The Renault 5 Turbo is to be reborn as a 500bhp rear-drive electric homage to the French firm’s glory days.
The 2022 5 Turbo 3E concept car, which was revealed in 2022, has been further developed and was confirmed for production in the final episode of a new documentary charting Renault’s recovery from near-collapse just a few years ago. Anatomy of a Comeback, which is available to watch on Amazon Prime, goes behind the scenes in at Renault’s design studios and production facilities, plus at the Alpine F1 team.
It’s interesting stuff, but skip forward to episode four and you’ll see top bosses checking out the Turbo 3E and hear CEO Luca de Meo confirm that the hyper hatchback will go into production.
“We’re working on getting this out, I’m not going to tell you when, but it will come out,” says de Meo. “Here with the Renault 5 we are not just feeding the history, but also the myth and here we are making something special.”
De Meo goes on to confirm that the Turbo 3E will have more than 500bhp sent to the rear wheels and is built around a carbon fibre monocoque.
Two wheel-mounted motors from British firm Protean Electric provide the power and will deliver precise torque-vectoring. That negates the need for a rear differential, while it’s also believed Renault will eschew simulated gearshifts in favour of unrelenting acceleration. In the documentary de Meo claims it will scorch to 62mph from a standstill in less than three seconds, but the official line from Renault is that it will be more like 3.5.
It will be “Only for the brave,” adds de Meo.
It’s wild – and wide – to look at and, in two-tone yellow and white paintwork, a pretty faithful tribute to Renault’s rallying days when Jean Ragnotti scored victories in Corsica, Monte Carlo and Portugal from 1981 to 1986.
While the original Turbo and Turbo 2 needed huge rear intakes to cool the mid-mounted engine, the 3E will suck in air to cool the battery pack. Neatly, the intakes also hide the charging port.
The latest images don’t show the car’s interior, but you can expect it to be pretty minimal, with just a pair of figure-hugging race seats in a bare-bones cabin.
There’s also no word on price or production numbers. Expect the first to be high (in excess of £100,000) and the second to be pretty low.
Viva La Renaulution!
