(first posted 7/20/2015) My father is, perhaps unwittingly, an enabler. Therefore, when he called my house last Friday and told me we should ride up to see this “old Fiat or something” at a local dealer, he must have known that he was treading a dangerous path with his only son, a path we’ve been down many times before. “I’ll pick you up in a minute,” I replied.
Well, it wasn’t a Fiat, but a sad, sad 1963 Renault Caravelle S with a removable hardtop. I am a card carrying, bonafide sucker/idiot for an obscure underdog. On the other hand, I’m closer to 40 than 30, which means that just enough maturity has set in (many would disagree) to know when I’m about to do something extremely ill-advised. Therefore, I decided to take pictures rather than to write a check. Temptation, however, sometimes manages to walk through the front door unnoticed and uninvited.
Problem #1 manifested itself by way of the overpowering odor emanating from every seam and crevice. The 1966 State Park sticker sealed the deal, as did the rotting weatherstrip and brake rotors of solid rust. Time has its way with all things, but especially stationary automobiles. The last time this little guy turned a wheel in, uh, anger?, was almost certainly before I was born.
And where does one find parts for such a thing? I checked Rock Auto, and there is nothing, or as close as makes no difference. But wait! There’s a place in California called Jacques’ Rear Engined Renault Parts, or something like that. Is that the light at the end of the tunnel I’m seeing? Nope, it’s a train. A fast moving train.
Oh yeah, did I mention the rust, forming like pus-filled cesspools, like dire warnings? “Achtung!” Oh wait…it’s French, not German…”Danger!” Say that in a French accent, please.
Oh, Michigan cars are some of the worst for rust. What a shame. The state park sticker and the faded Central Michigan University sticker on the rear bumper finished the tale the rust began to tell. Salt and Gallic sheetmetal, to me, are like being forced to listen to “Sussudio” and “Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” at the same time for hours on end…unbearable torture!
Sorry to any Collins or Lightfoot fans for that digression (no, I’m not). By the way, can anybody recognize the logo on the windshield? It’s on the tip of my tongue, but I just can’t pull it.
At least this is the powerful “S” model. For 1963, that meant, according to my literature, 51 glorious horsepower from the rear mounted, water-cooled four cylinder. Can anything make a ’53 Buick Special seem powerful? This, perhaps.
Some study somewhere asserted that beautiful objects tend to be symmetrical. Why, then, does this car have a “Renault” badge on one side and a “Caravelle S” badge on the other? According to the brochure, it’s factory original; did Picasso/Matisse fans occupy the Renault design studio?
All kidding aside, I was growing more attached to this sad sack by the minute. Its caved in nose fairly cried out for help from someone, someone with body hammers and a welder, perhaps someone whose shadow can be seen overlapping the very dent of which the author speaks.
God, it’s just so weird, I can’t help but love it. It’s downtrodden, beaten up, forgotten, almost certainly overpriced, and it has three lug nuts per wheel. This is a motorized me: a mess, an oddball, an outcast, but still superficially charming to some extent.
The next day, I went so far as to look on eBay for Caravelles to get some idea of a going price for these things; and a very similar, but less rusty, example from Oregon was listed for the “Buy it Now” price of a heady 995 dollars, and there was a “Make Offer” option.
That’s bad news for this girl, as my boyish enthusiasm has been tempered by the dull thud of reality. Even if I could get away with this car for the same 995 dollars (which is unlikely, as it’s sitting on a dealer lot), where would I even start? I’m not especially wealthy, and even after all the money and credit card charges to Jacques, I’d still be stuck with a French anachronism; super cool to me, yes, but how much extra weird does a guy need in his life?
Therefore, I jumped into my own moderately intriguing rear-engined car and headed for home, dodging a bullet for now. In life, however, nothing is certain, not even the air we breathe; and sometimes, that air is scented with a tinge of musty interior that has a way of sticking with a guy.
Related:
Another Caravelle found in the Midwest, by Jim Grey
CC Renault 10: When Being A Better VW Isn’t Good Enough by Paul N.
sometimes you just have to say no or be dragged away kicking and screaming by the wife
Even after decades dealing with those 3 lug nuts per Wheel here in Brazil… it still does look weird.
Nice car, I can see some similarity with our Renault Willys “interlagos”
Mmmmmmmmm. I thought I was familiar with Willys do Brasil, but I’d never seen the Interlagos. Renault running gear + Brazilian style = Instant cargasm.
It’s a licence-built Alpine A110, styled by Michelotti.
Michelotti did the A110? I love that car!
Spotted the Alpine, but the Micehlotti is new to me.
Come to CC and learn
I totally relate to the story about your dad calling you to go check out a car he’s found. That’s totally my dad and I.
Update! My dad actually went a step further and called about the asking price–$2000. Phew! I’m safe from this one!
Considering the condition and parts availability, $200 would be fair.
God, I bet the dealer was excited to see someone in a Corvair convertible show up to look at it. Bet he knew which car you were headed for.
Best ending ever
I feel your conflict, weird old cars call to me as well. Who else will save me??
However being closer to 50 than 40 gives me additional perspective on such matters, even though I remain tempted..
Hilarious! That Caravelle is actually not a bad-looking car. (Your Corvair is gorgeous, BTW.)
I know that musty smell you describe…kind of a combination of mildew, rotting and sun-baked fabrics, rodent droppings, etc…And 60’s Euro-cars have an overlay of horse-hair stuffing to boot (the VW smell). Can you ever even get rid of this from a car?
I think the mystery logo is Alcoa
That’s what I thought, too! I couldn’t find an exact image in my (admittedly cursory) search.
Likewise, I wasn’t able to confirm it but I could swear that I had seen that on some 60’s aluminum wheels. That logo looks more futuristic than most do now!
Great stream of consciousness writing. Isn’t there also a Dart in your life?
Being on the high side of 60 doesn’t make me immune from the same impulses. I was all over a 1990 VW Fox wagon with a for sale sign on it at a show a couple weeks ago. Yellow paint peeking out from under the red? Grungy interior. Guy wants $5,000? Massive rust hole in floorpan in driver’s side footwell. Pass.
….then there is the white Avanti I saw in a front yard with a “for sale” sign on it Saturday. Either a 64 Studebaker or very early Avanti II as it had square headlight bezels and no crash bumpers…..
A Dart, a Special, a Skylark, a Mustang…
Yeah, I’m car heavy. 🙂
I’d have to ask about the Avanti if I were you…it’s one of the cars on my list!
I’d have to ask about the Avanti if I were you…it’s one of the cars on my list!
The house that had it has had a perpetual garage sale going for years. I have lost count of the El Caminos, Rivieras and other iron I have seen there. I didn’t stop Saturday because I was on a mission: the annual DeSoto club meet at the Gilmore.
An Avanti, no matter how ratty, would have been an easy restoration in the 70s. Just wheel it back to the factory in South Bend, as all the trim bits were still in production. When I visited the plant in 75, they had a 63 they had just finished restoring, sitting with the new production ones waiting for customer pickup.
I don’t see any listing for that Avanti online. I’ll think about taking a swing by the place next time I am out and about, just to satisfy curiosity. I’ll not buy it. The one car garage says “no”.
The organizers of the meet at the Gilmore said they had about 200 DeSotos there. Timed it just right. I got there just as the rain ended.
Guys-on the ‘Avanti’ issue – I saw, not too long ago, on some car site online somewhere, for sale, one of the ‘at least rare-to-me’ 4-door Avanti sedans – later model, which, unfortunately, as I think it was the last year of production, was put on some GM chassis/what-have-you, anyway, the interior was entirely undistinguished early ’80s (+/-) GM blah. The condition was good, price was suitably humble, but I just wouldn’t have been able to stand driving around in that interior. In the review process, however, I did come across an old extended commercial/infomercial from the earlier ’60’s model, which was sort of groovy, in a mid-century ‘Jetsons meets middle-America’ kind of way.
…was put on some GM chassis/what-have-you,
The word I have seen is it’s a Caprice living under that swoopy body.
@ Steve – yes, that feels about right – it certainly wasn’t Caddy-appointment level – not even like a Riviera – the exterior I liked, because the never-before-seen (by me) 4-door dimensions gave it a big yet still sort of quirky, “ooh-what’s THAT?” appearance that “people like us” equate with attractiveness, but that interior? Suddenly, I felt like “Gee, what a GREAT day for a WALK!”
Oh yeah – here’s that “Introduction to Studebaker” infomercial I was talking about, before Avanti, sadly, became a taxi-dancer –
https://youtu.be/9W7CBuHCiYY
CAUTION: Watching this video may cause you to miss an America that is no more – or not.
Steve – looking around on-line, it appears that the 4-door was only made in 1990 – and the interior actually looks pretty good. It was a while ago when I saw the one on-line being sold, so I’m only going from memory, plus, I recently succumbed to the temptations of a Buick Reatta, so maybe the interior doesn’t seem so egregious anymore. but I did just come across an Avanti site – and this one (from 2010 – so don’t get out your checkbook) –
http://jalopnik.com/5749422/for-9500-enjoy-that-old-car-smell
And now I’m done with the whole ‘affaire de Avanti’
I’d have to ask about the Avanti if I were you…it’s one of the cars on my list!
Aaron, I mosied over for a look-see at that Avanti.
What I could see of the frame looked OK, though, with the bright sunlight, looking under the car was like peering into the black hole of Calcutta. Couldn’t really tell if it was leaking a lot of vital humor as it was parked on grass. The guy said it has a 305.
The chrome on the bumpers and vent window frames is pitted.
The paint above and below the pinstripe doesn’t match. The guy said it is supposed to be two tone. The paint above the stripe looks a lot more weathered than the paint below the stripe.
The passenger side door is severely misaligned, though will latch if you slam it hard enough.
The back edge of the moon roof completely lacks any kind of weather stripping. There is an open gap 1/4″ wide between the edge of the moonroof and the edge of the roof. I didn’t look at the headliner when I had the door open, but I can’t imagine how it would not look like Niagra Falls in there in the rain.
Scared off yet?
The guy says it’s an 82. The steering column has stalk mounted controls like an 80s car, but it doesn’t have a shock absorbing bumper, which became mandatory in 74, and it has glass covers over the headlights, which were banned in 67, and the ban was not repealed until 83.
I’ll put the question to the Studebaker brain trust on Facebook, but something seems weird about this car. I could be wrong but an 82 should not have the bumpers and headlight covers this car has. A previous owner could have retrofitted the bumpers and headlight covers to restore the look as originally designed, or this car might be assembled from a couple of wrecks.
He wants $12,500. I didn’t look at how many miles. I have lots more pix if you want to see
I would run away as fast as my little feets could take me.
Oh yeah, for $12,500, I’m getting a driver quality early Riviera. If I went Avanti, it would have to have Studebaker power (not sure why).
I think he’ll be hanging onto that for a while at that price; I can’t imagine there’s a huge market for Avanti IIs, but I’ve been wrong before!
Oh yeah, for $12,500, I’m getting a driver quality early Riviera. If I went Avanti, it would have to have Studebaker power (not sure why).
Personally, I would go for the Chevy powertrain, for easier parts and repair, and the plusher 70s interior.
It apparently drives well enough. The guy asked if I wanted to take it for a spin.
The Studebaker brain trust did come up with one tidbit: when the company changed hands in late 82, the new owners eliminated the crash bumper than had been added in 74. Doesn’t explain the glass covers over the headlights, where were illegal in 82.
The misaligned door makes me wonder what kind of drama this car has suffered.
AAron – how about a ’64 Riv I saw advertised in the Las Vegas Review Journal just this week? I’m repair-deep in my Buick Reatta, but if you’re interested, I’ll forward you the info.
I know, I know, I said I was through with this thread, and, technically (I tell myself) it’s true, BUT, I just now saw this and had to drive the final nail in the ‘Stude’ coffin (or open up a fresh can of worms) – take your pick, either way, feast your nostalgia (and time) – dimmed eyes here, thusly –
https://news.classiccars.com/pick-day-1957-studebaker-golden-hawk/
Goodnight, Gracie- or Muncie/South Bend.
Steve – yes, I remember the VW Fox, but my interest was in the sedan (it was one of the least expensive new cars at the time, as I recall) – it came out when I was young and poor but ambitious, (as opposed to old, poor, and tired), anyway I’ll never forget going to look at it at the dealership out in West L.A., and the salesman advising me, in that pseudo “Mano-a-mano” conspiratorial tone employed by car-floggers the world over – “This car is a babe MAGnet – you buy this car and you’ll have to beat the chicks off with a STICK.”
While I certainly appreciated that prospect, it turned out that I couldn’t swing the monthly, so I stopped thinking, at least for the day, about where, exactly, I would keep such a stick in my new Fox – I imagine I concluded that it would be better to keep it secured in the trunk – so as not to scare the hordes of women
any more than they would already be when they got close enough to get a good look at my eager young face.
I ended up leasing a new (has to be new when you’re young, right?) ’84 Corolla 2-door SR-5 (With the black “Euro-look” bumpers and the pop-up headlights!) that I got through some freeway-adjacent “liar-lease” joint down in Carson, so it all worked out – except I ended up using that stick on the parked car of a guy who had cut me off on the freeway and broke it, which was ok really, because it never developed to where I would need it against the chicks, but the new car helped me forget about that.
– I was kidding about how I broke the stick, although I did encounter one or two guys who acted like they wanted to use one on my car -or me, if I would just “PULL OVER!!” (glad I had the “pivoting” side-mirrors – people take things way too personally in traffic, it seems to me) – but the rest is true.
It saddens me to think of the fate that probably awaits cars like this one–hard/impossible to find parts for, rusty, generally neglected. But the rate at which money would flow out from the bank account of someone who took on the project would probably sadden them even more…
A truly forlorn old French girl whose best days have long since passed. Unfortunately, restoration seems like an expensive exercise in frustration as I would imagine just about every single part is made of unobtanium.
OTOH, it might not be a bad idea to slip a note into the glove compartment with contact info. It would be fascinating to hear where she ends up. At best, probably a parts car. At worst, the crusher.
One thing’s for sure: at an asking price of $2000, it’s unlikely to be going anywhere soon. Probably bought at an estate sale for peanuts, and the greedy dealer is looking for a nice payday from some clueless schlub with more money than sense.
It was wise for you to drive the Corvair that day.It was right there telling you, “Don’t do it.” BTW weren’t these Caravelles the recipients of some sort of closed cooling system? One more reason to cross your pointer fingers at it.
My high school French teacher had one of these. To teenaged eyes, both were equally sexy (she was in her late 20s and spoke French perfectly, and perfectly sexily…even though she was actually Dutch).
I’ve seldom seen any since, even in rust-free California, so they must have had serious mechanical frailties, too. Either that or they sold really poorly. Or both.
I read a review of the Caravelle somewhere else on-line (maybe classic cars.com) by a guy who had bought one either new or slightly used when he was stationed in the U.S. Army in Germany – told all about it, definitely in the slow lane on the Autobahn, but how he and his wife drove it all over France with no problems, etc., a good first-hand story all around.
There was one parked on a side street in Redwood City back in the mid nineties. West of the El Camino, I think it was a faded red.
i immediately thought of this picture of Sammy Davis Jr. I don’t know if i ever saw one of these beyond Road & Track magazine.
I have an example of that rotting odour in my back yard right now 20 years standing in a paddock will rust anything. But I’m not trying to salvage interior parts just mechanicals and they are all good.
Last Carravelle I saw was at a panel shop where the guy running it was making a new boot lid for it from a SuperMinx roof panel same curve apparently, that particular car was mint though it had been repainted,
Have to remove the master cylinders and shift lever from this so must endure the smell of rotting carpets briefly.
Aaron ;
You have to try at least _one_ Renault in your life ~
These were close to weightless so they felt *much* faster than they actually are .
Water cooled , radiator in front of the engine was the Renault way , at least for the Sedans ~ I had a 1963 Dauphine and rather liked it as a clean $35 used car in 1973 .
Don’t be too sure a Dealer won’t bend on a price , I’ve bought many a classic car , some that even had shiny paint and nice upholstery for less than 1/2 the posted price because they simply wanted rid of them….
Unless this one has holes , it’s prolly a decent ‘ saver ‘ ~ I don’t see the tell tale pinchweld rust bubbles on it .
-Nate
$2000? How does a car like this even end up on a dealer’s lot?
Glad you didn’t do it. I love a good underdog too, but the car’s a mess and parts would be a nightmare.
How is parts availability/cost for your Corvair? That’s a classic car I would happily plonk down money for!
Parts for a Corvair are pretty easy to get. Clark’s Corvair in Massachusetts has all you would ever need for one of these (almost), and there are several other vendors throughout the US that offer a good selection of parts. Prices for parts are fairly reasonable, too.
The main problem (and saving grace) with Corvairs is that they’re not worth much, so it’s easy to get underwater with them. I am assuredly underwater in mine (by a lot), but I like fixing stuff, so I don’t keep track of what I spend. It would be depressing if I knew for sure.
That Caravelle makes your Corvair a positively rational choice! Oddballs do attract!
My first encounter with a Renault Caravelle was about fifty years ago when our small town used car dealer snagged one cheap, as were all his offerings. He dealt in what were other dealer’s back row cast-offs he could sell for $5 down, $5 a week, did quite a business in those. A couple of Dauphins showed up earlier though shortly back with the engines out. The red Caravelle was given to his newly-married youngest daughter to use for a while. Never salable around here, it ended up with the Dauphins with apparent mechanical troubles as well.
A moment of bliss, (buying the car.)
A month of joy, (collecting all the needed parts.)
A year of work, (installing all those parts.)
A lifetime of regret, (realizing that buying all those new parts was just the beginning of a long fall down a very slippery slope.)
Great story. You did the right thing by driving away from this car.
Hehehe. Sussudio. Now i can’t unthink that out of my head. Leave the Renault. Get a Fiat.
If you’re still uming and ahing over this, maybe this mint Floridian might help persuade.
Ooooooo…
Ahhhhh….
_stop_ that Don ! .
-Nate
Wow,what a beautiful car and in such a great colour combination.I often think that the front of these,especially the headlight area,reminds me of the 1st generation Datsun 240z.
SUH-WEET! When you click on the image and it’s bigger, you can really see the ‘detachable hardtop’ feature – Iwannadriveit!
It makes me feel like life is a Lark! – but, it really IS – just ask Zsa-Zsa! – https://youtu.be/uG6RT-6LotM
“a mess, an oddball, an outcast, but still superficially charming to some extent.”
In a mere 13 words, you have perfectly wrapped up this Renault. This made me laugh out loud. Well done.
I know a guy in town who converted one into an EV back in the 80s. I haven’t seen it out in ages. The batteries undoubtedly died.
A French couple I knew in the Blue Mountains owned an immaculate dark green Caravelle.That was in the 1990s and sometimes on a weekend I would drive my light green Peugeot 404 ute,36,000miles only,or my beautiful dark blue Fiat Multipla up to the local shop and in the small car park was their Caravelle.The Renault,Peugeot or Fiat looked quite a sight parked next to each other,many patrons of the hotel opposite walked across the street to look at them.I have seen Caravelles in other Australian states but none in Tasmania.The Renault 10 sedan was rear engined and they were a very reliable engine and a smooth and comfortable vehicle in which to travel.
Unless you`re Jay Leno,buying it, trying to find parts for it, and sinking any money into this odd duck would be a fool`s errand.
Interesting car. Renault’s answer to the VW Karman Ghia.
Ah, but such a pretty car!
My better half had a Renault 10 in the early ’70s and that was a surprisingly good car at the time. It could manage 70+mph for hours, had extremely comfortable seats (certainly a Renault speciality – I had a Renault 16 – you would have to go a long way to find better seats [or perhaps get a Citroen – sorry, can’t be bothered to find the ‘o’ with the double dots!]), and, as was pointed out here recently, had better brakes than a top of the range 7litre barge made in the USofA, i.e. four wheel disk brakes! (Mind you, braking when you reversed could be disconcerting to say the least!)
But, having said all that . . . you made the right decision! And that rust!
Have a few kids, you’ll find reduced lust in several areas of your life. You won’t even have time to put yourself in harms way on excursions like this!
Such a beauty. Far more attractive, though only slightly less odd than the last Renault that caught my eye and had me spinning my stomach into knots thinking about an alternate timeline future together: a faded red 1984 Fuego in the junkyard. It lingered, sad and forgotten, for a month or two before disappearing. I don’t even think anyone picked a part. I wanted an emblem but didn’t have the heart to scavenge anything from the old girl. So ugly she was almost cute. I remember Car and Driver, in a cheap car ice racing challenge, describing a sub-$1000 Fuego Turbo, stylistically, as “a walrus with gas.”
Give us more of that beatiful (66?) corvair. Please!
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/auto-biography/coal-1965-chevrolet-corvair-monza-convertiblemoney-pit/
Here it is…
Isn’t this the same car in the movie “Day of the Jackal”?
The assassin uses this car to get to the train station leading to Paris.
Maybe the same model – different year? The front end looks similar, but the roofline – not really – anybody else?
Same car, but not a convertible – that’s a coupé. There were three body styles on the Caravelle from the factory: fixed-head coupé, soft-top convertible, and removable hard-top convertible.
IIRC, the roofline was changed on the coupé at some point to improve rear headroom. Don’t remember exactly when that change happened, though.
Thanks for that – The roof-line on that one has more of a sedan appearance, with the more rectangular “back-seat” window, it looks more like what they used to call (in the U.S.) a ‘business man’s’ coupe. It’s almost a totally different (looking) animal. I wonder which one sold in greater numbers when new, and which one is more rare today..
Although it is much more charming, now that I think a bit more about it I see that it does bear a certain resemblance (that’s French) to the 1967 VW ‘Type 3’ Slantback I owned, with the (2) four-barrel carbs, also rear-engined, but air-cooled, of course.
Clarification: In my citation of the VW type 3, I am referring to the original Caravelle picture, not the just-above ‘Day of the Jackal’ shot.
What a great find and a great story!! And yes I can relate to how you feel about all these oddball cars that we car guys are so often attracted to. I’ve done the same thing many times, thinking oh man, I really love to have that, but then sanity kicks in and I realized just how much more complicated my life would become. I’ve walked away from old Trabants. Wartburgs, Riley Elfs, Goliath 1100s, Opel Reckords, Vaxhalls, Hilmans, Lloyd’s, etc. I’m so attracted to these types, but they’ll have to become relegated to history before I’ll be able to restore them! I’ll stick to my quirky new Fiat 500L!!
“My father is, perhaps unwittingly, an enabler.”
Well said, as all good fathers at some time, live vicariously through their sons’ experiences and adventures.
I’m going to put in a good word for this automobile having owned one. Pro’s are – nice to drive with smooth engine and lightweight – comfortable seating for four – light on gas and you can repair it in the corner of your garage. Parts are available from France just look on the web – Renault 8/10 mechanics. Cons – no wet weather hood designed in and a hot-rod it ain’t.
I know – it’s a bit of a stretch – but this Lotus Elan +2 looks a little bit like The Cravelle – or vice-versa –
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7d/LotusElan%2B2Side.jpg/280px-LotusElan%2B2Side.jpg
Many of Renault’s US dealers often didn’t have the parts and or the skills to repair a caravelle. When a Renault broke down, it was most often scrapped than repaired.
CC effect is working but in reverse I see a car then somebody on here writes it up and I saw a Renault Caravelle recently on the road in traffic and going just fine a far cry from this sad looking example there cannot be very many here thats 3 Ive seen in 18 years since I returned two driving and one being rebuilt.
The front of the Renault Caravelle could have been the inspiration for the Tesla stylists.
In the 1960’s, our small town used car dealer that dealt in the cheapest auction cars, had one of these which seemed to run well briefly while family members traded off using it as a second car. Shortly thereafter, it landed in his junkyard of unsalable or unrepairable used cars. I heard later after months of trying to source parts, that was the end of the line for that Caravelle.
I wondered where I’d seen the nose of the Tesla 3 before . . .
Renault 10 also in my family…my Dad bought one new in 1968. It was his 2nd “2nd car” the first one was a 1959 Beetle that teenagers down the road from us ran into when it was parked out in front of our house. He bought it from Almartin Motors in South Burlington, Vt..
I remember the really nice seats, ours was a ’68 so no headrests in front. The visibility was superb as you sat up pretty high and the front “trunk” was low…kind of like Honda later had in the 70’s. His had Michelin radials from the factory, must have impressed him as after that I think he put radials on all his cars (unfortunately one of them came with Firestone 500s which delaminated with less than 500 miles on the new car). Didn’t know it had 4 wheel disks, I knew it had front disks, no power assist. The wheels were the same as on this car but don’t know if the 3 bolts shown were lug nuts or just fastener for the hubcap.
It was his commuter car, so it only had about 22k miles on it when he traded it in 1974, ironically due to the gas shortage (not sure what mileage he got with the R10 but it was good) weeks before I started driving, so I never got a chance to drive it. My Mother (who just stopped driving a few months ago at age 90) learned to drive on a semi-automatic Chrysler Windsor, but never was comfortable with a manual, and my Dad wanted her to be able to drive the “2nd” car (which was small commuter car with better gas mileage than her “1st” car full sized wagon) but the R10 was a manual. Around 1970 my Dad took me to a Washington Senators baseball game (we’d since moved from Vermont to the DC suburbs) and the clutch went out; he nursed it the 35 miles home trying to time stoplights so he didn’t need to shift. It also seemed to need battery charging a lot; maybe due to many short trips, he kept a battery charger in the front trunk. We still have the charger, it is dual (6v/12v) so I honestly don’t remember if the R10 was 12v or 6 v.
Don’t think I have any pictures of it unfortunately. My Mother didn’t like the style, said it looked the same coming and going, as it was pretty symmetric. Caravelle has the style but of course it was a bit small for a family…we didn’t often use the back seat as we had the wagon for trips, but it was nice to have 4 doors, even with the odd sliding window in the back seat area.
I’m sure one of the reasons he bought the Renault was that in the mid-late 60’s he was taking business trips to France, the company he worked for had a plant just south of Paris, and he was impressed with them. He’d previously been in Germany in the early 50’s in the Army, and driven Beetles over there (guess they used them instead of Jeeps?) so by the time he bought the ’59 he knew a bit about them…he could have bought another VW but didn’t.
I now own this car 😊
Well Dave, after all this I am curious. Did you go with the one you walked away from or a better version of itself. As I work for a shop that sells classic cars and NO I am not trying to sell it to you. We are just having a issue with the engine block. And with all this time and effort you put into research etc. Can I pick your brain on whether you found some places that have pars in the US. Or anyone capable of working on this car or the knowledge to help you with a Caravelle?