Renault, the world famous manufacturer of lorries, vans, buses, tractors, and cars, was founded in 1899 as the ‘Société Renault Frères’ by the Renault brothers, Louis, Marcel and Fernand. However, much of the credit for starting the legend of Renault history goes to Louis Renault, who was an aspiring individual and had already designed several car models before joining his brothers. In fact, he is the person who built the first Renault Car, known as the ‘Renault Voiturette 1CV’ in 1898.
Louis got motivated and then decided to start his own company, which thus lead to the establishment of ‘Société Renault Frères’. In 1901, Louis, along with his brothers, built the Voiturette Renault Type D Série B and two years later, the company began manufacturing its own engines. And this marked the beginning of a prosperous French car manufacturer.
In 1905, the company made its first major sale when Société des Automobiles placed an order for Renault AG1 cars to create a fleet of taxis. Two years later, Renault became the leading manufacturer of taxis in French and became the best-selling brand in New York. In 1908, Renault became the largest manufacturer in France by selling more than 3,575 units.
The World War I years, between 1914 and 1918, saw the company branch out into military production. Therefore, Renault began manufacturing lorries, airplanes, ammunition, and the F-17 tank for the French military.
Post World War, Renault then offered its rear engine 4CV model in 1946. And between 1951 and 1960, the company offered a 2-liter 4-cylinder vehicle known as Renault Fregate. It was during this time that the Renault Dauphine also made its debut and helped with the expansion of the company in Africa and North America, where it became one of the best-selling cars.
In 1981, the Renault Model 9 won the European Car of the Year award. Renault Cars had undergone significant style changes during this time and numerous hit models, such as the Renault 5 Turbo and Renault Fuego, were introduced. In 1996, following the failure of the Renault and Volvo merger, the company was privatized.
In 2011, Renault was ranked as the third-best automobile manufacturer in the European Market and ninth in the world. Now, the company has a yearly production rate of 2,704,675 units and manufactures trucks, buses, and other commercial vehicles. Additionally, Renault is one of the most well-known brands in motorsports, particularly in Formula 1 Racing
