Chassis No.: VF1DZVTR651540638

Engine No.: C026362

Registration: LN64 KWK

Sold £32,480 | Sold

Imagine a riot in four-wheeled form. While the regular Trophy already sports this car’s uprated 271bhp 2.0-litre turbo petrol and Akrapovic titanium exhaust, the R features expensive Öhlins adjustable dampers, exotic Allevard composite front springs and Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres for extra handling. It is also almost 100kg lighter – so although Renault will let you option back the radio for £500 (the price including sat-nav for your trouble) that would be tangential to the spirit of the thing. The standard seats are also entirely absent – the fronts replaced by a gloriously focused pair of fixed-back Recaro buckets, the rears by a strut bar and shopping-saving storage nets.

The Trophy-R is surprisingly refined at a cruise. Nail the accelerator, however, and like the R26.R before it, the combination of induction roar and Ti exhaust makes this incredibly distinctive scouring noise. Further popping and banging is also present and correct for all your tarmac rallying fantasy pleasure, the steering weight is meaty and accurate, and you get to change gear with a proper six-speed manual gearbox. Only 30 Trophy-Rs were offered for sale in the UK, out of a total production run of 250 – so it is rare as well as exceptionally rapid. Judged by lap times alone, this is the ultimate expression of Renault sport’s prowess.

This superb example of this ‘wolf in sheep’s clothing’ has only covered a mere 1,973 miles from new and is presented in white with a black interior and forms part of a small private collection. The car comes with spare floor mats which are still in their original wrapping, factory ‘set up’ details so you can prepare the car correctly for wet/dry track days etc. As well as the usual Renault factory book packs, this car also comes with a scale sized helmet which is numbered according to the manufacture number of the car. An exhilarating coupé from the French car maker, which will surely require some skill to tame when unleashed upon a circuit. Superb!

https://www.historics.co.uk/auction/lot/?lot=5884&au=47