Renault 10 (1965-71)
French cars are “different.” The Renault 8 and bigger sibling, the Renault 10 were unique in many ways. The grille-less front fascia provided a large trunk while vents along the rear decklid reveal the engine placement. Simple brushed aluminum trim and clean badging front and rear makes this a very well composed car.
The Renault 10 was never imported to the US by Renault, and this is a special find. Not as rare as the Bulgarrenault, but rare nevertheless.
Seen in Long Beach, WA
Renault Encore (1983-87), the 3 door version of the Renault Alliance. Born from the merger of AMC and Renualt, the Encore was built in Kenosha, Wisconsin. It was originally designed to be an AMC, but later rebadged as a Renault, with clinics proving it was the preferred nameplate. With the majority of the vehicle sourced and built in America, it is probably the only French car that qualified as a US domestic vehicle. This one is well preserved, though certainly not original.
Seen in NE Portland.
From the side profile you can see how the top section of the roof detaches to ease access into the cargo area. Sweet.
Seen in front of Scotch & Soda, a very nice men’s fashion store.
This is a Renault R4 Fourgonnette. It was a van version of the R4 that was produced from 1961-1992 in many different guises (this one is probably a ’70s model).
I love the French headlights, the compact proportions, and the trick rear hatch access. Can’t beat the color scheme either (it is a Vedett Beer delivery/promo vehicle from the looks of it)
Seen in Amsterdam.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renault_4
http://www.vedett.be/
More French car craziness today. This is the US spec Renault 5 (a.k.a. “Le Car”) imported during the AMC/Renault partnership which went so well. This example is the first generation, imported from 1976-80. It had amazing gas mileage and handling, but lacked the credibility in the US market that the Civic and Rabbit had. People were slow to catch on and it died a slow death, being replaced by the heinous Kenosha-built Renault Alliance in 1983.
3 lug nuts to tame all of that wicket Franco-Wisconsinite power!
As strange as it is, I do like the design of the rear of this car. Also it had a targa top which is pretty sweet in theory, but I am sure it is miserable above 40 MPH.
Utility, plain and simple.
