- Las matrículas
- Servicio Vacaciones
- Camargue photos
- Spanish but not FASA?
- 1961: Introduction
- 1961: Location map
- Find a brochure
- Find an ad
- Dating an R4
- Viaje en Furgo
- Cartas postales
- Spot the difference
- Where was it?
- Brochure coding
- Pas de graissage!
Between approximately 1967 and 1980 Renault offered a special road service, similar to the French 'service vacances' and named the 'servicio vacaciones'. It existed next to the ordinary 'Renault servicio' which also operated furgonetas. If it hadn't been for the frequent (at least 10 times!) coverage in Velocidad magazine little would be known about it nowadays except the toys cars that are available all over the web. Further, only a single Autopista 543 (1969) and Auto Revista 1147 (1979) with information were found. Therefore, most images below are from Velocidad.
Spanish Service furgoneta, brochures 1966-1969
French Service Vacances, appr. 1967
The service, also called the 'Operación Verano', was only available during the summer time. Usually 14 furgonetas were made available by Renault (8 in 1967, 15 in 1979), each one operating on a specific trajectory. The service was offered to all drivers, irrespective of car brand and nationality, for free, except spares. Velocidad reported on a near yearly basis on the routes, the amount of interventions by the 14 mechanics, the nationalities of the affected drivers, and the types of repairs that were made.
Servicio Vacaciones network 1968 - 1979. In yellow, the years network, and in grey all known itineraries during the period.
The Furgonetas had different colour schemes during their existence, as shown below.
The first generation was painted red, with a white roof and a 10cm white stripe below the window along the entire side of the car. On the side a text read 'RENAULT servicio vacaciones', and the same text in French, English and German. Four flags were painted on the side, of France, Switzerland, Austria and Spain, together with a smiling sun. On the roof was a large (first type) Renault logo. The rims, without hubcabs, were painted yellow. On the rear window a large text read 'STOP'.
Servicio Vacanciones 1968
A decorated mechanic, thanked by the public
Servicio Vacanciones 1969
The 1969 team of mechanics: Jesús Til Bravo, Antonio Sanchagarre Aguilar, Joaquin Molinero Arbosé, José Castany Vilalta, Pedro Blasco Calderón, Antonio Reina Cámara, José M. Segarra Pascual, Ramón Nieto Aguilar, Bernardo Berros, Antonio Durán Salgado, Venancio Moreno, Gonzalo Hontoria, Tomás Carvajo Osorio and Luis Fernández García.
The colouring and text was slightly changed to include white doors, and the white stripe did not continue anymore over the front wings. The text was changed to 'RENAULT servicio vacaciones' (also in French, German and English), and 'a su servicio en su ruta de vacaciones' ('at your service on your holiday route').
Servicio Vacanciones 1972
A look inside the back
The cars have become yellow, with a white roof and a 20cm band along the lower part of the body, with just the text 'Servicio vacaciones RENAULT' on the side. The flags, now including France, Spain, Austria, Italy, the United Kingdom, Denmark, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Germany, were moved to the front wing. Instead of the huge logo on the roof, there was now a large (second) logo on the side, and above the roof a rectangular plate with text' servicio vacaciones'. On the back, a text on the rear window reads 'ayuda en carretera'. The closed rims were also yellow, without hubcabs. Of course, the bonnet still had the first grille!
Servicio Vacanciones 1974
Servicio Vacanciones 1975
The routes in 1975
The paintwork remained largely the same in yellow, but the bumpers (from rectangular to round in 1979), grille (boca ballena to black plastic) and rims (close to 10 ventilation holes) changed. From 1979, the cars were the elevated type known as 'sobre-elevada'.
Servicio Vacanciones 1978
The routes in 1978
Servicio Vacanciones 1979, note the elevated roof
Still later, the furgonetas were replaced by F6, now mostly white, the lower 60cm of the body in yellow with a 10cm black stripe in between, just the text 'RENAULT Servicio vacaciones' and 8 flags on the front wings: Italy, Austria, Spain, France, United Kingdom, Denmark, Switzerland, the Netherlands (on drawings also the Swedish flag is visible).
Servicio Vacanciones 1981 (?)
(Note the recycled and mirrored cover of Velocidad 354, of 1968, for 672, of 1974).
