Renault RE30B Turbo 1982
Tamiya Renault RE30B Turbo

The Renault RE30 was a Formula One car designed by Bernard Dudot and Michel Têtu for use by the Renault team in the 1981 Formula One season. An updated version, the RE30B, was used in the 1982 season, and a further update, the RE30C, at the start of the 1983 season.

For 1982, the car was updated and modified with a redesigned nose section that featured separate left and right front wings and a new rear wing, becoming RE30 in "B" specification. Advances in ground effect meant that the cars frequently ran without the front wings attached. The engine was further developed to give around 590 bhp. Prost made a strong start to the season and won in Brazil and South Africa, to underline his intention to win the championship that season. However, those would be his only victories of the year, as Ferrari, Williams and McLaren overtook Renault in the technology race. The RE30B was a formidable qualifying car, with Prost or Arnoux on pole for the majority of the races, but reliability was suspect for both drivers, mostly due to problems with the new and rather experimental electronic fuel injection which failed repeatedly during the races. Corporate politics at Renault effectively forced the team to use the system throughout the season. It was a shame, because the RE30B was probably the most competitive car that season, having the best compromise on outright performance - with a good chassis and aerodynamics - and a powerful enough engine. The car was quick around all kinds of different circuits - even around even tight, slow circuits like Monaco, Detroit, Zolder and Long Beach - where the other cars with turbo-charged engines (Ferrari, Brabham-BMW, and less competitively Toleman-Hart) lacked in performance, due to the heavier weight and poor engine pickup, thanks to massive turbo lag, so the cars with the less powerful naturally aspirated engines were able to capitalize by being able to get more power more quickly out of slow corners. Arnoux took two wins during the latter half of the year, but only finished four races during the whole season. Prost was in sight of victory at Monaco, Austria and Dijon but had problems during the final laps of all three races. He eventually salvaged fourth in the championship, whilst Renault finished third in the constructors' championship.

from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renault_RE30