the company three and a half years ago. The concept was already complete in the design studio, having been created on spec by designers who realised the company needed to replace both Clio and Twingo, and couldn’t afford to do both.
The new 5 was their answer — and as van den Acker explains — de Meo seized it as the emblem for his now-famous Renaulution plan.
Van den Acker believes Renault will reap big benefits from using an emotional, retro-modern design, but he acknowledges there could be problems at replacement time for companies who have such designs — and nothing else. Renault isn’t in that position, he says. “We have other B-segment models,” he explains. “Led by Luca, we believe the 5 could go 20 years. But the Clio will change with the times.”