New Renault 5 Turbo 3E Coming Soon: Specs, price and release info

Described as Renault’s most powerful and advanced road car ever, the new 5 Turbo 3E is an extreme twist on the acclaimed 5 E-Tech electric hatch. But where that trades on cute retro looks, affordability and city-friendly driving manners this one is rather more exotic, thanks to the power, tech and strictly limited production run.
• Renault performance brand Alpine already offers a hotter A290 twist on the 5 E-Tech but this Turbo 3E is in another league altogether, and more supercar than hot hatch • Looks like a Renault 5 but is actually built on a dedicated structure, developed by Alpine • Rear-mounted motors are installed directly into the wheels in an innovative design for maximum response • 540 horsepower and a frankly ludicrous 4,800Nm of torque mean 0-62mph in 3.5 seconds and suitably lively handling thanks to a dedicated drift mode • Incredibly, Renault is also quoting a range just shy of 250 miles along with incredibly fast charging • In celebration of the 1980 Renault 5 Turbo that inspires it just 1,980 Turbo 3Es will be sold worldwide – no word yet on pricing but reservations will be accepted in the coming weeks ahead of first deliveries in 2027

Inspired by the mad, mid-engined Renault 5 rally cars of the early 1980s, the 5 Turbo 3E adopts a similarly muscular, widebody twist on the standard 5 E-Tech while wearing a livery celebrating those competition originals. And why not, given the retro-modern looks of the standard 5 E-Tech have already captured hearts of mainstream buyers, this extreme twist aimed at petrolheads of a certain age looking to go electric in spectacular fashion. As you’d expect of a car this exclusive there will be extensive customisation options, with owners able to choose liveries coordinated with the interior trim and more besides.

In keeping with its motorsport inspired looks the interior feels more rally car than city supermini, with race seats, six-point harnesses, extensive use of carbon fibre and a vertical handbrake you can yank to 180 it into a space in a cloud of tyre smoke rather than reverse park like normal people. Assuming you have the driving skills of rally legend Jean Ragnotti, whose signature spins were the stuff of legend when the original 5 Turbo burst on the scene. Back in the real world Google-powered screens meanwhile deliver the infotainment needs you’d expect of a modern Renault, with a digital dash, full online connectivity and a variety of driver modes for Snow, Sport and Race as well as a regular street setting.

The original Renault 5 Turbo shocked for moving the engine from under the bonnet in the front to where the rear seats would usually be for improved handling and agility. The Turbo 3E’s modern twist on the same is a 70kWh battery mounted in the floor to keep the weight low in the car and motors in the rear wheels for instant performance. While you won’t get the claimed 248-mile range while driving it hard on the track the potential to charge at up to 350kW (where facilities exist) means a 15-minute plug-in between sessions will get you back from 15 to 80 per cent and ready to go in as long as it takes to sip a coffee and analyse your lap times.

No word on cost yet but Renault makes repeated reference to the Turbo 3E’s supercar chasing ambitions, so brace for a burly six-figure price to match. The hype and limited production run also point to it being a very exclusive proposition.

The Turbo 3E is symbolic of Renault’s current swagger, helped in no small part by the enthusiastic reception for the 5 E-Tech and related Alpine A290. Expect more of the same with another reinvention of an old classic and the reborn Renault 4 we’ll be driving soon.

Mad, mid-engined electric cars inspired by 1980s rallying are, it has to be said, something of a niche. But the Turbo 3E is the kind of thing petrolhead collectors will be keen to add to their fleets alongside equally extravagant and exclusive machinery from more exotic brands.