Rare Car Archive

Makes › Renault France › Étoile Filante · Prototype · 1956 Ultra Rare

Renault
Étoile Filante

Gas-turbine record car; turbine land-speed record at Bonneville, September 1956.

Still being researched: identification guide. Everything shown is checked against the cited sources. Know more? Send us a source.

Renault Étoile Filante (Wikimedia Commons: Renault Étoile filante)
Renault Étoile Filante (Wikimedia Commons: Renault Étoile filante)
Photo: Thesupermat · CC BY-SA 4.0
2BuiltFactory reported
0Chassis documentedin this archive
?SurvivingNot yet verified
Contents
  1. 01Overview
  2. 02Production & history
  3. 03Specifications
  4. 04Colours & options
  5. 05Individual cars
  6. 06Reference

01Overview

At a glance

Built
2 Built
Years
1956
Engine
Gas turbine behind the driver, kerosene fuel
Power
201 kW / 274 PSFactory: 270 hp · converted
Top speed
308.9 km/hFactory: 308.9 km/h
Body
Not yet verified
Designer
Fernand Picard, Albert Lory and Jean Hébert (Renault team)
In this archive
Not yet verified
Surviving
Not yet verified

Sources and any conflicting figures are in the sections below.

Why it matters

The Étoile Filante was a turbine-powered record car built to promote the gas turbine and to raise Renault's profile in the United States ahead of the Dauphine export launch. At Bonneville on 5 September 1956 it set speed records that Renault says have not been bettered for its category. It was explicitly a prototype and a travelling laboratory, not a preview of a production car.

How rare is it?

Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.

Model rarityUltra Rare 2 · Built1,2
Specification rarityNot yet assessed
Colour rarityNot yet assessed
Individual rarityNot yet assessed
Historical rarityNot yet assessed
Survival rarityNot yet assessed

Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.

Photos

Exterior, interior and detail photos with their licences.

02Production & history

Production

Every figure says what it counts.

What is countedFigureBasisStatus
Total model productionexamples built, per Renault Group 2016 60th-anniversary press release quoted on the page ("There were only two examples!") 21,2 Factory production Factory reported

Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.

History

Joseph Szydlowski of the turbine maker Turboméca approached Renault in 1954, and Renault chief Pierre Lefaucheux backed a team of Fernand Picard, Albert Lory and Jean Hébert. A scale model was tested in a wind tunnel in 1954-55, the turbine was first run in April 1956, and the car was presented to the press at Montlhéry on 22 June 1956. On 5 September 1956 Hébert drove it at Bonneville, Utah, to a top speed of 308.9 km/h; the turbine ran on kerosene.

Variants

How each version differs from the standard Étoile Filante.

No variants documented yet. Have a source? Contribute it.

03Specifications

Technical specifications

Engine

Engine manufacturerTurboméca1,3
Engine familyNot yet verified
Engine codeTurmo 13 Independently researchedVelocetoday spells it 'Type Turbo 1'.
LayoutGas turbine behind the driver, kerosene fuel3,1 Independently researched
DisplacementNot yet verified
BoreNot yet verified
StrokeNot yet verified
Compression ratioNot yet verified
Fuel systemNot yet verified
Power 201 kW / 274 PSFactory: 270 hp · converted1Rating: manufacturerRenault English page: hp; French sources: ch (cv).
Power at 28,000 rpm1
TorqueNot yet verified

Transmission & drivetrain

GearboxReduction gear 28,000 to 2,500 rpm, Transfluide transmission1Velocetoday describes a three-speed gear reduction system.
GearsNot yet verified
Driven wheelsNot yet verified

Chassis, body & dimensions

ChassisTubular chrome-molybdenum steel chassis frame1
Front suspensionTrailing arms with torsion bars4 Independently researched
Rear suspensionNot yet verified
BrakesFour disc brakes4 Independently researched
SteeringNot yet verified
Body constructionPolyester-clad body with two aircraft-style fins1
WheelbaseNot yet verified
Length 4.84 mFactory: 4.84 m3 Independently researchedRenault Group says 'over five meters'; Velocetoday 'almost five meters'.
WidthNot yet verified
Height 1.1 mFactory: 1.1 m3 Independently researched
Front trackNot yet verified
Rear trackNot yet verified
Kerb weightNot yet verified
Dry weight 950 kgFactory: 950 kg3 Independently researchedStated as weight below one tonne, 950 kg.

Performance

Maximum speed 308.9 km/hFactory: 308.9 km/h1Record of 5 September 1956 (Jean Hébert, Bonneville). Renault also gives 306.9 km/h over 1 km and 308.85 km/h over 5 km; Rare Cars Only lists 306.902 km/h (1 km) and 307.707 km/h (1 mile).
0–100 km/hNot yet verified
Fuel tankNot yet verified

“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.

04Colours & options

Factory colours & interiors

Original paint and trim, with the number of cars in each where a source gives it.

Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.

Factory options & codes

Codes are shown exactly as written by the manufacturer.

Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.

05Individual cars

Chassis register

Every documented car, with its colours, history and where it is now. Open a row for the full record. Known chassis are not automatically authenticated originals.

Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.

Competition history

Every race result of the individual cars, in date order. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.

Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.

Auction & sale history

Documented public sales of the individual cars. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.

Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.

See one in person

Museums where an example of this car can be seen.

No example is documented on public display yet. Have a source? Contribute it.

06Reference

Identification guide

How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.

Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.

Sources

Each number links to the exact facts it supports.

  1. 1
    The Renault Etoile Filante, fastest car in the world Level A Renault Group
    • Just 2 units of the vehicle were ever produced
    • powered by an ultra-powerful turbine engine
    • it ran on kerosene
    • Maximum power: 270 hp at 28,000 rpm
    • 270 hp at 28,000 rpm
    • Reduction gear from 28,000 rpm to 2,500 rpm; Transfluide transmission
    • chassis-frame in chrome-molybdenum steel tubing
    • tubular, polyester-clad body and two large aircraft-like fins
    • Top speed: 308.9 km/h, record set on September 5, 1956
    Accessed 2026-11-12
  2. 2
    The Étoile Filante, the ancestor of the Alpine Alpenglow? | Lignes Auto Level C
    • 2 examples built, per Renault Group 2016 60th-anniversary press release quoted on the page ("There were only two examples!")
    Accessed 2026-11-11
  3. 3
    Renault Etoile-Filante: elle pulvérise des records de vitesse grâce à une turbine Level B Loic Ferriere · Planète Renault · 2025-02-12
    • Turbine Turbomeca
    • Turbine Turbomeca, Type Turmo 1
    • Positionnée derrière le pilote, la turbine développe 270 ch
    • longueur de 4,84 mètres
    • Très basse (1,10 mètre de hauteur)
    • poids inférieur à la tonne (950 kg)
    Accessed 2026-11-12
  4. 4
    Renault Streamliner hits 190mph in 1956 Level B Velocetoday
    • front, trailing-arm suspension and torsion-bar springs
    • braking by four discs
    Accessed 2026-11-12

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