Renault 4 GTL (1983)

Before we go on about the restoration and galvanizing, we first explain how it is possible that this R4 GTL from 1983 does not look as such. Loyal disciples of the ‘association d’originalité’ may get the shivers at the sight of this sublimely restored Renault, but we secretly assume that the majority of car enthusiasts will be very enthusiastic about the craftsmanship that René has delivered. That’s nothing short of impressive, especially when you consider that he did pretty much everything himself. In addition, he thought it would be nice to give this Viertje the appearance of a copy from 1972, the same as his own year of birth. We also fully understand that, especially now that we can see the result in front of us.

R4 GTL belonged to brother-in-law in France

Where did it all start? “I have known this car for a long time,” says René. “It belonged to my brother-in-law from France. We visit there every year. They have owned the GTL for over ten years. For the last three years he has languished in a shed. I was looking forward to a big project and saw it as a good basis.” No sooner said than done and in 2019 the Viertje went to the Netherlands on a trailer. “From the very beginning I planned to preserve it very well,” says René. “Yes, perhaps galvanizing is a bit exaggerated, but that challenges me. I first listened to a number of companies that perform hot-dip galvanizing. They just didn’t think I was crazy, but none of them wanted to take on the job, because in their eyes nothing of the thin sheet metal would remain in the boiling hot zinc bath.” Yet René also heard positive stories and that is how he found a company that dared to take on the adventure. “Only I had to sign for all risks.”

Anyway, step one was taken, and so René could move on to the next phase: completely stripping all the sheet metal. And he couldn’t find anyone for that either…

René built a blasting cabin himself

After René had taken the Four apart down to the last screw and systematically stored all parts in racks, he had the honorable task of removing all layers of paint. How do you handle something like that? “First of all, you need a lot of space, but luckily I have that at home. Then I started to study the technique of sandblasting and I built my own blasting cabin. I spent hours, no, days in there. A hell of a job, I admit. But where there is a will there is a way and all the hard work has paid off.” Once René saw how thin the sheet metal was, he also got his doubts. The Four has a loose chassis, and that was the first to take a bath as a test. “Except for a very small wave in the back part, that came out very well. Then it was the turn of the carriage, again a bit more exciting. I came up with a solution for the roof: I cut a very large hole in it, which exactly fits the folding roof of a Twingo. In my opinion a perfect solution, which you also enjoy a lot. One of the two rear fenders came out of the zinc bath with a dent. When it cooled down I put it against my knee and the dent was gone.” There were no problems with the front fenders and hood. The doors were the biggest challenge. “As a test, we tried two pieces, but they came out as corrugated sheets,” René explains. “Those are now the only sheet metal parts that are not galvanized. I have welded plates in a number of places in the bottom and I also had to weld holes to the carriage. Not because of rust, but for example in places where specific parts of the GTL were attached, such as the plastic panels on the flanks. Oh yes, and if you think the sheet metal is as smooth as a mirror after a zinc bath: forget it.”

A zinc layer is indeed far from smooth, even though it may seem that way at first glance. It is rather pockmarked, uneven and coarse. “You don’t sand that smooth, so it first had to be coated with a good layer of epoxy primer and then it’s sanding, sanding and sanding again,” says René.

Renault 4 from the early 1970s as a donor car

To make the transformation to a 1972 model as good as possible, he bought a donor car from that period, including the right door handles and an old type of dashboard. “You don’t just screw that dashboard in, if you think so. I had to adjust everything on the whole car. On the outside, it’s the moldings, the wheels, the hubcaps, the nameplates, the bumpers and of course the grille.” The latter was the biggest challenge, because a good and undamaged copy of that chromed grille is hard to find. More or less by chance, René came across it via Marktplaats. And then there is the technique. “In fact, almost everything is new,” says René. “The brakes, all lines, the ball joints, the ball joints, the wishbone rubbers, the drive shafts, the exhaust, the radiator and so on. The engine has been taken apart and cleaned well. The bearing shells and piston rings have been renewed. He had then run 190,000 kilometers. The gearbox has only been addressed externally.”

This Renault 4 more beautiful than factory new

And then the moment arrives when we put the dazzlingly beautiful, light blue Renault on the bridge. Judge Dennis Koldewijn is back from his test round and can hardly find the words to describe this degree of perfection. The hood opens, as do the mouths of the bystanders. It’s nicer than factory new. Not done by a professional restorer, but by someone with a lot of willpower, perseverance and love for his car. And then the bottom. Insane. René has chosen not to spray the bottom and the insides of the fenders, so that we look at shiny zinc. Beautiful. This way you fall from one surprise to another. We take a deep bow for the craftsmanship with which this R4 has been restored and literally immortalized. Cheers, Rene.

R4 in row 2CV, Beetle and 500

The R4 can go into the gallery with the Citroën 2CV, Volkswagen Beetle and Fiat 500, among others. More than three decades in production, more than eight million units built and almost everyone recognizes it out of thousands. It is a true revolution after the almost pre-war 4CV and the first Renault with front-wheel drive. A car that heralds a new era for the brand. The concept is nothing short of genius, with a four-door, station wagon-like body and large tailgate. A lot of car for little money, just like Citroën did with the 2CV.

Renault 4 made its show debut in September 1961

In August 1961, the press was first introduced to project R1120 and a month later it made its show debut at the IAA in Frankfurt. Powered by a liquid-cooled, 747 cc in-line four-cylinder engine. It is mounted longitudinally, with the three-speed gearbox at the front. Switching is done with the ‘umbrella lever’ that protrudes from the dashboard. In order to attract 2CV drivers as customers, Renault also built an R3 in 1961 and 1962, which in appearance is virtually indistinguishable from the 4. This version was only delivered to the French market, in the color grey. The difference is mainly in the smaller engine, a 603 cc that falls into a lower tax class. The simplest 4 does not have a third side window in the C-pillar, the 4L does. In 1962 the R4 van appears, the Fourgonnette with that handy extra hatch in the back of the roof of the cargo area. From 1964 the cylinder capacity is 845 cc. Only from the GTL in 1983 (the basis for René’s car) did it have 4 front disc brakes. All other models until then have drums all around. Production in France stops in 1992, in Spain in 1994. In the Netherlands, the 4 has been discontinued since 1987.