The Dacia Logan, intended to be sold in world markets as basic transportation, was never supposed to come to America, but somehow, 41 Dacia Logan station wagons found their way to Iowa, sans drivetrain.

The fleet of Romanian-built compacts, engineered in collaboration with Renault, came without VINs as well, since the cars were intended to be converted to electric vehicles. The project seems to have gone belly-up, and the cars are now being auctioned off on Ebay at a starting price of $4,500. Buyers have the option of purchasing a single car or buying in bulk, although registering the cars for road use will undoubtedly be more trouble than its worth.

[Source: Bring A Trailer]

Renault’s Vitaly Petrov recently made history by becoming the first Russian driver to clinch a Formula One podium finish. Now he’s making history through the Internet with this awesome footage of him catching air at the Malaysian Grand Prix.

Going slightly wide on turn 7 of the course, Petrov launched his Renault race car while in eighth place. Unfortunately the landing snapped the steering column, ending his day of racing short. His teammate Nick Heidfeld did clinch a podium finish however.

Check out the video after the break.

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Nissan and Renault are planning to officially combine into one automaker, solidifying a partnership between the Japanese and French companies that has existed since 1999. Or at least, they were planning to do so according to a report by Japan’s Nikkei, that quoted company CEO Carlos Ghosn. Today, however, both automakers are refuting that claim.

A statement released jointly by the two automakers claims that the Nikkei article was, “a misinterpretation of a wide-ranging interview in which Mr. Ghosn said that the corporate structure of the Renault-Nissan Alliance would remain dynamic,” and that “There are no plans to create a holding company, and in fact Mr. Ghosn did not say that Renault and Nissan are ‘leaning toward establishing a holding company.”

If a tie-up were to occur, it would bring together two of the world’s larger automakers for a combined annual output of around 7 million vehicles. That would put it in direct competition with Volkswagen, which currently holds the title of being the world’s 3rd largest automaker with 7.14 million units sold last year. First and second place, held by Toyota and GM, are still comfortably out front with 8.42 million and 8.39 million units respectively.

[Source: Reuters]

Everything that is old is new again. That is the mantra of pretty much every single major car company. Volkswagen has the Beetle (a newer version of which will be launched later this year), Mini has had the reborn Cooper for awhile now, and Fiat recently introduced the new 500 in the North American market. All these models mimic their predecessors in terms of styling.

If rumors are to be believed, Renault now also wants to jump into the premium hatchback market by bringing a new version of the Le Car. Called the Renault 5 or R5 in other markets, the car was a huge success in Europe, Asia and Africa, while it hardly made an impression in the North American market, despite having a successful racing career around the globe.

If Renault does decide to put a new Le Car into production, it can easily be based on their Clio platform to save money and speed up the process of development. Will this model ever make it to North America? While there are no plans for Renault to make a comeback, the Le Car could be sold through select Nissan dealers, just like Fiat is doing with some Chrysler dealers regarding the 500.

[Source: InsideLine]

It has been a long time since Renaultsport had a car entirely of its own creation. The last one, as some might remember, was the mid-engined roadster called the Spider (see picture).

Now it seems that Renault wants to create Renaultsport into its own brand and are looking to once again produce a roadster, and word is that it’ll be based on the beautiful DeZir concept.

According to Renault’s product manager Beatrice Foucher “Renaultsport is key to Renault’s strategy. It already has excellent loyalty and is perceived by some owners as a brand in its own right, and we can develop that further. We will continue working on derivative versions of the Mégane, for example, because that’s a terrific car and excellent for us. But we also need specific models only for Renaultsport. We have started working on that; we’re thinking of small volumes, where there are good business models.”

Foucher mentioned that Renaultsport could have upto three models of its own. However, the first model will be a mid-engined convertible, but unlike the DeZir concept, will most likely not be an electric vehicle.

Actual technical details are just speculation at the moment, but we will keep you posted as more details emerge.

[Source: Autocar]

Renault is admitting that is wrongfully dismissed three executives accused of corporate espionage, saying it has found no evidence to support the allegations made.

Carlos Ghosn, Renault’s CEO, met with the three and promised compensation for their erroneous termination. Renault had accused the executives of holding illicit bank accounts in Switzerland and Lichtenstein, but their claim was contradicted by authorities in both countries. Renault is now investigation potential fraud related to another employee.

“At this stage we do not know whether we are dealing with just fraud or a deliberate attempt to destabilize Renault,” Paris Chief Prosecutor Jean-Claude Marin said. “If there was any espionage it was not carried out through the networks identified by Renault.”

[Source: Automotive News]

When several Renault execs were accused of selling the French automaker’s electric car secrets to the Chinese, it made headlines around the world. Last week came reports that the story might have been a hoax – and that now appears to be the case with a Renault security agent having been arrested.

The individual, who’s name has not been released, it charged with “organized fraud” for having invented the industrial espionage story. The arrest was made when the security agent attempted to board a flight to Africa at Charles de Gaulle airport.

Doubts arose recently when no evidence, including allegations of payoffs, could be determined.

The three Renault execs were never formally charged, but were placed on probation while under investigation.

[Source: Detroit News]

Days after Renault fired three men and pressed criminal charges on them for allegedly attempting to sell electric car secrets overseas, CEO Carlos Ghosn is facing a disturbing lack of evidence, embarrassing Renault into reconsidering its accusations.

The entire dramatic episode is becoming a farce—like BP during the Gulf oil spill, Renault may be faced with a new round of replacement executives. Chief operating officer Patrick Pélata told a French newspaper that “a certain number of factors lead us to doubt” the accusations that it had made. Key evidence is missing, such as the bank accounts that the three men had supposedly used in the spying operation. Renault’s own investigators looking into the case have divulged little information on their findings, if any.

To make matters even more complicated, the three men have fought back, suing Renault for defamation and reaching out to the media. They are part of senior management in Renault’s electric car program (that it shares with Nissan) and have been with the company for years, even decades. And they are maintaining their innocence, believing that they were fired without the company even looking for evidence to match the accusations.

Was Renault the victim of a con man, who played on the company’s fears by accusing it of being spied upon? The French government is understandably angry at the whole affair, as the state owns 15 percent of the company. The entire case will only get messier from here, and few people—including Carlos Ghosn, Nissan’s wonder boy—are safe.

[Source: New York Times]

Whether you love or hate the way the Nissan Juke looks, it’s hard to argue that it’s anything but a blast to drive. Renault seems to be taking a few things from corporate partner Nissan, and emulating the Juke with their Captur, a concept that debuted at the Geneva Auto Show.

Powered by a 158-hp 1.6-liter dCi diesel engine, the Captur also uses a dual-clutch gearbox rather than a CVT like the Juke, with a very uncanny torque-vectoring AWD system like its Nissan counterpart. No details were given as to the likelihood of production, but we’d be surprised if the Captur ended up not making it to the streets.

GALLERY: Renault Captur

The future of the RedBull Formula 1 team is looking brighter than ever. Not only did they win the F1 constructors championship in 2010, their young-gun Sebastian Vettel also took the driver’s championship.

And this just in… RedBull will be getting their engines for free in 2011. It’s part of a new deal by the Renault/Nissan group to promote the Infiniti brand, which is relatively new in Europe.

While the engines are still prepared by Renault, they will be wearing Infiniti badges. So Infiniti will get much needed brand recognition in Europe and other parts of the world, and RedBull will save roughly $10-million, money it can use to make their fast car even faster.

In pre-season testing, the RedBull squad is already looking to be the fastest. Will they walk away with another championship or will some other team give them a tough fight? Time will tell.

The 2011 Formula 1 season will have a delayed start because the first race was suppose to be in Bahrain, but due to political struggles in the region, the race has been canceled. Now the season opener will be held in Australia on March 27th.

[Source: BBC Sports]

Although the Smart ForTwo hasn’t been warmly received by American buyers, there is hope for the quirky maker of diminutive city cars, as parent company Daimler is backing the brand with new products and utilizing their alliance with Renault-Nissan to give the lineup a boost.

A Smart representative confirmed that a four seat model will arrive sometime in the future, a vehicle that will doubtlessly expand Smart’s appeal to a much broader customer base. While this car will arrive in a few years, a 5-seater hatch with 5-doors reportedly based on the Nissan Micra is set to bow in the last quarter of 2011. A revised ForTwo, which will share a jointly-developed Renault-Nissan platform will also debut, but on an unspecified time frame.

[Source: Autoblog]

Previewing a possible sister-car to the Nissan Juke, Renault has announced the new Captur Concept ahead of its official debut at the Geneva Auto Show. The two seater is a look at fun crossover mobility and is the second of six concepts that will set the tone for the French automaker’s future design language.

Powered by a 158-hp 1.6-liter dCi diesel engine, the Capture also gets a dual-clutch automatic transmission. This is an exciting development, considering the Renault-Nissan partnership and could result in Nissan models (like the Juke) getting this unit in favor of the CVT.

As proof that the two automakers are in fact sharing technology across brands, the Captur also showcases what Renault is calling RX2, a high-tech AWD system that can spit power left to right at the rear axle. The Juke just so happens to have this very system.

GALLERY: Renault Captur Concept

Geneva Auto Show coverage starts March 1st. Until then, get more news on the show with AutoGuide’s complete 2011 Geneva Auto Show Preview here.

Robert Kubica, one of Formula-One’s finest drivers, suffered a terrible crash over the weekend, when his Skoda Fabia rally-car slid off the road and hit a church wall. The crash took place just 4-miles from the start of the Ronde di Andora rally in Italy.

The 26 year-old Polish star has suffered massive injury to his right hand, as it got partially severed in the crash. He has also suffered injury to his shoulder and elbow.

After a 7-hour surgery on his hand, the doctors have reported that Kubica is “able to move his fingers” and even “spoke to his relatives” according to a statement released by Renault.

Kubica, who has been the senior driver in the Renault -F1  team, just recently completed testing of the new Group Lotus-Renault R31 in Valencia, Spain. He is known to participate in rallying events, a decision Renault F1 boss Eric Boullier defends.

According to reports, it took the rescue team over an hour to pull Kubica from his wrecked car, because the race car had to be cut open to extract him safely. He was then air-lifted to Santa Corona hospital near Genoa, where the operation took place.

To reduce physical stress, the doctors will put Kubica under gentle medication to allow him to sleep as much as possible. They will operate on his elbow and shoulder in a few days time, allowing his body to recover from the first operation. Professor Mario Igor Rossello, who was part of the surgery team said that Kubica had lost a lot of blood, and when he arrived at the hospital he was unconscious, hence they had to wait before operating on him. However, now “the hand is warm and this means the operation went well” said Rossello.

Due to the injuries suffered in this crash, Kubica will probably have to miss the entire 2011 F1 season, and its too soon to say what lies beyond this year. His doctors however are confident that the recovery should take less than a year.

The newly formed Lotus-Renault F1 team has two reserve drivers, namely Bruno Senna and Romain Grosjean who can step in to fill the seat for the 2011 F1 season which starts on March 13.

All of us at the AutoGuide office would like to wish Kubica a speedy recovery and will hopefully see him back in action soon.

(Source: BBC)

Nissan has traditionally played second fiddle to Honda in terms of sales figures, but the company’s strong numbers in China, combined with Honda’s declining fortunes have helped Nissan surpass Honda. Nissan moved 4.08 million units in 2010, with Honda only pushing 3.56 million.

Although Honda’s sales were up by 5 percent, it did little to stem Nissan’s rise. Combined with its partner Renault, the two automakers sold 7.3 million cars, more than Volkswagen or Ford.

[Source: The Detroit Bureau]

Hyundai was able to achieve a 45 percent market share in South Korea in 2010, falling well below its target of 52 percent. Luckily, the failure to meet the target thanks to phenomenal growth from the Kia brand, owned by Hyundai and Kia’s new Optima and Sportage.

For 2011, Hyundai is targeting a more modest 47 percent with their new Grandeur sedan and the Veloster sports coupe. Hyundai’s main competitors, Daewoo and Renault-Samsung, lag behind Kia and Hyundai significantly. South Korea still remains Hyundai’s largest market despite phenomenal growth in the United States.

[Source: Reuters]

French automaker Renault, recently said that its strategic assets have been put at risk, due to suspected industrial espionage, particularly with reference to the firm’s electric vehicle technology.

Renault has been working on a new long range strategy, much of which includes a focus on electric vehicle technology and cooperation with partner Nissan – at present, total investment between the two companies is believed to amount to 4 billion euros ($5.3 billion U.S.), with Renault alone, planning to build more than 200,000 electric vehicles a year by 2016.

However, the plan is now believed to be at risk, due to an internal investigation that reportedly found three Renault executives to have leaked confidential documents to outside sources. French Industry minister Eric Besson, spoke to the press on Thursday January 6, stating “I have asked the economy ministry administration … to strengthen the requirements for protection of companies that ask for state aid and financial contributions for innovation.”

Besson also said, during an interview on French radio station RTL that the Renault espionage incident illustrates once again the risks our companies face in terms of industrial espionage and economic intelligence.

The official line from Renault, is that the three employees accused of leaking the information are still regarded only as suspects, with no formal charges yet announced against them. Although currently under suspension, they face disciplinary action and likely dismissal if found guilty of industrial espionage.

One source told Reuters that carelessness on the part of Renault’s security protocol rather than the employee’s intention to leak the information could also be a factor, especially with proliferation of social media delivery platforms – an executive within the intelligence gathering community, cited a hypothetical  example of an enthusiastic employee saying too much about their work to their friends via online forums or other similar outlets as something that could easily happen. The investigation continues.

[Source: Automotive News]

With their supply of Renault engines set to dry up after 2011, and new engine regulations coming into place in 2013, current champions Red Bull are said to be looking at producing their own engines, with one rumored partner said to be Volkswagen.

“We are on standby for an interesting partnership, and even the idea of developing our own engine, I think, is no longer so absurd,” said Dietrich Mateschitz, Red Bull’s co-founder, in an interview with an Australian publication. With current supplier Renault partnering with Lotus, Red Bull’s engine supply is only guaranteed through 2011.

It’s somewhat galling for a soft-drink/marketing empire to speak of constructing a Formula 1 motor, but with Red Bull having finally locked up a championship after fielding a strong car for a number of seasons, perhaps a partnership with an experienced automaker may give Red Bull the opportunity to get a completely in-house championship.

[Source: Inside Line]

Lotus made a less than successful return to F1 in 2010, after being out of the sport since 1994. However, it seems there will be lots of Lotus F1 cars on the grid for the 2011 season.

So apart from Team Lotus (formerly known as Lotus F1) which is a privately owned team, Group Lotus has bought a stake into the Renault F1 team to create Lotus Renault GP. So while there will be two Lotus F1 teams on the grid, only one will get factory support.

Works team chairman Gerard Lopez said, “We are delighted that we can now go public with the news that we will be racing as Lotus Renault GP in 2011.”

For fans it will be hard to spot which is which, because both teams will be using livery inspired by the JPS sponsored racing cars from the 1970′s, and since both teams are also using Renault engines, their performance should be about the same also. So expect an inner battle between the two Lotus F1 teams.

But there will also be a battle outside of the track. Group Lotus wants to pull the Lotus out of Team Lotus, as it wants to be the only team with this name. Tony Fernandes, owner of Team Lotus, says he will be fighting to keep the name, pointing out that Lotus’ F1 operations have historically always been separate from their road car business.

This matter will be dealt in court next year. Until then, expect a battle of the back markers between these two similar looking and similar sounding teams.

The black and gold Lotus paint scheme may be Formula 1′s most iconic livery, more dear to the hearts of fans than even the red Marlboro design used on McLaren and Ferrari cars.

While the colors originally came from the John Player Special cigarette design, they’ve managed to burn themselves into the hearts and minds of racing fans, long after Lotus had left the sport, and tobacco advertising was banished once and for all.

The revived Lotus Renault outfit comes from a partnership between Lotus cars and Genii Capital, an investment group that purchased the remnants of Renault’s Formula 1 outfit, that’s also won two championships. Using Renault engines, the name choice was obvious – except that a rival team, which had purchase the Lotus naming rights for the 2010 season, is also campaigning in the 2011 season with Renault power. Their name too, will be Lotus Renault GP. We expect this to be settled in court soon, but in the mean time, hit the jump to see the press release for one of two Lotus Renault Formula 1 outfits.

[Source: Renault]

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Carlos Ghosn, head of Renault-Nissan, offered a series of very optimistic forecasts regarding electric vehicles during a recent interview with Bloomberg TV, while stating bluntly “There are customers who want really zero emission cars.”

Ghosn predicted that 10 percent of auto sales in the year 2020 will be comprised of zero emissions vehicles, and Nissan seems to be betting heavily on electric vehicles in particular.

With plans to produce 500,000 electric cars by 2012, Ghosn said that profits could be generated within 3 years as the production volumes increase to a level where economies of scale can be taken advantage of.

[Source: Automotive News]

Renault is already one of the auto industry’s leaders in electric vehicles, investing enormous sums in the Better Place battery swap technology and introducing one of the first mass-market electric cars with their Nissan division, in the form of the Leaf hatchback.

Although Renault is set to introduce the all-electric Z0e in 2012, the small hatchback will only have a range of 100 miles. Renault is hoping to increase that to 150 miles by 2015 thanks to new chemical compounds in the cars battery pack. Britain’s Autocar magazine suggests that by 2025, range could be up to as much as 300 miles. While Europeans generally have shorter driving distances, a 300 mile EV would go a long way to soothe the fears of North Americas, and make the idea of a battery powered car a lot more palatable.

Russia has tried for some time to get a Formula 1 race, and with their hosting of the Winter Olympics in 2014 and the World Cup in 2018, it looks as if the country will finally get a race starting in 2014.

The plan calls for a race in Sochi, site of the 2014 Winter games, as Russia can make use of the tourist infrastructure being installed for the games. The fact that Sochi is a world renowned resort on the Black Sea doesn’t hurt either.

Russians are pretty big car fans to start with, and like to partake in certain, unsanctioned forms of motorsports. We think Formula 1 will be a big hit, and with Renault pilot Vitaly Petrov as Russia’s first Formula 1 driver, the business case gets stronger by the second.

[Source: Bloomberg]

After signing a pact to develop electric cars in April, Daimler has announced that they will expand their alliance with Renault-Nissan, as automakers scramble to bring alternative fuel vehicles to the market.

According to Daimler research chief Thomas Weber, the company’s partnership “will be expanded to include all three partners as far as electric motors, batteries and powertrains are concerned.” The first project will be a collaboration on certain systems contained in the next generation of Smart Fortwo and Renault Twingo superminis.

The deal would see Renault-Nissan help develop two and three cylinder engines as well as electric vehicle technologies, while Mercedes would send the French-Japanese company their highly-lauded diesel engines. Mercedes-Benz is looking to reduce their fleet average CO2 emissions by 2012 and meet even more aggressive targets by 2020.

“We won’t be able to meet the target of 95 grams CO2 in 2020 without electric vehicles with batteries and fuel cells,” Weber said. Vehicles like the SLS AMG E-Cell and their S400 Hybrid are being developed in house as a stopgap measure.

[Source: Automotive News]

The Lotus F1 team has historically relied on power from three major engine builders; Cosworth, Renault and Honda. With Honda now out of Formula 1 racing and Cosworth’s powerplants providing unsatisfactory results, Lotus has turned to historic partner Renault for some mechanical motivation.

Starting in 2011, Lotus will use the Renault mills, which currently power the points-leading Red Bull cars, as well as the Renault factory team.  The team will also change its name to Team Lotus, which has historical connotations, and connections with the Lotus cars brand.

Lotus and Renault previously partnered in the 1980′s with their iconic Black and Gold John Player Special cars (pictured above), while certain iconic Lotus road cars, like the Europa, could be fitted with a souped-up Renault Gordini motor in place of the Ford twincam.

[Source: Autosport]