Patricia O’Connell:

Designer Kenneth Melville explains how just how tough it is to build a $6,000 car, including some swallowing of pride
Cars prices have accelerated steadily for the last decade, thanks to an increasing reliance on technology and ever-more luxurious interiors. Even a compact car can easily cost more than $20,000. Shifting into reverse, French auto maker Renault decided in 1998 to design a modern car with state-of-the-art safety features costing only 5,000 euros ($6,000). Renault’s strategy was to create a car for people in emerging markets who have never owned an automobile — some 80% of the world’s population.