Despite its debut at the 1977 British Grand Prix ended with a disappointing withraw, the Renault RS01 introduced the use of turbocharged engines in Formula 1, that would mark a memorable era in racing history. That season it was the Frenchman Jean-Pierre Jabouille who drove the RS01 in four races, missing the qualification on the Canadian circuit of Mosport. Equipped with a 1.5-liter supercharged V6 unit capable of delivering a power of 500 hp, this single-seater initially suffered from some mechanical fragility and not well developed aerodynamics. But it inevitably also marked a happy era of the French company in the top category.