Renault 5. Why retro sometimes works

The retro hype has been going on for a while now. Often it is accompanied by the launch of a new model, inspired by new, modern technology. Renault is currently prominently in the picture, the latest modernity on the French lineage is the Renault 5 Electric. Now I don't naturally have much time for the phenomenon of 'electric car'. Yet Renault is doing something right. By combining the modern state of technology with the principles of the past, they clearly show their own respect for the past.

In the current livery you can see many elements of the Renault 5, which surprised the world in 1972 with its sleek design, plastic bumpers, ease of use and modern layout at the time. The Renault 5 became a success, which slowly disappeared from the streets as time went by. As was the case with so many cars from the seventies. The compact Frenchman ran effortlessly for twelve years, with an increasingly extensive equipment level. Until the Supercinq came along. Renault also understood the art of keeping the R5 in honour, and that in the well-known eighties jacket. Slightly more angular, with fashion fads that reflected the spirit of futurism, and that in the atmosphere of the country of origin. Even then, when the spirit of the seventies was already fairly far from view. The clever thing: the Supercinq gave a big wink to the original R5, and at the same time looked contemporary.

And now the Renault 5 Electric is among us. The great thing: I see a part Supercinq in it and above all: the original from 1972. Of course the car is equipped with EV technology. And the layout of numerous design details and other technical gadgets is especially now. The advertising caravan, the market expressions and the Renault message: all the way No. The technology? Manufacturers still believe in the electric future, but it is not without reason that European manufacturers in particular are increasingly turning to hybrid variants. Just look at what is happening at Stellantis. And I do not rule out that Renault will soon take this step as well.

The Renault 5 Electric is receiving rave reviews in the press, the driving impressions and tests do not lie. The car is received enthusiastically, and not entirely without reason. I think that the positivism surrounding the R5 now is also inspired by the recognizability in the retrospective and at the same time modern coat. The design takes you back to the past, and the reactions to the car are reminiscent of how the original R5 was received at the time (just read the old tests, if you have them). There is recognition there too.

I'm going back to Eelde, to Eelde Classics, last weekend. In one of the Flowerdome halls someone offered a late example from the first Renault 5 generation, an eighty-four. A car that needs some work, with patina, but above all with the astonishingly great charm with which the French bestseller at the time laps around the fields made. And I looked secretly. And thought: what would it be like to add this car to the modest collection in Leeuwarden. That was what I thought.

I let the thought go. Because this weekend I'm putting the Volvo V50 on the two hundred thousand mark. And maintenance is coming up. Moreover, in a short time I've developed a close bond with my Saab 96 GL. And there too, the finishing touches need to be made before I give the Saab a place for its winter hibernation. Maintenance costs money, and I certainly don't economize on that. Moreover, I belong to the category of people who are satisfied with what they have. But that the R5 is the 'what would it be like if' thought that came to mind says a lot about the charm that an R5 conveys to me. And that feeling is reinforced because the Renault 5 Electric is for me a design-technical ode to the past. No model in retrospect has ever released that in me before. The Renault 5 Electric has. Because it gave me the answer to the question of why retro sometimes does work.