RENAULT used to be predominantly state-owned which gave it strange managerial practices, often dependent on which party was in power at the time. It also endowed the French trade unions with far more effective control than was good for a car giant.
On the sporting front, Renault won Le Mans in 1978, then turned its attention to Formula One with the first 1.5-litre turbocharged engine in a neat, French-designed chassis. Racing between 1979 and 1983, Renault achieved 15 victories before deciding its future lay in supplying engines, initially to the now-defunct Lotus team and subsequently to Williams, with which famous names such as Nigel Mansell and Alain Prost all won world titles.
Renault pulled out of Formula One at the end of 1997, with union pressure looming as factory closures and ensuing job losses made it difficult to justify multi-million franc racing budgets.
This year Renault took a 37 per cent shareholding in ailing Japanese giant Nissan and it is possible it will re-enter Formula One with a Nissan-badged, French-built engine. Negotiations are rumoured to have taken place between the Arrows team and Renault.
Britain's TWR Group, which owns Arrows, built Nissan's 1998 Le Mans entries and is also in a joint venture with Renault to build a sporting version of the best-selling Clio.
Renault is currently trying to re-invent itself worldwide and, in particular, is making a big push in Hong Kong to establish the marque among the best-selling European brands.
The latest model to debut here is the Megane, available as a four-door saloon, a coupe or in convertible cabriolet form.