The Renault Avantime is one of the bravest ideas for a mainstream manufacturer’s production car. In essence, we are talking about a personal luxury coupe three-door minivan, and one from France.
It cannot have come as a surprise that it didn’t exactly sell like hot cakes; production lasted from 2001 to 2003, with little more than 8500 built. But cult status is definitely deserved, and these photos show just how weird an Avantime looks with the windows down.
There are so many things going on with that rear pillar.
The glasshouse is enormous.
The leather chairs do look supremely comfortable, and the visibility must be great even from the rear seats.
The steering wheel is the most ordinary thing in the car, even if it’s two-toned.
Extra visibility and natural light is introduced through the skyroof; the car opens everything if the “Grand Air” mode button is used. Delusions of grand air?
Next to the MX-5:s, the Avantime looks like a toaster.
But what a toaster.
[Source: These images were provided by Joe W, friend of Hooniverse!]
The time still can't be right for the Renault Avantime – but it's cool
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Designing a door hinge system that worked, and moved the hinge point out, on opening, so that the long doors can be opened in tight European carparks, took some doing.
It delayed production of the whole project for a year. But the doors don’t sag with age, and every time they open, there is a ‘transformer-like’ ballet of moving panels. I’ve seen the Avantime described as ‘a Citroen designed by Renault’.
I know I want one.
http://www.germancarforum.com/attachments/8509a40d12efbe1ab8f5e1fc05aa07d2-jpg.86609/
http://www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/comment-image/349058.jpg
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http://www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Renault-Avantime-VW-bus.jpg-
amazing car… i knew the doors where specially designed to open in tight spaces, but it’s the first time i see it in action. now i love the avantime even more!
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That could never have been sold in the US: too many people suing for getting their fingers trapped in the mechanism when closing the door.
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At the time there was talk of selling it in the US as an Infiniti.
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I’m not sure whether that would have led to many additional sales for Infiniti. In general, it seems as though Infiniti isn’t doing to well in the uS. Their only hope would be for Lexus to commit haracura by adding a weirdo grille to their entire lineup and refusing to admit that that might be a mistake for about a decade. And what’s the likelihood of that happening?
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/2014_Lexus_NX_300h_%28AYZ15R%29_F_Sport_wagon_%282015-07-09%29_01.jpg/1280px-2014_Lexus_NX_300h_%28AYZ15R%29_F_Sport_wagon_%282015-07-09%29_01.jpg
Oh wait…
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Michael Schumacher was one of the first buyers when this car came out.
He considered the concept as ingenious.-
Let’s not forget that it’s one of the few cars that all the Top Gear team liked.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4HNulNpymM
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God bless French car designers. This is awesome.
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I fell in love with these the first time I saw them on Top Gear. Only ten more years until one could potentially be imported! (Screw you, Mercedes…)
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I love the Aventime, and it seems like the perfect car for cruising around with your mates, but it has one big flaw, that probably explains why they sold so few.
There’s no legroom in the rear!
The floor is very high, and you can’t slide your feet underneath the front seats, making any extended drives quite miserable despite the airy cabin and great view.-
So it’s a 2+ 2 coupe personal luxury coupe minivan?
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Pretty much the ultimate expression of opulent excess through bad packaging.
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It’s actually a 2+2 personal luxury coupe minivan pseudo convertible!
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Yes, this Renault is still “AVANT” its TIME.
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It’s even avant a tme that orobably eill never come.
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“…a time that probably will never come”:-) So true!
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