Renault 5 E-Tech | Mini Cooper E
HAS RENAULT BEATEN MINI AT ITS OWN RETRO-ELECTRIC GAME?
Two of Europe’s best, most iconic small cars are back, and they’re both electric
I’m nose-to-bumper behind the hottest, most acclaimed and most discussed car of the year. It’s leading me at pace, flashing brilliant yellow as it dives in and out of myriad icy mountain shadows. Their edges are becoming more clearly defined by the minute, giving our road a bizarre resemblance to a piano keyboard, encouraging us to play.
Left to right and back again, the tarmac flicks with the capriciousness typical of an Alpine road. Beneath a glorious infinite blue our surroundings are in crisp Technicolor, but my eyes are fixed on the slender tail lights of the new Renault 5 E-Tech before me. One false move at this distance and Europe’s most coveted new car, widely hailed as the car that takes electric motoring to a whole new audience, will be going through tired French crash barriers on a blazing trip back down to the Med. I can only imagine how such an act of knuckle-dragging desecration might be received by environment-conscious locals, not to mention all the paperwork that would be involved, and so with a heavy gulp I keep my gaze fixed.
I’m in hot pursuit of the Renault in a Mini Cooper E, another pocket-sized electric runaround. Together we form quite the zeitgeisty duo: two small, battery-powered family cars with plenty of miles in each charge and price tags that won’t make you wince.
‘After a few highly successful decades, they both went out of production around the turn of the millennium‘
But our examples share more than just a handful of similar numbers. They’re both serious attempts at squaring the circle, several times over: old-fashioned but progressive, compact but family friendly, affordable but premium.
The 5 E-Tech was launched last year as an electric reboot of the classic Renault 5 compact family car. The original model was the brainchild of automotive designer Michel Boué, who conceptualised a short, agile and inexpensive runaround for the masses, then delivered it with his first-generation 5 back in 1972. (For most of its long run in the US it was called Le Car, and there was also an AMC-badged version. This time around it’s not available in the US; Renault quit the country in 1987 and currently has no plans to return.)
You’ve heard of the VW Polo, the Ford Fiesta, the Honda Civic? As far as the supermini prototype story goes, Boué’s 5 pipped them all to it.
Of course that’s not the full story. The history books reveal various trailblazers that got in there first, not least the original BMC Mini, the brainchild of Alex Issigonis, launched 13 years earlier, albeit to initial bewilderment. ‘You really think we’re going to fit in that…?’
‘My first impression is that the Mini Cooper E is the more serious bit of kit’
For years the two models evolved in tandem, cementing their places in history on the back of incredible sales figures or pop-cultural impact. After a few highly successful decades, they both went out of production around the turn of the millennium, but now they’ve returned. The Mini Cooper E is in its second generation after a ropey first attempt dogged by comically poor range, but this latest iteration seems to have had its foibles righted. (Although the US loves a Mini, EV sales in the States currently focus on the larger Countryman.)
Together, the new Mini Cooper E and Renault 5 E-Tech form surely the chicest pair of EVs around, and once again the two iconic names are nimbly jostling for position in the small-car market.
My first impression is that the Mini Cooper E is the more serious bit of kit. In the UK the Cooper E starts from £30,120, which is around seven grand over the asking price of a base-spec Renault 5. That’s a big chunk of change for a small car, but then the Cooper E oozes build quality like no other EV of its size on the market.
It has a cheerful nature, manifested in the slightly zany ‘Experiences’ (rather than drive modes) and various Nintendo-style audio quirks, but an underlying touch of BMW lingers. From the crisp OLED infotainment graphics to the slick synthetic leather seats, a vague waft of corporate Munich hangs about the cabin, reinforcing a slightly more serious tone than you get in the 5.
The Renault’s interior doesn’t have the same final 10 per cent of refinement and yet it still feels like the bigger bargain. The funky dash design pops with bohemianism, but nothing rattles or squeaks, and the numerous driver stalks all feel properly screwed in. Like the Cooper E, it’s tight in the back but rear-seat passengers are gifted a little more headroom in the French car. Given that the boot is also bigger (capacity of 326 litres, or 1106 with the rear seats folded, versus Mini figures of 210 and 800 litres) it feels like a more expensive interior than the sub-£25k asking price of our Techno-trim 5 would suggest.
Flooring the accelerator pedal produces a similarly animated, head-back response from both cars. The Mini is the more powerful with 181bhp – a head-start of more than 30bhp over the Renault – and it’s torquier, too, producing 214lb ft where the 5 manages only 181lb ft. It perhaps feels a tad sharper under hard acceleration, but there’s just 0.7 seconds to split their 0-62mph times, and the seat of your pants will agree with those on-paper impressions.
Where they start to separate is under the duress of lateral forces: cornering!
The original 5 wasn’t bred with any real dynamic capabilities in mind, although there were some very hot versions later. The Mini, back in the day, was a star of rallying and other forms of motorsport, and always capable of spirited performance on the road. This time around, both these new electric cars feel as though they have a sporty edge baked in, if strictly for the road.
The Renault is comfortable but firm, with light and direct steering to keep its driver occupied. The car feels busy but eager beneath me, responsive to my inputs and keen to shift its weight around.
Through tight and technical urban routes or indeed on our Riviera mountain road, it’s an absolute blast, but the Cooper E seems to take its dynamism a step further. Around town the Mini’s steering is heavy and a little lackadaisical – a sensation possibly exacerbated by its chubber of a steering wheel – but at speed it weights up beautifully for a more engaging experience than offered in the 5.
‘They’re tangible proof that living with an EV can be incredibly good fun’
When I knock it up into Go-Kart mode – heralded by a dorky ‘Yaaahooooo’ through the speakers – it all falls into place in my hands. The response from the accelerator picks up and the whole car feels a little more gratifyingly nimble. Attempting to tackle a tight series of bends at a bracing speed, the Cooper E takes them all in its stride, thanks to its excellent traction and body control, hustling from left to right with sumptuous capability. The Renault is agile and rewarding to sling about, but on these roads its dynamic limits are surpassed by the Mini’s; where the 5 starts to wash out under hard turn-in, the Cooper E holds its line fast and true.
When this fine ribbon of tarmac comes to an end and we find ourselves in town, it’s the Renault that makes more sense. It’s softer, a touch more comfortable and the easier car to potter about in. With up to 252 miles on a single charge, against 185 in the Mini, the 5 would no doubt also make the better commuter or school-run wagon.
Both the Mini and the Renault are excellent cars. They’re tangible proof that living with an EV can be incredibly good fun if you pick the right tool for the job, and hassle-free with 200 to 250 miles in one charge. To me, the Mini is the better driver’s car, but I’d find the Renault easier to recommend. The 5’s relative practicality, stylish design and decent build quality are all highly laudable, but the price tag is the real clincher. Starting from under £23,000, it really could prove to be the EV democratiser, the model that brings the electric car to the masses, and alerts a new generation to the level of excellence both these manufacturers have in their DNA.
Facts & Figures | Renault 5 E-Tech
Data
Price From £22,995 (£30,195 as tested)
Powertrain 52kWh battery, e-motor, front-wheel drive
Performance 148bhp, 181lb ft, 8.0sec 0-62mph, 93mph
Weight 1450kg
Efficiency 3.85 miles per kWh, 252-mile range, 0g/km CO2
Facts & Figures | Mini Cooper E
Data
Price From £30,120 (£37,420 as tested)
Powertrain 36.6kWh battery, e-motor, front-wheel drive
Performance 181bhp, 214lb ft, 7.3sec 0-62mph, 99mph
Weight 1615kg
Efficiency 4.5 miles per kWh, 185-mile range, 0g/km CO2