a specialist looks back on the success of the Renault 5 in France before the arrival of the electric version

While Renault has just presented its new R5 in an all-electric version, we take a look back at the success of this legendary vehicle from the 70s. Dominique-William Jacson, historian specializing in automotive communication, looks back on this story.

On September 15, Renault will begin marketing its new R5. Revealed at the Geneva motor show last February, this electric version intends to benefit from the heritage of the legendary model, which made the French brand famous beyond borders. Renault knows this: several major events are planned in the coming months, including, in particular, aA major celebration of the heritage of the R5, Tuesday April 23, at the Center Pompidou in Paris. Appeared in 1972, the car has been, for more than 50 years, the symbol of “emancipation” of a part of French society, according to Dominique-William Jacson, historian specialized in automotive communication.

Franceinfo: Why has the R5 really achieved the success it has had in France since its first sale?

Dominique-William Jacson: The Renault 5 was designed at the end of the 1960s and marketed in 1972. The French company, like the global company, was in a period of demands and protests. I think for example of May 68 or the hippie movement in the United States. There will be the emancipation of a certain segment of the population, namely young people, but also women. This population has until now been rather neglected by automobile manufacturers. The Renault 5 arrives at a pivotal moment in society, with a completely different style which will succeed in attracting these populations who have access to the automobile. The R5 is an economical car: women need a car to get to their workplace and it is also the appearance of the second car in the household. In the 1970s, there was a great development of the middle class and the suburbs. We are going to need more and more of a small complementary car. We must not forget the supermarkets which were in full development. The main occupation of French households in those years, on Saturdays, was often to go shopping at the supermarket. Moreover, the volume of the trunk of the Renault 5 has been designed to accommodate the capacity of a supermarket shopping cart.

The design of this R5 stands out from what was done at the time…

This car seduces first of all with its very friendly, very round, very welcoming lines, with a mischievous look with its small square headlights at the front. It’s something quite innovative, a real breakthrough. At that time, cars were very serious, very angular. It will also bring a breath of fresh air with its very pop colors, orange, sunflower yellow, red or apple green. Colors truly anchored in those which were widespread throughout the 70s. Furthermore, it will bring a real plus in terms of practicality. It’s a three-door car, we have room on board, it’s quite ergonomic. And then what the R5 will bring that is truly new are the composite material shields. Until now, the bumpers were quite unsightly, prominent and mostly metallic, even chrome-plated at the time. There, we will have a line fully integrated into the general line of the car to help absorb small shocks in an urban environment.

“It’s a vehicle that is so in people’s hearts that we could forgive it all its faults!”

Dominique-William Jacson

at franceinfo

The end of production of the model dates from 1996… So, why this return of the Renault 5, now, almost 30 years later?

You have to remember that the Renault 5 is a car that everyone loved. The sales figures speak for themselves, the first generation of Renault 5 is 5.5 million copies. And if I add the second generation, it reaches more than 9 million copies sold. These vehicles have remained in the collective memory and not only in France, since the Renault 5 was exported to the United States. It has remained in “pop culture” and the electric Renault 5 e-Tech takes the keys to what brought joy to motorists of the first generations of Renault 5: a modern car which takes elements of the previous vehicle . We will find, once again, this mischievous look at the front, a side line which runs along the pillar of the windshield to the rear… and a nod to the Renault 5 Turbo, which had an interior very specific with seats called Tulip.