Soon there will be a Renault Rafale. The French brand announced on Tuesday that it will soon launch an SUV that will bear this name, associated with the famous Dassault fighter plane. A surprising choice and one that does not obey an agreement between the two manufacturers. In fact, the Rafale name (also) belongs to Renault, with its links forged in the first half of the 20th century with the aeronautical sector.
Renault Rafale, from 1936
“Who does not know the name Rafale? It is steeped in history and holds a prestigious list of records in French aviation. This heritage begins with Louis Renault 89 years ago. We know little about it, but this name has belonged to Renault since 1936.” , underlines the press release of the French brand.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the diamond brand was in fact a pioneer in the design of internal combustion engines. For automobiles, of course, but also for trains, with the railcar, and therefore also for airplanes.
In 1933, the founder of the brand and aviation enthusiast, Louis Renault, acquired the Caudron aviation companies. The “Caudron Renault” company then renamed all its aircraft after wind names: the C460 became the Rafale in 1934, the C500 Simoun, the C640 Typhon and the C714 Cyclone.
“The first Rafale in history, the Caudron Renault C460, is a single-seater racing plane. Designed for records, only a few examples are produced”, recalls the Renault press release.
It is in this device that the pilot Hélène Boucher, for example, broke several speed records, including the women’s world speed record over 1,000 kilometers by reaching 445 km/h on August 11, 1934.
A future high-end coupé SUV
Renault therefore takes this mythical name out of the closet to embody its high-end universe, with what it appears in the “teaser” photo released on Tuesday to a large SUV coupé.
A sympathetic nod to this link to aeronautics, this model will not be unveiled at the auto show, but rather at the upcoming Paris Air Show on June 18.
“Rafale evokes the wind, which sculpts its aerodynamic bodywork. It immediately refers to the aerodynamic silhouette and the strong character of our vehicle”, explains Sylvia Dos Santos, head of naming strategy in the “Global Marketing” department of the Renault brand, mentioned in the press release.
The brand insists in particular on its desire to cling to this name, “symbol of French excellence”.
Source: BFM TV
