Renault Sport Spider
Overview
Manufacturer	Renault Sport
Also called	Renault Spider
Production	1996–1999
Assembly	France: Dieppe, Seine-Maritime (Alpine)
Designer	Patrick Le Quément[1]
Body and chassis
Class	Sports car
Body style	2-door roadster
Layout	RMR layout
Doors	Scissor
Powertrain
Engine	1,998 cc F7R 16-valve I4
Transmission	5-speed manual
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,343 mm (92.2 in)
Length	3,795 mm (149.4 in)
Width	1,830 mm (72.0 in)
Height	1,250 mm (49.2 in)
Curb weight	930–965 kg (2,050–2,127 lb)

The Renault Sport Spider is a roadster produced by the French automaker Renault Sport, a subsidiary of Renault, between 1996 and 1999.

Project

The idea for the Renault Spider was formulated in the early 1990s: in the midst of a revival after a difficult second half of the 1980s, Renault wanted a car to promote it as a sporting brand (similar to the Renault 5 Turbo from a decade earlier). The Spider was intended to both serve as a racing car, in a one-make series organized by Renault, and as a road car. The first prototypes for Project W94, as it was known at the time, were completed in mid-1994 and a concept version was presented to the public at the Geneva Motor Show a year later. The car went on sale in early 1996, assembled at the Alpine factory in Dieppe. Left hand drive versions were first produced with an aeroscreen device the same as the race cars. In 1997, a version with a full glass windscreen and wiper was made available.

Approximately 1640 cars were produced through 1999, with the addition of around 80 race only versions. The UK market only imported the windscreen version and 60 right hand drive cars were produced for the UK and Japan. The naturally aspirated 2-litre F7R engine produces 150 PS (110 kW; 148 hp).

Although it was built by Alpine in Dieppe, the Spider was the first ever road car badged as a Renault Sport and the Brand name has subsequently been used for all high performance Renault cars that are developed by the Renault Sport division which is a separate company with the Renault-Nissan Alliance.

Features

Designed from the outset as a driver's car, the chassis was made of aluminium for its combination of low weight and substantial strength, while the actual bodywork is a plastic composite. Unusually, the Spider did not have a roof, either folding or hard-top. The gearbox and the engine were one unit transversally fixed in an oscillating hinge (an arrangement inspired by aeronautical design), which all but eradicated the interference of engine vibration with the chassis, and the pedals of the Spider were adjustable as well as the seat so the driver could achieve a better driving position. Power for the Spider came from a version of the 2-litre F7R engine from the Clio Williams and Mégane Coupe, producing 150 PS (110 kW; 148 hp). Either a windscreen model (965kg) or a small wind deflector model was available (930kg). The driver wearing a helmet in vehicles without a windscreen.

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  Rear view (UK)
• 
  2-litre F7R engine
• 
  Interior (UK)

Spider in motorsport

From the outset the Spider was intended to be the basis for a new one-car racing series. Renault had been running these championships since the early 80s with the 5 Turbo, 21 Turbo, and Clio models. A special Spider Trophy edition was designed and built for the purpose, with the engine tuned to produce 180 bhp (134 kW). The Spider championships ran for several years as support series to larger championships such as the British Touring Car Championship (in which it is remembered for having produced one of that series' top drivers of recent years, Jason Plato, who won 11 out of 14 races in the inaugural year of the UK Spider Cup). In 1999 Andy Priaulx beat Plato's record of eight successive race wins in the Spiders by taking a clean sweep of 13 wins in all 13 races. He also qualified for each one on pole position and took fastest laps in all but two of the events.

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  Renault Sport Spider Targa Tasmania 2008
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  Renault Sport Spider Targa Tasmania 2007

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Renault Spider.

• Renault Sport Spider German Website—Offering photos and videos. International Spider Register
• RenaultSportClub - Anything from R5 Alpine to R.S. Clio 220T Trophy