If there’s such a thing as a singular hallowed, sacred ground for tennis, then the hard red clay at Roland-Garros is right up there as one of the sport’s most prized venues. Most of us know it as The French Open, and it just so happens that one of my favourite carmakers right now also hails from France – Renault. Clearly, someone at Renault must’ve read my mind, because, for a celebration of supreme Frenchness, the Renault 5 E-Tech Roland-Garros Edition is a very real car that you can order. For the time being, though, order books are only open for those of you who are a part of the Renault 5 R Pass priority programme, among its many other perks.
This rather unique Roland-Garros special edition car is based on the Renault 5 E-Tech Comfort Range model, with its larger 52kWh battery, offering you up to 252 miles of range. This would make it suitable whether you’re driving around the city or even if you’re considering it for long-distance road trips. Meanwhile, underneath all this (more on the styling bits later), you’ll find a familiar 110kW (or 150hp) electric motor, which should be adequately potent for a tiny EV. It’s worth bearing in mind too, that the Renault 5 E-Tech is built atop the brand’s new AmpR Small platform, which features a multi-link rear axle for improved agility and sharper handling.
Bringing The Joy Of Tennis Onto The Road
Of course, as with any special edition car, the Renault 5 E-Tech Roland-Garros Edition has a lot of distinct styling cues that separate it from just your regular, run-of-the-mill R5. For one, you’ll be able to spec your very own Renault 5 E-Tech Roland-Garros Edition in one of 4 colours, all of which take inspiration from tennis – Arctic White, Midnight Blue, Diamond Black, and Exclusive Matte Shadow Grey. Interestingly, you can’t have it painted in fluorescent yellow, like a proper tennis ball. Regardless, look around the R5 E-Tech Roland-Garros Edition, and you might spot a set of pretty neat-looking and handsome 18-inch ‘Electro’ black diamond-cut alloy wheels.
Moreover, those alloy wheels come with contrasting Shadow Grey centre caps. Elsewhere, you may notice the satin chrome roofline, adding a more premium look to it, in addition to the nice Roland-Garros branding, at the base of the front doors. Apparently, these motifs were inspired by the actual stadium’s architecture, and similar patterns carry through to the interior, too. For a relatively affordable EV – this Renault 5 E-Tech Roland-Garros Edition starts from £29,995 – it does come with quite a few premium, upscale touches and design elements. Speaking of, once you step inside, it gets even better, with way more tennis trivia and easter eggs in there.
A Renault Made For Tennis Fans In Mind
The interior is dominated by a light grey upholstery, and it’s nice to hear that they’re made out of fully-recycled textiles, featuring a fine, graphic weave that you’d typically see on sportswear. Other than that, there’s a rather fetching H-shaped open-weave backrest, alongside the pretty sporty-looking deep blue side supports and armrests. To complement this, you’re also getting a suite of embossed Roland-Garros logos on the front seat backrests, with door panels and a lower dashboard that comes with inserts matching the seat fabric. Aside from that, there is the bright satin metal dash with an anodised metal cross strip, backlit with Roland-Garros branding.
Personally, my favourite interior design element is the ‘E-Pop’ shifter, the tip of which is shaped to look like a tennis racquet grip, also emblazoned with another Roland-Garros logo. When you look past the brushed aluminium door sills with ‘Roland-Garros Paris’ emblems, you’ll see quite a lot of clay-coloured trim, including on the wireless charging pad for your phone, as well as on the floor mat contours. To my eyes, as far as limited edition examples go, the Renault 5 E-Tech Roland-Garros Edition is fairly subtle in its execution, but all the places where they did attempt to stylise in honour of tennis are done well, so if you’re a tennis fan, it’s worth checking out!
