Car Of The Day: August 1, 2012

Today's car of the day comes from Dean-O-mite's collection and is Golden Wheel's 1973 Renault 17 TL.

The Renault 15 and Renault 17 are two variations of the same coupe designed and built by French automaker Renault between 1971 and 1980. The R17 was sold as R177 in Italy, respecting a superstition. They were effectively coupe versions of the Renault 12. The main differences between the two cars were their headlight configuration (the 15 had two rectangular headlights whereas the 17 had four round headlights), and their rear side windows.

For more information and pictures of the real car please visit: Renault 17

This plastic Golden Wheel is a simplified copy of the Matchbox Renault 17. The Golden Wheel version was released a few years ago, along with some other 1970's Matchbox copies, including the Datsun 260Z and Porsche 911. They feature metal bases which offer some heft, but a complete lack of rear detailing is really disappointing. -Dean-O-mite

The range was gradually introduced in Australia from May 1973. The 15TS and 17TL were initially available with the 17TS being promised later in the year. These 1973 model year vehicles contained several unique features, the stick-on mirror and sun visors from the Renault 12 to comply with regulations ("ADR"). The sun visor retaining catch on these models was never used and available only in Australia. The instrument panel "verandah" was fitted to reduce glare and was only fitted to Australian, North American and Scandinavian versions. Sales of these early models were slow in Australia due to their relatively high price, and continued through to late 1974.

The chassis and most of the running gear came from the Renault 12, while the 1565 cc 107 hp A-Type engine in the more powerful R17 TS and R17 Gordini models was derived from the engine in the Renault 16 TS. Though the mechanicals of the cars were derived from other Renaults, the body was completely new. The R15 and R17 remained in production until 1980 when they were both replaced by the Renault Fuego.