Renault has lastly confirmed that it’s going to cease its F1 engine operation with the change coming into impact for the 2026 season and past.
This comes after months of hypothesis surrounding the way forward for the French engine producer, which at the moment provides the Renault-owned Alpine F1 Crew.
The workers of Renault’s manufacturing unit in Viry-Chatillon, which is on the outskirts of Paris, weren’t proud of the plans both, staging a protest at Monza’s Italian Grand Prix in September.
However it wasn’t sufficient to cease their bosses from confirming the choice, so why is that this occurring and what’s the historical past of Renault energy models within the collection?
Why is Renault stopping its F1 engines?
The Renault engine has a wealthy historical past in F1, successful 12 constructors’ championships – the second-most in historical past after Ferrari.
Its final title, nonetheless, was with Purple Bull in 2013 and since then Renault’s inventory has dropped, having largely struggled within the turbo-hybrid period.
In 2023, for instance, the Renault engine had roughly 20-30bhp lower than rivals Honda, Mercedes and Ferrari.

Pierre Gasly, Alpine A523
Photograph by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Photographs
So it was lagging behind on efficiency and some great benefits of an F1 crew working its personal engine are a lot lower than in earlier years.
That’s as a result of producers have gotten extra up to the mark, and Alpine’s former crew boss Bruno Famin as soon as defined that “if we take a Ferrari or Mercedes engine, I am fairly satisfied that every one the mixing, all of the packaging, might be already very, superb.”
This has been evident in 2024, as Mercedes buyer outfit McLaren is at the moment main the championship with its engine enjoying a key function to that success.
And if the efficiency isn’t there, then it’s much more illogical for a corporation to spend enormous quantities of cash to run its personal energy unit.
In Renault’s case, the tip product has truly put them on the again foot as Alpine is next-to-last within the 2024 championship whereas progress on the 2026 engine was understood to be stalling.
So it arguably didn’t make sense to proceed the F1 challenge given what Alpine is hoping to attain within the automotive market, the place the cash can now be higher spent.
This implies the Viry manufacturing unit continues to be going to be in use, however might be reworked into an engineering centre to contribute to the know-how of future Renault and Alpine automobiles.

Pierre Gasly, Alpine A524
Photograph by: Alastair Staley / Motorsport Photographs
Alpine has due to this fact insisted that every one present Viry employees are assured jobs going ahead, particularly as it can proceed with different motorsport collection just like the World Endurance Championship and buyer initiatives resembling Formulation E and Rally-Raid.
Which engine will the Alpine F1 Crew now use?
It’s anticipated that the Alpine F1 Crew will use a Mercedes energy unit from the beginning of the brand new rules in 2026.
That’s as a result of Renault has lengthy been in discussions with the German producer, which at the moment provides McLaren, Williams and Aston Martin – who will swap to Honda in 2026 – in addition to its manufacturing unit squad.
However discussions with Mercedes are nonetheless ongoing and nothing has been formally introduced but relating to a future partnership.
The historical past of Renault F1 engines
Renault has now been concerned in F1 throughout six a long time, however what are a few of its key moments?
Renault makes its F1 debut in 1977
Renault began to fabricate engines at its Viry base in 1976 forward of the manufacturing unit squad’s F1 debut the next 12 months with the RS01.
The automotive was well-known for that includes F1’s first-ever turbocharged energy unit, which truly prompted Renault to wrestle. The RS01 was extremely unreliable and driver Jean-Pierre Jabouille retired from the primary six grands prix that he entered with the French squad, inflicting his automotive to be dubbed the “Yellow Teapot”.
It was not till 1979 that issues began to enhance, as a swap to the ground-effect RS10 resulted in Renault scoring 4 podiums that 12 months, together with Jabouille’s maiden victory on the French Grand Prix.

Jean-Pierre Jabouille, Renault RS10
Photograph by: Motorsport Photographs
Renault was now on a roll as three wins adopted in 1980 en path to it coming fourth within the championship. The crew’s status subsequently improved and back-to-back third-place finishes adopted in 1981 and 1982, the years when Alain Prost joined the squad and scored the primary 5 grand prix victories of his profession.
Renault indicators its first buyer outfit in 1983
By 1983 Renault had established itself as certainly one of F1’s main outfits and the engine was a key a part of that, so it started its personal buyer programme by supplying Crew Lotus that 12 months.
The shopper crew energy models have been ready by Mecachrome – a precision engineering firm – and grew in competitiveness as 1983 wore on because of the signing of designer Gerard Ducarouge.
It culminated in Renault ending runner-up to Ferrari within the championship, whereas Lotus got here eighth having scored a podium at Manufacturers Hatch. The shopper programme expanded in 1984 as Renault started supplying fellow French crew Ligier forward of Tyrrell becoming a member of the next 12 months.
However in 1985, the Renault engines have been as soon as once more unreliable and it prevented Lotus driver Ayrton Senna from combating for the title – his two victories being accompanied by seven retirements.
It was not an amazing 12 months for the Renault works crew both, because it completed beneath Ligier within the championship amid main monetary issues on the firm. Renault couldn’t justify the bills wanted to take care of a aggressive automotive, so it was simply an engine provider in 1986 earlier than leaving the collection altogether on the finish of the season.
However the break solely lasted for 2 years, as Renault powered Williams in 1989 – producing the primary pneumatic valved 3.5 V10 engine. It led to the British squad ending second within the standings and three years later Ligier returned to Renault energy models.

Thierry Boutsen, Williams FW13
Photograph by: Sutton Photographs
A Renault engine wins its first F1 title
Renault had been supplying F1 engines on and off over a 15-year interval by 1992, however by no means as soon as produced an influence unit ok for a championship.
That every one modified in 1992 when F1’s strongest engine belonged to Renault. It resulted in Williams dominating the season, after all helped by the technically-advanced FW14B chassis, as Nigel Mansell received eight of the opening 10 grands prix earlier than clinching his maiden title on the season’s eleventh spherical.
Sir Patrick Head, Williams technical director in 1992, mentioned: “It was actually superb and stronger than the Honda that was powering the McLaren.
“The Honda was simply as highly effective, if no more highly effective, nevertheless it was immensely heavy, whereas the Renault was quite a bit heavier than the engines that have been to comply with it.
“It was the perfect racing engine given the mix of energy, weight, gas consumption, set up and so forth. It was additionally extraordinarily dependable.”
Renault engines dominate F1 within the Nineties earlier than success with Fernando Alonso
That championship in 1992 was monumental for Renault, because it started a six-year interval of domination the place the French marque provided each winner of the constructors’ title.
This was right down to the drivability and gas effectivity of the ability unit, whereas Renault additionally confirmed an innate potential to adapt.

Nigel Mansell, Williams FW14B Renault
Photograph by: Rainer W. Schlegelmilch / Motorsport Photographs
In 1995, for instance, rules decreased the utmost engine displacement to 3 litres however Renault overcame this by making its RS7 lighter, whereas including the modern fly-by-wire throttle which makes a automotive extra dependable.
It resulted in Benetton claiming a double title in 1995 amid a dominant run by Williams, who received 5 championships between 1992 and 1997. Renault left F1 on the finish of that 12 months although, earlier than returning with its manufacturing unit squad which purchased Benetton in 2000.
This led to Renault claiming the 2005 and 2006 crowns with Fernando Alonso behind the wheel, the place the dependable R25 energy unit was key to the success.
Profitable Purple Bull partnership turns bitter resulting in Renault’s demise
Renault signed its first buyer crew of this new period in 2007, the place the French marque started powering Purple Bull – a partnership which yielded 4 consecutive double titles between 2010 and 2013.
That championship in 2010 additionally stays the final time a customer-engined F1 automotive received the title. It’s as a result of, in 2011, Purple Bull was promoted to full-works standing as Renault’s manufacturing unit squad was rebranded to Lotus Renault GP.
However even throughout the dominant run, the connection was fractious as a result of Renault believed it was not receiving sufficient credit score.
The partnership then got here to a head throughout the turbo-hybrid period as Mercedes energy models dominated supreme. Renault engines, however, have been sluggish and catastrophically unreliable and 187 factors for Purple Bull resulted in it ending fourth in 2015 – netting simply 27% of Mercedes’ rating.

Daniil Kvyat, Purple Bull Racing RB11 Renault, leads Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari SF-15T
Photograph by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Photographs
Christian Horner even labelled the efficiency from Renault as “unacceptable”, but each events endured with the partnership regardless of quite a few threats of termination.
Regardless of that, McLaren joined Purple Bull as a Renault-powered constructor in 2018 after its poisonous time with Honda. It was hoped that this three-year partnership would support the competitiveness of the Renault works crew, however issues nonetheless continued – particularly with Purple Bull.
The Milton Keynes squad retired from 10 grands prix in 2018, seven of which have been attributable to poor reliability, with Horner stating “we’ve been paying to fly in top quality, however ended up with an financial system ticket”.
So Purple Bull joined forces with Honda for 2019, leaving McLaren as the one crew shopping for energy models from Renault. However, that partnership quickly ended as McLaren grew to become a Mercedes customer-outfit in 2021 leaving curiosity in Renault engines at an all-time low.
That was additionally the 12 months Renault’s manufacturing unit squad rebranded itself as Alpine. However, it has been a disappointing three years as a result of, regardless of Esteban Ocon claiming an unlikely win on the 2021 Hungarian GP, Alpine has not completed above fourth within the championship.