Video: Renault 4 makes its UK debut at the Festival of Speed

10th July 2025

Simon Ostler

The original Renault 4 was in production from 1961 to 1994, but the name disappeared for the best part of 30 years until its eventual revival ahead of the 2025 Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard.

Order books are now open for special R Pass holders to make a purchase on this new electric Renault, and we’ve got our first glimpse of it in action here in the UK as it made its way up the Goodwood Hill for the first time.

It’s a very different sight to the rest of the Renault range, with a front-end reminiscent of the original Renault 4 and a very similar silhouette. It made serene progress up the Hill and doesn’t have the kind of mind-blowing electric power we’ve become numb to in recent years.

A 52kWh battery delivers up to 150PS (110kW) to bring up 0-62mph in 8.2 seconds. It has a wonderfully modest top speed of 93mph, and a range of 247 miles. It’s really just perfectly usable family car with a 420-litre boot and a decent sized interior. The Festival of Speed isn’t all about supercars, you know.

With this and the Renault 5, the French marque is putting its all into revisiting its long history of characterful cars, and we have to say the Renault 4 captures that feeling pretty well.