What you see here is an electric reboot of one of Renault’s most iconic cars, the Renault 4 aka R4, called the Renault 4EVER Trophy Electric Vehicle. I know right. Unlike the first electric reboot, the Renault 5 Prototype which actually looked like the original, the Renault 4EVER Trophy looked nothing like the Renault 4.
OK. Maybe the grille has some resemblance – albeit heavily modernized, and the trapezoidal side windows at the rear with the rounded corners located above the rear wheels, and the bare front flanks but beyond are nods to the original ride but beyond those, the resemblance is far and few between.
However, the lack of close resemblance is possibly due to it being in an entirely new category: a B-segment SUV which the R4 was not. It was a 4-door compact hatch and if I can be honest, not as much of an icon as the R5. Just saying… However, that does not detract from the fact that the Renault 4EVER Trophy is actually a pretty handsome ride, and best of all, IMHO, it is a rugged, off-roader which is totally what floats our boat.
Anyhoo, we see the original 4 as a timid but honest ride but the 4EVER is a brave ride that thinks the world is its oyster. If that makes any sense.
The new 4 is what the old 4 would be if it had hit the (automotive) gym 24/7 over the last few decades. It is muscular. It is sporty, and it is rugged. And it looked great.
Details of the vehicle are sparse. But here are what we know so far:
- Tire pressure is adjustable from within the car
- 20 cm clearance around the wheel arches
- 19-inch wheels wrapped in 255/55 R19 tires
- Reinforced underbody to protect the battery in the midsection
- Features the new CMF-BEV platform for B-segment EVs
- A hollowed-out hood to aid in the radiator performance at the center of the shield
- Short front overhang for greater clearance
- Spare tire on carbon fiber roof
- Shove and waffle boards on the upper section of the rear door
- It has a wheelbase of 2,570 mm
The Renault 4EVER Trophy Electric Vehicle was recently unveiled at the Paris Motor Show as a show car celebrating the 25th anniversary of the 4L Trophy humanitarian rally.
All images courtesy of Renault.