Renault R30 2010 F1 car unveiled

Yesterday, the Renault F1 team showed off its 2010 F1 car which they would be racing. The car’s decals incidentally resembles the look of the team’s debut car in the late 1970s. The yellow-and-black paint scheme was the traditional pattern used by Renault on its Formula One and Le Mans sports cars before the company began taking on title sponsors.

Photo: Renault R30 2010 F1 car

The only downside of this retro look is that the team has yet to sign a title sponsor to replace insurance company ING, which called it quits last summer after the team was found guilty of having Nelson Piquet Jr. deliberately crash during a race in late 2008.

The automaker now owns only a minority stake in the team after having sold most of it to Genii Capital.

Studio photo of the 2010 Renault R30 f1 car; click image for wallpaper

At the launch of the new racer, Renault also told the press that Russian Vitaly Petrov will run alongside ex-Sauber driver Robert Kubica in the second car. Petrov is the first Russian to get a full-time F1 drive.

Robert Kubica will be the senior driver in the team for all practical purposes, thanks to his experience. 2010 will be the Polish driver’s fourth season in Formula One. Kubica replaces ex-world champion Fernando Alonso, who has moved to his dream team Ferrari to partner Felipe Massa.

Retro design: Reactions to the look of the R30 are mixed

Aesthetically, the Renault R30 is substantially different from the 2009 car, the R29. Renault’s technical director, James Allison, told the media that the car is vastly different in aesthetics and under the skin. There is a much larger fuel tank in the Renault R30 due to refuelling being banned in the 2010 season. Also, in 2009, the Renault F1 car raced with KERS – which has been abandoned for 2010. SO there were re-optimizations involved.