Alpine Le Mans A442 - Victory in Le Mans 24 Hours

[IMG]http://www.renault.com/img/collection/1978_alpinelemansa44.jpg[/IMG]
Vital statistics

The 46th Le Mans 24 Hours saw the black and yellow team to victory, when the Alpine Renault-Elf #2 won one of the world's most prestigious events. Driven by Jean-Pierre Jaussaud - Didier Pironi, the car clocked up more than 5,000 km at over 210 km/h on average.

The Renault V6 engine had proved its worth since its launch in 1973. In that year it claimed its first victory as a sports prototype, followed by five others in 1974. In 1976 and 1977, the same engine was European Formula Two Champion twice in a row with Jean-Pierre Jabouille (Martini-Elf) and René Arnoux (Elf-Switzerland).
In 1975, it was boosted by a turbocharger, a technique patented by Louis Renault back in 1902, raising its power from an original 285 bhp to 500 bhp.

The V6 Gordini-Elf came close to victory in the Le Mans 24 Hours in 1977, finishing second behind Porsche. It took revenge in 1978, when two of the four Alpines entered finished 1st and 4th.

Data sheet

Name: Alpine Le Mans A442
Model year: 1978
Engine: Renault-Gordini-Elf - six cylinders in a V configuration with four valves on each cylinder - Capacity 1997cc - Bore 86 mm - Stroke 57.3 mm - Power 500 bhp
Gearbox: Hewland TL 200 MK2, five forward gears and reverse
Brakes: Dual-circuit system with automatic self-adjusting brakes and ventilated front and rear disks - Ring and pinion 8 x 33 or 8 x 31
Coachwork: Open-top two-seater with rear fin, central engine and rear-wheel-drive
Dimensions and weight: Length 4.80 m - Width 1.84 m - Height 1.30 m - Wheelbase 2.466 m - Front width 1.444 m - Rear width 1.442 m - Weight 715 kg
Top speed: 360 km/h

they were so much faster then the Porsche in quali in 76(6 seconds in quali) .. but engine problem .. :) .. they were 1,2 and 4th in quali in 77 .. none finished .. guess what .. engine problems . for all three .. :)
in 78 . they are not fastest in quali .. at least one car makes it to the finish .. and guess .. it won :)

[QUOTE=DasModell]they were so much faster then the Porsche in quali in 76(6 seconds in quali) .. but engine problem .. :) .. they were 1,2 and 4th in quali in 77 .. none finished .. guess what .. engine problems . for all three .. :)
in 78 . they are not fastest in quali .. at least one car makes it to the finish .. and guess .. it won :)[/QUOTE]
76 and 77 hurt every French auto-enthusiast as Renault had publicly made it known that they would win Le Mans "for the hounour of France" !!
So Renault set out to ensure a win in 78.
The A443 Turbo was set out to sprint the start of that race.
That drew IckX in the Porsche 936 to set off in pursuit of it and he paid the penalty.
The 443 also died later :)
Renault's plan only just held together as only one of the 442s finished just 5 laps ahead of the other Porsche 936-78.
210km/h average speed for the 24 hours and every Frenchman rejoiced.
Like Matra before, Renault then announced they'd accomplished what they set out to do and turned to F1 - guess everyone knows the success there :)