Tour’2 France – celebrating 60 years of Renault’s Floride and Caravelle.
Story and photos by John Waterhouse
“I take this opportunity to invite you to the 60 years of the Floride next year.” Our friend Alain Traon’s email in 2018 came as a complete and delightful surprise. Alain had organised the Australian contingent at the 50th celebration of the Caravelle in 2012. The “Cara’Boucles” (Daisy Tour) event in France included some 30 Australian rear-engined Renault enthusiasts, most of us from the Renault 4CV Register of Australia. This was a huge gesture of hospitality from our French friends. Alain’s tour planned for this year in May was even more ambitious.
Early and very original Floride in France, 2019
(They are startlingly stylish for 1959, especially with the hard-top fitted!)
We knew it would be a wonderful and yet demanding trip. We were to travel across a lot of France, visiting places valued by the French organisers, and finishing with two more, short events, one in Burgundy (Bourgogne) and one in the beautiful area around Limoges, of porcelain fame. We would drive one of Alain’s several Renault Caravelles, generously prepared for us to drive for the best part of 3-4 weeks and 4,000 km.
The three events
Florides and Caravelles came from all over France, from Belgium and Holland and from as far as 800 km away in Germany. All days involved driving to several points of interest (and generally off the international tourist routes), lining up for photographs and eating!
Superb and rare 1953 4CV “decapotable” with Floride S.
The first event, “Rout’2 France”, took us across a wide area of France for two weeks. This main event then merged into the weekend of “Rout’2 France en Bourgogne”, finishing on 26 May. We then drove to Limoges for the third event, “60 Ans Renault Floride”, from 30 May to 2 June, organised by three more of the French “Floride-Caravelle” clubs.
All versions of Floride and Caravelle models were to be seen and a couple of 4CVs also joined the main event.
The complete route of the three “60 Ans de la Floride” events. Courtesy Google Maps
First event: Rout’2 France
The event began at La Fleche, near Le Mans in north-west France. From there we drove down the Atlantic coast to the Basque country, across the Pyrenees nearly to the Mediterranean side and up through the Massif Central to finish at Marsannay-la-Côte near Dijon.
Three of 45 to 50 Florides and Caravelles at the La Fleche Renault dealer starting point.
The Waterhouses departing La Fleche, just slightly apprehensive…
Lovely 1957 Renault 4CV at La Fleche in the rain.
Floride and Caravelle line-up near Barbâtre on the island of Noirmoutier.
The following morning, we drove off along the (pretty rough) narrow roads and ended up at a little place on a tidal creek, dotted with various small boats resting on the mud – it was low tide. Three tables were there with neat table-cloths, groaning with trays of large fresh oysters, a superb pork terrine and baguettes. A nice dry Chardonnay was produced (moderation required) and we ate like kings – all this at about 9.30 am!
Seemingly unlimited oysters, terrine and wine at 9.30 a.m. at Talmont-sur-Gironde.
Packing the Caravelles at l’Estuarine camp site.
The next morning, we headed for a 10.30 tasting at a little winery with great, inexpensive wines. Our French friends know how to organise a car event with style!
Chateau le Clos des Bonnets – 10.30 am wine tasting.
We travelled a long way down the coast to the Spanish border to Anglet and from there headed east for the Pyrenees, to a camping ground in Alliat. It rained all day, gloomy and wet. From there we drove futher east to a warm hotel in Aucun, in a valley in the high Pyrenees, with spectacular mountain views.
A welcome lunch in a small restaurant out of the rain….
Considering the distances being covered day after day by 55 to 60 year-old vehicles rarely used for long drives, there were few breakdowns. A full day of rain tested the windscreen wipers though and some failed!
Magnificent Pyrenees view from the Hotel Le Picors near Aucun.
The next day we took mostly main roads along the lower country north of the Pyrenees, visiting the UNESCO accredited cathedral of Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges.
Cathedral of Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges, near Montrejeau.
We also visited the excellent Renault spare parts supplier Ichard, located in a collection of old farm buildings with two enormous but friendly dogs to greet customers.
Wildlife at the excellent spare parts supplier, Ichard!
We drove on out of the Pyrenees, by-passing the great fortified city of Carcassonne, north into the southern end of the Massif Central. We stopped in the picturesque village of Olargues for lunch. The local Renault folk had organised food and wine in one of their houses, typical of the friendliness of the whole event.
Picnic lunch at Olargues.
We drove on all afternoon through a variety of hilly terrains, until we got our first views of the great Millau Viaduct. It is just enormous, spanning the valley and saving up to 1-2 hours of driving. The tallest tower is some 600 m high (2,000 feet) twice the height of the Eiffel Tower!
The immense and spectacular Millau Viaduct, towering above the valley clouds.
After Millau, another 300 km day took us through the full length of the lovely Gorges du Tarn with cliffs, short tunnels and a few picturesque villages perched on the edge of the river. The day featured a superb restaurant for lunch and huge cliffs where vultures are being re-introduced to their old haunts.
A Renault 4CV entering one of many short tunnels in Gorges du Tarn.
The first event finishing in Thiers, our group dispersed somewhat, but with a few coming on for the second event, the weekend in Burgundy.
Second event, Burgundy: Rout’2 France en Bourgogne
A longish drive took us to the pretty town of Nolay, including a bit of motorway driving (exciting in a Caravelle).
Rendezvous at Nolay’s Mairie.
At Nolay we met all the weekend participants. After another delicious lunch there was a complex drive to Marsannay-la-Côte, including a roadside wine tasting by a local producer (the 17th generation of his family in wine-making…).
Roadside wine tasting at the top of the escarpment overlooking Bourgogne.
Typical Burgundy vineyard view.
More driving around Burgundy ended with a farewell lunch at Château de Savigny-lès-Beaune, including the Abarth collection of the 1960s racing driver Michel Pont.
Final lunch for Tour’2 France en Bourgogne.
Third event, Limoges: 60 ANS RENAULT FLORIDE 1959-2019
This third event at Limoges was organised a mostly different group from three other Floride-Caravelle clubs:
• Flocar Sud-Ouest
• Génération Floride Caravelle
• Bretagne Floride Caravelle Club
Limoges group of Florides and Caravelles.
We visited a historic porcelain kiln museum in Limoges, extremely interesting, and later Segur-le-chateau, one of the most beautiful villages in France.
Caravelles in the beautiful village of Segur-le-chateau.
Segur le chateau, 30-May.
Château Coussac-Bonneval.
Three more days vanished all too quickly. A final and poignant activity was a pilgrimage to the ruins of the village of Oradour sur Glane, preserved by the French government as a memorial to the hundreds of men, women and children who were massacred there by the Nazis as a reprisal in June, 1944.
Not to be forgotten.
It was a sombre finish to a wonderful visit to France.
John Waterhouse, the author, has owned and regularly drives rear-engined Renaults in Australia. He currently owns a French-built 1950 4CV (since 1966) and an Australian-assembled 1964 R8 (since 1973) and is National Coordinator of the Renault 4CV Register of Australia. The four Australians who were so generously invited, hosted and provided with Caravelles to drive over weeks and thousands of kilometres are profoundly grateful. They thank all our French friends from the various Floride and Caravelle car clubs who were so welcoming and collegial.
Floride Caravelle Club de France badge is of nice quality, all very French in style.
Thank you for the fine article. The Floride/Caravelle has been a long time favorite of mine. It’s nice to see that they are held in high regard in their homeland.
Lovely article John. I just love France, the countryside and the people and this takes me back.
I would love to drive my Alpine SX there! C’est la vie.
Bruce Porter, my Renault-loving cousin – he owned about 10 of various body-styles (include Florides) when he died suddenly in Adelaide in 1990 – who effectively introduced me to cars should have been on this tour. Nothing would ahve kept him away.
Peter Robinson
Great tour. Brings back memories of my 1st new car, a 62′ Caravelle, economical, good looks, and fun to drive. Wish I had kept it.
My first car was a 4 cv, my dad had a Renault Dauphin, and also a Floride , which was a very flashy car in England at the time, 850cc inline rear engine , I used to drive it from Manchester to Cornwall in the early sixties, my 4 cv had several trips to Europe always over the Swiss alps down to Italy. Non synchromesh gearbox , double de clutch all the time
I love my black Caravelle and drive it often.
I speak French to her.
Just wish I was with her in France for this tour!