“It
is Europe’s Car
of the Year 2006,
has five safety stars,
looks
good and
now it’s got even
more Va Va ROOM!
Say ‘Hello’ to the all-
new Renault Clio...”
WHEN THE EUROPEAN CAR OF THE YEAR 2006 awards were announced at the tail
end of last year, a few eyebrows were raised as the award went to the roomy,
all-new Clio range of three- and five-door super-minis. Va Va Voom styling,
an impressive safety rating and more interior space were significant plus
points in the judging process.
Many motor industry pundits, including me, had expected the new BMW 3-Series
to receive the annual accolade. But in the European awards business there
are as many politics and connecting country alliances at play as there are
in the Eurovision Song Contest.
Still, we Brits love the Clio as well. Proof? It has driven off with the Best
Supermini trophy at the coveted 2006 What Car? awards, as well as a number
of other awards from a variety of publications. The UK is
a good hunting ground for the Clio as it is regularly placed in the top ten
sales chart, and finished 2005 in ninth position overall — a very good
performance in a highly competitive sector.
But the 'supermini' sector is changing. Cars are getting bigger and more substantial
as designers come up with new engineering solutions to meet the challenging
Euro NCAP safety requirements. The latest Clio has been awarded the maximum
five-star rating, making it the eighth Renault to achieve this high standard.
In the supermini segment, the Clio has really set the trend for other manufacturers
to follow — certainly as far as interior space is con-cerned. The new
Fiat Grande Punto, currently Europe's best-selling car, is another supermini
newcomer offering more passenger room, as too does the new soon-to-go-on-sale
Peugeot 207.
So, thankfully after last year's huge influx of small city cars, 2006 is shaping
up to be the 'Year of the Larger Supermini'. Thank goodness for that because
a bigger size brings a better ride, more comfort
and a more substantial product.
The new Clio — or Clio III as Renault like to term it — demonstrates
the advantages of being realistic about the size a small family car should
actually be. Admittedly the additional bodyshell weight does dull the performance
of the smaller petrol engines, but the car feels strong and it is safe. Best
of all, it is spacious. The Clio was initially introduced in three-door hatchback
form and five-door models have recently been added to the line up.
Generally in this sector the three-door versions are more popular, because
they are considered to look more sporty and therefore more appealing to young
singles or married couples and mums with small children. However, in practical
terms I think five-door models offer the best value and make more sense. You
have a roomy rear seating area,
so why not have rear side doors? Why make getting in and out of the vehicle
difficult for passengers? Plus, you also get a lot more load space for not
a lot more money.
The range starts at £8,895, which buys you the cheapest three-door model,
and rises through many derivatives to £15,050 for the most expensive five-door
1.6-litre petrol or 1.5-litre dCi diesel versions. There are 1.2, 1.4 and
1.6-litre petrol engine choices and a 1.5-litre diesel unit available in three
levels of power output. As per the current trend, there are plenty of specification
levels: four for the three-door range and five for the five-door models. In
addition there is a whole host of extras ranging from style packs to cool
packs; from SatNav
to parking sensors. Desirable definitely, but all these add up in cost
and add very little to the resale value when you come to part with the car.
So buy wisely.
My test car was the four-cylinder 98bhp Clio 1.4 16V 3-door petrol version
with the middle of the range Dynamique trim and equipment level which includes
air conditioning. It also offers a good level of
chic 'n' sporty specification for a reasonable price of £10,750. How-ever,
the test car was also fitted with loads of extras — including
a navigation system and so on — that in a flash turned it into a £13,000
car. Hmmm… your choice, I guess.
But let's get the essentials out of the way first. The new Clio is safe, solid
and roomy and it looks good as well — especially from the side. The side
profile has a continuous styling line that sweeps up from the aerodynamic
headlights, along the rising front wing edges, up the A-pillar over the roof
and back down to the tailgate to lend it a coupé look. The Clio has a low
waistline — rather unusual these days when safety requirements tend to
dictate high door sides. But it works well, and clever design and engineering
have overcome the slab-sided look seen all too often. So, full marks to Renault
for styling.
Inside the Clio looks solid and well put together, with nice textures
to the trim and — at the risk of repeating myself — there's plenty
of room. But I would still opt for a 5-door version... The cabin is very comfortable,
with good-sized seats — unlike previous generation super-minis. It is
also very quiet. The driving position is much improved over the previous Clio
and the low waistline allows good visibility while
at the same time creating a light and airy interior. Also nice to know is
that, along with ABS, every Clio has at least six airbags.
Ride comfort is good, too, and better than the new Grande Punto. Much of that
is to do with the weight of the car due to the 'safety-first' structure. The
Clio sits on the road well and delivers a stable,
roll-free ride while the suspension mops up the bumps and potholes with ease.
Handling is sharp and responsive, and only the acceleration is a dis-appointment.
Equipped with the five-speed transmission, the 98bhp petrol engine is surprisingly
flexible and it does allow high gears to be used at low speeds. In reality,
though, it takes a while to reach a respectable cruising speed, making you
think the official performance figures — a 114mph top speed and 0-62mph
acceleration in 11.3 seconds — seem better than real life. Hills, in
particular, really catch this Clio 1.4 out and you need to use the top end
of the rev range
to keep the car rolling at a respectable speed. That said, once it's in 'the
cruise', it's fine.
The weight of the all-new body structure has dulled the performance somewhat
but then again occupant safety is definitely important. Though the weight
didn't seem to dent the fuel economy. My test car returned 39.5mpg overall,
just a bit less than the official quoted figure of 42mpg. I could live with
that, but a high-mileage user might go for the diesel versions where 60mpg
is likely to be achieved in real world driving conditions.
Yes, the Clio III is a very good car and it needs to be because it sells in
a tough and price-sensitive sector of the new car market where retail price
discounting is widespread. The quality, design, safety and roominess are its
major plus points. Car of the Year 2006? Not overall the best new car launched
in the last 12 months, but certainly the best supermini so far. To recap:
it's safe, solid, roomy, comfortable, well-screwed together and refined. Okay,
it could do with a bit more Va Va Voom — although that's compensated
for by lots of Va Va ROOM! Just make sure you negotiate a discount. —
David Miles
 Renault Clio III 1.4 16V Dynamique | £10,750 Maximum speed: 114mph | 0-62mph: 11.3 seconds Test MPG: 39.5mpg | Power: 98bhp | Torque: 94lb ft Visit Renault's website  |