I have always been very fond of the original R4, which was my dream car when I was a university law student. I found its concept to be an absolute stroke of genius, with its front wheel drive, comfortable suspension, roominess, practicality. I was a total fan of the elegant “Parisienne” version; alas, I never owned one, as even as second hand it was still far too expensive for me.
So French ingenuity escaped me. And, as a matter of fact, I have never driven this original R4. Needless to say that now I was truly delighted to get behind the wheel of its present day successor. Electric it is, this Renault 4, and you will never ever hear the throb of an efficient 4 cylinder coming from under its bonnet. Indeed, Renault launched last year this new retro trend of the iconic R5 and the R4, responding to the obligation by the EU to fully electrify its whole range by 2035.
Technically (almost) identical to the Renault 5…
Renault uses its AmpR Small platform for both cars, and we enjoyed already its exceptional qualities in our test of the “Cinq” E-tech, which you can also read in our columns. But the R4 is actually quite a lot bigger, one could indeed say it is a compact SUV. It is 22 cm longer, 3 cm wider even and also 5 cm taller.
When you get behind the wheel, everything looks absolutely familiar: its dashboard and the whole front of the cabin is strictly identical to the R5. The same goes for engine and batteries: like in the five, you can choose between 120 HP and a 40 kWh battery or 150 HP and a 52 kW battery for the higher versions, being the “Techno” and the “Iconic”. We tested the 150 HP Iconic Comfort range, which in Belgium comes at a price of 37.100 Euros.
Driving
Once you stepped in the taller “Quatre”, you find the same good driving qualities of the R5. The suspension is made even a bit softer, making the car feel a touch less agile and it is indeed rather inviting you to adopt a more restful driving style. But the excellent stability and cornering power is there for course for you to enjoy if you want…certainly when you choose the “Sport” mode with the multi-sense button on the steering wheel.
The 150 HP motor gives you enough punch to put a smile on your face: the R4 will sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in a fast 8,2 seconds, the 120 HP version will do it in a still very creditable 9,2 seconds. The top speed for both power versions is limited to 150 km/h.
The other difference is that now you have two small paddles at the steering wheel which let you choose the level of energy recuperation. If you press the left paddle even more, you activate the “One Pedal” mode. It will also come soon also on the R5, by the way.
The R4 is also, like its sister, well at home on the autoroute. Sound insulation is excellent, as is seating position and overall comfort. The cruise control is intuitive to use, and on our trips we enjoyed the wonderful sound qualities of the optional Harmann Kardon sound system with 9 speakers. Lover of Jazz, Opera and classical music, you can imagine how I enjoyed all this.
The semi-autonomous driving system is also standard on this Iconic version, and indeed it works very smoothly and we wouldn’t want to miss it on our trips.
Infotainment
The R4 comes with Google software, and we very much liked that the Google maps function is permanently installed, so it is not necessary to hook up your phone via Android Auto or Apple Car Play. You can speak to a cute blue and yellow lozenge shaped avatar driven by ChatGPT, and he will lower the windows for you, find the proper charging spot on your trip or set the ventilation. From the Techno version upwards the Google navigation also includes a charging point planner, and indeed, when travelling from Holland on the way home it did not indicate straight away our home address, but first the point where we could recharge the battery in order to cover the further distance to our destination.
We also liked the row of analog physical touches below the central touchscreen for those essential functions for ventilation, heating, defrosting, Air-co, choosing cabin temperature.
Spacious and practical…
The R4 offers (a lot) more than the R5 when it comes to extra space for the rear passengers and their luggage. Indeed, the wheelbase has been stretched by not less than 8 centimeters, we already told you that the R4 is not less than 22 cm longer. The rear seats are improved and have a thicker upholstery, there is more space in the door bins, and last but not least there is now a lot more headroom. There are two type C USB slots for the (young) rear passengers, invariably social media aficionados…
The boot space went now from 277 in the R5 to some 339 liters. The Harmann Kardon sound system takes unfortunately some of the underfloor space, but there is enough room to tuck away the charging cables. The load sill is pleasantly low, merely 16 cm. Good to know that also the front passenger can be folded down, so these long (up to 2,2 meters) IKEA panels can safely be brought home…
Consumption, charging and range…
According to WLTP, the R4 in the 150 HP version has an average consumption of 15,1 kWh/100 km. We easily achieved this during our test. The WLTP range is set according to the manufacturer at 409 km.
On the motorway or “Autoroute”, consumption tends to rise slightly above 20 kWh/100 km, and in practice the range then drops on these faster trips. If you want to stick to the 15,1 kWh/100 km average, you have to cruise at 95-100 km/h on the motorway…which is indeed marvellously relaxing with Chopin Nocturnes soothing your ears through the 9 speakers of the Harmann Kardon sound system.
We put the R4 on a CCS(DC) charger and charged the battery at an rate of 82 kW/h.
On the “Iconic” top version we tested, bi-directional charging is standard, and you can hook an electrical appliance up to your R4, to a maximum of 3,700 W or put the energy back to you home system to reduce your energy bill…
Conclusion
The R4 convinced us with its comfort, space, driving pleasure, its iconic aura with some retro-styled very charming aspects in cabin, dashboard and exterior details. It is also a wonderful car to take on a longer journey, the driving assistance systems are smooth and pleasant. The comfortable suspension and its higher stance make it also an ideal companion on remote country roads and add to its go-anywhere character of the original “RQuatre”.
The price is certainly in line with what the market wants for a full electric compact SUV nowadays.
The range is adequate, you are helped by the navigation and infotainment systems to find the charging spots on your route effortlessly, and yes, Renault is working on still longer range versions of both R4 and R5…
Hans Knol ten Bensel
Photogapher’s notes:
Also for this test I used the Fujifilm FinePix S100FS. Using its standard settings, the S100FS shows a pretty respectable 9.2 stops of dynamic range in total. But there is more. Unusually for a non-SLR, the Fuji has the option to ‘boost’ its dynamic range by one or two stops (marked as 200 or 400%). Not bad for a second hand camera for the price of a restaurant lunch!
