This is Ora-ïto’s radical interpretation of the Renault 17, a wedge-shaped 1970s-era saloon that has been re-born for the electric age. It’s the fourth project in an ongoing annual series in which the French manufacturer invites contemporary designers to explore, enhance and revamp classic forms from its archives, ostensibly as a way to celebrate the electric era but also as a literal vehicle for new material and formal approaches.
The series began with Mathieu Lehanneur’s Suite N°4 (2021), the Renault 5 Diamant by Pierre Gonalons (2022) and last year’s Twingo reinvented by Sabine Marcelis. On the cusp of the launch of the all-new Renault 5 EV, La Regie has once more delved into the archive, this time tapping Ora-ïto talents for a recreation of the Renault 17. Shortlisted for the project by Patrice Meignan, CEO and founder of TheArsenale creative consultancy, the designer jumped at the chance to take part.
‘I very quickly saw that I could do something special because there was a design language there that was similar to mine,’ the designer says, adding that although the R17 isn’t a classic like the Cinq, the original 1972 design has a creased, wedgy style that has whipped back around into fashion.
The design process was relatively rapid. While the concept retains the original car’s glasshouse and mechanical components like the door mechanisms, underneath the new carbon fibre bodywork is an all-electric powertrain. ‘The idea was to keep the spirit of the car but also make it simpler and cleaner,’ Ito says, ‘it’s the style of the 1970s but with a more minimal point of view.’ Flared wheelarches are paired with a refined new front and rear end, the latter with a full-width LED light bar and a ‘shark-like’ front with abstracted radiator grille, slender LED lights and mouth-like vent.
‘I didn’t want it to look like a race car,’ Ito says, adding that the redesign ‘has an architectural vision.’ Throughout this process, his original visions evolved into a restomod-style approach, quite different from the radicalism inherent in his 2011 Citroën collaboration. That project resulted in the radical, sculptural evomobil and UFO models, two transportation devices that were more akin to wheel-less spaceships than regular cars.
This was an altogether more formal project, one that involved close collaboration with Renault’s design team. ‘They were amazing – they did all the 3D modelling, and I pushed them, and they were always willing to try things,’ Ito says. Fully drivable, thanks to its EV underpinnings, the R17 concept also includes a functional interior, with dials and graphics designed by Ora-ïto’s studio.
‘We really went into the details on every element,’ he explains, ‘the dials were inspired by my form language, “Grammatology”, working alongside interface designers.’ Fabric and materials evoke the era’s residential interiors, with their curved wood and aluminium trim. The new bodywork is finished in a dark metallic brown, another nod to the 1970s. ‘Inside, it’s like you’re in a 3D render – the car feels almost unreal,’ Ora-ïto says.
The designer also cites the first Blade Runner as a point of departure, and there’s definitely a hint of art director Syd Mead’s visionary futurism in the concept. ‘This could be Austin Powers’s car, or the Jetsons,’ he adds. Transportation is currently riding high on the studio’s agenda. ‘I’m really enjoying mobility design at the moment.’
Recent projects include Nice’s tramway system and the forthcoming Marseille metro. Whilst this Renault will remain a one-off, it surely won’t be long before an adventurous automotive manufacturer comes knocking.
We cast our eyes back on Renault’s first three ‘restomod’ icons project
October 2021: Suite N°4 by Mathieu Lehanneur
Described by the French designer as a ‘mobile hotel room’, Suite N°4 was a radical reinterpretation of the classic Renault 4L that ended up being a modernist room on wheels, with clear polycarbonate body panels and a lavishly upholstered interior.
Renault.co.uk, MathieuLehanneur.fr, @MathieuLehanneur
July 2022: Renault 5 Diamant by Pierre Gonalons
The Diamant proved that the Renault 5 is in the pink at 50, Renault and French designer Pierre Gonalons created a flamboyant one-off version of the 1970s original, with jewel-like gold trim and a unique marble and carbon fibre steering wheel.
Media.Renault.com, PierreGonalons.com, @PierreGonalons
June 2023: Twingo by Sabine Marcelis
Dutch designer Sabine Marcelis marked three decades of the cultish compact city car, re-evaluating the Twingo's one-box shape through light and transparency.
