Estonia is one of the European countries with a very modest industrial background, though even there a motorcycle manufacturing segment exists. The country is more known for the production of domestic appliances and sound equipment, though the only motorcycle brand has been on the market since the late 1930s, which is truly impressive.
Renard
Founded: 1938
Founder: J. Lään
Headquarters: Tallinn, Estonia
Website: www.renardmotorcycles.com
The history of Renard motorcycles dates back to 1938 when the Estonian entrepreneur J. Laan founded the company Renard Cycles in Tallinn. For the first few years, the company produced motor-powered bicycles.
The brand, nicknamed Fox (because of its elegant fox emblem, and the word “Renard” translation from French) equipped its first models with a frame with power units 98 SS chassis, which made them look like Wanderer motorcycles, very famous at that time, although some units were simpler. Unfortunately, the Wild War II came, and during the bombing of Tallinn in March 1944, the plant, located on the Lasnamäe slope, was completely destroyed in a direct hit by an air bomb.
So in 1944, production came to an end when a German bomb fell on the factory.
From that moment on, the Renard brand became a piece of history, and stayed in the annals for decades, until the group of entrepreneurs decided to revive it from the ashes. The prototype of the Renard GT was unveiled in Hanover, and mass production of the motorcycle became very successful. Renard GT is a lightweight (due to its carbon body) and fast bike, which also has a fancy and very stylish look.