Renault

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Official site:</B> N/A</div> <div> <IMG SRC="adafabb0.jpg" border=0 width="250" height="187" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> Powering the radical Modus is a variety of engines.</div> <div> The available engine range in Europe to date is as follows:</div> <bR> <div>     * 1.2 16v Petrol in various states of tune (from a 65 bhp/48 kW unit to a 74 bhp/55 kW)</div> <div>     * 1.4 16v Petrol (97 bhp/72 kW)</div> <div>     * 1.5 dCi Common Rail Diesel (from 85 bhp/63 kW up to 106 bhp/78 kW unit)</div> <div>     * 1.6 16v Petrol (111 bhp/82 kW)</div> <div> The practicality of the Modus is increased by the addition of several innovative features:</div> <bR> <div> The Triptic seating system which has the rear seats mounted on sliding rails with four preset positions. When in the rearmost two positions the seats are configured for two people with increased leg, hip and shoulder room. When in the forward positions they are configured for three people, sacrificing comfort but increasing cargo capacity.</div> <bR> <div> Another seat-based feature of Modus models was a flip up cushion on the front passenger seat squab which left a space in which the driver could place objects to prevent them from rolling into the footwell and under the seats.</div> <bR> <div> The Modus other feature of note is its boot chute; a drop-down opening in the centre of the tailgate below the rear window which can be opened even when the car is parked nose to tail with other vehicles which would normally prevent access to its load area, thus enabling the user to place smaller items inside even in those situations. The boot chute closely resembles the tailgate of the original Mini.</div> <bR> <div> The Modus was also one of the first cars in its class to have such features as automatic headlamps and windshield wipers on its options list. It was the first small car the receive 5 EuroNCAP stars for passenger safety due in part to its six airbag system, front and rear side impact bars and ISOFIX child seat fixing points.</div> <bR> <div> The Renault Modus is a mini MPV designed and built by the French automaker Renault in Valladolid, Spain since September 2004.</div> <bR> <div> The production version is very similar to the concept car of the same name. It is essentially a taller and higher version of the Clio and, as such, shares its platform and much of its engine range with the Clios latest incarnation.</div> <bR> <div> It is targeted at people who want the practicality and versatility of the larger Renault Scénic but without the added size. The Clio platform that spawned the Modus also gave rise to the current Nissan Micra and its monospace relative the Nissan Note.</div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="ad9fa6f0.jpg" border=0 width="250" height="111" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> Fernando Alonso driving for Renault F1 at Indianapolis in 2005</div> <div> Renault F1 is the Renault company's Formula One racing team.</div> <div> 2007</div> <div> Renault has confirmed Giancarlo Fisichella and Heikki Kovalainen as their race drivers for 2007. Test drivers will be Nelson Piquet Jr and Ricardo Zonta. The car for 2007, the R27, was unveiled on 24 January 2007, and bears a new yellow, blue, orange and white livery in deference to the corporate colours of ING.</div> <bR> <div> Renault engines are also being used by Red Bull Racing team, while the Ferrari engine contract is being passed to Scuderia Toro Rosso (otherwise known as the second "development" Red Bull team).</div> <bR> <div> Renault struggled in comparison to their form in recent seasons in Australia, with Giancarlo Fisichella finishing the race in 5th place. Rookie Heikki Kovalainen struggled even more than the Italian, spinning his car as he chased Toyota's Ralf Schumacher and ending up in 10th place. Results didn't improve after that, although both drivers finished in the points in the next race at Malaysia. Heikki Kovalainen struggled in Bahrain too, although the gap between himself and Fisichella at the end of the race was not as great as was seen at Melbourne, with Fisichella finishing only 8th.</div> <bR> <div> Regarding Renault's commitment to its Formula One team, particularly with the appointment of Carlos Ghosn as CEO in 2005. Ghosn has a reputation as a ruthless businessman, nicknamed "le cost cutter". However at the 2005 French Grand Prix Ghosn set out his policy regarding the company's involvement in motorsport: "We are not in Formula One out of habit or tradition. We're here to show our talent and that we can do it properly... Formula One is a cost if you don't get the results.</div> <bR> <div> Formula One is an investment if you do have them and know how to exploit them." In short he will continue Renault's investment in F1 as long as the team is successful and can use the resulting publicity for wider commercial gain. Renault have recently signed an agreement with Formula One Management pledging its allegiance to Formula 1 until 2012.</div> <bR> <div> After Renault won both championships in 2006 for a second year, Ghosn said "It is an important victory because it justifies the investment Renault has made in Formula 1, and will make in the future. More and more, Formula 1 is working as an investment for us, not a loss.</div> <bR> <div> Renault F1 has a research relationship with Boeing, the aim of which is "to investigate technology collaboration projects of mutual interest." [6] Similar relationships include that of McLaren and BAE Systems.</div> <bR> <div> Renault has competed in Formula One (originally via subsidiary Renault Sport), both as an engine supplier and as a constructor from the late 1970s to the present day, with several breaks.</div> <div> Renault introduced the turbo engine to Formula One when they debuted their first car, the Renault RS01 at Silverstone in 1977.</div> <bR> <div> Although the Renault team won races and competed for world titles, it was as a supplier of normally aspirated engines to the Benetton and Williams teams in the 1990s that Renault first tasted world championship success.</div> <bR> <div> Renault returned to the category as a constructor in 2001 by taking over the Benetton team, which was renamed Renault in 2002. Their first championship as a constructor was achieved in 2005; the same year that they won their first drivers' championship with former test driver, Fernando Alonso, repeating in 2006.</div> <bR> <div> Renault F1 is coordinated from the team's UK base at Enstone, Oxfordshire where the chassis are designed and built. Engines are manufactured at Renault's facility at Viry-Châtillon outside Paris. As well as their championship wins in 2005 and 2006, Renault also contributed to 5 driver's world championships (1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997) and 6 constructor's world championships (1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997) as engine supplier for Benetton and Williams.</div> <bR> <div> Currently, Renault F1 is responsible for Renault's involvement in Formula One; Renault's other motorsport activities are conducted through Renault Sport.</div> <bR> <div> Motorsport has long been recognised as an effective marketing tool for automobile manufacturers.</div> <bR> <div> In the late seventies and early eighties, Renault began to involve itself more heavily in motorsport, setting up a dedicated motorsport division called Renault Sport, and winning the Le Mans 24 Hours (with the Renault Alpine A442, built in collaboration with newly-acquired Alpine) while achieving success in both rallying (with the Renault 5 Turbo) and Formula One.</div> <bR> <div> Initially, Renault's entry into Formula One in 1977 was ridiculed when the team's first design included such curiosities as a turbocharger. However, the team was to win their first race on home soil in Dijon a mere two years later and by the early eighties, every front-running Formula One team used turbochargers.</div> <bR> <div> Renault also took over the Benetton F1 team in 2001, and quickly became very competitive, Fernando Alonso winning Renault's first race in its second incarnation at the 2003 Hungarian Grand Prix. 2004 saw the Renault team finish a close third in the Constructors' Championship and in 2005 the team won both Constructors' and Drivers' titles (with Fernando Alonso). In 2006 Renault repeated its success of the previous year, again claiming both the Constructors' and Drivers' titles (again with Fernando Alonso before his departure to McLaren in 2007).</div> <bR> <div> Questions have been raised regarding Renault's commitment to its Formula One team, particularly with the appointment of Carlos Ghosn as CEO. However at the 2005 French Grand Prix Ghosn set out his policy regarding the company's involvement in motorsport:</div> <bR> <div>     "We are not in Formula One out of habit or tradition. We're here to show our talent and that we can do it properly... Formula One is a cost if you don't get the results. Formula One is an investment if you do have them and know how to exploit them."</div> <bR> <div> In short he will continue Renault's investment in F1 as long as the team is successful and can use the resulting publicity for wider commercial gain. Conversely if the team is unsuccessful in future it can be expected that Ghosn will withdraw resources from the sport.</div> <bR> <div> In 2006 Carlos Ghosn finally announced that the team would stay in F1 in the long term (at least until 2012) putting an end to the rumors.</div> <bR> <div> Renault drops further in April French car sales</div> <div> Automotive News / May 2, 2007</div> <bR> <div> PARIS (Reuters) -- The two French carmakers suffered further sales declines in their home market in April, and their combined market share slipped to just above half, data released today show.</div> <bR> <div> New car sales by Renault fell another 14 percent in April and those of PSA/Peugeot-Citroen declined 7.2 percent, the CCFA car association said.</div> <bR> <div> CCFA said the overall market was down 4.9 percent to 172,661 vehicles and dropped 9.7 percent, when adjusted for the same number of working days.</div> <bR> <div> Over the January to April period, new car registrations were 2.3 percent lower at 691,852 vehicles.</div> <bR> <div> The market share of the two French car makers slipped to 52.7 percent. Renault alliance partner Nissan had 18.1 percent lower sales, while sales of the Dacia Logan were up 50.3 percent to 2,359 vehicles.</div> <bR> <div> Among gainers were Volkswagen, up 3.3 percent, and Ford, up 2.7 percent. BMW had 8.8 percent higher sales, boosted by a 24.1 percent increase in sales of Mini cars.</div> <bR> <div> Fiat slipped 6.8 percent.</div> <bR> <div> <B>History</B></div> <div> Renault S.A. is a French vehicle manufacturer producing cars, vans, buses, tractors, and trucks. The company is well known for numerous revolutionary designs, security technologies and motor racing.</div> <bR> <div> When its cars were exported to the United States during the 1950s and 1960s, the name was commonly mispronounced as "ren-alt" to and by the American public, and the Americanised pronunciation continues in common usage, though the original French has gained significant ground over recent years. In the United Kingdom it is pronounced "ren-o" though the French pronunciation is closer to "ruh-no"</div> <bR> <div> Producing cars since late 1898, the Renault corporation was founded in 1899 as Société Renault Frères by Louis Renault, his brothers Marcel and Fernand, and his friend Thomas Evert. Louis was a bright, aspiring young engineer who had already designed and built several models before teaming up with his brothers, who had honed their business skills working for their father's textiles firm. While Louis handled design and production, Marcel and Fernand handled company management.</div> <bR> <div> The first Renault car, the Renault Voiturette 1CV was sold to a friend of Louis' father after giving him a test ride on December 24, 1898. The client was so impressed with the way the tiny car ran and how it climbed the streets that he bought it.</div> <bR> <div> The brothers immediately recognised the publicity that could be obtained for their vehicles by participation in motor racing and Renault made itself known through achieving instant success in the first city-to-city races held in Switzerland, resulting in rapid expansion for the company. Both Louis and Marcel Renault raced company vehicles, but Marcel was killed in an accident during the 1903 Paris-Madrid race. Although Louis Renault never raced again, his company remained very involved, including their Renault AK 90CV winning the first ever Grand Prix motor racing event in 1906. Louis was to take full control of the company as the only remaining brother in 1906 when Fernand retired for health reasons.</div> <bR> <div> The Renault reputation for innovation was fostered from very early on. In 1899, Renault launched the first production sedan car as well as patenting the first turbocharger. At the time, cars were very much luxury items, and the price of the smallest Renaults available being 3000 francs reflected this; an amount it would take ten years for the average worker at the time to earn. As well as cars, Renault manufactured taxis, buses and commercial cargo vehicles in the pre-war years, and during World War I (1914 - 1918) branched out into ammunition, military airplanes and vehicles such as the revolutionary Renault FT-17 tank. Renault became the world's leading manufacturer of airplane engines, and the success of the company's military designs were such that Renault himself was honoured by the Allies for his company's contributions to their victory. By the end of the war, Renault was the number one private manufacturer in France.</div> <bR> <div> The company's compact and economical Renault 5 model, launched in 1972, was another success, particularly in the wake of the 1973 energy crisis. The 5 remained in production until 1984 when it was replaced by the Super5. The formula was much the same however, and the Super5 inherited its styling lines from its father (however with a transversal engine, as opposed to the longitudinal engine inherited by the first generation Renault 5 from the Renault 4). Endangered like all of the motor industry by the energy crisis, during the mid seventies the already expansive company diversified further into other industries and continued to expand globally, including into South East Asia. The energy crisis also provoked Renault's attempt to reconquer the North American market; despite the Dauphine's success in the United States in the late 1950s, and an unsuccessful car-assembly project in Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, Québec, (1964-1972), Renault had virtually disappeared from North America by the 1970s.</div> <bR> <div> However, in the early part of the decade, when the energy crisis-hit continent required smaller, more economical cars, Renault began to make plans to return through a collaborative partnership with the American manufacturer American Motors Corporation (AMC). From 1962 to 1967, Renault assembled complete knock down (CKD) kits of the Rambler Classic sedans in its factory in Belgium. Renault did not have large or luxury cars in its product line and the "Rambler Renault" was aimed as an alternative to the Mercedes-Benz "Fintail" cars. Similar to the fate of some of these Mercedes cars at the time, many of these "American" Renaults finished their life working as taxis. Later, Renault would continue to make and sell a hybrid of AMC's Rambler American and Rambler Classic called the Renault Torino in Argentina (sold through IKA-Renault). Renault partnered with AMC on other projects, such as development of a rotary concept engine in the late 60s, and would eventually own AMC in 1980.</div> <bR> <div> This was one of a series of collaborative ventures undertaken by Renault in the late 1960s and 1970s, as the company established subsidiaries in Eastern Europe, most notably Dacia in Romania, and South America (many of which remain active to the present day) and forged technological cooperation agreements with Volvo and Peugeot (for instance, for the development of the PRV V6 engine, which was used in Renault 30, Peugeot 604, and Volvo 260 in the late 1970s.).</div> <bR> <div> In the mid 1960s an Australian arm, Renault Australia, was setup in Heidelberg, Melbourne, which would close in 1981. Interestingly Renault Australia did not just concentrate on Renaults, they also built and marketed Peugeots as well. From 1977, they assembled Ford Cortina station wagons under contract- the loss of this contract led to the closure of the factory.</div> <bR> <div> In North America, Renault formed a partnership with AMC, loaning AMC operating capital and buying a small percentage of the company in late 1979. Jeep was keeping AMC afloat until new products, particularly the XJ Cherokee, could be launched. When the bottom fell out of the 4x4 truck market in early 1980 AMC was in danger of going bankrupt. To protect its investment Renault bailed AMC out with a big cash influx -- at the price of a controlling interest in the company -- 47.5%. Renault quickly replaced some top positions in AMC with their own people.</div> <bR> <div> The Renault-AMC partnership also resulted in the marketing of Jeep vehicles in Europe. Some consider the Jeep XJ Cherokee as a joint AMC/Renault project since some early sketches of the XJ series was done as a collaboration of both Renault and AMC engineers (AMC insisted that the XJ Cherokee was designed by AMC personnel; however, a former Renault engineer designed the Quadra-Link front suspension for the XJ series). The Jeep also used wheels and unique rocking seats from Renault. Part of AMC's overall strategy when the partnership was first discussed was to save manufacturing cost by using Renault sourced parts when practical, and some engineering expertise. This led to the improvement of the venerable AMC in-line six -- a Renault/Bendix based port electronic fuel injection system (usually called Renix) that transformed it into a modern, competitive powerplant with a jump from 110 hp to 177 hp with less displacement (4.0L vs. 4.2L).</div> <bR> <div> The Renault-AMC marketing effort in passenger cars was not as successful compared to the popularity for Jeep vehicles. This was because by the time the Renault range was ready to become established in the American market, the second energy crisis was over, taking with it much of the trend for economical, compact cars. Renault sold some interesting models in the USA in the 1980s, especially the simple looking but fun Renault Alliance GTA (Renault 9) and GTA convertible – a real automatic-top convertible with a simple but clean euro-style design featuring a gently sloping hood, as well as a 2.0 L engine - big for a car of its class; and the ahead-of-its-time Renault Fuego coupe; Renault sold other models in the US during the 1980s. However, Renault sold AMC to Chrysler in 1987 after the assassination of Renault’s chairman, Georges Besse. The Renault Medallion (Renault 21 in Europe) sedan and wagon was sold from 1987 to 1989 through Jeep-Eagle dealerships. Jeep-Eagle was the new division Chrysler created out of the former American Motors. However, Renault products were no longer imported into the United States after 1989.</div> <bR> <div> A completely new full-sized 4-door sedan, the Eagle Premier, was developed during the partnership between AMC and Renault. The Premier design, as well as its state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Bramalea, Ontario, Canada, were the starting point for the sleek LH sedans such as the Eagle Vision and Chrysler 300M.</div> <bR> <div> In the late seventies and early eighties Renault increased its involvement in motorsport, with novel inventions such as turbochargers in their Formula One cars. The company's road car designs were revolutionary also – the Renault Espace was one of the first minivans and was to remain the most well-known minivan in Europe for at least the next two decades. The second-generation Renault 5, the European Car Of The Year-winning Renault 9, and the most luxurious Renault yet, the 25 were all released in the early 1980s, building Renault's reputation, but same time the company suffered of poor product quality which reflected badly to the image of the brand and the ill-fated Renault 14 is seen by many as the culmination of these problems in the early 1980s.</div> <bR> <div> <B>Restructuring (1981-1995)</B></div> <div> Although its cars were somewhat successful both on the road and on the track, Renault was losing a billion francs a month and reported a deficit of 12.5 billion in 1984. The government intervened and Georges Besse was installed as chairman; he set about cutting costs dramatically, selling off many of Renault's non-core assets, withdrawing almost entirely from motorsports, and laying off many employees. This succeeded in halving the deficit by 1986, but he was murdered by the left wing terrorist group Action Directe in November 1986. He was replaced by Raymond Lévy, who continued along the same lines as Besse, slimming down the company considerably with the result that by the end of 1987 the company was more or less financially stable.</div> <bR> <div> A revitalised Renault launched several successful new cars in the early 1990s, including the phenonemonally successful 5 replacement the Clio, the second generation Espace, the innovative Twingo, the Laguna, and the 19. In mid-1990s introduced successor to R19,Renault Mégane, was the first car ever to achieve a 4-star rating, the highest at the time, in EuroNCAP crash test in passenger safety. In 1998 Renault introduced Mégane Scénic, a completely new class of cars, a compact monospace with a footprint of a regular Mégane. The return to success on the road was matched by a return to success on the racetrack – Renault-powered cars won the Formula One World Championship in 1992, 1993, 1996 and 1997 with Williams, and in 1995 with Benetton.</div> <bR> <div> <B>Privatisation (1996-1999)</B></div> <div> It was eventually decided that the company's state-owned status was detrimental to its growth, and Renault was privatised in 1996. This new freedom allowed the company to venture once again into Eastern Europe and South America, including a new factory in Brazil and upgrades for the infrastructure in Argentina and Turkey. It also meant the end of the aforementioned successful Formula 1 campaign.</div> <bR> <div> In the twenty-first century, Renault was to foster a reputation for distinctive, outlandish design. The second generation of the Laguna and Mégane featured ambitious, angular designs which turned out to be highly successful. Less successful were the company's more upmarket models. The Avantime, a bizarre coupé/ multi-purpose mix vehicle, sold very poorly and was quickly discontinued while the luxury Vel Satis model did not sell as well as hoped. However, the design inspired the lines of the second generation Mégane, the most successful car of the maker. As well as its distinctive styling, Renault was to become known for its car safety; currently, it's the car manufacturer with the largest number of models achieving the maximum 5 star rating in EuroNCAP crash tests. The Laguna was the first Renault to achieve a 5 star rating; in 2004 the Modus was the first to achieve this rating in its category.</div> <bR> <div> The government of France owns 15.7 per cent of the company. Louis Schweitzer has been the Chairman of Renault since 1992 and CEO from 1992 to 2005. In 2005, Carlos Ghosn (also CEO of Nissan) became Renault's CEO, with Louis Schweitzer staying on as Chairman.</div> <bR> <div> Renault owns Samsung Motors (Renault Samsung Motors) and Dacia., as well as retaining a minority (but controlling) stake (20%) in the Volvo Group. (Volvo passenger cars are now a subsidiary of the Ford Motor company).</div> <bR> <div> As of 2004, Renault was the fifth most popular car maker in the United Kingdom behind the Ford Motor Company, Vauxhall Motors, Peugeot and Volkswagen. The most popular French car in the UK is currently the Renault Clio, which has been a strong seller throughout Europe since its launch 14 years ago.</div> <bR> <div> For 2004 Renault reported a 43% rise in net income to 3.5 billion  and 5.9% operating margin, of which Nissan contributed 1,767 million . The Group (Renault, Dacia, Renault Samsung Motors) posted a 4.2% increase in worldwide sales to a record 2,489,401 vehicles, representing a global market share of 4.1%. Renault retained its position as the leading brand in Europe with 1.8 million passenger cars and light commercial vehicles sold and market share of 10.8%.</div> <bR> <div> Renault is exhibiting a Hi-Flex Clio 1.6 16v at the 2006 Paris International Agricultural Show. This vehicle, which addresses the Brazilian market, features Renault-developed flexible-fuel engine technology, with a highly versatile engine that can run on fuel containing petrol and ethanol in any proportion (0% to 100% of either)</div> <bR> <div> <B>Renault, together with associated brands Dacia and Renault Samsung, aims to sell 4 million vehicles worldwide in 2010.</B></div> <bR> <div> On June 30, 2006 the media reported that General Motors convened an emergency board meeting to discuss a proposal by shareholder Kirk Kerkorian to form an alliance between GM and Renault-Nissan. The hastily arranged meeting suggests that GM's board is treating Kerkorian's proposal with urgency. Coincidentally, unsubstantiated rumours have been circulating about Renault's possible return to the U.S. market. There is speculation that a GM-Renault-Nissan alliance could pave the way for Renault's return to the U.S. market, since GM could eliminate some of its less profitable brands, and offer the owners of dealerships that would otherwise close Renault dealerships.</div> <bR> <div> However, GM CEO Richard Wagner felt that an alliance would benefit Renault's shareholders more than those of GM, and that GM should receive some compensation for it. This did not sit well with Renault; subsequently, talks between GM and Renault have ended on October 4, 2006.</div> <bR> <div> <B>The Renault Nissan Alliance (2000— )</B></div> <div> Signed on March 27, 1999, the Renault-Nissan Alliance is the first of its kind involving a Japanese and a French company, each with its own distinct corporate culture and brand identity, linked through cross-shareholding. Renault has a stake of 44.4 per cent in Japanese automaker Nissan while Nissan in turn has a 15 per cent stake (non-voting) in Renault. Together they represent more than 9.8% of the worldwide market (5.74% for Nissan & 4.04% for the Renault group) with sales of 3,597,748 (Nissan) and 2,531,500 (Renault Group), placing the alliance 4th after GM, Toyota, and Ford.</div> <bR> <div> The marketing success was also matched by success of their return to the Formula 1 circuit as a manufacturer again after buying the Benetton team. The team went on to win both World Drivers and Constructors championships in 2005 and 2006 ahead of the vastly more experienced Ferrari and McLaren teams.</div> <bR> <div> <B>Corporate governance</B></div> <div> <B>Current members of the board of directors of Renault are:</B></div> <div>     * Yves Audvard</div> <div>     * Michel Barbier</div> <div>     * Alain Champigneux</div> <div>     * François de Combret</div> <div>     * Charles de Croisset</div> <div>     * Carlos Ghosn</div> <div>     * Jean-Louis Girdolle</div> <div>     * Itaru Koeda</div> <div>     * Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière</div> <div>     * Dominique de La Garanderie</div> <div>     * Bernard Larrouturou</div> <div>     * Henri Martre</div> <div>     * Jean-Claude Paye</div> <div>     * François Pinault</div> <div>     * Franck Riboud</div> <div>     * Louis Schweitzer</div> <div>     * Georges Stcherbatcheff</div> <div>     * Robert Studer</div> <bR> <div> <B>Timeline</B></div> <div>     * 1898 - Louis Renault founded Renault</div> <div>     * 1903 - Marcel Renault dies in a car accident</div> <div>     * 1943 - The Renault factory in Billancourt is attacked by the German army</div> <div>     * 1944 - Louis Renault dies</div> <div>     * 1961 - Renault 4 has been released</div> <div>     * 1965 - Taking the idea from the Austin A40 Farina, the first hatchback in the world, the Renault 16 was developed.</div> <div>     * 1971 - Renault Introduction of the Renault 15 and Renault 17 two-door coupes.</div> <div>     * 1972 - Renault enters the new "supermini" market with its R5 hatchback.</div> <div>     * 1977 - Renault enters the small family hatchback market with the R14 - aimed directly at the Volkswagen Golf.</div> <div>     * 1978 - The launch of the Renault 5 Turbo gives Renault its first entrant into the "hot hatchback" market.</div> <div>     * 1979 - Renault buys a stake in American Motors.</div> <div>     * 1981 - The R9 medium sized saloon is elected European Car of the Year.</div> <div>     * 1983 - Renault launches the R11 - a hatchback version of the R9.</div> <div>     * 1984 - Renault enters the executive car market with the large R25 hatchback.</div> <div>     * 1985 - Renault launches the Espace - Europe's first multi-purpose vehicle.</div> <div>     * 1986 - On April 9 the Government of France ruled against the privatisation of Renault.</div> <div>     * 1986 - Renault replaces the R18 with the all-new R21 saloon and Savanna seven-seater estate.</div> <div>     * 1987 - Renault sells its stake in American Motors to Chrysler.</div> <div>     * 1988 - The R9 and R11 ranges are replaced by a single model, the R19.</div> <div>     * 1990 - Renault launches the Clio supermini, designed as an eventual replacement for the Renault 5. It is elected European Car of the Year.</div> <div>     * 1991 - The Renault 19 becomes available as a cabriolet.</div> <div>     * 1992 - Louis Schweitzer becomes president of Renault group.</div> <div>     * 1992 - Renault moves into the city car market with its Twingo, a small hatchback with a "cube" design that maximises interior space. It re-enters the executive market with the Safrane, an ultramodern large hatchback which replaces the R25.</div> <div>     * 1995 - Renault 5 production finishes after nearly a quarter of a century. It had been produced in Slovenia since the launch of the Clio in 1990.</div> <div>     * 1995 - Renault replaces the Renault 19 with the Megane, a range of hatchbacks, saloons, estates, coupes and cabriolets.</div> <div>     * 1996 - Renault enters the new "compact MPV" market with its Megane-based Scenic. It is elected European Car of the Year.</div> <div>     * 1996 - The company was privatised to create Renault S.A.</div> <div>     * 1997 - The all-new Espace goes on sale with a more upmarket image than its predecessor, that served the company for over 10 years.</div> <div>     * 1998 - The second generation Clio is launched.</div> <div>     * 1999 - Renault purchased a 36.8 percent equity stake in Nissan, the almost bankrupt Japanese car maker, by injecting US$3.5 billion to obtain effective control of the company under Japanese law. Renault vice-president, Carlos Ghosn was parachuted in to turn round the ailing firm. Nissan also owns 15% of Renault in turn.</div> <div>     * 2000 - Renault launches the Laguna II - the first European family car to feature "keyless" entry and ignition.</div> <div>     * 2001 - Renault sold its industrial vehicle subdivision (Renault Véhicules Industriels) to Volvo, which renamed it Renault Trucks in 2002.</div> <div>     * 2002 - Benetton Formula One team formally becomes Renault F1, Renault increases its stake in Nissan to 44.4 percent.</div> <div>     * 2002 - Renault gains another European Car of the Year success with its second generation Megane, a quirky-looked car which is set to form the basis of Nissan's Almera replacement later in the decade.</div> <div>     * 2003 - Renault expands in Megane hatchback range with coupe-cabriolet, estate (SportsTourer) and sedan (SportsSaloon) variants.</div> <div>     * 2004 - The Renault factory in Billancourt is demolished.</div> <div>     * 2005 - Carlos Ghosn becomes president.</div> <div>     * 2005 - The Clio III is elected European Car of the Year 2006 and gains plaudits from all over Europe for its class-leading qualities. The previous generation Clio is set to continue for a while until the Twingo II goes on sale.</div> <div>     * 2006 - In February, Carlos Ghosn announced the "Renault Contrat 2009" plan focusing on three main goals :</div> <div>     * sell 800 000 more cars than in 2006</div> <div>     * Reach an operating Margin of 6%</div> <div>     * Place the new Laguna in terms of quality and service rate.</div> </td> </tr></table></body>