The Renault 6 is a small family car produced by the French automaker Renault

Renault

Renault S.A. is a French automaker producing cars, vans, and in the past, autorail vehicles, trucks, tractors, vans and also buses/coaches. Its alliance with Nissan makes it the world's third largest automaker...

 between 1968 and 1980.

The Renault 6 was launched at the 1968 Paris Motor Show, and was intended to be an upmarket alternative to the Renault 4

Renault 4

The Renault 4, also known as the 4L , is a hatchback economy car produced by the French automaker Renault between 1961 and 1992. It was the first front-wheel drive family car produced by Renault....

 that would compete with the Citroën Ami 6

Citroën Ami

The Citroën Ami is a supermini produced by the French automaker Citroën from 1961 to 1978. The Ami and stablemate Citroën Dyane were replaced by the Citroën Visa and Citroën Axel . The Ami was for some years the best-selling car model in France...

 and the recently launched Citroën Dyane

Citroën Dyane

The Citroën Dyane is an economy car/supermini produced by the French automaker Citroën from 1967 to 1983. Based on the Citroën 2CV, 1,444,583 examples were manufactured...

. It used a similar dashboard-mounted gear-lever and over-the-engine linkage to that used in the Renault 4 and the small Citroëns with which it competed. The R6 used the R4 platform as well as its 845 cc engine and was technically near-identical, but its hatchback

Hatchback

A Hatchback is a car body style incorporating a shared passenger and cargo volume, with rearmost accessibility via a rear third or fifth door, typically a top-hinged liftgate—and features such as fold-down rear seats to enable flexibility within the shared passenger/cargo volume. As a two-box...

 body was larger and more modern. Visually it resembled the Renault 16

Renault 16

The Renault 16 is a hatchback produced by French automaker Renault between 1965 and 1980 in Le Havre, France. The reviewer in the May 1965 edition of the English "Motoring Illustrated" said: "The Renault Sixteen can thus be described as a large family car but one that is neither a four door saloon...

.

Development

In its first two years of production, the R6 was criticised by the press for the R4-derived engine's lack of power in the heavier R6.

1970

However, a new version of the R6 using the 1.1 litre Cléon engine

Renault Cléon engine

The Cléon engine was a 5-bearing straight-4 automobile engine from Renault. Introduced at the Geneva Motor Show in 1962 with the Renault Floride S, the engine was a development of the 3-bearing Ventoux engine from the 1950s. It is an overhead valve design and in Renault tradition, features "wet"...

 (an engine used in the Renault 8

Renault 8

The Renault 8 and Renault 10 are two small family cars produced by the French manufacturer Renault in the 1960s and early 1970s....

 since 1962) was unveiled at the 1970 Paris Motor Show and was widely regarded as a big improvement.

The new car also had higher equipment levels as well a new gearbox, cooling system and front disc brakes. For the Spanish

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 market the R6 was made available with a 956 cc engine, due to vehicles over 1040 cc being tax

Tax

To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...

able under Spanish regulations.

1974

In 1974 the R6 was revamped with square headlights, new rear lights, a black plastic grille, and new bumpers. The front indicator lights also moved from between the bumper and the headlights to the bumper itself.

International production

Production and sales in France and most of Europe ended in 1980 with no direct successor, but in Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 and Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

 the car was still produced and sold until 1986.

In Colombia

Colombia

Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...

 the car was discontinued in 1984, when the Renault 9 started production.

External links

• Club Clásicos Renault 3,4,5,6,7 " In Spanish "