Pete05
Premium
- 7,080
- Melbourne, Australia
In 1966, when Formula One was changed allowing for 3 litre engines, a provision was made for 1.5 litre supercharged engines. With no takers amongst the current engine suppliers and the tremendous success of the Ford-Cosworth it was left to an outsider, yet one with a history that traced back to the first Grand Prix to show a third way. Renault had been trying to win Le Mans with a turbo-charged engine but was suffering from cracked pistons. Bernard Dudot was sent to Garrett AiResearch to study the fine art of turbocharging. In 1979 the Renault turbocharged engine found it's way into a Grand Prix car.
Renault introduced the RS10 ground effect car at Monaco 1979. Later that year, Jean-Pierre Jabouille scored the first win ever for a turbocharged car in F1 in the French GP at Dijon-Prenois later that year, a race that was also memorable for the famous last lap fight between Gilles Villeneuve's Ferrari and Rene Arnoux in the second Renault.
After the Renault turbo had a huge advantage in the elevated thin air at Kyalami in South Africa, rival teams quickly realized a turbo engine was the way to go. In 1982, Ferrari and BMW were the first to join the turbo club. It was thought by some that turbocharged engines would allow large manufacturers to leapfrog the smaller British teams and their acknowledged leadership in chassis design.
ENGINE
Configuration
90 degree V6
Location
Mid, longitudinally mounted
Displacement
1491 cc / 91 cu in
Bore / Stroke
86 mm x 42.8 mm
Valvetrain
4 valves per cylinder, DOHC
Fuel feed
Bosch-Kugelfischer Fuel Injection
Aspiration
Twin KKK turbochargers by Kuhnle, Kopp & Kausch
Ignition
Marelli Dinoplex electronic ignition
Power
500 bhp @ 11,000 rpm
Transmission
Hewland FGA 400 six speed manual
Chassis
Three quarter monocoque nacelle employing engine as load bearing member at rear
Front suspension
Top rocker arms, wide-based lower wishbones, inboard coil spring/damper units, anti-roll bar
Rear suspension
Top rocker arms, lower wishbones, inboard coil spring/damper units, anti-roll bar
Brakes
Discs, inboard front & rear
DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase
2860 mm / 112.6"
Front track
1626 mm / 64"
Rear track
1702 mm / 67"
Wheel rim width
(F) 11" (R) 18"
Weight
600 kg
http://www.f1technical.net/f1db/cars/433/renault-rs10
http://www.statsf1.com/en/renault-rs10.aspx
http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/spec/1050/Renault-RS-10.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renault_RS10
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