Radicalising the 5 was chosen instead of the 20, because the Turbo would add some much-needed jazz to the staid compact’s range.
Renault had just the car to be its turbocharged figurehead already waiting in the wings. It was finding redemption, too, because its against-the-DFV-grain turbocharged F1 engine was taking its breakthrough victory after two years in the doldrums with an unreliable, single-turbo 1.5-litre V6 engine.Īfter 13 retirements in 16 races across 1977 and ’78, fourth at Watkins Glen had been a rare highlight for a troubled project and the only points scored.
At more than £4500 it wasn’t cheap, but it was a snip compared to what was to come.Īround the same time the naturally aspirated Gordini met British roads, Renault was grabbing headlines across the world from its own backyard. On the road it was stiffer than any 5 before it, with anti-roll bars front and rear and 5% thicker torsion bars, and it was visually more aggressive than the standard slant-backed hatch that was nearing a decade old.Ī front lip gave it a lower look, housing those tinted French fogs – Cibié, naturally. It was a fabulous training school, I learnt a huge amount.” The car really moved about, slipping and sliding around, especially the back because the tyres were tiny. “The Gordini was spectacular,” recalls the small and smiling Ragnotti, “but the car had such an old engine.
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