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This astonishing-looking thing is what Renault Sport thinks an F1 car will be like in 10 years' time. It's called the R.S. 2027 Vision and it's another show-stopper at the Auto Shanghai show this week.
Built to celebrate Renault's 40-year involvement in F1, the French firm decided to cast its eye forward to a time when it believes F1 cars will be powered by a 'megawatt' engine (1,000kW, or 1,341hp) mounted in a body that weighs 600kg max.
The R.S. 2027 has a shell that has been 3D-printed, while both the enclosed cockpit and the driver's helmet are transparent, so that viewers can see how hard the human occupant is working to drive the car and also their facial expressions while doing so - ideas to increase fan engagement with the sport.
Active LED lighting in the wheels can display a wide variety of information, which - along with a load of in-car telemetry - is accessible to fans watching, to better allow them to understand the intricacies of the racing, and if they like the driver's efforts with more social media interaction, then the digital display in the centre of the steering wheel informs the driver of their 'fan ranking'.
Like the company's original 1977 F1 entrant, the R.S.01, the R.S. 2027 has a turbocharged V6 engine, although it is also fitted with electric augmentation. C-shaped LED front lights and the illuminated diamond on the engine cover are designed to link future F1 to the company's road cars, while the light colour shifts from white to blue when the car drops into electric mode. Oh, and the paintjob is a play on Renault's famous yellow-and-black competition livery, which was used - among many other things - on the crazy Espace F1 of the 1990s.
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Cyril Abiteboul, the managing director for Renault Sport Racing, said: "One role of Renault Sport Racing is to anticipate the future of Formula 1 so that it draws a maximum number of fans in an environment consistent with Groupe Renault's objectives. We look forward to generating inspired conversations with the racing community, fans and enthusiasts through this concept that highlights our ideas and desires."
Oh, and also on Renault's stand in China will be the Espace (not sold in Ireland), which the company is going to launch in the country, and the lovely Etoile Filante - Renault's 1956, 270hp gas-turbine land-speed record machine, which did 308.85km/h on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, USA, more than 60 years ago. It's supposed to show the pioneering motorsport spirit that Renault had in the 1950s, which is inherent in the R.S. 2027.