Renault to keep name, black livery in 2012

The Renault team will keep its current name as well as the black and gold livery in 2012.

Sponsor Group Lotus’ chief Dany Bahar met with reporters for lunch on Friday where he said it is possible the Malaysian-owned carmaker will eye ownership of F1’s Enstone based team one day.

But for now “We are absolutely fine as it is,” he is quoted as saying by Reuters.

Officially, the team is called Lotus Renault GP this year but most commentators and fans refer to Tony Fernandes’ entirely separate Malaysian team as ‘Lotus’.

Bahar indicated he is happy with the Renault chassis name for now.

“If we decide to go for the long term (ownership) then a renaming would be an issue,” he said.  “But at the moment it’s out of the question and it’s not something we are pursuing.  Out of the question until 2013.”

The reference to 2013 could be because until the current Concorde Agreement runs out, team name changes must be agreed by all rival bosses — including Team Lotus’ Fernandes who is embroiled in a bitter naming dispute with Group Lotus.

A recent court battle allowed Fernandes to keep the Lotus name, while Renault was cleared to keep racing in the iconic black and gold Lotus livery.

“It’s a nice livery that is perceived well by the people, especially on the road car side, so I see no reason why we should change it,” said Bahar.

© RIF | GMM