RenaultSport Clio RS: Performance School

6 December 2017 Redazione News, Tested

RENAULT CLIO RS

PERFORMANCE SCHOOL

Words: Marco Rallo

Photography: Ilario Villani

The more time passes and the more my feelings are contrasting. I am aware that every hour that runs on the clock, my time with the new Clio RS is coming to an end, but with the same irrepressible pace, at every turn I push a little over the grip limit of what the tires allow, discovering what Renault’s most anticipated baby in recent years is really capable of. Controversial, criticized, praised in advance, the Clio RS that I have in my hand would have much to say, but decides to letting you taste and really understand its nature, rather than trumpeting from the rooftops how angry and performing it is. Its look in fact betrays its sporty nature: a five-door hatchback, with the rear doors with hidden handles, wanting to propel a though line which seems more directed towards practicality that willing to eat some proper road. The RS badges are scattered everywhere however, both inside and outside, the two tailpipes at the back are well-groomed in two chromed masks, which are overlaid by a nice diffuser. Depending on where it is observed, it shows one of the many sides of its character, something that put one after the other, delivers a new generation of compact sports car, this time with two innovations that have rocked longtime lovers – a turbocharged engine and an automatic gearbox.

We are no longer in the nineteenth century and RenaultSport know it well. Lowering your 0-100 of a hundredth of a second is by now a daily obsession and sports cars that are suitable to be scrambled on the track on the weekend must be able to live with us during home-office travels that are waiting for us during all the remaining days of the week. The 4-cylinder is a 1.6cc and grounds 200 horsepower, not so much especially if you think  that the final output is even lower than the previous model – one of the best hot hatches  ever produced – what is a slight fear is the fact that it has the red line (already) at about 6000 rpm. The turbo was fired in the engine hood to make the new Clio RS more efficient, more in tune with our times, but is it really what enthusiasts need? The time available to me is not short, but choosing the right playground was not easy. I should have squeeze as much as possible the heiress of an unmatched sports symbol, going to figure out whether I was facing a step forward, or a step backwards. In that precise moment, a spark burst into me and I realized that I would have to bring the RS on a road for which it was probably conceived: the Route Napoleon.

Indeed, I did not driven all the way from Cannes to Grenoble, but I preferred to focus on an intense strip at the same time winding and fast, so that it would fit in perfectly with the chassis, the engine and gearbox, asking for something more at each lap, without necessarily paying attention to the enchanting scenario around me. As a good “employee” I put my soul in this test drive and I experienced what at the end of the day turned out to be one of the most beautiful experiences of my life. Let’s start by saying that the Clio RS can basically be driven in three different ways, and I’m not referring to its available driving modes. Use it with the automatic gearbox on, go shopping, bring your kids to school, or any other routine stuff, and will also help you with the very quiet engine and the discreet softness of the suspensions. Then you can decide to pull out the claws, put the EDC g’box in sequential and climb up and down from the paddles behind the steering wheel, then push the RS Drive button, located on the central tunnel. What will come out will be so much fun, some emotion, but the feeling that something compared to the previous model is lost on the way. Finally, throw it violently into a demanding corners, try to kill it, exaggerate, drive as if you were certain to remain in the world for only a few hours and the Clio RS will show you a side of it all to discover. Grip is almost endless, ensuring impressive cornering no matter what kind of bend you have to deal with, even with the rear that tends to widen, perhaps in Race mode, with the ESP and the feature that emulates the self-locking differential turned off. The steering is precise, but you have to keep the engine revs high on the scale, in order to take advantage of all of its 200 horses and 240Nm of torque at best. It almost asks you to be driven with your left foot caring about the brake pedal, not so much to slow down its unrestrained run, but to unbalance it entering through corners – all the way down, firm hands on the steering wheel and focus on the overwhelming effort the tires make to bite some of the bumpy curves of Route Napoleon.

The French plays home today, and while I sit comfortably on the sports seats with RS logos, I’m going to take every inch of useful road, every horse, every turn – the Clio RS makes you learn to drive again, though in reality you really discover that you could always do more. The confidence with which you drive to the valley makes you almost afraid and at the steering wheel of any other car would end up in a catastrophic way. Not here, not with the new generation of Clio RS. The car body may look clumsy, but the needle does not exceed 1.279kg, allowing the RS to go from 0 to 100 in 7 seconds flat, using Launch Control. From the driving seat you have a handful of endless sets of accessories that will delight the nerd of numbers that lives inside of you, all at hand thanks to the digital display at the center of the dashboard. The dash, on the other hand, does not shine for personality, I’m in for the steering wheel, but what matters is that despite being powered by a turbocharged automatic duo, we always have a great every day sports car. Choose your configuration and the options you prefer, but note that the starting price of around €23,500 will rise unremittingly. Certainly a manual box would make the whole thing even more engaging, but if you really exploit it, you will find yourself with hands full anyway. The IV generation is not to be seen as the most traditional step we would have expected for replacing the model that we love and celebrate. It is actually a more modern car, in tune with the needs of the “post-PlayStation generation” and is capable of doing everything, provided the driver is able to do it. Just as friendly, it can forgive and in the same way it can satisfy the most experienced drivers. The new Clio RS is a model that moves sideways, rather diagonally than the one that preceded it, which is not a negative fact, but it makes us realize that some features have remained at the level of driving experience, while others are become more attentive to what the market expects from a car born in a time when customers are increasingly demanding and often less willing to compromise.

RENAULT CLIO RS (2017-)

Layout   –  front-engined, front wheel drive

Engine  –  4 cylinder 1.618cc – turbo

Transmission  –  6-speed automatic gearbox

Power  –  200 hp @ 6.050 rpm

                      240 Nm @ 1.750-5.600 rpm

Weight  –  1.279 kg

Acceleration  –  7 sec.

Top Speed  –  230 kph

Price  –  from € 23.500