For the 1977 Rally season the French company Renault developed a racing version of the popular small R5. In spite of the fact that this car was designed for very different scopes, after adequate preparation, the French technicians managed to obtain notable power from the engine: 150CV, and a noteworthy drive ration, which thanks to the contained weight of only 800 Kg. made the R5 a very manoeuvrable and fast car. The R5 obtained great results in the Sanremo and Montecarlo Rallies in 1978 and successively gratifying results in the Acropolis Rally and in Africa.