Lego plus a touch of boldness (episode 3)

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Using its expertise in electric vehicles, its experience in Formula 1 and with the enthusiasm and passion of its engineering, development and control teams, #renault has developed the innovative hybrid E-TECH powertrain. What is less well known is that it was invented and developed in a way that is both unusual and highly inspiring. #nicolasfremau, Renault's Hybrid Architecture Expert, looks back at the final decisions that gave the E-TECH engine the shape it has today, under the bonnet of the first models launched.

After the first prototyping runs which validated the functioning of the E-TECH system - born from a simple LEGO model a few months earlier - the development teams reached a first important stage: the presentation of a ‘real’ vehicle within the time limit of 18 months set by Gérard Detourbet after he gave his agreement for the development of this hybrid technology. It was under the bonnet of a Dacia Sandero that a first version of the E-TECH engine made its ‘semi-public’ debut at the 2012 Innov'Days, an event for the Group's employees to learn about the latest technological innovations under development.

EOLAB: AN INEVITABLE MEETING

At the same time, #renault was preparing to meet a government challenge: to develop a car capable of consuming less than 2 litres/100 km. This would be the role of the EOLAB prototype. The mixed teams (engineers, designers, experts in aerodynamics, etc.) led by Laurent Taupin worked on three main areas: lightening the vehicle's platform and body, its highly advanced aerodynamics and the most economical drivetrain possible. A meeting with the E-TECH motorisation development teams was inevitable.

"The EOLAB/E-TECH combination soon became the obvious solution, as the complementarity between the search for a lighter vehicle and the need to apply it to the powertrain via an innovative technology was necessary to complete the project. This gave us two complementary ways of fulfilling Renault’s requirement, in other words, the provision of a smart, frugal solution accessible to all."

Laurent Taupin, EOLAB Project Leader

Further information in the press release to download