Renault 5 (France, 1972-1985)

Renault’s “Project 122” was internationally unveiled to the public in January 1972 as the Renault 5. The ‘supermini’ car could also be simply called “R5” and its target was the small cars market, which had been dominated by the Renault 4 and the Citroën 2CV. The R5 offered a more attractive styling and a superior performance than its main rivals, being more elegant and faster on the road.

It was mainly conceived to be at the same time an agile, handy car for the city and a comfortable and economic car for long roads. As soon as the first Renault 5 was put out, the car became quite popular and started a new automotive era where cars could be both desired and accessible.