At the Automobile Museum of Valençay, around fifteen Renault Sport cars are being presented by private owners to celebrate fifty years of sporting heritage. Behind the yellow and blue bodies, very discreet collectors finally agree to be exposed.
In the quiet alleys of the Museum of Automobiles in Valençay, the yellow and blue bodies have just been placed. Among the slightly open hoods, Jérôme Limay, the site manager, shows signs of fatigue that betray weeks of preparation. This spring 2026, the small museum is gearing up to tell a very French story of production cars powered by racing.
Saturday, March 28, 2026 marks the opening of the new season of the museum, dedicated to the 50th anniversary of Renault Sport. Around fifteen models presented by private individuals trace Renault’s sports history from 1958 to 2023, as Renault Sport branch was discontinued in 2021 in favor of Alpine Cars. One intriguing question remains: who are these collectors passionate enough to entrust their cars to Valençay?
Located at 12 Avenue de la Résistance in Valençay, Indre, the museum was founded in 1964 around the collection of the Guignard brothers, passionate garage owners. Since moving to its current location in 2001, it has showcased over 60 vehicles on 1,600 m². In 2024, it welcomed over 15,000 visitors, confirming its role as a family stopover between Château de Valençay and ZooParc de Beauval.
To set up the scenography, the museum manager relies on the energy of volunteers. Jérôme Limay summarizes it: “We have a lot of support from the Friends of the Museum of Automobile Association (AMAV). They are all volunteers but give a lot of help in setting up.” The AMAV association, established in 2001 to promote the museum, manages contacts with collectors and the arrival of cars on the platform.
“We can’t imagine the number of collectors there are,” notes Jérôme Limay, as reported by La Nouvelle République. To bring together around fifteen cars, he and the AMAV requested owners from the Centre-Val de Loire region and beyond, unknown to the public. These enthusiasts usually keep their Clio RS or Mégane RS in anonymous garages; at Valençay, they agree to show them, but without seeking the spotlight.
The journey begins with a Dauphine Gordini from the 1950s, the era when Amédée Gordini took the helm at Renault in 1958, then extends to the latest high-performance compacts. In the center, visitors come across various generations of Clio RS, Mégane RS, and some Alpines, summarizing the era initiated by the official creation of Renault Sport in 1976. The selection extends to 2023, a few years after Renault Sport disappeared in 2021 in favor of Alpine Cars.
The temporary exhibition “50 Years of Renault Sport” is being held from March 28 to November 11, 2026 at the Museum of Automobiles in Valençay, 12 Avenue de la Résistance. Managed by the Valençay Community of Communes, it is open from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Entrance fee is 7 euros for adults, 6 euros for reduced rate, and 5 euros for children, with combined museum and castle tickets between 14 and 20 euros.
