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1980 Rondeau M379B
Country of Origin: France
Design Info: A fully-enclosed racing prototype sports car with a slippery fiberglass body attached to a steel and aluminum spaceframe. Aerodynamic features included partially-covered rear wheels and the absence of a rear wing in favor of a pair of stabilizing fins (like a certain modern French race car, the 9x8).
Engine Info: The Ford-Cosworth Double Four Valve, or DFV, a 3.0 liter V8 which was more commonly used in Formula One, modified for endurance racing and producing 460 HP.
Type: A Group 6 racer, specifically the second iteration of Group 6, officially designated as “Two-Seater Racing Cars” by the FIA. Other famous Group 6 cars of this era include the Alfa Romeo 33SC12, the Alpine A442, and the Porsche 936.
History: Racing to victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans is a dream that has captured the hearts of many drivers, and likewise building a car to win the race has dominated the thoughts of many builders across the world. Imagine, then, the drive one might have to accomplish these things if the greatest motorsport event in the world was right in one’s backyard.
Enter Jean Rondeau, a race car driver born in Le Mans in 1946. By his mid 20s, Rondeau had earned the opportunity to race on privateer teams at Le Mans from 1972-1975. Largely unsuccessful in these endeavors, Rondeau believed he could build a better quality and higher performance machine than those he had driven thus far, and begun a local fundraising campaign to finance his own car.
Charles James, the CEO of a wallpaper company called Inaltera, agreed to fund Rondeau’s car, as long as it would bear the name of his company. Rondeau raced the Inaltera GTP in 1976 and 1977, doing fairly well in the GTP class. Unfortunately, in 1978 Inaltera pulled the funding, and took the car and tooling with them.
Left with nothing but experience, Rondeau put together an effort with the limited financing he could scrape together for 1978 called the Rondeau M378. The M378 was not as successful as his previous efforts with Inaltera, but nevertheless managed a respectable 9th place finish behind the major factory teams of Porsche and Renault. In 1979, Rondeau added fellow French driver Henri Pescarolo to his team, and entered the new M379 into Le Mans, albeit to similar results. However, he developed a new plan.
Adapting his car to Group 6, which had been reestablished by the FIA in 1976, Rondeau would challenge the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1980 with the M379B. As large factory efforts pulled out of the race over the costs of prototype development, the competition was more equal for Rondeau’s relatively small outfit. Nevertheless, the battle would be fierce for the French team, with their primary foe being the Martini Racing Porsche 908 piloted by endurance racing titan Jacky Ickx and Joest Racing founder Reinhold Joest. Across one of the wettest Le Mans races of all time, the two teams passed the lead back and forth, until a late downpour convinced Ickx to pit for wet tires. Rondeau’s codriver, Jean-Pierre Jaussaud, chose to brave the conditions with his slick tires, avoiding a time-consuming pit stop. Jaussaud’s decision proved wiser, and Rondeau’s team won by two laps over the second place Porsche.
A good showing for Rondeau in 1981 was marred by a fatal accident killing his driver Jean-Louis Lafosse, and while he continued building Group C cars until 1983, they never had the success of the M379. Rondeau would once again podium at Le Mans in 1984 in a Porsche 956B (behind a 1st place Joest Porsche driven by Pescarolo), but was killed in 1985, only 39 years old, when a train hit his car.
Why it’s cool/unique/significant: The number of people who have built a car, bearing their own name, and personally piloted said car to a victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, is 1 – Jean Rondeau. The necessary effort, skill, and luck involved in accomplishing such a feat will likely never be achieved again. The fact that the man himself was a local, born in the shadow of the race track, only adds to the legend. Commentators, fans and drivers at the event often talk about “The Spirit of Le Mans” – representing commitment, team spirit, and personal drive. These values may be represented no better than by Jean Rondeau and his racing machines.
