In the early 1960s, Europe was experiencing a baby boom. Renault CEO Pierre Dreyfus responded by developing a radically new interior design for a mid-size car. The result was the 1961 Renault R4, a revolutionary and innovative compact car.Then, in 1965, Renault launched the R16, a mid-size family car with a hatchback, large trunk lid and flexible interior. During the design process, the engineers had almost total freedom. The only requirement was a front-wheel drive. The Renault R16 became an international hit. Initially, sales figures doubled year by year. By 1972, seven years later, R16 sales had passed the one-million mark.