If you read about the Renault Goelette on French websites you will find that it is “indestructible”, but the advert for the sale of a 1962 example shows us that the time leaves its mark on any car, whether produced in France or anywhere else in the world.
At the beginning of the post-war era, France was struggling to rebuild itself after the Second World War and Renault wanted to contribute to this with the Renault 1000 Kg. It was a light van, originally with a capacity of one tonne, that was introduced in 1947. A 1,400 Kg version followed in 1949 and this became very popular. A name change took place in 1959 making the vans Renault Voltigeur (1,000 kg) and Renault Goelette (1,400 kg). This very robust vehicle was known to tolerate overloads without much effort. Many versions were produced, including an all-wheel drive one.
Fast forward to 2022 and here we are, facing an advert for the sale of a 1962 Renault Goelette. And we have to say that time has not been kind to this model at all.
There are rust marks everywhere. In fact, it would be easier to list the places where it has no rust. Although the ad says it is brown, there is some evidence that the Renault was once blue.
The van is not operational at the moment but for those who want to buy a little piece of French history, so to speak, and then restore it, they should know that the vehicle has a 1,997 cc petrol engine producing 47 kW – 64 ps (63 hp) and a manual gearbox.
Those who have owned it in the past haven’t driven it very much, it has only 65,000 km (40.389 miles) on the clock.