Friday 15th March 2013

Clio Renaultsport 200 Turbo: Driven

First impressions of the new Clio Renaultsport 200 from Chris Harris

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Right, a few thoughts on this new Clio. I'm not churning through the data here, haven't got time. This is about how it drives.

Not won over by the looks but it goes well

For the first half hour I thought Renault had dropped a you-know-what, frankly. The car looks quite ordinary, the motor is pretty bland on part throttle and the left pedal is missing.

If you test drive the Clio 200 EDC (Efficient Dual Clutch) for 20 minutes, chances are you won't be giving it enough time to reveal its full character.

Harsh reception
This car requires the driver to separate the harshness many people assume is positive 'sportiness' with the way in which a car deals with the road surface underneath it and allows the driver to get on and enjoy him or herself.

The first shock is just how supple and comfortable the car is - it feels miles more compliant than before. So immediately your brain tells you that it must be heavier and lazier and less agile and fatter and, well, Renault must have sold their souls. But properly attack a twisty road and you quickly realise this thing is properly focused.

Don't confuse supple for soft and flaccid

Switch the RS button from Normal to Sport and into Race and you get faster gearshifts, more immediate throttle response and more steering weight. You also disable the ESP completely and find yourself in a front-wheel drive car with one of the most mobile rear-ends on sale. It's wicked fun. Back off the gas and the rear swings around to kill the understeer.

New world order
The engine's no screamer, but with 177lb ft from 1,750rpm it's miles more effective than the last 2.0-litre normally aspirated motor and with those fast shifts it really covers ground well. Induction noise is pumped into the cabin and, to these ears, it's not a bad sound. But it was while I was flicking through the paddles and feeling the car lightly oversteer that it dawned on me that I was having a lot of fun driving the thing. Sometimes you have to step back from the forensic investigation of every aspect of a car's performance and accept that it makes you properly smile.

Flashes of red attempt to liven things up in here

I would prefer a manual, but the double-clutch does bring a kind of cafe racer appeal, especially when it parps on upshifts. I especially enjoyed using the lever, which has been configured correctly.

In with the new
I also tried to imagine myself aged 22 and driving this car for the first time, being offered a full paddle shift gearbox for the first time, knowing it would hit 0-62mph in 6.4 seconds (we did that ourselves using the launch control) and, perhaps most importantly, because it is turbocharged, might allow me to be a bit cheeky with the software and pinch another 30hp. Not that Renault will thank me for writing that.

The cabin tries a bit hard, but the seats are good and the driving position allows you to sit low enough.

Configurable settings let you get the best of it

I'm out of time now, about to go and drive it on the track with the Cup chassis.

For me the biggest problem isn't the turbo motor, or the gearbox, both of which I've come to enjoy in combination, but instead the looks. Horribly superficial I know, but shouldn't a Clio RS should look tougher than this?

 

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CLIO RENAULTSPORT 200 TURBO EDC
Engine: 1,618cc 4-cyl turbo
Transmission: 6-speed dual-clutch auto, front-wheel drive
Power (hp): 200@6,000rpm
Torque (lb ft): 177@1,750rpm
0-62mph:  6.7sec
Top speed: 143mph
Weight: 1,204kg
MPG: 44.8mpg (NEDC combined)
CO2: 144g/km
Price: £18,995

 

[ringweekends]

I'd lap it.

[j_s14a]

It looks like someone put the front end under a magnifying glass

[TameRacingDriver]

Sounds a hoot to drive, but I agree with Monkey it's no looker. Still, I suppose you can't see it when you're driving it.

[markCSC]

Torque (lb ft): 177@1,750rpm

So peak torque is at 1,750rpm??????

[kambites]

Nice to see that someone mainstream has realised that "sporty" does have to mean "stiff". It also bemuses me when I get into a hot hatch or a sports saloon and it's less comfortable riding than my Elise.

[nickfrog]

Thanks for that Chris. That looks like Mont Ventoux ?

Good to hear someone debunking the myth that a performance car has to be hard riding / short travel for road use...

[GTRStage1]

Whilst you had fun Chirs...would you not have had more fun in a 197/200 Cup?

[Penneth]

markCSC said:

Torque (lb ft): 177@1,750rpm

So peak torque is at 1,750rpm??????

Believe so, and it stays available up until 5,500RPM.

Snippet from press release:

"240Nm from 1,750 to 5,500rpm"

[C.A.R.]

It could outrun an Enzo and it'll still look pants though. At least the old one had a bit of street cred...

[court]

Thanks Chris you've sold me on one for the missus, 5-door means the ST and 208 GTI are dead in the water. I can see how a 22yo would think different though!

[ArtVandelay]

The 5 doors isn't a big deal to me, speaking as a young lad this sort of car is generally aimed at, I actually prefer 5 doors. Letting people out of the back is a pain, massive doors make getting out in your typical car park awkward and with this car Renault have done a good job of hiding the doors.

I don't like the front end or the shiny interior but shiny seems to be popular at the moment (DS3 etc)

Are the recaros still an option?

[Penneth]

ArtVandelay said:

Are the recaros still an option?

Nope No Recaros (yet). It's rumoured they will be offered at a later date.

[FTW]

As a 22 year old I find this car very interesting. Nissan turbo motor, proper DSG box and a fun chassis. I owned a MK2 Clio Trophy and bloody loved it.

I can see a test drive being booked. I just wish the paddles moved with the wheel.

[kambites]

Penneth said:

ArtVandelay said:

Are the recaros still an option?

Nope No Recaros (yet). It's rumoured they will be offered at a later date.

I'm sure you could retro-fit some, if you really wanted to.

[TheRoadWarrior]

Cheers for the thoughts Chris, so as expected Renaultsport have done the best with what was available and the car is now more accessible but less focussed. About what I expected I guess, seems a shame but probably inevitable.

So next car after my current Clio200.. R26.R, a used Cayman or a Meg 265?

[RacingBlue]

I'm with Monkey - it simply doesn't look like an RS, more a highly specced standard model. I quite like the back end, but in profile it's pretty forgettable.

[kambites]

TheRoadWarrior said:

Cheers for the thoughts Chris, so as expected Renaultsport have done the best with what was available and the car is now more accessible but less focussed.

That's not how I read it at all - I read it as saying that the chassis was just as focussed as before whilst being less stiff, which is the best of both worlds.

[TheRoadWarrior]

kambites said:

TheRoadWarrior said:

Cheers for the thoughts Chris, so as expected Renaultsport have done the best with what was available and the car is now more accessible but less focussed.

That's not how I read it at all - I read it as saying that the chassis was just as focussed as before whilst being less stiff, which is the best of both worlds.

Faster more of the time, with less effort required from the driver.. I'd say that was making it more accessible ?

[Maggi112]

It wasn't a cup chassis he was driving, as that was going to be on track? Or was that just how I read it?

[kambites]

TheRoadWarrior said:

kambites said:

TheRoadWarrior said:

Cheers for the thoughts Chris, so as expected Renaultsport have done the best with what was available and the car is now more accessible but less focussed.

That's not how I read it at all - I read it as saying that the chassis was just as focussed as before whilst being less stiff, which is the best of both worlds.

Faster more of the time, with less effort required from the driver.. I'd say that was making it more accessible ?

Yes that's my point. More accessible without being less focussed.