Renault 5 Turbo

See also: Renault 5

Renault 5 Turbo

Manufacturer	Renault
Production	1980-1984
Successor	Renault Clio V6 Renault Sport
Class	Hot hatch
Body style	2-door hatchback
Layout	RMR layout
Engine	1397 cc Cléon turbo I4
Wheelbase	2,430 mm (95.7 in)
Length	3,660 mm (144.1 in)
Width	1,750 mm (68.9 in)
Height	1,320 mm (52.0 in)
Curb weight	970 kg (2,138 lb)
Related	Renault 5

The Renault 5 Turbo or R5 Turbo is a high-performance hatchback automobile launched by the French manufacturer Renault at the Brussels Motor Show in January 1980. The car was primarily designed for rallying, but was also sold in a street version. A total of 3576 R5 Turbos were manufactured during a four-year production run.

Design

In response to Lancia's rallying success with the mid-engined Stratos, Renault's Jean Terramorsi, vice-president of production, asked Bertone’s Marc Deschamps to design a new sports version of the Renault 5 Alpine supermini. The distinctive new rear bodywork was styled by Marcello Gandini at Bertone.

Although the standard Renault 5 has a front-mounted engine, the 5 Turbo featured a mid-mounted 1397 cc Cléon turbocharged engine placed behind the driver in mid-body in a modified Renault 5 chassis. In standard form, the engine developed 160 PS (118 kW; 158 hp) and 163 lb·ft (221 N·m) torque.

Though it used a modified body from a standard Renault 5, and was badged a Renault 5, the mechanicals were radically different, the most obvious difference being rear-wheel drive instead of the normal version's front-wheel drive. At the time of its launch it was the most powerful production French car. The first 400 production 5 Turbos were made to comply with Group 4 homologation to allow the car to compete in international rallies, and were manufactured at the Alpine factory in Dieppe.

Renault 5 Turbo 2

Once the homologation models were produced, a second version named Turbo 2 was introduced using more stock Renault 5 parts replacing many of light alloy components in the original 5 Turbo version. The Turbo 2 was less expensive, but had nearly the same levels of performance, top speed of 200 km/h (120 mph) and 0–100 km/h in 6.6 seconds. In retrospect, the original 5 Turbo was called "Turbo 1".

The concept of a mid-engined small Renault returned with the 1998 announcement of the Renault Clio V6.

Racing

R5 Turbo rally version

All the racing derivatives were based on the Turbo 1. The factory pushed the engine output up to 180 PS (132 kW; 178 hp) for the Critérium des Cévennes, 210 PS (154 kW; 207 hp) for the Tour de Corse, and by 1984 as much as 350 PS (257 kW; 345 hp) in the R5 Maxi Turbo.^{[citation needed]}

Driven by Jean Ragnotti in 1981, the 5 Turbo won the Monte Carlo Rally on its first outing in the World Rally Championship. The 2WD R5 turbo soon faced the competition of new Group B four-wheel drive cars that proved faster on dirt.

In 2004, Sports Car International named the R5 Turbo number nine on the list of Top Sports Cars of the 1980s.

WRC victories

No.	Event	Season	Driver	Co-driver	Car
1	49ème Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo	1981	Jean Ragnotti	Jean-Marc Andrié	Renault 5 Turbo
2	26éme Tour de Corse	1982	Jean Ragnotti	Jean-Marc Andrié	Renault 5 Turbo
3	29ème Tour De Corse	1985	Jean Ragnotti	Jean-Marc Andrié	Renault R5 Maxi Turbo
4	20º Rallye de Portugal Vinho do Porto	1986	Joaquim Moutinho	Edgar Fortes	Renault 5 Turbo

Further reading

• Renault 5 Turbo: L'école du Groupe B, by Dominique Pascal (2008). ISBN 2-7268-8462-8.

External links

• Renault 5 Turbo 2 (French)/(English)/(Spanish), retrieved on 1 August 2008