Renault 4 review

The R4 is back after a 30-year hiatus as a no-nonsense and practical electric crossover

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Renault reckons the new Renault 4 is a thorough reinvention that retains all the versatility of the old model. 

And in some respects the french manufacturer is right. This new car is versatile. It’s longer than the new Renault 5 it shares a platform with and has more occupant room. Boot space - at 420 litres - is 100 litres larger than that car and it’s larger than most of its rivals too, plus it has an underfloor compartment for the cables. Good bit of ground clearance too.

The ground clearance is genuinely helpful. You can traverse rocky car parks without too much grinding.
Murray Scullion
Digital editor

Yet. In some respects, this new R4 is a world away from the old model in terms of versatility. The old R4 sold more than 8 million units, was made in 18 countries and earned the nickname of ‘blue jeans car’ because of its ubiquitousness.

It is a car that gave a good deal of the world personal mobility, much like the Mini or Fiat 500. It is a car with a simple range of robust four-cylinders that can survive 30,000 miles without a service and easily nudge past the 500,000-mile mark. If you go to North Africa it is still one of the most common cars on the road.

Whereas the new car will only be built in France - with a lot of its parts also being assembled there too. And while there are plans to sell in Europe, South America and Japan the lack of electric infrastructure hinders its sales elsewhere in the world. So it’s pretty different from the original. 

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DESIGN & STYLING

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But you can see the lineage. It’s square and boxy, although a touch more SUV looking today, whereas the original is more van-like. 

The new car gets a low boot sill like the original that is of course practical, but also helps with those odd proportions. The rear lights ape the old car, but bring it into 2025 with LEDs. And the trapezoid rear window above the rear wheel is present and as awkward as ever. 

The paint colours on offer are much more pastel than those in the day-glow as the R5, but are just as distinctive.
Murray Scullion
Digital editor

The front too, is similar, but brought up to 2025 standards with what Renault claims to be the world’s first one-piece illuminated grille. Lit up at night it looks great, somehow without looking as try-hard as the Skoda Enyaq’s.

INTERIOR

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Inside it’s largely the same as the 5. Which makes for a really pleasant space to spend time. The materials are a touch above what you might expect from a Renault and everything is pretty logical. 

It has physical controls for the heating and there are dual infotainment screens, one behind the steering wheel and one above the heating controls. Mid and top spec cars get Google integration, complete with Google Maps, Google Assistant and a few apps, such as YouTube and Amazon Music. 

The infotainment is largely the same as what you’d find in the Megane and Scenic. Only smaller. At times when using Google Maps it feels squeezed.

The rear-view camera looks like it’s been nicked out of a Gen 1 Nissan Leaf, to the point where I had to test multiple cars to see if one had just gotten out of focus somehow.

The drive selector is on the tree, much like you’d find in a yank pick-up truck. But the Americans see fit to install a big Park gear you can ram up or down into securely. Whereas Renault makes you awkwardly park by stopping the car with the footbrake then flicking up the electronic handbrake button. 

There’s also a wiper stalk just beneath it. You’d get used to the two being one above the other. But initially it’s annoying and I found myself sticking the wipers on instead of selecting reverse.

ENGINES & PERFORMANCE

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The 5 gets two power options in the UK; 148bhp and 121bhp. The 4 will only receive the most powerful option. As much as 85% of the demand for the 5 in the UK is for the 148bhp version, and Renault is banking on the same for the R4.

Like with most EVs, power isn’t a problem. The 0-62mph time of 8.2secs proves there’s a good bit of grunt off the line, and you can get the traction control to kick in at low speed under full throttle in the dry at low speeds. 

Renault says it will release one pedal driving for the R5, Megane and Scenic too.
Murray Scullion
Digital editor

Accelerative pace slows down once you’re past motorway speeds but you’d be hard pressed to find any Renault 4 driver who would be bothered by that. There’s a good deal of wind noise off the wing mirrors at these speeds too, acting as a slight deterrent.

The R4 is the first Renault to feature one pedal driving. It has paddles behind the steering wheel that change the brake regen. There are four different levels, the strongest offering a Nissan-like one-pedal solution. 

There are the usual array of drive modes that affect throttle response. So far so normal. But in the R4 there’s a quirk. 

In Eco to get past 115kph (71mph) you need to push past the little ‘golf ball’ often found at the bottom of a throttle pedal. And you need to push past it hard. If you keep even 75% throttle it won’t accelerate. Cruise control won’t go past 115kph in Eco either.

So if you’re in a 100kph zone, then it changes to 120kph, you’ll need to switch out of Eco in order to increase your speed.

RIDE & HANDLING

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The steering isn’t particularly quick, but like with the R5 it’s been tuned to be a bit dartier around the straight-ahead and a bit less so with some lock dialled in. 

Feedback is good enough for a car in this segment and you can really hustle it along. It feels natural and composed.

You can configure a setting where you choose which safety systems you want, meaning you don’t have to dive into settings every time the car restarts.
Murray Scullion
Digital editor

There’s a good amount of roll, even at low speeds. But I’m not complaining. The R4 has a bespoke suspension setup from the R5 and it feels that bit squidgier, better suited to its slightly more practical bias.

Broadly the ride is soft and the added ground clearance was appreciated on our test route where we went a bit off-road to park near a cobbled beach.

MPG & RUNNING COSTS

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On my mixed test route we achieved 3.6mpkwh. Which is very healthy and not far from the WLTP. Admittedly this was on a warm day with little traffic. 

But considering range tests of the R5 have proved promising, I have good hopes for the R4 too.

Our thorough range testing of the R5 revealed a poor efficiency at motorway speeds.

At the car’s WLTP 3.9 mpkwh the 52kWh battery is capable of up to 247 miles on a charge. It has 11kW AC (not 22kW but few cars in this class do) and 100kW DC rapid charging, allowing a 0-80% charge in 30 minutes.

VERDICT

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In some respects the R4 makes a good deal more sense than an R5. It’s more practical and realistically when you get down to the monthly PCPs, not that much more expensive. 

It has a bigger boot than its rivals, is cheaper than most of its competitors (when taking into account that it doesn't do a small battery model) and dare we say, it’s a lot more charming than most other crossover EVs too. 

All three trim levels come with a heat pump, which is nice, but it’s a shame you need to pony up for the top level to get heated seats.

Is it an R4 though? It’s hugely different in scope. And during its 30-year hiatus a lot has changed in the world. It’s revolution, not evolution. And the French are good at that.

Murray Scullion

Murray Scullion
Title: Digital editor

Murray has been a journalist for more than a decade. During that time he’s written for magazines, newspapers and websites, but he now finds himself as Autocar’s digital editor.

He leads the output of the website and contributes to all other digital aspects, including the social media channels, podcasts and videos. During his time he has reviewed cars ranging from £50 - £500,000, including Austin Allegros and Ferrari 812 Superfasts. He has also interviewed F1 megastars, knows his PCPs from his HPs and has written, researched and experimented with behavioural surplus and driverless technology.

Murray graduated from the University of Derby with a BA in Journalism in 2014 and has previously written for Classic Car Weekly, Modern Classics Magazine, buyacar.co.uk, parkers.co.uk and CAR Magazine, as well as carmagazine.co.uk.