Russian owner kept this affordable Renault 19 unused for 25 years as a relic

A rare Renault 19 hatchback is up for grabs in Moscow with a quarter of a century behind it and only 510 kilometers (317 miles) of use. Anyone fancy an affordable time capsule?

For the current asking price of 549,000 Rubles ($7,533 USD), you can just about buy the cheapest Lada Granta in modern-day Russia. The owner claims that he paid around four times that amount ($27,000 USD) back when he acquired the car at a Musa Motors dealership in 1996.

Aside from its near-pristine state, the car is interesting because of its body style. The vast majority of Renault 19 models sold in Russia were sedans, while this one is a hatchback. The ad description fails to mention a trim level, but photos suggest that it was a high-end trim with power assist features and an AC on board.

We are told that the owner spent 100,000 RUB ($1,372 USD) to replace the degraded components such as all the belts, the liquids, the battery and the spark plugs. He piled all the replaced OEM parts into the trunk, rather than throwing them away.

A 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine under the hood connects to a five-speed manual transmission to drive the Renault 19 with 72 PS (71 hp / 53 kW). Reaching 100 km/h (62 mph) is a matter of a lengthy 15 seconds, and you will be lucky to be able to get to the claimed top speed of 160 km/h (99 mph). Fuel economy is not that bad at 6.6 liters per 100 km mixed-cycle (35.6 MPG).

Watch the video for a reminder on what the car looks and feels like.