RENAULT AND KANGOO Z.E. WIN YET MORE MAJOR AWARDS

• Double Renault award win at 2012 Fleet World Honours: Environment award and Editor’s award

Renault has added to its collection of honours after picking up the manufacturer’s Environmental award and the Editor’s Award for Kangoo Van Z.E. at the 2012 Fleet World Honours today.

Commenting on the Environmental award, Fleet World Editor, Steve Moody, said, “Lots of manufacturers are talking about electric vehicles, but few have invested anywhere near the time, money and effort that Renault has. The excellent Twizy, ZOE and Fluence Z.E. prove that this investment and effort is starting to pay off.”

Fleet World Managing Editor, Ross Durkin, said, “Judging the Fleet World Honours does not get any easier. In the last year we have seen some tremendous new cars launched – many powered by alternative fuels – as well as the introduction of some very innovative new fleet services. When judging the car awards we were very mindful of key issues such as emissions levels, safety, resale values and reliability. However we also have to remember that essential ingredient – desirability – when assessing a vehicle’s overall position and that can be seen in the results.”

Commenting on the Editor’s award for Kangoo Van Z.E., Van Fleet World Editor, John Kendall, said, “Future motive power is almost certain to come from electricity. No matter how much we like internal combustion engines and the energy-dense fuel that makes them go, progressive depletion of our oil reserves will make it unattractive in cost terms long before this century, or our supplies run out. Electricity can be produced from renewables or the hydrogen fuel cell. For battery vehicles, range is likely to increase appreciably by 2020, meaning that most current (excuse the pun) objections will be overcome. “

“Renault has staked a lot on electric vehicles and the Kangoo Van Z.E. is undoubtedly one of the most significant commercial vehicles launched in the past year. The price is right, better still with the Government electric van grant, and the low noise driving experience will be music to van drivers ears. For vans on the right duty cycle, the Kangoo Z.E. is a winner. The problem most fleets are likely to face could be persuading drivers to get back in a diesel once they’ve tasted the electric driving experience.”

Fleet World Managing Editor, Ross Durkin, said, “The LCV manufacturers continue to produce some first-class vans which every year seem to get better in terms of safety, environmental performance, reliability and whole-life cost. As well as traditionally powered vans, we are no seeing the emergence of a growing number of electric vehicles and this exciting market sector promises much in the future. We are also delighted to recognise the excellent quality of some of the industry’s key fleet service providers in this year’s awards.”

The Fleet World Honours are presented annually to those motor manufacturers, service companies and individuals who have, in the opinion of the judges, achieved the highest possible level of excellence in their sector. The awards are open to all motor manufacturers and the judging process combines the expert opinion of the Fleet World editorial team with the values provided by a number of leading leasing companies and fleet data providers.

The judging panel is chaired by Steve Moody, Editor of Fleet World, and includes John Kendall, Alex Grant and Ross Durkin from the Fleet World editorial team. Residual value, maintenance and reliability data is provided by ALD Automotive, Hitachi Capital Vehicle Solutions, Lex Autolease, LeasePlan and Arval. Market value data is provided by EurotaxGlass and VIPDATA. The Van Fleet World Honours judging panel is chaired by John Kendall, Editor of Van Fleet World.

Renault’s Kangoo Van Z.E. range is eligible for the Government’s new Plug-in Van Grant that brings the line-up’s already tempting starting price down to £12,912 excluding VAT.

A jury of 22 European journalists specialising in light commercial vehicles had already voted Kangoo Z.E. International Van of the Year 2012 – the first time an electric vehicle has won this prize competing against numerous internal-combustion vans.

EXPANDED FORMULA RENAULT BARC GRID EXPECTED FOR ROCKINGHAM

Rockingham in Northamptonshire welcomes the Protyre Formula Renault BARC Championship this coming weekend, 19th/20th May, for the second race meeting of the 2012 season with an expanded grid set to contest the fourth and fifth rounds of the campaign.

While an outstanding 25 cars lined-up for the season-opener at Snetterton last month, confirming Protyre Formula Renault BARC’s position as the healthiest and most popular series of its kind in the UK, an even bigger field of drivers is expected at Rockingham.

MTECH Lite, which already runs two cars for Sean Walkinshaw (Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire) and Mexican racer Jorge Cevallos, will double its entry this weekend after signing Lebanese divers Joe Ghanem – the reigning Formula Gulf 1000 Champion – and motorsport rookie Shahan Sarkissian.

Ghanem, who has been competing in the Middle East for the last few years, is a familiar face to the British motorsport scene having previously competed in the Formula Renault Winter Series in 2007 before graduating to British Formula 3 where he was a podium finisher in the National Class.

Former champion team Hillspeed, meanwhile, is working hard to finalise a deal to have a third driver on the grid for Rockingham to partner Marcus Allen (Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire) and Jacob Nortoft. Through its work with Nortoft, the squad has actually become an official partner of the Dansk Automobil Sports Union as part of the Danish federation’s talent development programme.

Webster aiming to increase points lead
Delivering consistently strong performances across all three Snetterton races last month, taking one victory and two further second place results, MGR Motorsport’s Josh Webster (Stowmarket, Suffolk) heads the championship standings going into rounds four and five by 14 points.

With his deal to return to Protyre Formula Renault BARC this year incredibly last-minute, due to the shelving of Formula Renault UK for 2012, Webster had zero time to prepare prior to the first three rounds but his experience shone through.

“Everything was so rushed for Snetterton, it was touch and go whether we’d be on the grid at all and the MGR guys had to get the car built in just a couple of days so it was pretty manic”, commented Webster, who currently holds the Rockingham lap record, “To achieve what we did, with no testing and only a base set-up, was fantastic and all credit to the hard work of the team.

“We’re all really looking forward to Rockingham now and feeling pretty confident. Hopefully we can keep the momentum going and, now we’ve had a chance to properly work on the car, show what we’re really capable of and try and increase the championship lead.”

In the same boat as Webster with regard to having had no pre-season preparation was two-time McLaren Autosport BRDC Award finalist Scott Malvern (Barkingside, Ilford). His star quality was clear to see though, overcoming several mechanical glitches to take an excellent first win on his series debut and third in the points standings for the Cliff Dempsey Racing with Cullen Motorsport squad.

Fortec Motorsports’ Seb Morris (Marford, Wrexham) was a revelation on his maiden weekend racing single-seaters, the 16-year-old dominating qualifying by taking all three Snetterton pole positions and also going on to take a debut win in round two.

He will arrive at Rockingham four points ahead of Malvern while MGR’s David Wagner (Glasgow) is just two points further adrift in fourth place after a superbly consistent season-opener. Impressive first time podium finishers Macaulay Walsh (Northampton) and Jake Dalton (Stoke-on-Trent) are fifth and sixth in the standings respectively for Scorpio Motorsport and MGR.

Qualifying for rounds four and five of the 2012 Protyre Formula Renault BARC Championship will take place at 09.30 and 12.10 on Saturday, 19th May, with both races set to follow on Sunday, 20th May, at 10.55 and 15.35 respectively.

Along with headline sponsor Protyre, Formula Renault BARC is additionally supported by Michelin, The Lubricant Consultancy, Petronas Syntium and NGK Spark Plugs.

2012 Protyre Formula Renault BARC Championship Driver Standings (after Rd3):
1st Josh Webster, 88pts; 2nd Seb Morris, 74pts; 3rd Scott Malvern, 70pts; 4th David Wagner, 68pts; 5th Macaulay Walsh, 63pts; 6th Jake Dalton, 47pts

WILLIAMS-RENAULT SECURE FIRST VICTORY OF REVIVED

PARTNERSHIP AT THE SPANISH GRAND PRIX

Pastor Maldonado sealed the first victory for the newly revived Williams-Renault partnership in today’s Spanish Grand Prix. The Venezuelan scored the victory from pole position, marking the first win for the collaboration in its latest incarnation. The Williams-Renault link was renewed for the 2012 season after its initial run from 1989 to 1997. The win is the 114th for Williams, the 64th for the Williams-Renault partnership and Renault’s 144th in F1.

Lotus F1 Team put a second Renault engine on the podium with Kimi Raikkonen finishing in third position. Team-mate Romain Grosjean came home in fourth, giving the Renault RS27 engine a total of three of the top four positions.

Red Bull Racing-Renault experienced a more difficult race, with Sebastian Vettel finishing in sixth. The reigning world champion served a drive-through penalty for not observing yellow flags and then took on a new front wing at his last pit stop. Mark Webber came home in 11th, just outside the points after an early stop for a new front wing.

Caterham F1 Team again achieved a double finish with Heikki Kovalainen 16th and Vitaly Petrov 17th. Unfortunately Williams’ Bruno Senna retired from the race on lap 13 after an incident involving Michael Schumacher.

Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso are tied for the lead of the drivers’ championship while Red Bull Racing continues to lead the constructors’ championship. Lotus F1 Team has edged closer to second, with Williams sixth, on equal points with Mercedes. Caterham remains in 11th.

Jean-François Caubet, Renaultsport F1 managing director

“Naturally we are delighted for Williams and we are all very proud that the collaboration is doing justice to its heritage. The engine-chassis package has worked very well all season and has promised to score some huge results – obviously this one is the best we can get! It’s a testament to all at Grove and Viry that the new deal can achieve success so early on in its life cycle.

Naturally, we were concerned that the celebrations were mitigated by the fire in the Williams garage after the race. No one from Renaultsport F1 was seriously injured, but our thoughts go to our colleagues at Williams and also our partners at Caterham who were involved. We wish them all a speedy recovery.”

Rémi Taffin, Renaultsport F1 head of track operations

“Across all our clients, the engine has performed efficiently this weekend. We know Barcelona incredibly well from the winter testing but there are nevertheless some tricky parts to get right, including providing drive and response in the slower sections while retaining good top speed down the straight. To get three engines in the top four again is fantastic and shows our preparations paid off.

Congratulations to Pastor for his first win and to Williams for its first win since 2004. Scoring a victory so early on in an engine-chassis partnership is a fantastic achievement and shows just how aligned the systems and procedures on both sides of the table are.

We wish all our colleagues at Williams well, particularly in light of the incident after the race, and look forward to continuing the momentum throughout the season”.

RENAULTSPORT F1 PREVIEW TO THE SPANISH GRAND PRIX

Three weeks after scoring a 1-2-3-4 finish in the Bahrain Grand Prix, its first clean sweep of the top four since 1997, Renaultsport F1 heads to Spain and the Circuit de Catalunya for round five of the 2012 championship.
The 4.655km circuit outside Barcelona is a medium downforce, middle of the road track for engines. Nevertheless, there are some careful preparations specifically required for the RS27 V8 for the Spanish Grand Prix.
Spanish Grand Prix facts and figures
The 1km pit straight, where the cars reach over 300kph and maximum rev limit, gives a possibility for a double KERS release as the KERS energy counter resets, which should increase overtaking possibilities. There are several good opportunities for the KERS to be recharged over the course of one lap, including turns 1, 4 and 10.
Wind direction can often change at Barcelona due to its proximity to the sea and mountains. This can make gear ratio selection difficult down the long straight, particularly as there are a couple of bumps down the pit straight, which can cause the engine to hit the limiter.
The track follows the contours of the hills, and therefore undulates over the course of the lap. The up-and-down nature of the track and the length of the corners mean the cars will be subject to high lateral forces. To maximise acceleration without compromising on power, Renaultsport F1 engineers create engine maps that can be used with short gear shifts.
The second sector is more flowing than sector one, but it is nevertheless hard on the tyres due to the long corners and the fact that the drivers run onto the kerbs through this section. Different overrun settings can be used to stabilise the rear under braking, but this can increase fuel consumption.
The long turn 3 is a challenge for the drivers. In qualifying it can be taken almost flat, but in race trim the driver may short shift before the apex to make it easier to control the delivery of torque through the corner, thus preserving tyre life. With up to four stops expected in Barcelona, this could be a vital advantage in gaining track position.
The drivers’ view
Pastor Maldonado, Williams F1 Team
We know Barcelona very well from winter testing; in fact Williams-Renault covered the most kilometres of any team there this year. It is a medium downforce, medium speed track but the changing altitude over the lap plus the length of the corners make it quite a physical race. The first corner is quite representative of this; we accelerate through the mid corner to the exit into the second and third turns, so it forms one long corner. Lateral g-forces are quite high but the corner also goes uphill, so we need the engine to deliver a smooth torque curve but also short shift pattern to give controlled power to counter the high g. Through the final sector, which features the new chicane, we need effective engine braking but also responsiveness as we brake down to round 60kph before accelerating hard onto the long pit straight.
The engineers’ view
Head of Renault Sport F1 track operations Rémi Taffin gives his thoughts on Barcelona:
We covered more than 10,000km over our four teams in winter testing at Barcelona, so we know this track like the back of our hand. It is around 60% full throttle with a variety of low and medium speed corners, so it makes a very good ‘average’ of characteristics of the other circuits on the calendar, and therefore very good for testing purposes.
With 60% of the track taken at full throttle, we need to deliver response and drive through all the ranges, but particularly the lower end for the medium and slow speed sections in sector three.
We expect to be running higher mileage on Friday as our partners introduce new mechanical and aero parts for the first race of the European season, so we will be fitting engines previously used in race conditions for free practice to not put extra mileage on the race units. The extra test session held at Mugello last week means we got a head start on understanding some of the developments so we can concentrate on optimising all the systems.
After the result in Bahrain of course we are all motivated to keep this momentum going. We also have a target to keep our results up in Spain. Red Bull has won both the last races and over the past 10 Spanish GPs, a Renault engine has finished on the podium seven times so there’s a record to keep!
Renault statistics in F1 143 wins, 195 poles

* including Playlife, Supertec and Mecachrome

Mark Donnelly and Dai Roberts placed their Renault Clio R3 on the podium on this weekend’s Pirelli International Rally, helping Renault UK to move into a clear second place in the 2012 MSA British Manufacturers’ Rally Championship.

Carlisle Clio driver Peter Taylor and co-driver Andrew Roughead also added valuable points to Renault’s haul, bouncing back to fifth place after two difficult stages on Friday evening.

Donnelly’s third place was a great achievement for the young Northern Irish Driver, having crashed heavily a month earlier on round two of the Championship. The crew emerged physically unscathed from the fifth gear excursion, testament to the strength of the 250hp Clio. Therefore, it was a mental battle that they overcame as Friday’s night-time stages gave way to Saturday’s breezy sunshine.

By the half way point, and after a confidence-building second fastest stage time, Donnelly had moved from an early fifth place to his eventual third, delighted to have achieved the goal he set before the event:

“We knew it would take a while to get back into it, but despite some suspension problems later on, it all came good in the end. The highest place we could have hoped for was third, so get on the podium is fantastic.” concluding, “Three winners in three rallies means the championship is still wide open.”

Taylor too had some big pushes and for good reason; having climbed to fifth on stage five the position was constantly under threat from Jukka Korhonen behind. The eventual margin to sixth was a whisker under two seconds, Taylor having pulled out the stops with a third and a handful of fourth quickest stage times.

“I’m really pleased with the result, especially after Friday night when we broke an engine mount.” he said, “I’m not a fan of these really fast gravel stages, but this year we both enjoyed it and we are getting closer to Mark (Donnelly)’s stage times.”

The British Rally Championship’s support series, the NGK Spark Plugs BRC Challenge also brought good news for Renault fans, when Simon Moore & Emma Morrison won the shorter Pirelli Challenge Rally for the second year in their Renault Clio 182. Russ Thompson & Andy Murphy made it a Renault one-two on the event in their similar Clio.

DOUBLE DELIGHT FOR COLBURN

James Colburn took to the top step of the AirAsia Renault UK Clio Cup podium for the second time rounding off a perfect weekend for himself and the Westbourne Motorsport team at a soaking wet Thruxton.

Colburn, a regular to the podium in 2011, was delighted with the result. “An excellent two wins! The weather was torrential. I could barely see where I was going at some points. It’s been fantastic though, great for the team and hopefully we can take our championship from here.”

“You could barely see your own front bonnet it was that bad. You would be going down into Church and you had to guess where your braking points were because it was changing that much. There were different puddles coming from all different places. It was unbelievable!”

Due to heavy rain and high winds, the race was started in single file under safety car conditions for the first three laps.

Upon the restart, former Ginetta Junior champion Adam Bonham took the lead into turn one. Soon after Josh Files made his move to take second but it was to be short lived as both Bonham and Files ran wide at Noble dropping Files to third and forcing Bonham to return to the pits.

With the front runners out of place, PER HIRE/Stancombe Vehicle Engineering’s Paul Rivett made the most of the opportunity to take the lead. The increasingly wet conditions seemingly suiting the multiple Clio Cup winner, who is soon to make his debut in the P1 AquaX jet-ski championship.

The first victims of the treacherous conditions were Total Control Racing’s Rob Smith and Saturday’s Rookie Cup winner Mike Bushell both meeting the barriers at speed due to standing water at Allard causing the release of the safety car.

Three laps later, the safety car lights were off and the rain soaked race began yet again. Rivett lead down into turn one, Colburn in second and Team Pyro team mates Files and Jack Goff fighting for third position, closely followed by Josh Cook. With a five-car train battling for the lead, contact soon ensued between leading Rookie Josh Cook and Files, the latter spinning onto the grass forcing Files to rejoin down in 13^th position.

Up ahead, Rivett was able to pull out a short lead from second placed Colburn, but on the final lap, Colburn gained a good tow to pass the triple-champion into turn one, which he held to the chequered flag.

“It was an absolutely great race,” said Rivett. “A second place but it was a shame I wasn’t quite able to hold on for the win. To be honest, I thought we were on the last lap and we weren’t so that being the reason as to why James got through”

“The conditions were absolutely treacherous out there so I’m just glad I brought the PER HIRE/Stancombe Vehicle Engineering car home. I’ve never driven in conditions as bad as that before.”

“I’m really, really pleased with the final result. We didn’t have a great qualifying session and we have turned it into two great race results meaning more points in the bag. Overall, it’s been a great weekend.”

Current championship leader Jack Goff held onto third to take the final podium position. “It was lethal to be honest. It was touch and go whether the race would go ahead, the conditions were that bad. Even behind the safety car it was hard to keep the car in a straight line, I’m just glad I was able to bring the car back in one piece and keep more points on the board for the championship.”

Scuderia Vittoria’s James Dixon had a quiet but positive race, starting from eighth, he made his way up to finish fourth and take the fastest lap.

Cook, looking for his first Rookie Cup win of the season, was unable to hold his fourth position, losing out to fellow rookie and ex-Swedish Junior Ice Racing racer, Kim Andersson on the final lap.

“It’s great,” said Andersson. “The wet conditions are my favourite as I’m more comfortable with them. It was a little like rallying and ice racing so I’m hoping for more rain later in the season.”

Also making progress from the start, Lithuanian Ignas Gelzinis finished seventh from eleventh, followed by Vic Covey who made up nine places from the grid to take the flag in eighth. In ninth was ex-rally driver Adam Gould recovering well from a spin on the opening laps.

Rounding out the top ten was Finesse Motorsport Ltd’s 19-year old Aaron Williamson who made the most of the wet conditions to finish in 10^th position having started in down in 23^rd after struggling with mechanical problems throughout the weekend.

Just behind Williamson and narrowly missing out on a top ten finish, Scotsman Finlay Crocker came home in 11^th place to take the ELF Masters Trophy, 4.958secs ahead of Saturday’s Masters trophy winner Simon Belcher in 12^th place.

“I really enjoyed it, when I could see where I was going, less fun when I couldn’t see,” expressed the former Scottish Mini Challenge driver. “I lost two places at Church on the last lap because I didn’t even see they were there to be honest. To finish 11^th from starting 22^nd is quite good, I’m very happy with that.”

Having had two top ten grid positions, Total Control Racing’s Nicolas Hamilton had a mixed weekend in the difficult conditions, spinning twice in the second race concluding his day in eighteenth place.

The championship now takes a break, resuming at the Cheshire circuit, Oulton Park on June 9-10, where the tight title battle is set to continue.

RENAULT UK AIMS HIGH ON PIRELLI INTERNATIONAL RALLY

Northern Ireland’s Mark Donnelly and Welsh co-driver Dai Roberts lead Renault UK’s assault on the MSA British Manufacturers Rally Championship on this weekend’s Pirelli International Rally.

Undeterred after a high speed crash in Wales and after a huge effort by his team to repair the car, the youngster will pilot his 250HP Clio Renaultsport R3 in an attempt to emulate his stunning first round victory on February’s Rallye Sunseeker International. However, Renault’s second position in the manufacturers’ tables is not just down to one driver, as the top two cars from each of the registered marques score on every event.

It was Cumbria’s Peter Taylor, accompanied by Newcastle’s Andrew Roughead, who bagged top Renault UK points in Wales, having ably assisted Donnelly to put Renault atop the tables in Bournemouth. The affable 20 year-old should arguably arrive at the Carlisle start most refreshed, living just ten miles from the Carlisle Racecourse rally HQ.

Nick Allen could argue that he has travelled the furthest to contest the infamous Kielder Forest stages, although it has been several months since the Californian left San Francisco to take part in the 2012 British Rally Championship. Now living in the north east of England, it was he and Solihull’s Andy Bull who helped keep Renault UK’s manufacturer title hopes alive, second Renault home on round two of the BRC.

Driving a brace of Twingos, Chris Ingram and Garry Pearson might be fighting for their respective R2 and R1 Twingo Trophies, but they are keen to be involved in the fight for Manufacturers’ honours and will push as hard as they dare this weekend.

The Pirelli International Rally gets underway with a parade of cars in Carlisle City Centre this Friday (27^th April) from 5pm. Drivers will be on hand from 6pm to sign autographs and the flag drops from 7pm before two evening forest stages. The bulk of the mileage takes place on Saturday, finishing around 7pm back at the rally’s headquarters at Carlisle Racecourse.

MG has scooped a major design award with its stunning MG Icon concept car.
It has been awarded the prestigious ‘Best Concept’ title at the Beijing Motor
Show, one of the most sought-after awards on the international automotive
show calendar.
The MG Icon beat the Lamborghini Urus, Mercedes-Benz Concept Style
Coupe and Honda Concept C.
Autoweek, one of the USA’s leading automotive magazines, announced the
awards and will present MG with an engraved trophy at a later date.
Greg Kable, a highly acclaimed international motoring journalist and Autoweek’s
German editor, was glowing in his remarks about the Icon.
Kable said: “The Icon continues MG’s resurrection under parent company
SAIC Motor, bringing newly interpreted heritage style to the compact-SUV
ranks in a package that will see it compete directly against the likes of Nissan
Juke and the Mini Countryman.”
No plans have been announced concerning production of the MG Icon.
It’s the first SUV concept from MG and was created by the MG global design
team headed by British director Anthony Williams-Kenny. It takes inspiration
from some of the legendary MG models of the past, including the MGA and
MGB GT.
Williams-Kenny said: “It’s a great honour to win this very important award,
particularly when the judges put the MG Icon ahead of so many other famous
brands.“The judges obviously shared our enthusiasm and vision for MG which is one of the best loved brands in the world.”

Williams-Kenny, who also led the design team responsible for the awardwinning
MG6 production car, has recently been promoted to his new role as
Global Director, SAIC Design.
The MG6 GT fastback and the MG6 Magnette sports saloon were designed
and engineered at SAIC Motor’s European Technical Centre at the MG
Birmingham site where final assembly of both models also takes place at the
MG Birmingham site.

Jaybee Motors are absolutely delighted that MG Motor and in particular, the efforts of the Global Design team led by Tony has recognised with such a prestigious award. Well done Tony and the Global design team at MG Motor Birmingham.

RENAULT UNVEILS TALISMAN LUXURY SALOON 

Talisman, Renault’s new flagship saloon for the Chinese market, embodies the “casual luxury” that Chinese customers have come to appreciate: value for money and luxury for daily life. Its elegant design and best-in-class interior are targeted at demanding young businessmen who are looking for a car that meets both professional and personal requirements. Talisman, produced in Korea at Renault Samsung Motors, will be exported to China starting in mid-June 2012 with a base price of 318 800 RMB (38 652 euros).

Renault’s sales in China have increased more than fourfold since 2009, largely due to the success of Koleos, which received eight awards in China. With 24,100 units sold in 2011, Renault’s sales in China have increased more than 60% compared to 2010. The Koleos SUV is proving extremely successful, with China now the car’s number one market. The range was broadened in 2011 with the introduction of Scénic, Laguna, Latitude, Fluence and Mégane Coupé-Cabriolet.

Despite being a minor player on the Chinese market in the past, Renault intends to gain momentum in the next few years with an expanding network and the preparations for a long-term presence. The launch of Talisman will help to accelerate the positive dynamic of Renault in China, where the distribution network will increase from 80 dealerships in 2011 to 170 in 2014. In China, the world’s number one automotive market, foreign carmakers must produce locally in order to become important players. Within the next several years, as outlined in the “Drive the Change” mid-term plan which runs through 2016, Renault aims to establish an industrial footprint in China.

“The launch of Renault’s flagship – Talisman in China underlines the importance Renault attaches to the Chinese market and our confidence in growth here,” Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn said.

Renault and Nissan in China

In November 1993, Renault entered the Chinese market by signing an industrial partnership with China Sanjiang Space Group to assemble and produce the Trafic minibus through a joint venture, Sanjiang Renault Automotive Company (SRAC), in Xiaogan (Hubei province, 80 km from Wuhan). Production of Trafic stopped in 2003. In 1999, Renault began importing passenger cars and building up a sales network. In 2009, Renault launched the Total Ownership Experience program with an affordable 3-year warranty, and customer satisfaction with the sales experience increased and reached 95%.

The CBU Acceleration Plan introduced in May 2011 set ambitious targets:

Nissan began operating in China in 2003 with its partner, Dongfeng Motor Co, and launched its Infiniti brand in 2007. Nissan sold 94,000 vehicles in 2003. Nissan’s sales in China (including Infiniti brand) increased by 21.9% in 2011 to 1,247,738 vehicles, including 808,440 sold by the Dongfeng Nissan JV (+22.4%) and 115,518 by Zhengzhou Nissan (+15.4%). In early 2012, Nissan launched the Venucia D50, the first model of local brand, Venucia. With 7.3% market share in 2011, China is now the number-one market for Nissan. Nissan plans to sell two million vehicles in China by 2015.

The Renault-Nissan Alliance
The Renault-Nissan Alliance is a strategic partnership between Paris-based Renault and Yokohama, Japan-based Nissan, which together sell one in 10 cars worldwide. The companies, which have been strategic partners since 1999, sold 8.03 million cars in 2011, including those from Russian partner AvtoVAZ. Since its founding, the cross-cultural Renault-Nissan Alliance has expanded significantly, particularly into emerging markets.