Renault Trucks - History

History

In 1956, the company Saviem was formed as a subsidiary company of Renault from the combination of Renault's own truck and bus production with the producers Somua and Latil. From 1957 on, Saviem was also used as the brand name for the trucks and buses produced by the company.

As a result of French industrial policy, in 1975 state-owned Renault also acquired the truck and bus producer Berliet from Michelin. In 1978, Berliet and Saviem were merged to form Renault Véhicules Industriels. Again, the old brand names were retained for two more years while the model lineups gradually were incorporated, until in 1980 they were replaced by the name Renault.

From 1975 on, Saviem also had been a member in the Club of Four, a cooperation between four European truck producers (Saviem, Volvo, DAF and Magirus-Deutz, which soon after became a part of Iveco) for the production of medium-sized trucks. The truck models resulting from this cooperation would be produced by Saviem and later Renault even until 2001 and also be sold on the North American market as the Mack Mid-Liner or Manager.

In 1978, PSA Group had bought Chrysler's European operations. Included in the deal were commercial vehicle operations in the UK and Spain, which at that time used the brand name Dodge. PSA however sold them on to RVI in 1983, having itself little interest in the commercial vehicle market. The newly acquired operations in the UK had their origins in the commercial vehicle branch of the Rootes Group which originally carried the brand names Karrier and Commer. Some of the models built there were continued in production for several years by RVI in Dunstable, Bedfordshire, who also kept the Dodge brand name for these models, albeit in combination with the Renault badge. In 1988 the company was subject to a Fire Brigades Union inquirey due to 8 Dodge fire engines involved in crashes. Until 1992 the UK division was known as Renault Truck Industries, after which it then took the international RVI name.

In Spain, however, where Renault already was recognized as a local automobile producer, the Dodge trucks, which originally had been developed by the manufacturer Barreiros Diesel, were rebadged as Renaults and soon after replaced by French-designed models.

In 1987, RVI took over from its mother company Renault a 40% stake in the American manufacturer Mack Trucks which became a fully owned subsidiary of RVI in 1990. In 1994, RVI took over the Czech bus manufacturer Karosa and in 1997 Renault V. I. entered into a cooperation agreement with the Finnish truck producer Sisu. In 2002 the company signed a deal with the Chinese company Dongfeng Motor to manufacture engines.

Renault Trucks takes part in the FIA European Championship, running Renault Premium powered by 13-litre DXi13 engines. The Renault Trucks-MKR Technology team won in 2010.

Also, the former uruguayan plant of cars owned by Nordex in Uruguay, made since 2004 the Renault Trucks models like Midlum series .