In 1898, Louis Renault presented his first vehicle, named Voiturette 3/4CV. In February 1899, together with Fernand and Marcel, he established the Societe Renault Freres, which started the production of vehicles and 10 years later was the biggest manufacturer in France. The firm lost its leading position in 1978, when Peugeot and Citroën merged. In 1945 Renault was nationalized and privatized in the 90s. Currently, only 44% of Renault belongs to the government. In 1999 the concern took over Romanian Dacia and in 2000 – Korean Samsung company. Since 2002 44.4% of Nissan has belonged to Renault.