It has been 50 years since Renault launched the Renault 5. That’s a half of a century ago. To celebrate, there’s now a very special edition of the iconic Turbo 2. Of course it’s a prototype, and it will make its debut at the Chantilly Arts and elegance contest on 25 September before it moves to the Paris Motor Show.
We politely ask. Of course, we would have preferred it to debut on a racetrack, and just for the fact that this R5 Turbo 3E comes with a driftmode! For those who don’t know what drifting is, we kindly ask you to f*ck off and drive your bike against a tree. Although we know why does tree huggers are would be interested in an article like this, because we have a genuine electric powered vehicle in front of us. And while we no longer afraid of the electric age, it remains a problem for those weekly gasoline injections in our veins.
Tolerance. Remember those days back in time, where you got so drunk that you don’t remember them? Often that’s a good thing, but there were also moments you wish you hadn’t forgotten. Like that evening with Jade, that evening with Courtney, that night with Lauren, etc. Today, there is a perfect solution to that – beer with a 0% alcohol level. And after all, apparently we all got used to that, and that is exactly what is slowly happening with electric cars. We’re still not a big fan, but we can tolerate it.
No future. Great electric cars are already among us, like the Rimac Nevera, the Porsche Tacan and the Tesla Model S Plaid. But we fear that this R5 Turbo 3E has a similar future ahead as that of the Peugeot e-Legend, which is none. It is what it is. And then there is the power of this little sports shoe, which is a whopping 374 hp and this matched with 700 Nm of torque. That takes you from 0 to 100 km/h in 3,5 seconds. Topspeed is limited to 200 km/h. Drifting is supported by a rigid tubular chassis, a flat base, a roll bar, a carbon fiber body and a wide steering angle.
Lucien Block. The two electric motors can be found on the rear axle: each motor powers a wheel. The battery pack lies where the motor previously lay. So it remains a two-seater with rear-wheel drive. However, electric power comes with extra weight, and while the R5 Turbo 3E weighs just 980 kg, you have to add 580 kg for the battery. In other words, a little fat boy. And speaking of fat, how about the 20-inch rear wheels with 325/30 tyres! The only thing left for us now is to wait for French Ken Block. Freely translated… Lucien Bernard…