Materials selection in a world car: the Renault/Dacia LOGAN

摘要

When Renault announced Logan, its "new family world car", the press and the industry reacted with interest and especially curiosity. One of the main questions asked was: how could it be possible to launch a "real" car at a price starting from 5.000{Eur}? Furthermore, what strategies lie behind the realization of such a product? This car could not have seen the day without the strong vision and drive of Louis Schweitzer - the former CEO of Renault and initiator of the project - who, in 1998, wished to create "a modern, reliable and affordable car" with a range targeting markets all over the world and based on local production sites. The price of the product should be in line with the income of the persons producing it. Appropriate and international are the adjectives that best qualify the Logan. Its excellent road ability and adapted level of equipment for one meet the needs of and, more importantly, satisfy the population of many emerging countries. This paper briefly reviews the background and some of the elements underlying materials selection in Logan.