Groupe Renault (UK: /ˈrɛnoʊ/ REN-oh, US: /rəˈnɔːlt,rəˈnoʊ/rə-NAWLT, rə-NOH,[7][8]French:[ɡʁupʁəno], also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinationalautomobile manufacturer established in 1899.[9] The company produces a range of cars and vans and in the past, has manufactured trucks, tractors, tanks, buses/coaches, aircraft and aircraft engines, and autorail vehicles.
Headquartered in Boulogne-Billancourt, near Paris, the Renault group is made up of the namesake Renault marque along with subsidiaries Alpine and Dacia from Romania.[10][11] Renault also has other subsidiaries as RCI Banque (automotive financing), Renault Retail Group (automotive distribution) and Motrio (automotive parts). Renault has various joint ventures, including Oyak-Renault (Turkey) and Renault Pars (Iran). The French state and Nissan each own a 15% share of the company.
Renault Trucks, previously known as Renault Véhicules Industriels, has been part of Volvo since 2001. Renault Agriculture became 100% owned by German agricultural equipment manufacturer CLAAS in 2008.
Renault is known for its role in motor sport, particularly rallying, Formula 1 and Formula E. Its early work on mathematical curve modeling for car bodies is important in the history of computer graphics.[12]
The Renault corporation was founded on 25 February 1899 as Société Renault Frères by Louis Renault and his brothers Marcel and Fernand.[9][13] Louis was a bright, aspiring young engineer who had already designed and built several prototypes before teaming up with his brothers, who had honed their business skills working for their father's textile firm. While Louis handled design and production, Marcel and Fernand managed the business.[14]
The first Renault car, the Renault Voiturette 1CV, was sold to a friend of Louis' father after giving him a test ride on 24 December 1898.[15]