Latest news with #Renault4
Auto Express
7 days ago
- Automotive
- Auto Express
New Renault 4 gets its first major test in this week's Auto Express
In this week's issue of Auto Express we have an electric SUV shootout as the new Renault 4 battles against the Ford Puma Gen-E. We also have the lowdown on the hot new Mokka GSE, which sees the popular baby Vauxhall get an impressive power hike. Plus, we take a closer look at the electric Subaru Uncharted and reveal the most expensive drop off charges at UK airports. Advertisement - Article continues below In the drives section we get a first taste of the new Honda Prelude, try out the slippery Mercedes CLA and get to grips with the latest Skoda Enyaq vRS. If that wasn't enough we take an in-depth look at the Government's new Electric Car Grant, explaining how it works and revealing which cars could qualify. This week's issue of Auto Express is on sale now and there's a whole range of ways to get your hands on it! Find out more below. The best value available to our readers is an Auto Express subscription. You can try your first 6 issues for just £1, plus all new subscribers will receive a free welcome gift when they join. We deliver free, straight to an address of your choosing so you can be sure that you'll never miss an issue. If you wish to continue your subscription after your trial ends you save a massive 45 per cent on the shop price, paying just £32.99 every 3 months. Our money back guarantee means that should you need to cancel at any point we will refund any unmailed issues, you can't beat that value! Click here to visit our secure online shop and subscribe to Auto Express... If you prefer to read Auto Express on your desktop, tablet or phone, you can get the digital edition through our online partner Zinio. Single issues are available from £2.99 or a subscription for an entire year is just £90.99. Click here to download Auto Express digital edition from Zinio... If you don't want to get your next 6 Auto Express issues for £1 by subscribing (RRP £28), then you can still buy single issues in shops or online. This week's issue of Auto Express is on sale now for just £4.50. You can find shops near you that stock the magazine by clicking here. If you can't make it to the shops or are unable to find it somewhere convenient, you can buy individual print issues of Auto Express to be delivered directly to your door. Click here to buy single issues of Auto Express
Daily Mirror
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Radio 2's Zoe Ball shares love life insight as she says one gesture 'properly made me cry'
Zoe Ball and fellow radio star Jo Whiley were reflecting on the best presents they have been given during a conversation on their new Dig It! podcast Zoe Ball admits she 'properly cried' at a thoughtful gesture from someone 'special' to her. BBC Radio 2 star Zoe made the admission while considering the best gifts she has given and received. On the Dig It podcast, fellow presenter Jo Whiley explained the best present her husband Steve Morton has ever given her was a replica of her first car. She explained the baby blue Renault 4 was 'exactly the same' as the one she had as a youngster. It led Zoe to say the 'only thing' about buying such a gift is that it sets the bar so high. However she recalled one touching present she received from 'someone she adores' that brought her to tears. She said: 'Someone special to me took all of the messages and some of the things we'd sent each other and put them into a book and this book is bound, it is so beautiful, it properly made me cry. It's like, 'Oh my goodness me, you've captured all those lovely early messages', and there's funny things, there's moving things and it is beautifully bound and it is on the shelf next to two books of poetry. 'It's such a special thing and just between the two of us and I was like, 'Wow'. But then, follow that! How do you follow that? Go low, go with the chopping board and then build up.' Co-host Jo Wiley called the gift a 'mic drop' moment. She added: 'Photobooks I think are really good but that is next level, it really is.' Back in May Zoe made her return to Radio 2, six months after stepping away from her popular breakfast show. The early morning slot was instead over by former Radio 1 star Scott Mills. Zoe said it was "time to step away from the very early mornings and focus on family" after the death of her mother Julia. Announcing the new show, Helen Thomas, head of Radio 2, said: 'Zoe is one of the UK's most loved presenters, so I'm thrilled to announce that she has a new home on Radio 2 on Saturday lunchtimes, plus she'll be hosting various specials for us throughout the year.' Last year Zoe is also said to have sold her £2 million home in rural Sussex and moved to a townhouse in Brighton and Hove, closer to where her ex-husband Norman Cook, known professionally as Fatboy Slim, lives. Zoe and Norman are both said to have taken up hobbies such as gardening, with Norman also opening the Big Beach Cafe in picturesque Hove. Their son, Woody, told MailOnline: 'In the last five years, it's been funny watching my parents take up gardening both of them. 'These crazy party people I grew up with are now gardening, making puzzles and working in the local café. It's very funny to see that transitional period, just as I'm kind of leaving the nest and now at the start of something big for me in music.' Zoe and ex-husband Norman started dating while he was a DJ and she presented on BBC Radio 1. They married in 1999. They announced their separation in 2016. The former couple share grown-up children Woody and Nelly together.
Top Gear
16-07-2025
- Automotive
- Top Gear
Buy Renault 4 Price, PPC or HP
Buying What should I be paying? The most basic spec is called Evolution and it looks good value at £26,995. Externally it's much like the top spec, including 18in wheels, auto wipers, 10.1in touchscreen, wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, two USB-Cs at the front, cruise control, keyless entry, rear parking sensors and (actually quite terrible) rear view camera. It also has a heat pump; good for winter efficiency. The 52kWh battery, 148bhp motor and 250-mile WLTP range are the same on all versions. We'd dearly like a bigger battery option to break that 300-mile barrier, but suspect the extra weight would undo all the good work on the suspension. Not to mention the packaging. Can't have it all. Advertisement - Page continues below The step up to the Techno trim is £2,000. It's the one we'd pick: you get the denim-style bronze-stitched upholstery, plus Google-based satnav and EV route-planner, a bigger driver's screen, Arkamys sound system, electric folding mirrors, wireless charger, fabric dashboard, ambient lighting, adaptive cruise, paddle shifters for the regen, and the driving modes. Two extra USB-Cs find their way into the back. Iconic tops the list at £30,995. It's mostly cosmetic tweaks: non-body coloured roof, black door mirrors and roof rails etc outside, plus the even fancier cloth/leather interior you can see above, inclusive of the illuminated 'Renault 4' on the dash. The tailgate becomes powered, the front seats and steering wheel heated, the cruise control gains lane centring and you get other safety gizmos like sign recognition and rear cross traffic alert. A vast fabric sunroof is coming as an option, but you can't have that and roof rails. What'll it cost me in electricity? At home? Peanuts. Depends on your tariff of course but get one of those handy overnight deals and you'll replenish the battery for as little as a fiver, maybe less. At a really dear public rapid charger the maths inevitably go south: ball park, it'll be £30 for a three-quarter top-up. Hope you're not doing those on the regular. Advertisement - Page continues below The Renault 4 doesn't boast crazy-high charge power – just 100kW – but as it's efficient and the battery is smallish, you recover a good slice of extra range in a short time without having to look for an ultra-rapid charger. In numbers, that's 15-80 per cent in half an hour, which will get you another two hours of motorway driving. It'll also accept three-phase AC charging at 11kW, for a complete charge in four and a half hours. Plus it can deliver power outward – vehicle-to-load. While some cars have hopelessly optimistic range-to-go meters next to the speedo, Renault's is pretty accurate, adjusting its prediction according to your recent driving style, and even whether you'll be gaining or losing altitude in the rest of your trip. The R4's charge system is designed for vehicle-to-grid too, so you can make money by charging when juice is cheap and sell it back to the grid at expensive times. But that takes complicated certification and isn't yet ready in the UK. Future-proofed though, right?
The Independent
15-07-2025
- Automotive
- The Independent
The Classic Renault 4 Just Got a MASSIVE Electric Upgrade
The original Renault 4 of the '60s and '70s was conceived as a rival to the Citroen 2CV. This time round Renault has beaten its French rival to the punch with its revival of its small, family-friendly icon. The new 4 uses much of the same tech as the fabulously fun new Renault 5 – including pretty much the same interior – so the 4 is as great to drive as it is to look at. Watch more from Drive Smart on Independent TV.
Stuff.tv
15-06-2025
- Automotive
- Stuff.tv
Driving the refreshed Renault Austral put hybrids back on my family car shopping list
Stuff Verdict Renault's Austral is now better than ever with more hybrid power, better handling, cool new looks and great levels of comfort on the inside. It's way better than the original. Pros Really comfortable nicely finished interior Cosmetic tweaks have tightened up the design Infotainment is respectable and Google-based Cons Tyre choice seems a bit at odds with the car Can be a little revvy if the powertrain is pushed Suspension is a bit lumpy on less great surfaces Introduction Renault is clearly on a roll at the moment, with the Renault 5 and Renault 4 EVs looking like they're going to be in big demand. Elsewhere, the French car makers has quite a lot of models that seemingly look quite similar, like the Rafale, the very good Scenic, the low-key Symbioz and less popular Arkana. The latter car looks like its days are numbered, whereas the Austral has been given a whole new lease of life. Some three years later after I first drove one, the facelifted Austral has kept the same name but has plenty to differentiate it from the original. The C-segment SUV was given a striking cosmetic makeover, a revised interior (with some of the best seats in the business) and a new hybrid powertrain. There are better shock absorbers and larger tyres too, with the latter being very easy to get squealing without much in the way of effort. Sound surprising? The Renault Austral is packed with surprises… How we test cars Every electric car reviewed on Stuff is tested on a range of road surfaces and, where possible, in varying weather conditions. We use our years of experience to compare with rivals and assess ergonomics, technology features and general usability. Manufacturers have no visibility on reviews before they appear online, and we never accept payment to feature products. Find out more about how we test and rate products. The styling When I tried the original Renault Austral back in 2022, I thought it was an okay kind of car… but that the looks could have been a little more inspiring. Renault's designers have taken heed and this new model has received some neat cosmetic tweaks. The most dramatic change has been to the front end, with a much more impressive grille array and a chunky-but-flat Renault logo, all sandwiched by rather excellent LED headlights. The stance is upright and pert, which means the Austral is quite tall. That's obviously good news for larger folks getting in and out of the front and back. There's respectable ground clearance too, which makes the Austral good at getting over speed bumps and other everyday obstacles such as raised kerbs or large potholes. Along the bottom of the SUV there's a lot of black plastic, but it contrasts nicely with the body colour and works without looking cheap. Out back, I'm quite keen on the revised angular taillights that cut from the wing into the tailgate. The rear end curves inwards though, which looks like it might make the tailgate and boot opening too small. Somehow Renault has made it work, and the entry point is more than adequate. It's quite high too, which makes loading shopping and the like a fuss-free exercise. There's a choice of alloys, from 19s on the lowlier models and 20s on the high-specification cars. Either option look quite tasty to me. The drive The Renault Austral's hybrid petrol engine gets the job done. It feels like it's got enough power, with the only real downside being a less smooth delivery. There's a dinky three cylinder, turbocharged 1.2-litre lump under the hood, supplemented by an electric motor driving the front wheels. The original car's neat rear wheel steering system is retained on cars destined for Europe, but not on ones heading to the UK. We'll have to make do with a fairly no-frills handling setup instead. This car's engine and transmission won't thank you for giving it the beans. There's also quite a lot of noise if you're parked up with the engine ticking over. Nevertheless, setting off with the full EV power kicking in turns the car into an altogether different experience, which is only spoilt when the petrol power takes over. Considering this is a hybrid, I was chuffed with the way the Austral pottered around town using electric-only propulsion. I was a bit surprised to find just how easy it was to get the Michelin's on my test car to howl if anything enthusiastic was tried through a corner or two, though. Considering how upright the Renault Austral is, the car still gets through turns nicely and feels very good when it's being driven sensibly. It's not fast, but it's not that kind of car. Anyone who fancies the odd audible thrill though, will find those Michelin's granting that wish without too much in the way of effort. The technology Renault has been solid enough recently with its infotainment setups. In the case of the Austral, it's certainly an improvement over the pre-facelift model. The 12.3in touchscreen is portrait-oriented and easy on the eyes, with very legible graphics and a straightforward to use interface that's refreshing. Physical controls are a key cockpit feature too. This is augmented by a 12in digital cluster in front of the wheel. Elsewhere there are all the tech trimmings most of us need including Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, lots of driver assist options, wireless charging and a respectable reversing camera. Anyone craving more in the tech department will need to splash out on the higher-spec models though. Do so and you're rewarded with a head-up display, 360-degree surround view camera (handy, considering the less brilliant view out the back) and an excellent Harmon Kardon audio system. Even the lowlier cars get those adaptive LED headlights that make life that little bit easier. Renault Austral verdict There's a lot of competition among mid-sized SUV right now, so the Renault Austral has its work cut out to get attention. I think there's plenty here to deserve your attention alongside the big-selling Nissan Qashqai, the Kia Sportage, and Peugeot 3008. While it's an improvement over what came before, this new car has its quirks; the ride is a little less refined than some rivals and, perhaps, the biggest downer overall. Driven sedately though, it isn't bad at all and feels even better when EV-only power is being delivered. I thought it was pretty comfortable too. Give it a whirl and see if you can get those tyres singing. Stuff Says… Score: 4/5 Renault's Austral is now better than ever with more hybrid power, better handling, cool new looks and great levels of comfort on the inside. It's way better than the original. Pros Really comfortable nicely finished interior Cosmetic tweaks have tightened up the design Infotainment is respectable and Google-based Cons Tyre choice seems a bit at odds with the car Can be a little revvy if the powertrain is pushed Suspension is a bit lumpy on less great surfaces Renault Austral technical specifications Powertrain 1.2-litre petrol engine + permanent magnet electric motor Battery 2kW Power 200bhp Torque 151lb ft 0-60mph 8.4sec Top speed 108mph Range 683 miles (combined) Charge rate N/A Cargo volume 527 litres
