- Rare single-seater from the turbo era

- Unquestionably authentic

- Unique restoration project

After the bitter defeat at Kyalami, the final Grand Prix in 1983, which deprived Renault and Alain Prost of the world title which was within their grasp, the team made a fresh start in the championship. First of all, there was a change of drivers. Prost left for McLaren and Eddie Cheever was hired by Alfa Romeo; they were replaced by Patrick Tambay, who joined from Ferrari, and Derek Warwick, who had been at Toleman.

On the technical side, the scenario was also new, as the regulations stipulated a maximum of 220 litres of fuel per Grand Prix, with no refuelling allowed during the race. These restrictions forced the engine designers to dig deep to find solutions, such as refrigerating the fuel to reduce its volume before filling the tank, which in turn required a system to heat it inside the car before it was fed into the engine. This situation prompted the teams to use two types of engine, for qualifying and for the actual races. Bernard Dudot, Renault’s chief engine designer, announced: “For qualifying, I think we will run a bit over 700bhp.” To increase the power, one of the team’s secrets came from the set-up of the turbochargers, and in this regard, Renault changed suppliers in 1983, as Dudot explained in the book Renault F1, les années turbo: “KKK, the exclusive supplier of turbochargers in F1, wanted to stick to its mass-produced products. We needed the ability to use specific equipment with the potential for further development and, if possible, on an exclusive basis.” With Garrett, “who showed themselves to be dynamic and truly effective”, Renault found a more sympathetic ear. The new data and technical studies resulted in a new engine, the EF4.

Renault maintained its reputation as an excellent engine designer and for the 1984 season, it also supplied engines to two other teams, Lotus and Ligier.

The new RE 50 single-seater, designed under the direction of Michel Têtu and styled by Yves Legal, was unveiled in December 1983 at a press conference at which Gérard Larrousse, who was still running the Renault team, emphasized the bitter rivalry between the competing teams, especially given the arrival in 1984 of engines from Honda and Porsche. Narrower than its predecessor, the RE 50 had a composite structure made from Kevlar and carbon-fibre and featured extractors which used the flow of exhaust gases. It could also be fitted with hydraulic self-levelling suspension.

Despite all these efforts and a marked improvement in the cars’ reliability, the 1984 season did not live up to Renault’s hopes. The team suffered at the start of the season from problems fine-tuning the cars’ set-up, and the first two Grands Prix ended for Tambay when he ran out of fuel, even though he posted the fastest lap in South Africa. At Zolder in April, Warwick achieved an excellent second place, and a month later at the French Grand Prix at Dijon, Tambay started the race in pole position and finished second. But these successes were short-lived and the next races gave the impression of a team struggling to get the most out of the RE 50. Tambay was injured at Monaco and only finished four of the 11 remaining Grands Prix, his best result being fifth at the German Grand Prix. Warwick fared somewhat better, with two podiums: he finished second at Brands Hatch in July, and third at Hockenheim three weeks later.

The Renault team finished the 1984 season in fifth place in the Constructors’ Championship (Warwick and Tambay finishing seventh and eleventh respectively), but the Renault engine put in a creditable performance, as Lotus achieved third place in both the Constructors’ and Drivers’ Championships, the latter with De Angelis. For the following season, as well as equipping Lotus and Ligier, Renault supplied its engines to Tyrrell, which in 1984 was the very last team to use a naturally-aspirated engine, the Cosworth V8.

In any event, the setback it suffered in 1984 did not shake Renault’s confidence, as Max Mangenot, CEO of Renault Sport, stressed that December: “Formula 1 is very well regarded, both inside and outside the business. (...) Among the activities that characterize Renault, Formula 1 comes second.” The world title was merely postponed ...

This particular RE 50-09 single-seater only took its bow in mid-season, at the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim in August, where it was driven by Tambay.

Once its career was over, it was delivered by Renault Sport in April 1985 to Renault's Public Relations department, to join its Heritage collection. It is one of the ten RE 50s built, of which five have since been destroyed or scrapped, making it an exceptionally rare car, which has stayed with Renault since it was new. It has Tambay’s name on its left side and Warwick’s on the right, together with Tambay’s racing number 15; it appears to be complete and is remarkable for its authenticity. It remains a rare and invaluable witness to a period which marked the history of Formula 1, with a manufacturer which pioneered the use of turbocharging technology. Once recommissioned, it will be greeted enthusiastically at the most prestigious historic events, where it will be one of the undisputed stars.