Renault R4

The 4L set a string of records. Produced for 33 years in more than eight million units, it was exported to more than 200 countries. Everybody loved it. Workers, managers, farmers, tourists, the old, the Young.
The Renault 4 was Renault's response to the 1948 Citroën 2CV. Renault was able to review the pluses and minuses of the 2CV design and come up with a larger, more urban vehicle.

The idea was simple: to create a more relaxed car, a car that would break down the barriers assigning one function to each vehicle.

Renault wanted self-employed workers to be able to use the same car to carry their ladders during the week and to take their family on a picnic at weekends.

The Renault R4 was presented in July 1961. It was a 5-door vehicle with a tailgate and modular cabin. The rear seat could be tipped forward to turn the car into a van, if required.

The 4L was simple but strong, at ease on both city streets and rutted country tracks.

The R4 always had a four-cylinder watercooled engine. These engines were considered as durable.

Another detail which made the Renault 4 different from other cars was dash-mounted gear lever.

In the 1970’s the car became a the cult object, when the student movement regarded it as ideal revolution car. Its actual success it however probably owed to the circumstance that it was simply practically, inexpensive and durable

Today, the Renault 4 is still treasured by collectors the world over.
Former drivers love to recall its dash-mounted gear lever, its astonishing ability to soak up bumps in the road, and the way the engine purred on idle…


Data sheet

Name: Renault R4
Start Production: 1960
Engine: Renault four-cylinder in-line unit - Capacity: 747cc - Bore: 54.5 mm - Stroke: 80 mm
Horsepower: 24.00 BHP (17.7 KW) @ 4500.00 RPM
Brakes: Drums on all four wheels
Gears: 3
Weight: 589.7 kg
Seating Capacity: 4
Dimensions: Length: 3.65 m - Width: 1.48 m - Height: 1.55 m
Performance: 110 km/h