The Renault 5 Diamant is a collaboration between the automaker and artist Pierre Gonalons. This futuristic version of the classic Renault 5 is a departure from the usual vehicle design. Plus, Renault and Gonalons made the Diamant into a future-proof electric vehicle.

The Renault 5 Diamant celebrates 50 years of the hatchback

Renault is celebrating a milestone! The Renault 5 is celebrating its 50th anniversary with a special Diamant version. Between 1972 and 1984, the Renault 5 sold more than five million units in a variety of countries. Working with French designer Pierre Gonalons, the Renault 5 Diamant has some luxury features you might not see on another car (ever again). Gonalons is “among the 100 best creators by the publication Architectural Digest and representative of French art.”

Gonalons and Renault got to work. The Renault Design Colors and Materials team worked tirelessly with the designer to create this striking electric car showing Gonalons’ vision for the future. The Diamant merged the design of cars with interior decor that “embodies a pop, optimistic, resolutely contemporary life.”

The Renault 5 Diamant has a pretzel-shaped steering wheel

The Renault 5 Diamant retains the iconic hatchback shape that first rolled off the line in 1972, but it is an electric vehicle in disguise. The designers replaced the gas engine with an electric motor. François Farion, Renault Colors & Materials Director, said the color of the Diamant is meant to “give the car an appearance that is both naive and sophisticated.” The color of the paint was achieved using gold pigments and a pink base. Gonalons then frosted it with an iridescent varnish.

Renault deliberately changed and magnified certain features of the car for impact. The headlights and taillights are shaped like gems and the wide wheels were inspired by the Alpine version. Renault made the pretzel-shaped steering wheel from marble on carbon. The automaker and design team says the shape is functional, but it looks a bit complicated.

A fingerprint reader unlocks the doors, bringing the Renault 5 into 2022. The Diamant has a digital screen that displays things like speed and time, but the driver can mount a phone in the middle of the dashboard for navigation.

The dashboard is made of hand-weaved horsehair, of course

Some final details include hand-weaved horsehair fabric sheathing used on the dashboard. Métaphores is the only textile publisher in the world to weave horsehair by hand. Pinton made the mohair wool floor mats. Don’t expect to see a Renault 5 turbo with hand-weaved horsehair anything.

Renault plans to auction off the Renault 5 Diamant along with an NFT later this year. The proceeded of the auctions will go to Give Me 5, a new social initiative by the automaker.

The Renault 5 Diamant is excessive but that is the point. The longer you look at it, the better it gets! Keep an eye out for later this month when Renault and Pierre Gonalons auction off this one-of-a-kind luxury electric hatchback.