A MUCH-loved car brand has revealed the shock return of a model it discontinued in the 1980s as a new look electric vehicle.
The van carries the name of a motor first produced by the French car manufacturer in 1959 but was discontinued in 1980.
Renault made the unexpected naming announcement at the IAA Transportation show in Hannover, Germany today.
The name was given to its Estafette Concept, the manufacturer’s new all-electric van, designed to showcase Renault’s vision of future deliveries.
The original Estafette was a conventional front-engined, front-wheel drive vehicle that was eventually replaced by the Trafic model after production ended 44 years ago.
The brand new EV’s name was announced at the last minute and is a derivation of the Italian word staffetta, which translates to courier in English.
The new van shares the same round, low-set headlights as the original, while the overall design is described by Renault as “Smeg fridge meets a plush toy”.
The core of the vehicle is a typical all-electric powertrain, and the running gear is packaged at the front of the van to maximise space inside.
The Estafette’s footprint is largely the same as the Renault Kangoo, the company’s smaller van.
But the new EV’s tall 2.59-metre high body creates a “walk-through” space from cab to cargo area.
Here, the Estafette goes above and beyond and boasts 7.1 cubic metres of space, a size similar to that of the medium sized Renault Trafic.
The cargo area can be accessed either through the sliding side door or the roller shutter at the rear.
Renault stated that the van has a “one-way” system for loading and unloading.
Goods will be placed in the cargo area at the depot via the rear roller door, while the side door will be used to unload at the kerbside.
Access to the cab is also easy as the van has front sliding doors that are designed to reduce the amount of time and effort needed for the driver to operate them.
Other design highlights include a wraparound windscreen, “pop-top” roof and two-tone colour scheme, while the prominent Renault logo on the nose is illuminated.
Inside, the cab has a single seat for the driver, and this swivels for ease of access and features seven drawers for storage.
Anybody up to 1.9 metres tall is apparently able to stand up inside, while the dashboard features a multitude of screens.
Users are treated to a seven-inch driver’s display, a 12-inch touchscreen and a pair of 10-inch screens at either end of the dash that relay images from the rear-view cameras.
The lurid all-yellow colour scheme is likely to be replaced by a more sensible and durable black plastic finish for production, according to Auto Express.
As well as funky design, the Estafette also showcases Renault’s latest SDV (Software-Defined Vehicle) EV platform.
This scalable tech is designed to offer seamless connectivity for fleet users, so includes telematics and cloud-based software that allows for easy tech upgrades over-the-air.
No details have been given about the Estafette’s powertrain, or even if the final production model will look like the concept.
However, with Renault embracing retro-inspired design with cars such as the new 5 and upcoming 4, don’t go betting against it looking vaguely similar to this concept.
The French carmaker also confirmed that an Estafette production model will arrive in just two years’ time.
