LoginRenault’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.
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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
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.
