Great Cars of the 70's, Australian Publication 1996
Like Frenchmen themselves as a race apart, Renault's coupes were definitely sporty cars of a different mould. They were in many respects largely underestimated, as James Laing-Peach recounts.
The Australian marketing arm of France's giant State owned car company Regie Renault came up with what was probably its most innovative advertising campaign in the early 70s.
"Anti ordinary" it asserted in an effort to shift opinion towards what would be, along with Leyland's Austins, the first wave of Australian produced mass market front drive cars.
And in an ironic twist it was the "antiordinary" campaign that would take Renault the closest the unconventional French car maker would ever come to establish its products with the conventional and conservative thinking Australian motorist. The campaign was essentially targeted at the Renault l6TS hatch, but could equally have applied to the 15 and 17 sports coupes. Here were fully imported cars that swept in behind the success of the locally assembled 16s and 1 2s to happily fill a niche market somewhere between the Ford Capri 1 600GT and V6s, and Alfa Romeo's 2000 GTV. Nothing could be more French than the "niche" for these Renaults. At around $5000 they were more expensive than a locally assembled Capri but not quite as exotic as the Alfas. Where the later Capri V6 GT's from Cologne were three door sporty hatches, the Alfas were strictly two coupes until GTV arrived and the Renaults certainly added a wider dimension to sports motoring.
First launched in an expansive test program on the shores of the Hume Weir near Albury, the then heads of Renault marketing, Maurice Fertey, Nick Losika and Jerome White were keen to establish a clear focus on the road friendliness of these chic French sportsters in Australian conditions.
But history would record that it was more the truly cosmopolitan style and supple ride that would win a loyal following around the fashionable suburbs of Toorak and Double Bay than any pretence of rally-bred performance. There was in fact reasonable claim here to their performance prowess as the 15 and 17 shared an identical floorpan to the Renault R12 and R12 Gordini with its track record in unmade-road competition success.
Here was a sporty car that offered the practicality in a way only the French seemed to achieve of a three door hatch and real comfort (despite cramped rear seats) with genuinely sporty looks and performance. It was the lower cost 15 that won particular support with its greater rear glasshouse area for better vision compared to the more trendy rear louvres style of the 17. The 15 was distinguished by single cover glass headlights compared to the 17's quad arrangement.
The 15 and 17 would lead to the 17TS and 17 Gordini updates and ultimately the French Porsche, the Fuego. The 17TS was sold from 1972 to 1974 and the 17 Gordini from 1975. The Gordini came with the bigger 1647 cc motor with Bosch D-Jetronic fuel injection, close ratio five speed shift and four wheel disc brakes. These are the cars that generally have survived best in the hands of enthusiasts such as members of the Renault Car Club of Australia, which has an established and continuous membership for more than 40 years. Many of the club regulars continue to participate in competitive events with their 17s while active links and experience are on hand from rally experts such as Bruce Collier who claimed many of the early competition successes for Renault in its heyday of rallying with the R8 and R12 Gordinis. The Renault Car Club regularly meets in Sydney on the first Monday each month at the Veteran Car Club's rooms in Green Street, Fivedock.
What made the "character" of the Renault 15/17 all the more remarkable was the fact that all major components were drawn from the company's existing spare parts bin. The engine came from the Renault 16TS sedan, while the floorpan and running gear came from the Renault 12 range. Like the Renaults 12 and 16 the 15/17 used front wheel drive and front disc/rear drum braking. All these mechanicals were dressed up in a distinctively slinky body that was both eye-catching and practical.
It was practical in the sense that four adults of reasonable stature could be carried in reasonable comfort. It was practical in the 15 model in that rearward visibility was acceptable and in both 15 and 17 forms in that the boot was quite large. It was not so practical when judged in terms of ease of entry and egress. The front seat-back release was hard to reach, and unless the front seat was slid well forward on its runners there was not much of a hole to squeeze through. This was not unusual in two door-cars but in the Renault 15/17 it was nonetheless, more awkward than most.
There were a few differences between the 15 and 17 that couldn't be described as cosmetic. The 15 was the better of the two, because it had more glass area and consequently better visibility. The 17 had stylised louvres over its rear side windows, and these tended to achieve nothing either in looks, practicality, or visibility.
There were also minor differences in the control layout, but mechanically there was nothing in it. The 1565 cc wet sleeve motor produced 102 bhp at 5500 rpm, and 91 lb/ft of torque at 3000 rpm which was put through a four-speed transmission onto the front wheels.
Automatic transmission was available at an additional cost of about $500. The electric controlled automatics in the 16s were excellent and the 15/17 automatics would be comparable. The shift lever has Renault's typically rubbery feel, but snappy changes were possible, and there were no complaints about the internals of the gearbox itself. The ratios were well chosen giving maximums of 48.3 (30), 80.5 (50), 112.7 (70) and 196.05 km/in (105 mph). Suspension was loose-limbed and supple, the type of suspension one would expect to find in a coupe of European origin. But it was also something of a surprise packet in that it could be pounded over really bad going without "losing its cool", a reflection of its suitability for Australian conditions. However, only five Inches ground clearance needed respect. The front disc and rear drum brake arrangement proved to offer very good retardation. A pressure valve ensured balanced rear wheel braking control.
The coupe was a pronounced understeerer - which was not surprising when you realised that more than 60 percent of the car's weight (one tonne) was carried on the front wheels. Renault made no special effort to disguise - mechanically speaking - the fact that the car was frontwheel-drive. The steering was heavy at low speeds and there was plenty of torque reaction. But at least the driver knew exactly where he or she stood.
Adhesion was great with the Michelin ZX tyres, the result being that the driver could make a total commitment to a corner knowing full-well that the Renault would do exactly as expected.
Bumps, dips, and holes in the road surface made no appreciable difference to the car's directional stability, while a light guiding hand on the steering wheel at high speed would keep it pointing in the right direction. Strong cross winds didn't have much affect on the car's stability either, due in no small measure to the sleek shape, and the front wheel drive.
Steering control was by rack and pinion gear, and the fact that the steering wheel was beautifully proportioned imparted a distinctly sporty air to the interior.
Instrumentation was comprehensive, but the pictographic symbolism which Renault used for years on its minor gauges was at first a little hard to follow. These minor gauges were also sparsely calibrated, and because of reflections from the faces of the dials themselves (which were grey) often hard to read.
From a comfort point of view - if not convenience - the interior of the Renault coupe was notable. Upholstery was fabric, which gave the interior a more plush look. Harder, closer examination ultimately revealed that the car was not all that well finished, despite the initial good impression.
The dash was enormously complicated with the instruments in four circular housings. The boot-lid and rear window were integral, with the result that the whole back of the car lifted to provide access to the boot, which was quite reasonably-sized for a car of this type.
Unlike the Renault 16, whose back seat could be folded and lifted in a number of ways to provide a variety of internal configurations, the coupe offered no such feature. The seats remained fixed, which limited luggage carrying capacity.
Comfort-wise the R15/ 17 was very good - but all Renaults offered extraordinary comfort anyway. The back seat passengers sat very low in the car on a shaped bench that provided both location and vital support- essential for long distance comfort. Naturally, head and leg room were somewhat restricted, but if the front seat passengers could be cajoled into sliding forward a couple of notches the back seat situation was sufficiently good to make longish trips a not-too-daunting prospect.
Fuel economy proved to be excellent, averaging 644 km (400 mile) on test at just over 9.5l/100 km (30 mpg). That's the sort of.' cruising range which should be standard in Australia - more strength to this car that it had such a range.
The 15 and 17 twins were cars with character and flair - in other words,
a typically French product. But as cars of the era, they were sheer fun
to drive, economical to run. Offered more than a modicum of practicality,
and had few equals.
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