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Before yesterdayElectric Vehicles - Latest News | Carscoops

Renault’s R4 Concept Just Became A Beach Buggy That Moonlights As A Pickup

  • The R4 JP4x4 Concept is inspired by beach buggies of the ’70s.
  • It gets a custom body, a lifted stance, and dual electric motors.
  • Renault has confirmed there are no plans for production.

Renault has unveiled a new concept based on the R4 E-Tech, this one built around summer use. The R4 JP4x4 wears an open-air two-door body, a reworked two-seat cabin with an exposed cargo area, and an AWD powertrain for tackling whatever hypothetical sandy beach you have in mind.

The study borrows from two R4 variants of the past, the 1969 Plein Air and the 1981 JP4. Its name is short for Journée à la Plage, French for “a day at the beach.”

More: Renault’s Making A Jimny For 2027, But Even The French Don’t Get It

Visually, the highlight is the pair of half-doors that replace the production car’s five-door layout. They work with a redesigned roof structure built around an X-shaped element for carrying a surfboard. There are no side windows and no canvas top, which leaves the cabin permanently open to the elements.

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The concept wears a custom Emerald Green finish that plays against a vibrant orange interior. Beyond its beach buggy identity, it also serves as a pickup with a drop-down tailgate for easy loading. The roof-mounted surfboard is joined by a pair of skateboards stowed in the cargo area.

More: Renault Is Emptying Its Secret Vault And The Concept Cars Inside Are Unreal

Inside, the highlights include “Egyptian mummy” seats with integrated headrests and mixed-fabric upholstery. The dashboard and digital cockpit carry over from the production EV, though the concept adds a passenger-side grab handle and a floating center console.

As with last year’s R4 Savane 4×4 concept, the JP4x4 runs a dual-motor powertrain for AWD, a setup Renault still hasn’t offered on the production R4.

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The concept rides 15 mm (0.6 inches) higher than the standard R4, with front and rear tracks widened by 10 mm (0.4 inches) per side. The 18-inch wheels carry a futuristic design and wear chunkier Goodyear UltraGrip Performance+ tires. Renault made no mention of changes to the EV’s 2,624 mm (103.3 inches) wheelbase.

No Plans For Production

Renault has been clear that the JP4x4 will stay a one-off, with no production plans on the table. The show car will be displayed at the Roland-Garros French Open alongside the R4, R5, and Twingo E-Tech production EVs.

More: Radical Espace Reboot Leads Renault’s 36-Car Plan To Fight China’s Threat

For buyers who want an open-air R4 E-Tech, the automaker already sells the Plein Sud variant with an electric-powered canvas roof. That one went on sale earlier this month starting at €37,290 ($43,800).

Renault’s 4 E-Tech Just Borrowed Another Trick From The ’60s Original, And It’s Not Deckchair Seats

  • Renault adds huge folding canvas roof to electric 4 E-Tech crossover for £1,500 premium.
  • 4 Plein Sud, which translates as due south, cost from £27,445 including UK’s £3750 grant.
  • Like all 4 E-Techs it comes with 147 hp, a 52 kWh battery and up to 242 range miles.

Renault’s retro-flavored 4 E-Tech has already borrowed plenty of design ideas from the original Renault 4, but now it’s reviving one of the old car’s coolest features too. Meet the new Plein Sud version, which swaps the standard roof for a giant electrically operated folding canvas setup.

The fabric opening stretches 800 by 920 mm (31.5 x 36.2 inches) and folds back electrically in multiple stages, giving both front and rear passengers a proper open-air feel. Renault says it’s the only fully electric B-segment SUV currently offering this kind of setup.

Related: Radical Espace Reboot Leads Renault’s 36-Car Plan To Fight China’s Threat

The roof itself is a pretty clear nod to the original Renault 4’s simple manually retractable fabric roof from the 1960s. But this one is a whole lot smarter. Not only is it fully electric, but you can open it by asking the Reno voice assistant if you’re feeling too lazy to press a button.

Underneath, nothing about the Renault 5 E-Tech‘s SUV brother changes mechanically. Buyers still get the familiar 148 hp (150 PS / 110 kW) front-mounted motor and 52 kWh battery pack delivering up to 242 miles (389 km) of WLTP range. That’s only slightly lower than the fixed-roof version, which manages up to 249 miles (400 km), proving the folding roof’s hasn’t hurt efficiency too badly.

Cheaper Than A Beach Holiday

 Renault’s 4 E-Tech Just Borrowed Another Trick From The ’60s Original, And It’s Not Deckchair Seats

The Plein Sud arrives in mid-spec Techno+ and top of the line Iconic+ trims, and costs £1,500 ($2,000) more than equivalent fixed-roof models. Prices start at £27,445 ($37,412) in the UK after applying the government’s £3,750 ($5,111) Electric Car Grant. In France, prices start at €31,110 ($36,684) after incentives.

Early access ordering opens immediately for Renault’s R Pass holders, basically customers who previously paid for priority reservation access to skip ahead in the queue. Everyone else can place orders from May 14.

Aside from the roof, Renault’s also rolled out updated safety tech across the 4 E-Tech range to comply with Europe’s latest regulations. New systems include driver fatigue monitoring and an emergency stop function capable of safely slowing the vehicle if the driver becomes unresponsive.

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Renault

Renault’s 4 E-Tech Just Borrowed Another Feature From The 1960s Original, And It’s Not Deckchair Seats

  • Renault adds huge folding canvas roof to electric 4 E-Tech crossover for £1,500 premium.
  • 4 Plein Sud, which translates as due south, cost from £27,445 including UK’s £3750 grant.
  • Like all 4 E-Techs it comes with 147 hp, a 52 kWh battery and up to 242 range miles.

Renault’s retro-flavored 4 E-Tech has already borrowed plenty of design ideas from the original Renault 4, but now it’s reviving one of the old car’s coolest features too. Meet the new Plein Sud version, which swaps the standard roof for a giant electrically operated folding canvas setup.

The fabric opening stretches 800 by 920 mm (31.5 x 36.2 inches) and folds back electrically in multiple stages, giving both front and rear passengers a proper open-air feel. Renault says it’s the only fully electric B-segment SUV currently offering this kind of setup.

Related: Radical Espace Reboot Leads Renault’s 36-Car Plan To Fight China’s Threat

The roof itself is a pretty clear nod to the original Renault 4’s simple manually retractable fabric roof from the 1960s. But this one is a whole lot smarter. Not only is it fully electric, but you can open it by asking the Reno voice assistant if you’re feeling too lazy to press a button.

Underneath, nothing about the Renault 5 E-Tech‘s SUV brother changes mechanically. Buyers still get the familiar 148 hp (150 PS / 110 kW) front-mounted motor and 52 kWh battery pack delivering up to 242 miles (389 km) of WLTP range. That’s only slightly lower than the fixed-roof version, which manages up to 249 miles (400 km), proving the folding roof’s hasn’t hurt efficiency too badly.

Cheaper Than A Beach Holiday

 Renault’s 4 E-Tech Just Borrowed Another Feature From The 1960s Original, And It’s Not Deckchair Seats

The Plein Sud arrives in mid-spec Techno+ and top of the line Iconic+ trims, and costs £1,500 ($2,000) more than equivalent fixed-roof models. Prices start at £27,445 ($37,412) in the UK after applying the government’s £3,750 ($5,111) Electric Car Grant. In France, prices start at €31,110 ($36,684) after incentives.

Early access ordering opens immediately for Renault’s R Pass holders, basically customers who previously paid for priority reservation access to skip ahead in the queue. Everyone else can place orders from May 14.

Aside from the roof, Renault’s also rolled out updated safety tech across the 4 E-Tech range to comply with Europe’s latest regulations. New systems include driver fatigue monitoring and an emergency stop function capable of safely slowing the vehicle if the driver becomes unresponsive.

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Renault

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