Vilvoorde Renault Factory

Automobile production at Vilvoorde came to an abrupt end in 1997, with the loss of approximately 3,500 jobs, and in the face of much public opposition from and on behalf of those affected.

The plant's first volume model, introduced in the late 1930s and still assembled at Vilvoorde until 1955, was the Renault Juvaquatre, which competed in a hotly contested market segment against cars such as the Peugeot 202 and the Opel Kadett.

By 1960, Vilvoorde had become very much more than an assembly operation, producing its own axle components, exhaust systems and body panels.

The 1973 oil crisis triggered large fuel price rises which gave Renault, with a range of relatively small and economical cars, an enormous competitive advantage.

In this fictional work Renault chairman Louis Schweitzer, who had taken a high-profile role in the plant closure, is kidnapped for purposes of blackmail, and later murdered.

[3] The action led to a law being enacted in 1998 known as the loi Renault, dealing with necessary consultation procedures on mass redundancies.

The Renault Monaquatre was assembled at Vilvoorde between 1931 and 1933.
Although the saloon/sedan version of the Renault Juvaquatre was phased out in the early 1950s, the estate version, badged as the Renault Dauphinoise, continued in production at Vilvoorde till 1960.
The first postwar design to be assembled at Vilvoorde was the Renault Dauphine .
Ramblers were assembled at Vilvoorde between 1962 and 1971.
Vilvoorde assembled the Renault 6 between 1968 and 1980.