Renault 5 and Renault 4 could get even cheaper thanks to Twingo’s battery tech

The Renault 5 could soon get even cheaper, thanks to battery tech straight from the smaller Renault Twingo city car.

Speaking to Auto Express, Renault UK managing director, Adam Wood, said: “LFP technology plays a part in our future product roadmap, including in the Renault 4 and 5.”

Currently, both models utilise NMC (Nickel Manganese Cobalt) battery chemistry which, while offering superior energy density and cold-weather performance than Lithium Ferro Phosphate (LFP), is more expensive and material-intensive to produce.

“The benefits of LFP are clear, “ Wood added. “One of them is in terms of cost, and that’s part of our strategy to make electric mobility more accessible for more people.”

According to Wood, LFP tech will “play a role in the Urban Range” versions of the R4 and R5, likely replacing the 40kWh NMC unit currently offered; Comfort Range cars with the larger 54kWh battery will retain NMC chemistry. 

Switching to LFP tech while maintaining the same capacity as the current Urban Range car could allow Renault to lower the R5’s already-strong £21,495 starting price, which is already bolstered by the Government’s £1,500 Electric Car Grant. Introducing a shorter-range model could also slash the price of the R4 which, as of the time of writing, is only available in Comfort Range form in the UK.

As to whether the R5 would cannibalise sales of the Twingo and vice versa, Wood explained earlier this year: “The cars are very complimentary. We have differing ranges between the two – obviously an R5 has a longer range than a Twingo. It’s also slightly higher in price and a bit more practical.”

The Renault 5 remains one of the best-selling electric cars in the UK, sitting at the top of the private electric car sales charts in April 2026. Top-spec Comfort Range versions are one of the handful of cars eligible for the Government’s full £3,750 Band 1 grant, alongside the R4 and the Renault Scenic, which is also deemed sustainable enough to receive the full discount.

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