The Renault 1 000 Kg is a light van, initially of a one ton capacity, introduced by the manufacturer in 1947. A 1,400 Kg version followed in 1949, and the Renault 1,400 Kg soon became the more popular choice. A name change in 1959 saw the vans branded as the Renault Voltigeur (1,000 Kg) and the Renault Goélette (1,400 Kg), but in retrospect the Renault 1,000 Kg name is frequently preferred.
Origins
The 1000 Kg was originally presented in 1945 as a prototype light van designed for the military, and was offered for general sales from February 1947.
In the summer of 1944 the French Ministry of Industrial Production set out a prescriptive plan for the post war motor industry. It was headed by Paul-Marie Pons and so it was known as the Plan Pons. Under "The Plan", Renault and Peugeot (along with their Chenard & Walcker debtor/subsidiary) were restricted to making vans for the 1000–1400 kg market, while Citroën was to make small trucks of between 2 and 3.5 tonnes. In the event Citroën, which had already developed a van in the 1000 kG class before the war, went ahead with the design of the Citroën H Van, which was launched in 1947. It was the Citroën which would be the Renault's most effective rival in this sector, although the Renault would in the early years beat its rival on volumes thanks in part to the large number of Renaults produced for military and police use and for other public sector vehicle operators such as the French postal service. Police versions gained the informal appellation “panier à salade” (“paddy wagon”), appearing in newsreels removing arrested suspects following instances of civil disturbance during the troubled 1950s or, more memorably for many United States and UK film-goers in the 1960s, removing Inspector Clouseau following his arrest in the wake of a successful bank raid.
Renault followed the Plan Pons agreement and designed the 206 E1 following general pre-war design ideas. It had a chassis onto which the van body was bolted and the body was made, until 1950, by fitting metal panels to a wooden frame. At a time when French industrial wages were low, the Renault was quick and inexpensive to produce.
Vehicle architecture
In contrast to the rival Citroën H Van, Renault’s design applied a traditional approach, using a rear wheel drive layout and rigid axles. Large wheels combined with a short wheelbase allowed for a tight turning circle and good ground clearance. These features reflected plans for a four wheel drive version in anticipation of military sales and to deal with the poor state of many French roads, especially in the countryside, at this time. The rear-wheel drive and big wheels resulted in the vehicle's raised interior floor height. Renault saw a steady demand for the van, especially from public sector buyers, and 124,570 units vehicles were produced. By some criteria, it was France’s best selling vehicle in its class during the 1950s.
Chronology
The basic architecture and overall silhouette of the vehicle barely changed during a production run of nearly two decades, but there were numerous minor changes to the sheet metal, door hinge arrangements, front bumpers, lights and indicators as well as extensive adaptations for military and police versions. Later models, from the 1960s, can be distinguished by a small additional windows behind each of the side-doors.
At launch the vehicle appeared as a boxy flat sided van with an advertised load volume of 7.45 m³ which compared with 7.3 m³ for the Citroën H as it appeared in the same year. The Renault’s 2,383cc petrol engine had originally been introduced in 1936 for the Renault Primaquatre; slightly downtuned for this application it offered . The dry weight of provided a maximum laden weight of .
During 1947 a flatbed truck version appeared along with a bare chassis version enabling users to specify their own bespoke body variants from specialist truck-body builders.
In July 1949, a heavy duty 1,400 kg version joined the range, and this was also the year when four-wheel drive became an advertised option. By 1952, Renault offered a more modern engine for economy minded buyers and a detuned version of the 1996 cc unit from the recently introduced Renault Frégate was an option for the 1,000 kg model.