1970 Renault 6

The car on auction is a 1970 Renault 6, chassis n. 1631429, originally sold in France and imported to Italy in 2015. This vehicle is a solid and overall well-preserved example and was repainted at some point in time by one of the previous owners. Being a first-generation car, this little Renault still features the indicators' switch on the right of the steering wheel and the first gear can be selected by moving the dashboard-mounted gear shift lever towards the driver and not away from him, as it's the case with other similar shifter arrangements instead.

This Renault 6's body was recently repainted in its original blue colour, which we believe to be called bleu moyen and is in an overall good state. The paint job, while not perfect, is ok and the colour has a lot of depth and was applied correctly if we exclude some areas around the windshield and other glass seals and the fuel cap.

The metal bumpers are well preserved and appear to have never been re-plated since the chrome finish shows some slight pitting and minor rusting due to its age. The plastic bumper guards are intact, although the ageing plastic shows some cracks. The front grille, on the other hand, looks very tidy and shiny and the round headlights it encases are barely dulled by their age. The front and side turn signals, which are made of plastic, are in an equally good state and don't seem cracked. At the rear, the rectangular taillights with integrated side indicators are more than presentable and work as intended, aside from some minor superficial blemishes and chipping. Moving on to the door sills, rearview mirrors and gutter trims we are pleasantly surprised to say that their chrome finish is in very good condition and they really contribute to the car's overall appearance. The same can be said about the doors, the bonnet and the rear hatch which, on top of looking good ad and very tidy, are well aligned with consistent panel gaps and open and close almost effortlessly. The window seals, on the other hand, look tired and slightly cracked.

Moving on to the interior we can say that it seems that neither the upholstery nor the headliner was ever restored and everything looks surprisingly well preserved for a car of this segment despite being over 50 years old. The front and rear seats are still well padded and the upholstery is intact save for a major repair on the driver's side backrest that's well documented in the gallery. Other than that we can point to the lack of major rips and tears and praise the quality of the fabric that still looks extremely good after all these years. The door cards have some creasing to detract from their great appearance but are in overall acceptable condition. The door seals are dry and should probably be replaced instead.

This Renault's dashboard, with some wood veneer, is well preserved and both the two-spoke steering wheel and the plastic gear knob only show some minor signs of wear. The instrument cluster and all the switches work as intended and the instruments are easy to read. The odometer currently reads 83846km. The rear-view mirror, which functions as intended, is missing a piece of its trim at the front. Both the floor mats and the carpentry are in good state and the headliner, which is preserved just like the rest of the upholstery, has no tears or holes but only some small black spots and pits to detract from its overall great appearance. The trunk, just like the cabin, is clean and well preserved and the sliding top cover works as intended. We'd like to note the presence of two additional speakers which we think were added over the years since they don't appear to be original.

The engine bay is clean and tidy and the lack of rust in all the usual parts is very surprising. Just like the presence of the original jack and hand crank. The battery is firmly held in place by the original tie-down straps and the shifter linkage shows no excessive play. Both the engine and the gearbox look well preserved, apart from some minor oil leaks here and there as it's customary on such old units. The seller points out that the little Bellancourt's engine head gasket was replaced by a previous owner, while he replaced the thermostat with an original unit and therefore the heater now works flawlessly.

The floorpan, which is derived from that of the Renault R4, is almost entirely rust-free despite the car's age. The front suspension system is well preserved and everything works as intended while the rear one shows signs of superficial rust that doesn't affect its operation though. Both the exhaust pipe and its silencer were probably replaced at some point in time since they are free of defects and lack the usual superficial rust that often affects these components. The spare tyre, which is located at the back, underneath the floor, for some reason, survived the elements and road debris almost unscathed, definitely a welcome surprise!

The steel wheels with chrome hubcaps only have some minor rash signs on their outer rims while the tyres have plenty of treads left but should probably be replaced because of their age and slight dry rot signs they are beginning to show.

This Renault 6 was first registered in France in 1970 and was imported to Italy on august 18th 2015. Since then the car had 4 owners. The seller bought the already repainted car in February 2020 and told us that one of the previous owners replaced the head gasket while he fixed a faulty thermostat by replacing it with a new unit. He also states that the car was driven fairly regularly since he bought it and is in good mechanical condition and with a solid chassis.

Despite being a cheap family car with a long production run we can say that it's hard to find a Renault 6 in these conditions. The paint job, while not perfect, looks extremely good from a few feet away and the lack of rust is of course a strong buying point. Being a first-generation car any collector or enthusiast will appreciate the odd location for the turn signals stalk which sits, as we said, to the right of the steering wheel. On top of that, and the dashboard-mounted gearshift lever, this vehicle's solid mechanical conditions make this car an example that's ready to be driven, and all this is no reserve!

Price estimate for this Renault 6: € 3.000 - € 6.000

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located in the province of Udine, Italy. To arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below or try our “Frequently Asked Questions”.