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Ang - Chroniques Renault - Chap01 PDF
Ang - Chroniques Renault - Chap01 PDF
Until 1902, Renault Voiturettes were fitted with one-cylinder engines purchased from a
subcontractor. But that year, Renault invested in building its own two- and four-cylinder engines,
assisted by engineer Paul Viet, hired away from De Dion.
As attested by the frequent changes in model-type names, the range expanded and improved. By
this time, six different models of “light vehicles” were offered to Renault customers. They featured
the same qualities – efficiency, reliability, relative lightness – that made the Voiturette popular.
At the wheel of a 4-cylinder, Marcel won the Paris-
Vienna race on June 29, 1902, against
competitors driving more powerful cars. But
those automobiles tended to break down, and
their greater weight was a handicap when going
through mountain passes. This victory was an
unprecedented success for Renault Frères, and the
number of orders increased tenfold.
Unfortunately, on May 26, 1903, the dashing
Marcel Renault lost control of his Renault when
overtaking a rival in the Paris-Madrid race. That
accident, just north of Bordeaux, was fatal to him.
The tragedy marked the end of intercity races, and
convinced Louis Renault to give up motor sports.
It left Louisalone at the helm with his brother and
partner Fernand, sharing the capital of the
company which had risen to 773 000 francs. At
Figure 11 - Marcel Renault’s victorious arrival at the this point, Louis ceased being an employee,
Prater in Vienna. becoming instead the ubiquitous boss of
Billancourt.
Figure 12 - Marcel at the start of the Paris-Madrid Figure 13 – After the accident at Couhé-Vérac
In 1904, the company confronted the mixed blessing of an overflowing order book. The magneto
ignition was added, as well as a new engine-cooling system with the radiator in the rear, facilitating
access to the motor. This design would last until the late 1920s, giving the Renault cars a
characteristic profile.
1905 was a pivotal year. By then, the shop at Billancourt covered 236,000 square feet and employed
800 workers. Renault won a call for bids from La Compagnie Française des Automobiles de Place, a
subsidiary of Banque Mirabaud, aimed at replacing horse-drawn carriages with automobiles. The
contract specified an order for cars that were “perfect in every way [… possessing] certain qualities
which are not indispensable in every car, because they are called upon to satisfy both the
requirements of the public and, at the same time, the no less imperious demands of the shareholders
[…] These cars are supposed to be comfortable, elegant, and clean. Especially, they should break
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down as little as possible. No noise, and especially, no smoke […] Finally, the taxi must be
moderately priced and consume little gasoline and oil.” The type AG, of the utmost simplicity with its
twin-cylinder 8 CV engine, met these
requirements perfectly. When it
underwent comparative trials, it proved
to be easy to drive and maintain,
reliable, and ideally adapted to
passenger transportation. This triumph
in one of the rare markets where the
automobile immediately prevailed was
followed by similar successes in
London and New York City. It won
Renault large, recurring orders – which
attained 3,000 cars per year and 2/3 of
Figure 14 – The AG taxi
the market. As a result, Renault became
the leading French automaker. A few
years before Ford, the company was able to develop a real mass production manufacturing process).
However, Louis Renault was careful not to push it to single-model, large series Fordism, with its high
salaries. For half a century, Renault remained in a privileged position in this market.
Louis Renault did not forget his own comfort. He had already acquired two Paris townhouses. In
1906, sailing down the Seine aboard his yacht, the Chrysélis, he spotted an estate at Herqueville,
near Les Andelys. He bought it, and extended it to 4,250 acres. It became a country retreat where he
invited staff members and celebrities, artists, businessmen, and politicians, to hunt, but also to work.
In 1913, he built another townhouse and an investment property in Paris, at numbers 88 and 90 of
the fancy Avenue du Bois (later Avenue Foch).
Renault returned to automobile racing in
1905 on the track in Auvergne with a car
that had spectacular characteristics –
13 litres, 90 hp. The former mechanics
had become drivers, but they did not
attain the hoped-for success. However,
the following year, the team achieved
victory at the first ACF Grand Prix de la
Sarthe. Driver François Szisz crossed the
finish line well ahead of the pack after a
Figure 15 – The 90 CV at the 1906 Sarthe Grand Prix race 769-mile closed-circuit race (1,238 km).
The triumph reinforced Renault’s
reputation for reliability. Michelin also took part in this success, having contributed the
demountable rims which equipped the car.
5 dealerships opened in France in 1905, a budding sales network freeing the company
from direct sales. Six foreign subsidiaries appeared: “Renault Frères Ltd.” in London
(1905); “Renault Selling Branch” in the US (1906);
“Renault Automobil AG” in Germany (1907); the
“Société Espagnole des Automobiles Renault” (1909);
a Hungarian subsidiary (1913); and the “Société des
Automobiles Renault pour la Russie” followed by
Russky Renault (1914). The Russian subsidiary built
two plants of its own by 1916. For Renault,
internationalization is hardly a recent concept!
Renault’s flourishing business was not limited to the
passenger car. In addition to taxi cabs, it took an Figure 16 – In Saint-Petersburg, the imperial Russian Renault
interest in all types of combustion-engine power: fleet.
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Louis Renault remained faithful to this principle throughout his life. Undeniably, it yielded great
savings. On the other hand, it also limited the developmental scope. The consequences were visible
in the choice of innovations. They were usually based on familiar or easily mastered elements, with a
will to copy certain competitors’ accomplishments, but they were hindered by an inability to go
beyond certain technical limitations.
Marcel Renault had established a cordial spirit for labor relations, but after his death, a chill set in,
leading occasionally to overt hostility. In 1906, workers briefly went on strike for higher wages and
shorter hours. At ehe end of 1912, a tenuous compromise had been reached to avert brewing unrest,
but the imposition of standardized times led in 1913 to the six-week “stopwatch strike”, which ended
with a lockout of 436 employees.
Preferring one-on-one conversations, Louis Renault often strolled through the shop, making sure
regulations were being obeyed, finding ways to simplify a worker’s task or to economize on
resources. He was a progressive, always seeking improvement.
Main strengths
A whole variety of challenges were met with coherent solutions. The simplicity of the product
Renault was offering to a budding market guaranteed its reliability and durability, but also its
performance, thanks to the auto’s power for its weight. The benefits of this approach did not stop
there: simplicity also facilitated manufacture, daily use, and maintenance. And it did not necessarily
entail austerity. Care was lavished on details, offering the consumer high value in use. Last but not
least, simplicity kept costs low. Profit margins were healthy. If innovation was necessary, it was
achieved by a wise rearrangement of tried-and-true techniques (like the direct drive), or by cautious
experimentation (for example, the choice of the AX engine or that of the 50 HP). Renault rarely
hurled himself into unexplored technological space.
Instead, he adopted the sort of values that never go out of style: satisfying customer needs, continual
progress, a product/process approach, the concept of after-sales service. As a result, he could
respond to the market quickly and dominate it with authority. Reputation boosted sales, and vice-
versa.
Equipped with these assets, on the eve of the Great War, Louis Renault occupied an extraordinary
position: a tycoon, he had forged a name for himself as a great industrialist. In 1913, when he was 36
years old, he was elected president of the French automakers’ guild, the Chambre Syndicale des
Constructeurs Automobiles.