(first posted 9/27/2017) A couple months ago, I posted about the Citroën Méhari, a rather brilliant little plastic-bodied thing that was based on the 2CV and had a great deal of success in its day. Today, let’s take a condescending gander at Renault’s efforts at aping Citroën (once again) with the Rodéo.
When the Méhari came out in 1968, Renault thought they were well prepared with the Renault 4 Plein Air, which they launched at the same time. This proved to be direly misguided: whereas the Citroën sold very well from the get-go, Renault barely shifted 700 of its Plein Airs in three years. The market had spoken, and it had said “Merde !” to Renault’s half-arsed leisure car. But Renault were not going to let that be the end of it.
Parallel lives – left column: Citroën 2CV / Dyane / Méhari; right column: Renault 4 / 6 / Rodéo.
The Renault 4 had managed to outsell the Citroën 2CV (which it blatantly copied also, but in a far more competent way) by the mid-‘60s, but Renault were having trouble doing the same thing with other Citroën creations. The Citroën Dyane, essentially a mild update of the 2CV, was something of a disappointment in the marketplace – it never did fulfil its intended objective to replace the 2CV, which outlived it handily. Renault’s similar effort, the Renault 6, was an even worse offender in many ways, with its gawky styling and high cost. But at least the R6 had a few good points compared to the 602cc Dyane, such as a peppier engine and more comfy seats. Over 1.5 million R6s were made from 1968 to 1986, thanks to Renault’s many assembly lines in European and South American markets. The Dyane managed over 1.4 million from 1967 to 1983. Pretty much a tie in the “upscale cheap saloon derivative” segment, then. Things would be different in the “plastic leisure / utilitarian derivative” segment, though.
The Méhari’s success caught the number one French automaker by surprise. There were few good options available – so Renault simply commissioned the plastics firm Ateliers de construction du Livradois (ACL) to make a fiberglass copy of the Méhari based on the R4 van’s platform. Initially, the car went on sale in 1970 as the ACL Rodéo 4 (round headlights and 850cc (34 HP) engine) and, from 1972, as the ACL Rodéo 6 (square headlights and 1.1 litre (41 HP) engine); by 1976, Renault integrated the model in their range and slapped the Vasarely lozenge on the grille.
Just like the Méhari, the Renault used their saloons’ dash and steering wheel for their plastic leisure / utility car, along with the funky dash-mounted gearstick Citroën had pioneered on the 2CV. The original seats were nowhere near as inviting as the ones seen on this example though, negating one of the R6’s comparative advantages.
The esthetics of such vehicles is a secondary concern, but the Rodéo was universally panned for its crude and squarish lines, just as the R6 had been upon its launch back in 1968. Again, the copy was below par the original, which at least managed to look pleasant and fun. The Rodéo 6’s squared-off bug eyes are especially unappealing, as are the blacked-out grille and headlamp surrounds, and the squared-off wheel openings make the whole car look like it was designed on an etch-a-sketch. This is a strong contender for the ugliest European car of the ‘70s in my book (and there is plenty of competition).
It seems even Renault acknowledged that the Rodéo could use a bit of a facelift, which they did in 1979, grafting a R14-esque front end to the contraption (along with the Renault 5’s 1.3 litre engine); in 1981, the two models were merged into one, simply called Rodéo, which carried on until 1987 – the very same year that the Méhari went out of production. All told, about 60,000 Rodéos were made – half as much as the Citroën.
Not that it was a bad car in all respect – as a light commercial vehicle or as a beachside runabout, it was perfect. One could even order, for a hefty premium, the Sinpar 4×4 version for even more off-roadability. Again, this was merely mirroring the Citroën – and just like the original, the Renault failed to sell in any significant numbers.
There are still a few of these around in France, as exemplified by this one I snapped in Paris over the summer. They are easy to keep on the road and many still work for a living. But these do not inspire the same amount of devotion as the Méhari. Copycats will usually do that…
It definitely looks homemade – but that doesn’t mean I dislike it. :). Great, concise piece on a vehicle I never knew existed before this morning. I guess I hadn’t realized all the parallels between the product portfolios of Citroën and Renault.
You’re right; there is a certain cobbled-together charm to this (and the Mehari). It is interesting that Renault would try to match their competitor’s model lineup so closely, but a company can’t afford to pass up sales even in a niche segment, I suppose.
Renault and Citroen remind me of Nissan and Toyota contesting almost every product level as well. As a dumb kid I remember a looking at a 210 and having a sudden realization that “Hey, that looks an awful lot like a Corolla!” Coming from a Toyota family, I was convinced that Nissan had just ripped off the Corolla design; it never dawned on me that competing companies might honestly go after the same market segment with similar products. To be fair, there were a lot of Beetles, Gremlins, and Pacers running around, so maybe the idea of companies battling with wildly mismatched products wasn’t too far-fetched.
“I see you’re considering the new Vega, Ma’am, but would you be interested in trying this Amphicar or Bricklin as well?”
The Toyota / Nissan analogy is very apt. And it’s been going on since the ’50s, when Renault started wanting to dethrone the Traction Avant (and failed) with their Frégate.
As when I was well stocked with automotive oddities, “Should I drive the Tatra, the Wartberg, of the Skoda Octavia today?” I took the DKW hardtop.
(Hey I know exactly where these pictures were taken :-)) nice article on a vehicle I had almost forgotten… It was a rather frequent sight in French small towns when I was a child, I don’t even think people wondered very long whether or not it was ugly, I mean it became part of the landscape like the Renault 4 or the Citroen H-Type did. Not many of these can be left today, it never had and will never have the cult following of the Mehari, so it’s kind of nice to see one of them still running and working for a living. Thanks!
Crude appearance is part of the “rugged, off-roader” thing. Look at an original Land Rover.
If anything in this class truly looks homemade, it’s the Mini Moke.
The Moke, though factory built, is only about half a step up the sophistication scale from the King Midget, which was home built, from a kit.
The King Midget came to my mind as well when I saw this car.
I’m showing my age here, but this reminds me of a toy I owned as a pre-schooler.
(Come to think of it, when the VW Thing hit the streets in the early 70’s I can remember excitedly pointing them out as “Take-Apart-Cars”. I can only imagine how exciting it would have been for my 4 year old self if the Mehari and Rodeo had come to the US.)
The “Thing” was a bit late to the party, and safety regs removed it from the US market after only a couple years. If it had shown up in the US in the mid 60s, it would have done better.
The local VeeDub dealer has the one in their showroom for sale.
I recall at least 1 Camel (as I remember that was how it was marketed in the US) roaming the wilds of central Florida in the 70s. It was so much cooler to me than even a VW Thing, and that was really cool. I never saw a Mini Moke, as that would have blown me away too, but I remember the Citroen.
Well, this is new to me. I am trying to decide if I like it or not. I have a thing for super-strippers and this one appears to qualify. But is it unstyled (which is cool) or styled to look unstyled (which is not). I can’t decide this either.
Here’s a picture of the Rodeo 4. It had completely different front styling.
I like it better than the Rodeo 6.
Thanks for awakening semi-dormant memory banks on this car. It sure tends to get lost in the shadow of the Mehari. It seems like it wouldn’t have been all that hard to make the front end just a wee bit more appealing, even in its home-brew way.
Or at least to find a slightly more stylish washing machine to copy for that front end.
Crashing one is probably not a good idea.body looks like it’s made off Pepsi can.
If only it were aluminium! This is GRP. So essentially, you’d be crashing on a rolling chassis. Yay!
Google Reliant Fox
WoW! I really dig that thing! One with all-wheel drive (was there such a beast?) would be nice. It definitely needs more ground clearance, but I like it.
It has more than a hint of the USPS LLV about it. Or the other way around I suppose. Way uglier than a Mehari in my opinion. But a great find nonetheless!
I’ve been to plenty of big rodeos, but I can’t think of a single rider who would believe this vehicle represents rodeos – perhaps a French rodeo?
Just sad.
I have a condescending gander wandering around the orchard. Normally he’s very condescending, except when the goose is laying. Isn’t English funny!
There’s something off about the proportions of this car. I can see why the Plein Air failed, it looks like somebody took une hache to a Renault 4. The Citroen ‘equivalent’ looks completely different from a 2CV or Dyane, more like you expect an off-road vehicle to look. The Rodeo though looks like it was done on the cheap. The bodysides are comically low, as evidenced by the amount of fabric needed for the top, giving the impression you’d be riding on a tray pulled by an engine. Somehow it lacks the purposeful look Citroen managed.
Well worth that gander.
If you build it they will come, some will laugh at it, some might like it, somebody may even buy one or a million.