Renault Frendzy 2011 review

There is indeed warmth in the pale green and matte grey bodywork, while synthetic materials are used to recreate organic-feeling interior panels such as plastic floor and seat-back mouldings that genuinely look and feel like weathered hardwood, and faux leather interwoven with metal strands to hatch patchwork seat cushions.

Renault’s design director for concept and show cars Axel Breun is quick to point out that modern production methods make such finishes relatively inexpensive, and can lend sophistication without the pricey inference of luxury. In other words, it doesn’t have to look ugly to be affordable and rugged.

Breun confirms that the tablet integration featured on the Frendzy is scheduled for production sooner rather than later, allowing connectivity and processing power on the move, while other innovations may be further off but will become more affordable, and therefore more likely to hit the options list, with time.

The current Kangoo’s innovative overhead parcel shelf could be optionally switched for the Frendzy’s fabric roof. It’s a fixed covering that stretches to allow awkward loads a few extra inches here and there. Likewise the radio transponder sensors in the boot frame record incoming and outgoing cargo; ballast which itself can be invisibly tethered via the magnetic floor.

More complex but still very possible would be the application of the Frendzy’s split tailgate, the lower part of which is a rectangular panel that electrically slides outwards then down to a parallel position, allowing easy access to the flat floor in a very compact arrangement. Perhaps less realistic is the 37in TV screen integrated with the sliding door, but at least the Frendzy shows it can be done tidily.

On the downside, the Frendzy misses out on the Kangoo’s flat floor when the rear seats (numbering two on a solid bench, as opposed to the Kangoo’s splitting row of three) are folded down, as the rear half of the interior is forced upwards by the Lithium-ion battery pack underneath, slashing maximum storage space by more than 20 percent. However, the production Kangoo ZE van is packaged to accommodate batteries without affecting load space, so it can be done, and the Frendzy’s slightly compromised layout does allow an incredibly elegant mechanism to stow the rear seats. Now you see them, now you don’t. Really.