Competition car Unregistered

Chassis no. 442-0

- Ex-24 Hours of Le Mans 1977 Arnoux/Pironi/Fréquelin

- Competed in the 1975 endurance racing season and with top drivers

- Heart-stirring original condition, sold directly by the constructor

- The first A 442 built, witness to an extraordinary adventure

 

Le Mans, 10 June 1978, 4 PM: the start of the greatest endurance race in the world! Four black and yellow prototypes set off, in the colours of Renault Alpine. 24 hours later, the constructor’s pits were filled with joy: the A 442 B driven by Didier Pironi and Jean-Pierre Jaussaud was the first to cross the finish line, after covering more than 5000km for the first time since 1971. The Porsche 936 driven by Jacky Ickx, “Monsieur Le Mans”, was unable to fend it off, while another A 442, entrusted to Jean Ragnotti, Guy Fréquelin and José Dolhem, finished fourth.

The car we are presenting, which was a reserve car that year, was part of this incredible adventure as the first A 442 built, paving the way for the victories that would follow.

 

We need to go back to the start of the 1970s to understand this remarkable success story. After Alpine withdrew from the 24 Hours of Le Mans at the end of the 1960s, Elf wanted to create a sporting image for the brand and put pressure on Renault, which had absorbed Gordini in 1969, to develop a new engine for racing which could compete in the 2-litre European Championship. François Castaing set to work for Renault-Gordini and in 1972, he designed a 2-litre V6 with a 90° ‘V’ (an angle chosen in part to give the impression that the engine was the starting point for the V6 PRV engine used in its road cars), producing nearly 300bhp. It was installed in the Alpine A 440 sports prototype designed by André de Cortanze for the chassis and Marcel Hubert for the body which made its debut at Magny-Cours in May 1973, driven by Jean-Pierre Jabouille, before claiming its first win at Croix-en-Ternois soon afterwards. It was a good year for Alpine, which dominated the World Rally Championship with its A110 berlinette: Renault was keen to reap the fruits of these successes and acquired a 55% stake in the company, bringing together its motorsport operations in Dieppe.

 

For the following season, in 1974, the A 440 became the A 441 and completely dominated the European Championship, winning all seven races. This success opened up new possibilities for Renault Sport, who decided to enter the World Endurance Championship, where the regulations stipulated a capacity of 3 litres for naturally aspirated engines and 2.2 litres for turbocharged engines. Renault already had its excellent 2-litre V6, which would serve as the basis for a turbocharged version.

François Castaing and Bernard Dudot got down to work and, thanks to a Garrett turbocharger, the power developed by the V6 shot up to 490bhp. They fitted one to an A 441 and it made a promising start, winning at Mugello in March 1975; meanwhile, the A 442 arrived, a further developed version with a 500 bhp engine and weighing 685 kg. For the first time, the cars sported the yellow and black colours associated with Renault.

At the start of the 1975 season, this A 4420 was the only A 442 to represent the French company in the Constructors’ World Championship, driven by Gérard Larrousse and Jean-Pierre Jabouille, before it was joined by a second car, the A 4421. They did not compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which did not yet admit turbocharged sports prototypes, and although they were often the fastest cars in testing and in competition, they were still suffering from a lack of development and poor reliability. This did not prevent this A 4420 from achieving some first-rate results, including third place at the Monza 1000 Km and fourth at the Nürburgring 1000 Km. These results contributed to Renault’s third place in the 1975 World Championship, behind Alfa Romeo and Porsche.

 

This was naturally encouraging, and to give his team every chance, Bernard Hanon, the director of planning and future CEO of Renault, appointed Gérard Larrousse as the head of Renault Sport ,with a win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans his top priority. Larrousse was well acquainted with endurance racing as a driver, as before Renault, he had been a member of the Porsche and Matra teams, with several international victories to his credit, including two at Le Mans with Henri Pescarolo.

The 1976 season saw mixed results, and for 1977, all the team’s efforts were focused on the race at Le Mans. The company set its involvement in rallying aside and work in Formula 1 was left to tick over, in order to give priority to endurance racing, where the Alpine-Renaults became Renault-Alpines, confirming the control Renault had taken of the motorsport operations.

Numerous tests were carried out, in particular at the circuit at Le Castellet; a ‘long-tail’ version made its appearance, and the car was improved, becoming more reliable and easier to drive. The team turned up in strength at Le Mans, with four A 442s, including the A 4420 we are presenting, which raced in the colours of Bendix in the Oreca team managed by Hugues de Chaunac and was driven by Didier Pironi, René Arnoux and Guy Fréquelin. Unfortunately, the cars were struck by bad luck and all four had to retire.

 

It would be 1978 before Renault scored its long-awaited triumph. The team took advantage of the first months of the year to make the cars more reliable and develop an updated version, the A 443, fitted with a 2140cc engine producing 520bhp at 9900rpm and with a longer wheelbase and more streamlined body. During the race, it was timed at over 370kph on the Hunaudières straight. But it was the A 442 B driven by Pironi and Jaussaud that claimed victory, after an exemplary race.

 

Even though it did not compete, this A 4420 was in the pits that day, used as a test mule and ready to take over if needed.

Always remaining with Renault, it was later restored cosmetically. Fitted with a V6 turbo, both the engine and suspension are incomplete. Aesthetically, the car is now very close to the configuration it had during the high-speed tests it underwent at the Columbus speed ring in the United States on November 1, 1977, with its red-painted rear firewall. It represents a restoration project that would be unique in any collector's career, given both its history, provenance and original condition.

 

A remarkably historic car, this A 442 competed in the 1975 endurance racing season, raced at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1977 and was in the pits at Le Mans in 1978. It has been driven by the greatest racers of its time. Of the five Renault-Alpine A 442 and A 443 cars built with the sole aim of winning at Le Mans, only one is today in private ownership. The sale of this example is therefore an exceptional opportunity to acquire one of the fantastic machines which were part of the magnificent story of the turbocharged Renaults at Le Mans.

 

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The Renault Alpine A 4420: results in competition

 

1975

- 6 April, Dijon 800 Km, Larrousse/Jabouille, retired

- 20 April, Monza 1000 Km, Larrousse/Jabouille, 3rd

- 1 June, Nürburgring 1000 Km, Larrousse/Jabouille, 4th

- 29 June, Zeltweg 1000 Km, Depailler/Scheckter, retired

- 12 July, 6 Hours of Watkins Glen, Scheckter, 27th

 

1976

- 4 April, Nürburgring 300 Km, Depailler, retired

- 23 May, Imola 500 Km, Scheckter/Jarier/Pescarolo/Laffitte, used in qualifying (best time)

 

1977

- 12 June, 24 Hours of Le Mans, Arnoux/Pironi/Fréquelin, retired

 

1978

- 11 June, 24 Hours of Le Mans, reserve car