Dongfeng BOX vs Renault 5

The Renault 5 costs £2,995 more than the Dongfeng BOX. On the headline specs that premium buys little measurable advantage - the two are closely matched on range, charging and space. On EVcarsguide's combined category scores, the Renault 5 comes out ahead overall.

The Dongfeng BOX is £2,995 cheaper to buy. Running costs are almost identical - about £144 a year either way, at 8,000 miles on an off-peak home tariff. Add 5 years of charging and the Dongfeng BOX comes out roughly £2,955 cheaper overall. These figures cover list price and home charging only - insurance, servicing, tyres and depreciation will move the real total.

EVcarsguide estimates a real-world motorway range of about 160 miles for the Dongfeng BOX and 160 miles for the Renault 5 - effectively matched, and both well below their WLTP figures because sustained high speed is the hardest case for an EV. Both rapid-charge to 80% in a similar time, around 30-31 minutes.

The two are within 2 mm on width, so neither is meaningfully easier to thread into a tight space. In a standard 2,400 mm bay that leaves about 592 mm of total clearance for the Renault 5 and about 590 mm of total clearance for the Dongfeng BOX.

Over a 8-year ownership window EVcarsguide's degradation model projects roughly 90% battery health for the Dongfeng BOX and 84% for the Renault 5. That gives the Dongfeng BOX a modest edge in retained real-world range. The Dongfeng BOX's LFP-type pack tolerates daily 100% charging, while the Renault 5's NMC-type pack lasts longest kept to about 80% for everyday use.