An Artcurial auction dedicated to Renault’s most significant vehicles and artifacts raised €12 million, providing major financial support for a new heritage center planned at the automaker’s historic Flins factory site. The auction was held Dec. 7, 2025, and drew intense international interest, with 1,000 registered bidders and a complete sell-through of every lot offered.
The funds will help develop the Renault heritage center scheduled to open in 2027. The venue will be located about 40 kilometers west of Paris at the former Flins production plant, a site that produced millions of Renault vehicles beginning in 1952. The auction, formally titled The Renault Icons: Sélection provenant de la collection Renault, featured a wide range of items spanning the brand’s competition, design and engineering history.
Competition cars dominated the top results. A Renault Alpine A442 built between 1975 and 1978 achieved €1,278,080, far exceeding its estimate. The car was the first A442 constructed and competed at the 1977 24 Hours of Le Mans. Another major highlight was the Renault RE40-03 Formula 1 car from 1983, which sold for €1,198,000 after winning the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps.
The most expensive lot of the auction was the Williams-Renault FW19 from 1997, a championship-winning Formula 1 chassis retained in Renault’s collection since 1998. It sold for €1,312,400. Additional notable results included a Renault EF15 Type E Formula 1 engine used during qualifying at Adelaide in 1986, which brought €225,080, and the Lotus 95T Formula 1 car from 1984, which sold for €866,880.
Unexpected items also generated strong interest. A scale model of a 1957–1958 Cargo Liberty Ship sold for €17,212, while a preserved 1994 Renault Clio Williams Series 2 reached €54,180. Rare prototypes and show vehicles performed well, including a 1983 Renault Maxi 5 Turbo Prototype B0 that sold for €216,720 and a Renault R23-00 show car from 2003 that achieved nearly €100,000.
Touring cars, rally cars and design maquettes consistently exceeded estimates, underscoring demand beyond Formula 1 machinery. Among the standout results was a 1993 Alpine A610 Evolution Le Mans prototype, one of only two built, which sold for €102,340.
The auction’s results highlighted the depth of Renault’s motorsport and design legacy while directly supporting the preservation of that history for public display in the years ahead.
