Ranked #301 car in the UK · Hatchback (EV) · 8,541 units sold last year

Renault 5

The Renault 5 E-Tech reinvents the beloved 1980s hatchback as a stylish, affordable electric supermini - and it has become one of Europe's best-selling EVs. Built on a dedicated small-EV platform with 40kWh or 52kWh batteries, it pairs genuine retro charm with a comfortable drive, a quality cabin and keen pricing from around 23,000 pounds. A fun, fashionable and sensibly-priced city-and-suburb EV that deservedly won a wall of awards.

Renault 5 E-Tech
Photo: Charlie from United Kingdom via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0 · source
Body
Hatchback (EV)
Years
2024–2026
Fuel
Electric
Range
245 mi

WLTP

Insurance
Group 23

The short version

29/100

Forecourt score

Value 1 · Reliability 47 · Insurance 47

The Renault 5 E-Tech loses value faster than most cars and costs about average to run. Its MOT-based reliability is good, 72 out of 100, ahead of 47% of the cars we track. On three-year value retention it ranks better than 1% of models.

The Forecourt score blends how this car ranks against the catalogue on value retention, reliability and insurance cost (weighted 40/40/20). Higher is better; running cost is not yet folded in.

Eligible for £3,750 off — UK Electric Car GrantBand 1

Applied at point of sale by the dealer — no application needed. Details on gov.uk.

Pick your version

Estimates are tuned to the version you choose.

Fuel

Electric

Power

150 ps

Drivetrain

FWD

Efficiency

4.3 mi/kWh

The volume Renault 5 E-Tech (2024-) - the retro hatch that reset expectations for affordable EVs. 52 kWh, 150 PS, ~250 mi WLTP. Heat pump standard. Genuinely brilliant to drive.

Tell us about the one you're looking at

2024
20242026
16,000 mi
0Expected: 16,000180k
good
PoorFairGoodExcellent

Tidy and well looked-after for its age — the typical car.

Remembered as you browse other cars.

Optional — fills in the exact year and ULEZ status for your specific car. The registration isn’t stored.

Estimated market value

How we got this number — click for the breakdown, or to challenge it.

£15,500

Range £12,250£19,100

medium confidence

When new (2024)£22,995Age-based value£12,877Mileage adjustment+£0Condition & region-£15Market calibration+£3,688Forecourt price£16,550Private sale£14,450Part-exchange£12,750

The depreciation curve

How a 2024-registration Renault 5 E-Tech loses value over time.

What it costs to own

Over

Based on the 2024 car with 16,000 miles you entered above — worth about £15,500 today — here is the cost of owning it for the next 5 years, at roughly 8,000 miles a year.

5-year total

£15,118

Per year

£3,024

All-in per mile

£0.38

Fuel per mile

6.6p

If a company carAround £26/mo Benefit-in-Kind tax at the 40% rate (£13/mo at 20%) — 3% band (EV)

Depreciation£3,969
Fuel / energy£2,634
Servicing£2,000
Road tax£975
Insurance£5,540

If you're a company-car driver

At 3% BIK, this would cost a 40% taxpayer about £26/month in company-car tax (£13/month at 20%) — one of the strongest cases for choosing an EV via salary sacrifice. Full BIK table below for context.

Best age to buy — around 6 years

A 6-year-old example loses roughly £1,300 a year — under half the £3,650 a one-year-old sheds. The steepest drop is behind it.

Uses current UK pump and home-charging prices (DESNZ weekly), typical-driver insurance and manufacturer service intervals. "Fuel per mile" is just the energy input — so an EV at ~9p and a diesel at ~22p make running-cost comparison direct. A guide; your own costs will vary.

How it compares

Where this car ranks against the 340 vehicles in our index — higher is better.

Holds its valuebetter than 1%
Reliabilitybetter than 47%
Cheap to insurebetter than 47%

Percentile rank across our full index. A measure is shown only where the data spreads meaningfully across the index.

Petrol, diesel, hybrid or EV?

How the available versions compare on price, running cost, and the headaches each tends to develop.

52 kWh Iconic Five

Top-spec — full kit, retro-styled details, 245-mile WLTP range. The image-leader of the lineup, priced to match. Hard to beat for residual value.

New price
£29,500
Annual fuel / energy
£370
3-yr depreciation
%

Watch for

  • ·Infotainment glitches (Google Auto)
  • ·Charging port lock occasionally seizes
  • ·Some CCS network handshake issues

52 kWh Techno

The value pick — 250-mile WLTP, almost-full kit, ~£2.5k less than Iconic Five. Best new-buy proposition.

New price
£27,000
Annual fuel / energy
£360
3-yr depreciation
%

Watch for

  • ·Same as Iconic Five — same drivetrain, less kit
  • ·Smaller alloys give slightly better real-world range

40 kWh Evolution

Urban / short-commute trim. Cheapest way into the R5 lineup at £23k, but the 40 kWh battery makes motorway trips frequent-stop affairs.

New price
£23,000
Annual fuel / energy
£360
3-yr depreciation
%

Watch for

  • ·Same platform issues as 52 kWh trims
  • ·Reduced DC charge peak (~80 kW vs 100 kW)
  • ·Real-world range typically 140-160 mi vs WLTP 186

Fuel/energy costs based on this week’s UK averages (w/c 22/06/2026) · Petrol 153.3p/L, Diesel 172.5p/L, Electricity 27.0p/kWh · DESNZ

Estimated insurance

Group 23 of 50 (mid — around the UK average) · Comprehensive · 3 years NCB

Indicative annual comprehensive premiums for this car, by driver age band and risk profile. Pick the combination closest to your circumstances.

3 years
0 yearsBaseline: 3 years15+
Risk profile:

Estimated annual premium · typical, age 33-39

£1,108/ year

Roughly £92 per month

Typical

Average UK driver — 3 years NCB, average postcode, no recent claims.
Age bandLower riskTypicalHigher risk
Age 17-25£2,526£3,158£4,105
Age 26-32£1,319£1,551£1,892
Age 33-39Selected£975£1,108£1,307
Age 40-49£828£920£1,067
Age 50+£738£820£968

How we estimate this

Indicative annual comprehensive premium estimates. The 'Typical' figure represents an average UK driver in each age band; Lower and Higher risk show the realistic spread driven by factors UK insurers legitimately price on (postcode, occupation, claims history, NCB, voluntary excess, modifications). Based on 10,000 miles/yr, £250 voluntary excess, and the no-claims bonus selected above. Always get individual quotes before buying.

Expected annual costs

Adjust the annual mileage to match how you'll actually use the car. Insurance is what you selected above (age 33-39, typical risk, 3 yrs NCB).

8,000 mi/yr
2,000UK avg for this model: 8,00030,000

Routine service

£240

Annual main-dealer service

Major service

£200

Every 2 years, annualised

Road tax

£195

Standard rate, post year-one

Electricity

£502

4.1 mi/kWh, 27p blended

Insurance

£1,108

Age 33-39, group 23

Clean-air zones

ULEZ compliant
  • Electric variants are compliant with London ULEZ and all UK clean-air zones.

Based on London ULEZ standards — Birmingham, Bath, Bristol, Sheffield, Glasgow and other UK clean-air zones generally follow the same rules.

Total expected£2,245 / year

Excludes depreciation and unscheduled repairs (see next section).

Parts most likely to fail

Drawn from owner reports and warranty data. Filtered for relevance to 16,000 miles.

Watch now

Failure typically happens around your current mileage.

Upcoming

A known weak point — but you haven't reached its usual mileage yet.

Already due

Past its usual failure mileage. Either already fixed, or about to.

Google Auto infotainment lag/freeze

Typical at Any (OTA fixes in progress)Cost Software updatelow severity

Most-cited owner complaint at launch. Symptoms include navigation crashes, Assistant unresponsive, screen flicker. Multiple OTA updates address. Check firmware version at PDI.

CCS handshake failure

Typical at AnyCost Often network issuelow severity

Some chargepoint network/firmware combinations fail first handshake. Re-plug usually works.

12V battery wake fault

Typical at Early unitsCost Dealer TSB freemedium severity

Renault TSB updates 12V management firmware. Resolves intermittent wake failures.

Window seal whistle

Typical at AnyCost £80 dealer adjustmentlow severity

Front door seal noise above 60 mph. Cosmetic.

Charging port latch

Typical at AnyCost Manual releaselow severity

Emergency release in boot if electronic latch sticks.

"Parts low/medium/high" indicates how easy the replacement part is to source — discontinued or specialist parts mean longer workshop time and bigger bills.

Safety rating

Euro NCAP's independent crash-test rating for the Renault 5 E-Tech, from its 2024 assessment.

4/5
TEST YEAR2024
Rating expired (test protocol superseded)

The passenger compartment of the Renault 5 remained stable in the frontal offset test.

Independent crash-test data from Euro NCAP. Star ratings reflect the test protocol of the year shown — newer protocols are stricter, so a 5-star from 2024 represents a higher bar than a 5-star from 2014.

Reliability

72/ 100

Good

Estimated from segment/platform - too new for MOT data

MOT outlook

Insufficient MOT history at this car's reference age — too few tests to compute a reliable percentile.

Things owners say

  • 01The 52kWh battery is the one to have for range; the 40kWh suits lower-mileage urban use at a lower price.
  • 02Sharp design, a quality cabin and Google-based software are highlights; it is genuinely good to drive for the class.
  • 03Brand new, so there is no long-term reliability record yet - the battery carries the usual eight-year warranty.

Safety recalls

Manufacturers occasionally issue safety recalls to fix a fault free of charge. You can check whether the Renault 5 E-Tech, or your exact vehicle, has any outstanding recalls on the official DVSA service.

Check on GOV.UK

Opens the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency recall checker. Choose the make, model and year of manufacture — no registration needed.

Theft risk

A general indicator from UK 2025 theft data and this car’s characteristics — not a prediction for any one vehicle.

Whole-car theft

Around average

Theft risk is around the UK average. Like most modern cars it has keyless entry, so relay theft is the method to guard against.

Parts theft

Lower

As an electric car it has no catalytic converter, so the most common parts-theft vector doesn't apply.

Worth doing

  • Keep keys in a Faraday pouch and away from the front door to block relay attacks.
  • Park in well-lit, busy areas, and consider a tracker for faster recovery.

Clean-air zones

Whether driving a Renault 5 E-Tech into a UK clean-air zone will cost you anything. Rules use the same Euro standard across most zones — petrol from 2006 and diesel from 2015 onwards are exempt; pure electric is always exempt.

Charging zones for cars

CityAreaDaily chargeLikely outcome
LondonAll of Greater London (within the M25)£12.50
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.
BirminghamInside the A4540 Middleway£8.00
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.
BristolCity centre and part of the Portway£9.00
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.
GlasgowCity centre
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.
EdinburghCity centre
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.
AberdeenCity centre
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.
DundeeCity centre
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.

Zones that don't charge private cars

  • BathCity centre (Private cars and motorbikes are not charged).
  • BradfordOuter ring road and the Aire Valley (Private cars are not charged).
  • SheffieldInside the A61 inner ring road (Private cars are not charged).
  • Newcastle & GatesheadCity centres and the Tyne, Swing, High Level and Redheugh bridges (Private cars are not charged).
  • PortsmouthPart of the city centre (Applies to taxis, PHVs, buses, coaches and HGVs only).

Model-level guidance only. To check a specific registration, use the official gov.uk clean-air zone checker. Zone charges and boundaries are set by local councils and change over time.

EV reality check

Winter range
200 mi
82% of WLTP
DC charge 10–80%
30 min
Typical
Heat pump
Standard
Standard fit
Battery chemistry
NMC
Higher energy density, faster charging, charge to 80% daily
Cost to charge
£6.28
per 100 miles · 27p/kWh

Winter range estimates assume ~5°C ambient with cabin heating; figures from manufacturer cold-weather testing where available, otherwise derived as a fraction of WLTP. DC times are manufacturer-claimed 10–80% on the headline charger; real-world sessions on UK rapids can be slower. Charging cost is a full battery at the home/blended electricity rate; public rapid charging costs more.

UK charging network

119,080 public chargers across the UK

As of 2026-04-01, the UK has 119,080 publicly available EV chargers, up 12.6% on the prior year (13,281 added in 2025). 23% of those are rapid (50 kW+) or ultra-rapid (150 kW+), so the network can support both home and on-route charging.

3-8 kW

50%

Standard

8-50 kW

27%

Standard plus

50-150 kW

12%

Rapid

150 kW+

11%

Ultra-rapid

Source: Department for Transport / Zapmap · Released 2026-05-21 · DfT statistics

Company car tax

What HMRC's Benefit-in-Kind charge looks like if you ran this Renault 5 E-Tech as a company car, by tax year and income-tax band. Calculated from a CO₂ of 0 g/km and a WLTP electric range of 245 miles, using £25,500 as the P11D value.

EVs sit at the bottom BIK band — currently 3% — so this is one of the cheapest ways to take a company car.

Tax yearBIK %Tax @ 20%Tax @ 40%Monthly @ 20%Monthly @ 40%
2025-263%£153£306£13£26
2026-274%£204£408£17£34
2027-285%£255£510£21£43
2028-297%£357£714£30£60
2029-309%£459£918£38£77

P11D value is approximated from the latest new price; the exact figure on your tax code will depend on options fitted. The 4% diesel surcharge applies only to non-RDE2 (pre-2021) diesels — we assume RDE2 compliance for current models. Bands and rates from HMRC's Autumn Budget 2024 confirmation through 2029/30.

Servicing & the dealer network

How well-supported Renault is across the UK — a practical read on how easy servicing, parts and warranty work will be to find.

Franchised UK dealers

~140

Large network

Mass-market

Network size relative to the UK's largest (Renault is 3.1% of all franchised outlets)

Servicing, parts and warranty work are easy to find UK-wide, and most independent garages know the brand well — which keeps maintenance competitive.

For context, the UK has roughly 4,500 franchised car-dealer outlets in total, plus about 15,500 independent garages.

Approximate figures, curated from public UK industry sources (NFDA, Car Dealer Magazine). Franchised networks shrink year on year — these indicate network size, not an exact count.

How many are still out there

Of every Renault 5 E-Tech ever registered in the UK, this is what's actively on the road, parked off the road on a SORN, or gone for good.

Total ever registered

12,098

Currently taxed & on road

9,127

75% of all registered

SORN (off road)

2,971

25% of all registered

Scrapped or exported

0

UK fleet trend — 2014 to 2025

+1312.8% vs 2024
1,6449,127

Source: DfT VEH0124 vehicle licensing statistics (year-end 2025) · Updated 1 Jul 2026

Common questions

Renault 5 E-Tech, answered

Is the Renault 5 E-Tech ULEZ compliant?
Most petrol Renault 5 E-Techs from 2006 and diesels from September 2015 meet the Euro standards for London ULEZ and other UK clean-air zones, so they are generally exempt from the daily charge. Pure-electric versions are always exempt.
What insurance group is the Renault 5 E-Tech in?
The Renault 5 E-Tech sits in insurance group 23 of 50. Your actual premium still depends on age, postcode, annual mileage and no-claims history.
Is the Renault 5 E-Tech reliable?
Our reliability score for the Renault 5 E-Tech is 72 out of 100 (good), derived from DVSA MOT records.
What economy does the Renault 5 E-Tech get?
Expect roughly around 4.1 miles per kWh for a typical Renault 5 E-Tech, based on official figures and our running-cost model. Real-world figures vary with driving style, load and conditions.
What are the common problems on the Renault 5 E-Tech?
On the Renault 5 E-Tech, the issues that come up most by mileage include Google Auto infotainment lag/freeze, CCS handshake failure and 12V battery wake fault. The section above breaks down each one with its typical mileage, repair cost and severity.
How many Renault 5 E-Techs are on UK roads?
About 9,127 Renault 5 E-Techs are currently taxed and on the road in the UK, from DfT vehicle-licensing data.

Same underpinnings

Built on the Renault CMF-B platform

Shared B-segment platform across Renault, Nissan and Dacia. Supports petrol, hybrid and EV. Different badges, often substantially different residuals, but broadly the same mechanicals and repair cost profile.

Common Module Family B · Renault-Nissan Alliance

Common questions

Renault 5, answered from the data

Is the Renault 5 reliable?
The Renault 5 scores 72/100 on Forecourt's MOT-based reliability measure.
How much does a used Renault 5 cost?
A 2024 Renault 5 with around 16,000 miles is worth roughly £15,500 today (typical range £13,150–£17,900). Dealer forecourt prices sit higher and part-exchange offers lower; newer or lower-mileage examples cost more.
How quickly does the Renault 5 depreciate?
A new Renault 5 typically loses about 54% of its value over the first three years, then depreciates more slowly. Buying at three to five years old avoids the steepest part of the curve.
What insurance group is the Renault 5?
The Renault 5 sits in insurance group 23 of 50 — the middle of the scale. Exact premiums depend on the trim (some versions sit a few groups higher or lower), your age, postcode and no-claims history.
What goes wrong on a used Renault 5?
The most common age-related issues we track for the Renault 5 are: google auto infotainment lag/freeze (typically around Any (OTA fixes in progress), Software update to put right); ccs handshake failure (typically around Any, Often network issue to put right); 12v battery wake fault (typically around Early units, Dealer TSB free to put right). A full service history and a recent MOT with no advisories are the best protection.
What does the Renault 5 cost to run?
Expect around 4.1 miles per kWh, £195 a year in road tax, about £240 for a standard annual service. The full cost-of-ownership table above breaks this down per year and per mile for the exact year and mileage you choose.

Answers are generated from this car's Forecourt data — DVSA MOT records, DfT licensing statistics and our valuation model — and update with the weekly data refresh.

SearchCompare with