Renault Kangoo Furgón, the van with the best side door ever designed

We have all heard of the phrase “Open Sesame“, the one the character in the legend said to open the cave of the 40 thieves. In this case, it applies to the side door of the Renault Kangoo Furgón. A door that has amounted to a revolution in terms of style and functionality renewal. The new Kangoo Furgón has eliminated the central pillar, which allows for a large access opening and which has posed a challenge for the brand’s engineers.

The central pillar is the connection point for many elements of the vehicle. It houses the door locks and the anchor point for the seat belt. Eliminating it means modifying the design and relocating all of these components within the van’s structure.

A challenge that is normally reserved for concept vehicles and that rarely makes it to production models. The Kangoo Furgón’s side door has lost that point of support and has become an independent element without the reinforcement that pillar provided. This has meant that it had to be reinforced to withstand possible impacts and to absorb collisions efficiently. The passenger door has also been reinforced so that it is equally resistant.

The locks have been relocated to the upper and lower parts. The seat belt, which in the passenger’s case was also anchored to this pillar, has been moved to the central part of the cabin and is fastened from left to right. This change, which may seem very small and of little importance, implies changing the entire body structure.

In fact, the Maubeuge plant has needed significant changes to its assembly line to handle production of this model. Instead of preparing the structure without the central pillar, it is built with a temporary pillar, which is removed during the manufacturing process. This temporary pillar serves as support while the body is being built and is removed to deliver the final solution.

The “Open Sesame” door has 101 welding points compared with the 60 the door had when the central pillar was present. The result is a door that offers a very efficient side access solution with an opening distance of 1.45 metres. A milestone for commercial vehicles that improves the vehicle’s capability.