Renault has revived one of its iconic 1970s sports cars with an electric restomod concept, but the French brand has no plans to bring it to market.
Based on the 1971 Renault 17, the R17 is an electric vehicle (EV) built on the monocoque structure of the original, but with a rear-mounted electric powertrain and a reimagined body that remains faithful to the classic coupe.
The manufacturer appointed French designer Ora Ïto for the project, and while it’s 17cm wider than the original for improved driving dynamics and tougher looks, it retains the 17’s cabin, doors, windows, seals, and underbody.
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“We kept the most distinctive design features of Renault 17, starting with the front end,” Mr Ïto said.
“My aim was to add style and flow, but without altering the character of R17. You can still see the original Renault 17 and its sports coupe looks.”
The original Renault 17 was a three-door hatchback coupe with four round headlights, frameless doors, and louvres on the rear quarter windows.
It had no B-pillar, and its rear side windows opened fully.
Somewhat unusually, it was front-wheel drive but with a longitudinally mounted engine.
More than 92,000 examples were built between 1971 and 1979.
Designed in collaboration between Mr Ïto and Renault’s in-house design team, the R17 features four rectangular headlights and a full-width rear light bar.
Its rear-mounted electric powertrain offers 201kW of power, and its carbon-fibre chassis contributes to its light 1.4-tonne kerb weight.
The R17 has also been painted in a bespoke Galactic Brown, developed exclusively for the show car.
As with the outside, the interior of the R17 has been designed to maintain themes of the 1970s.
It’s upholstered in a combination of brown Merino wool and beige wool bouclé, while there are four geometric displays behind the steering wheel which take inspiration from the Renault 17’s gauge cluster.
There’s a screen on the centre stack, which gives the appearance of an old-school radio setup while still offering the “current Renault graphic environment”.
“We teleported Renault 17 into the future, making a few subtle changes that give it a whole new look,” Mr Ïto said.
“Renault has a strong identity and I like that. You recognise a Renault when you see one, and this restomod is no exception to the rule.”
Despite the effort that has gone into reimagining the original Renault 17, the brand says the R17 is “a unique model and not the forerunner for a future production vehicle”.
That’s despite Renault reviving its classic 4 and 5 as production electric vehicles (EVs), complete with retro styling.
Renault 17 
The R17 is reminiscent of other in-house restomods from brands like Hyundai, which has previously shown off reimagined versions of both the 1986 Grandeur and 1974 Pony Coupe concept.
While these won’t enter production, Hyundai’s retro N Vision 74 – first revealed in 2022 as a futuristic, hydrogen-powered take on the original Pony Coupe concept – is set to enter production as a high-performance EV.
Opel also showed off an electric restomod of its Manta rear-wheel drive sports coupe in 2021, called the Manta GSe. It was reported Opel would revive the Manta nameplate for a sleek EV crossover sometime this decade.
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