Renault 20/30

Renault 20 (1975-1984)

The Renault 20 - short R20 - was a vehicle of the upper middle class of Renault and was manufactured between October 1975 and January 1984. Same design, but driven to the turbodiesel six-cylinder engines, the Renault 30

History

Renaults at that time the top model, the Renault 16, for ten years was in 1975 on the market, so that a separation of the model was in preparation. However, the R16 sold still too good to stop production.

In March 1975, the Renault 30 was presented, which was initially offered only with a six- cylinder petrol engines ( PRV engine). To close the resulting gap between the R16 and the R30 and prepare a replacement of R16, R20 was added to the program in November 1975 in which the body and the technology of the R30 TS came and the four-cylinder engine from the R16 TX. The R16 was, however, still continue to be offered in parallel to early 1980.

During the R30 was equipped exclusively with a six- cylinder V- engines (apart from in 1982 presented turbo diesel model ), four-cylinder in-line engines came in the R20 exclusively used.

In November 1975, the Renault 20 was introduced as a cheaper alternative in France, which was offered from February 1976 also in Germany. Outwardly, he differed from the Renault 30 by a modified vehicle front with broadband headlights instead of round double headlights. Vehicles for the Swedish market, however, had the twin headlights, as they had to be there by law equipped with headlamp wipers. Otherwise, the models R20 and R30 as wheels, fenders, brakes and fuel as well as details in the interior were largely identical except for a few technical trifles.

In September 1977, the R20 TS was introduced. With its engine, it was a newly developed four-cylinder with initially 80 kW. The equipment with power steering, electric windows and central locking largely corresponded to that of the R30 TS. For buyers who were willing to give up a V6 engine, it was an alternative to Renault 30, so this could never prevail in the sales figures.

The versions R20 L, TL and GTL had all the little 1,647 cc four-cylinder engine, while the new "2- liters" engine of the R20 TS simultaneously constituted the basis for two other very successful engines that first debuted in R20 and later in the entire middle and upper class models of Renault were used. From autumn 1980, also again on the basis of the 2.0 -liter, Renault brought a four-cylinder engine with 2165 cc capacity in the R20 TX on the market. Here was an output of 115 hp.

In 1979 started the diesel era at Renault. Based on the 2.0-liter engine, a four cylinder diesel engine with 2068 cc and 64 hp was developed, which was increased with the help of a turbocharger and charge air cooling in power to 86 hp and installed in the R30 TurboD. The R20 TurboD appeared in early 1982, was not officially offered in Germany.

The Diesel-/Turbodieselmotor described and the 2,0 - and 2,2- liter petrol engine were by the end of 1996, in the models R18, Fuego, R25, Espace, Safrane and R21 used.

Models

Rally success at the Paris -Dakar 1982

In 1982, the brothers Marreau won the Paris-Dakar Rally in a Renault 20 Turbo 4x4 with the starting number 150 There were at this rally a second, identical R20 with start number 151, which reached 17 as the target in Dakar.

Production figures

From a total of R20 638 000 copies were produced in nearly nine years, of which nearly 58,000 pieces found their way to Germany.

Were made ​​the vehicles for the European market in the French Sandouville. The units for the Latin American markets, however, came in 1979 from the production of Automóvil de Francia in the Venezuelan Valencia, a subsidiary of Renault Venezolana. A CKD was further to 1996 in Mariara instead.

In the spring of 1984, both the R20 and the R30 were replaced by the Renault 25.

Dacia 2000

In the 1980 Dacia produced a small number of Renault 20 as Dacia 2000. These were intended only for the state apparatus of the communist system.