The President of the Republicans of the Senate, Gérard Larcher, was Sébastien Krebs' guest on Monday morning in Europe Matin.

Assiduous driver of a beige 4L for fifty years, he returned to his love story and his true passion for this vehicle, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of this emblematic Renault.

INTERVIEW

Who said that the second figure in the state couldn't be a 4L enthusiast at the same time?

On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of this car which has marked generations of French people, the President of the Senate, Gérard Larcher, returned to his love affair with this Renault, which he still drives occasionally.

Guest of Sébastien Krebs in

Europe Matin on

Monday, he agreed to go back to his memories with this hexagonal icon.

His first steps as a driver

"The 4L was my mother's car. She came to pick us up from boarding school, it was the one with the rear hatch that folded. And it was with this car that I took my first steps as a driver. car before having the license. But let's be clear, it was in the yard of the farm ", recalled the president of the Senate.

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But his first real memories with this vehicle go back to his 19 years and to a rather special trip, in two countries then under dictatorship.

"We left with two friends and we toured Spain and Portugal. It was a rather extraordinary discovery of countries which joined democracy, after our veterinary studies. This trip is a very strong memory for I."

This beige 4L even served as a dormitory during this getaway.

"Finally, we mostly slept next to the car, in ditches," admits Gérard Larcher.

"It was a great summer."

"In Rambouillet, everyone knows my 4L"

Fifty years later, the politician is still in possession of this car.

“Today, it's a vintage car. I do the maintenance at a small garage and sometimes myself, but I'm not very good. When we take the brochure of the Renault R4 of the time, he was selling it with a mechanical safety, the quality of which I can easily confirm. "

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Gérard Larcher ensures that he is always a diligent driver of the 4L and that he travels regularly with it in his region of Rambouillet: "Everyone here knows my R4. I even go with it in official events and elsewhere, when I park it in the street, sometimes people leave me a note on the windshield. "

Despite the cold, a quick start

"We do everything in a 4L", boasts the President of the Senate.

"I remember that during my vet studies, I carried the drugs in crates, I took the surgical equipment… It never breaks down, it starts all the time. There, for example, she has just gone through an ordeal. : it was -10 degrees last week. And yet, it started straight away ", laughs Gérard Larcher.

"It's really a family symbol, with a lot of memories. Afterwards, it's true that for someone like me, getting out of 4L is simple, but I shouldn't take 15 fg more . "

As for the electric 4L model that Renault could relaunch in 2025 with the same steering wheel and the same headlights as in the 1960s, Gérard Larcher said he was convinced.

"I say banco, because it is a car that has sold more than 8 million copies, which was accessible and which renders enormous services. The one I currently have, even if I did anti-pollution controls, it is not really optimal for our concerns today. So I am of course for a new one, more in accordance with these criteria. "