Renault Sport RS 01

The Renault Sport RS 01 is the company's first series-production result of its intention to re-enter the sports car segment, as signalled by the DeZir and Alpine A 110-50 concepts. The car, however, is a track-only creation for the World Series by Renault racing championships.

While we usually wouldn't cover racing cars, Renault's design department has clearly been heavily involved in the RS 01's development. Why else would its prominent diamond badge be so neatly integrated into a front mask that dramatically feeds through into the carved-out door surface? Or its rear lamp graphics so carefully crafted to capture Renault's latest internal trend? The design of this car was dictated as much by its leverage as a marketing tool as it was by aerodynamics.

At 2,000mm wide and just 1,116mm high its proportions are as dramatic as you might imagine. But, some graphics aside, it's difficult to see how lead designer Akio Shimizu related to Renault's distinctive surfacing we've seen since the aforementioned DeZir.

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