Test of the Renault 4 E-Tech Electric Plein Sud: The Electric SUV That Takes Off the Roof (and Owns It)
The Renault 4 E-Tech Electric Plein Sud is back as an electric SUV and convertible, offering a unique driving experience with practicality and style.
The 4L is back. In electric form, as an SUV, and now as a convertible. The Renault 4 E-Tech Electric Plein Sud is an anomaly in the current automotive landscape: a versatile, family-friendly everyday vehicle that also offers an opening to the sky. Rare. Very rare.
There are cars that we buy with our heads. And others with our hearts. The Renault 4 E-Tech Electric Plein Sud claims both. It’s the somewhat crazy or courageous bet that Renault has decided to make: to offer a canvas-roof version of a compact electric SUV without sacrificing a single gram of practicality. The result? A car that stands out distinctly in a segment of small electric SUVs that increasingly resembles a sea of clones.
We tried it. Here’s what we think.
A Recognizable Silhouette, A Noticeable Roof
There’s no need to search long for what distinguishes the Plein Sud from the standard Renault 4: it’s the roof. A black canvas top replaces the original fixed roof, giving the car a unique profile. The roof bars disappear — incompatible with the mechanism — and the antenna discreetly migrates to the rear window. For the rest, it’s the same Renault 4: 4.14 meters long, a wheelbase of 2.62 meters, 18-inch wheels, the iconic luminous grille, and this silhouette that fans of the original “4L” recognize immediately.
Renault offers 11 body colors in Techno trim, 7 in Iconic. The hood can remain the same color as the body or switch to black. The Plein Sud doesn’t try to shout its originality with stickers or exuberant decorations. It embraces its identity with sobriety. Well done.
92 x 80 cm of Sky Above Your Head
The roof is the number one argument. And the numbers speak for themselves: 92 cm of opening length, 80 cm of width. Nearly a square meter of canvas that disappears. It’s the largest opening on the market in segments A and B, and it’s not just a commercial argument — on board, the effect is immediate. The cabin is bathed in light, and both front and rear passengers fully enjoy the opening.
The operation takes ten seconds. No more. A button on the ceiling light is enough, or a simple voice command addressed to Reno, the onboard AI assistant based on natural language generation — no need to recite a pre-established phrase. You say what you think, and the roof complies. In intermediate position, fully open, or closed in case of unexpected rain: all positions are possible.
Even better: you can drive with the roof open at highway speeds. An anti-draught net limits turbulence and noise in the cabin. The limit? 90 km/h for opening or closing while in motion — once open, you can drive without a maximum speed constraint. In practice, it’s a freedom you wouldn’t expect in this category of vehicle.
The Voice of a Daily User
Guillaume Sicard didn’t come to the Renault 4 by chance. A daily user, he adopted the car for his professional and family trips. We asked him what the Plein Sud version would concretely change in his usage.
What his testimony reveals is something many drivers feel without always admitting it: an electric vehicle can be both rational and desirable at the same time. It’s not a contradiction. The Plein Sud is the concrete demonstration of this.
No Compromise. Really None.
This is where Renault deserves to be praised. The temptation was great, on a “fun” version, to cut back somewhere. On the trunk, on the living space, on utility capacities. None of that happened.
The trunk still boasts 420 liters, including 44 hidden under the floor. The loading threshold remains at 61 cm — ten centimeters below the average of competitors. The rear bench folds down, and the front passenger seat flattens, offering up to 2.20 meters of loading length. You can still tow a trailer or a small caravan up to 750 kg. The pockets behind the front seats are there, as are the storage compartments, for a total of 23.3 liters of storage space in the cabin.
The magic is in the engineering details. To limit the extra weight caused by the opening mechanism and the necessary body reinforcements, Renault opted for structural elements made of composite materials rather than metal. The result: only 19 additional kilos compared to the fixed-roof version, at the same trim level. And an impact on the range of… 7 km in the WLTP cycle. The Plein Sud in Techno trim boasts a range of 392 km compared to 399 km for the standard version.
Seven kilometers. For open sky. The calculation is quickly made.
Aerodynamics has also been carefully considered: the SCx goes from 0.762 to 0.778, a slight controlled increase that confirms the seriousness of the work done in the wind tunnel to maintain both acoustic comfort and efficiency.
The Dynamics: The Renault 4 is Above All About Pleasure
The RGEV small platform hasn’t changed. The multi-link rear axle ensures agility and dynamics that not all small electric SUVs possess. The steering is precise, the road holding is sound, and the whole setup makes you want to take corners rather than endure them.
With the roof open, the sensation changes radically. You hear the wind more — controlled but present — and the driving experience takes on a dimension that you won’t find anywhere else in this price category. It’s simple, but it’s powerful. A straight line on a country road, roof wide open, sun to the side: you immediately understand why Renault made this vehicle.
Price and Positioning: An Anomaly in the Market
The Renault 4 E-Tech Electric Plein Sud is available from €31,110, with a financing offer of €299 per month over 48 months. It is naturally a bit more expensive than the standard silhouette and comes in two trims: Techno and Iconic.
In a market of small electric SUVs that runs on reasonableness, efficiency, and practicality-without-charm, the Plein Sud represents something different. Not an exotic niche reserved for convertible nostalgics. Not a weekend car that sleeps in the garage during the week. A complete, everyday, family proposition that adds an emotional dimension that its competitors simply do not have.
Renault reconnects here with an old but still valid idea: an accessible car can also be desirable. It’s not an oxymoron. It’s an ambition.
Our Opinion
The Renault 4 E-Tech Electric Plein Sud is one of the most coherent and exciting offerings on the market right now. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel — but it reinvents the roof. In an electric universe still searching for its soul, it’s a breath of fresh air. Literally.
What we like: the giant roof (92 x 80 cm), the complete absence of compromise on practicality, the only 19 kg of extra weight, the intuitive voice command, the reasonable entry price.
What we like less: the slightly reduced headroom in the rear (813 mm vs. 853 mm), the absence of roof bars if you needed them.
Renault 4 E-Tech Electric Plein Sud — from €31,110 — Available in Techno and Iconic trims
