New Versions Of Renault 5, 4 And Alpine A290 Get Full £3750 EV Grant

We’ve banged on enough about how much we think Renault’s on a roll with its retro-styled EVs at the moment. The 5 and 4, as well as the former’s sporty Alpine A290 sibling, all manage to pack superb design, a good drive, high quality and decent value into one package, seemingly catching out pretty much all of their rivals in the process.

Here’s yet another reason to pay attention to them, though: certain versions of all three models have just been announced as eligible for the UK’s full £3750 electric car grant, thanks to them having batteries produced at Renault’s new ‘gigafactory’ in Douai, France. 

That factory’s eco cred means that cars with batteries built there are now some of the most sustainably-built EVs on sale in the eyes of the British government, meaning they join a couple of Fords, certain versions of the Citroen C5 Aircross and the new Nissan Leaf in being the only cars so far to get the full Band 1 grant.

The specific versions that get the full discount are designated with a plus sign tagged onto their model name, signifying that they have the Douai-produced batteries. It’s only the larger 52kWh batteries made there, meaning the cheapest 40kWh version of the 5 misses out on the full discount, although it still qualifies for the lower £1500 Band 2 grant.

For the 52kWh 5, though, the entry point drops from its previous baseline of £25,695 to £23,945. The starting price for a 4, meanwhile, comes down from £27,195 to £23,445; while the cheapest A290 goes from £32,000 to £30,245. Even the hottest A290, with its 217bhp motor, now starts at £32,745, down from £34,500.

The + versions of the trio also get some other changes to differentiate them from the regular range. The 4 and 5 get a bit of extra kit, while the A290+ gets some new appearance packages. The ‘Bleu’ and ‘Rouge’ packs get roof rails, brake callipers and wheel accents in blue or red (we probably don’t need to tell you which version gets which colours), while a new UK-specific Tricolore design pack throws in various little flags to remind you what country your electro hot hatch hails from.

All fairly marginal gains, then, but we certainly won’t complain about three of our favourite everyday cars getting cheaper. If nothing else, it’ll pay dividends in a few years when you start getting charged 3p per mile to drive your EV.