Renault 21

The Renault 21 was a midsize car built by the French manufacturer Renault between 1986 and 1994. It was also sold in North America as the Renault Medallion and the Eagle Medallion.

The Renault 21 sedan was launched in early 1986 as the successor to the extremely successful Renault 18, and this was followed a few months later by the seven-seater station wagon 21 Nevada (known as the Savanna in the United Kingdom), a rival for the Peugeot 505 Family Estate.

The engines made available were the 1.7, 2.0 and 2.2 L petrol engines as well as the 1.9 F series and 2.1 J series diesel engines. The car was revamped considerably in 1989, both technically and aesthetically - the new sleeker outward appearance was similar to the also recently revamped Renault 25, and a hatchback body style was also added to the range (which soon became more popular than the sedan in France) along with a sporty 2.0 L Turbo version. The turbo was also available with the four wheel drive Quadra transmission, and was capable of 227km/h. The Renault 21 hatchback and sedan petrol-fueled models ceased production in early 1994 on the launch of the all-new Laguna hatchback, but the diesels and the Nevada remained on the market until their replacement Laguna variants were launched (late 1994 for the diesels and late 1995 for the Nevada). The 21 also continued production in Argentina for several years after its European demise (the car only having started production there in 1993).

The R21 was also sold in North America for a brief period as the Medallion, the 2.2 L engine being the only powerplant available. However, the car was only on sale for a few months in 1987 before Renault sold its American business to Chrysler. The Chrysler brand Eagle continued to sell the car under the name Eagle Medallion until 1989.