One of France’s biggest car manufacturers has announced an incentive to help keep classic and retro models away from the scrapyard.
With salt on the road quickly causing rust to spread and spare parts often hard to come by, running an older model in the 2020s can be a surprisingly difficult task.
However, speaking to journalists at the Retromobile classic car event, Arnaud Belloni, CMO and Chief Branding Officer for Renault Global, announced new plans to keep the company’s heritage alive.
He explained: “The Originals is an investment in the cars and the brand; we must be ambitious and look after our legacy.
“The reference for us is Porsche and Ferrari because they take care of their collections and [car] owners. This is appreciated by [them] and fans of the brand.”
Under ‘The Originals’, the French brand will offer a number of services to make running a historic model produced by Renault an easier experience.
These include providing spare parts for retro and classic models, sourced from a wide network of historic vehicle specialists, and regular maintenance.
The incentive will even allow older Renault owners to get their vehicles completely restored at one of the brand’s network of eight restoration sites, which the company vowed to expand to 25 by the end of 2025.
Renault will initially offer the service exclusively in France. However, during Retromobile, the company stated intentions to roll out the incentive worldwide in the near future.
However, the company already allow Brits to access an extensive amount of information about Renault models built more than 20 years ago on their ‘The Originals’ website.
This includes free-to-access digital versions of the service manual for each model, allowing owners to quickly diagnose issues they may be facing with their oldtimer.
Established in 1899, Renault has introduced a number of innovative and notable models over the years that have helped to shape the global car industry.
One of the company’s most famous models is the Renault 4, made from 1961 to 1992, which is widely considered to be the world’s first hatchback car – offering significantly more boot space than the best-selling saloons of the time.
Renault also produced a wide range of performance models over the years, including the 5 GT Turbo, which competed against hot hatches like the Peugeot 205 GTI and Volkswagen Golf GTI, and the Clio Williams.