Carsales Staff•11 Mar 2014
NEWS
SPY PICS: Renault prepares new Trafic
Recent teaser for Renault's next-gen Trafic might be an exercise in artistic licenceRenault released a teaser sketch of the next-generation Trafic van in January this year and now a test mule of the upcoming new model has been snapped by the spy photographers from Automedia during a winter test program.
And if the creatively disguised mule is any indication, the real thing won’t be quite as cutting-edge as suggested by the renderings.
Where the teaser image showed a van that could have been a grown-up version of a Hot Wheels fantasy, the actual test mule looks even more conventional than the current Trafic.
A number of things are indicated: The front end will be more bluff and massive, with a noticeably protruding bonnet that contrasts with the current arrangement of continuously-sloped windscreen/bonnet, while the overall shape looks as boxy and efficient as ever.
It is difficult, with the application of the cladding that seems intended to imitate the grainy finish of a long-distance telephoto lens shot, to guess what might be happening at the front end of the upcoming Trafic, although some of the elements of the teaser rendering – including the oversize outer air vents and the ultra-swoopy headlights, could come to fruition.
Our spies suggest the ultra-long, vertical tail lights might end up being different to what is portrayed on the low-roof test mule, but there seems no doubt they will still occupy the outer rear ends of the body, stacked vertically.
There is also speculation that the next Trafic could delve in to the parts bin from the upcoming new Viano MPV from Mercedes-Benz. That would seem unlikely, given the Viano is rear-wheel drive and the current Renault runs a front-wheel drive system – but Renault has done exactly that for the new Twingo... migrating from front to rear-wheel drive with some help from Mercedes-Benz.
Renault Australia says the next generation Trafic is planned for a local launch in early 2015, and that we will get a better, official look some time before April this year.
– with Automedia
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Written byCarsales Staff
Our team of independent expert car reviewers and journalists
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