Renault VE 10

The Renault VE 10 is a prototype truck, a concept truck, built by the French maker RVI (Renault Vehicules Industriel) in 1985. It is part of the Virages programme and, with the VE 20, is a precursor of the Renault AE; VE stands for Vehicule Experimental. In 1980 the French state and RVI launched the V.I.R.A.G.E.S. programme, a research programme to study the technical options that should equip future vehicles. The programme, planned over seven years, produced two prototypes: the VE 10, which came out at the half-way point in 1985, and the VE 20, planned for the end of the programme in 1988. With this prototype built from scratch rather than on an existing vehicle, the engineers estimated they had met 50 percent of the programme's objectives on four main axes: lower fuel consumption, environmental protection through lower exhaust emissions and noise, better safety and working conditions for the driver, and greater reliability and profitability. It is 16.70 m long with a load capacity of about 100 cubic metres, and the driven axles of the semi-trailer are in a 6x4 layout; its main innovations are greater aerodynamics and a raised driving cab.