Renault Floride/Caravelle
On the basis of the rather dull Renault Dauphine Pietro Frua designed a 2+2 Cabriolet and production (by Birssonneaux & Lotz) started in 1959. The engine used was the Gordini variant of the Dauphine, with 845 cc and 38 BHP. In1962 the 1108 cc engine from the new Renault 8 also became available, which, in the final 1100S shape, gave 52 BHP, and turned the car into a decent performer.
In the USA the car was launched as the Caravelle, a name that was taken over for Europe for all models built in 1963 and onwards. Body styles included a cabriolet and a coupe, which was sold at the same price as the cabriolet inclusive of a hardtop.
For me this is this quintessential hair-dressers car, as I hitchiked in one over various Alpine passes, until the car broke down, after the driver (a hairdresser) had forgotten to switch to fourth gear on the flat parts and kept driving on giving throttle in third. The view from the open car over the mountains was unforgettable though.
Just over 180,000 cars were made when production ended in 1968.
Shown is an example taken at Zolder in 2003 and another one that was shown at the Frua celebration during the 2003 Concours d’Europe at Schwetzingen.