← European Premium Segment Expansion
Renault SA issued the following press release:
Renault expands range of exclusive sports models with new Clio V6.
An exclusive sports model carrying the Renault Sport badge, Clio V6 showcases the styling of the latest-generation Clio. Thanks to a host of new developments, New Clio V6 combines pleasure of use, efficiency and unusually high performance, with a 0-100kph time of 5.8 seconds. The chassis has been fully revamped and developed with new Michelin Pilot Sport tyres fitted for the first time.
With a completely new top end, the 3-litre 24-valve V6 engine delivers 255bhp at 7,150rpm while the six-speed gearbox has been specially developed for this sports version. Assembled at the Dieppe site, New Clio V6 has enhanced levels of equipment and quality. With the Renault Sport personalization programme, the most demanding enthusiasts will be able to custom-tailor their car from June onwards. New Clio V6 is priced at ’39,700 including VAT in France.
Since its launch in June 2001, the new-generation Clio has written another chapter in the Clio success story, occupying second place in the Western European B segment and first place in the French market in 2002. Now it’s the turn of Clio V6 ’ the image-building model of the range and a symbol of the passion associated with the Renault brand ’ to get a complete revamp.
Exclusive New Clio V6, geared to driving pleasure
With a two-seat layout and a V6 engine transversely installed in the mid-rear position, New Clio V6 is an exclusive sporting model designed to offer the maximum amount of pleasure: pleasure in owning a distinctive car, and pleasure in using a new, nimble and safe chassis, and an engine that loves being run at high speeds and delivers 255bhp, ideally mated to a sports-type six-speed gearbox. New Clio V6 offers unusually high performance, notably with a 0-100kph time of 5.8 seconds.
Featuring a unique design, New Clio V6 displays an even more incisive front end by adopting the styling of the latest-generation Clio. The front bumper, grille, bonnet and twin-unit xenon headlamps are entirely new. The very slender headlamp units are installed in new extended front wings which accommodate the 18-inch tyres mounted on Oz “Superturismo” wheels with a gloss finish. The wheels completely fill the wheel arch openings and, with the increased wheelbase, are moved out well towards the four corners of the car.
The design of the back end has also evolved. The shortened radio aerial has been moved to the rear of the roof and the rear lamp clusters are now of the “crystal” type. The logo is displayed at the centre of the rear hatch and incorporates the hatch release. The new rear spoiler, longer and higher, extends the flow-line of the roof. — BMW M5 performance models.
The mark of all cars carrying the Renault Sport badge, the double exhaust pipe, now chrome-finished, and the air intakes with wide square mesh grille covers emphasize this sporting appearance. The grilles augment the flow through the new Titanium Grey side scoops, and the bumper’s lower section is generously perforated. Cooling and air supply to the engine is thus optimized.
Major technical upgrades to enhance sporting characteristics
The performance of New Clio V6 on the road lives up to the promise of its design. With completely revamped front and rear suspension and the fitting of new Michelin Pilot Sport tyres, the chassis offers improved precision and sporting characteristics, while remaining progressive and easily controllable.
The main modifications have been focused on the rear suspension. A new subframe has been developed. The mounting points for the transverse link and the drop-link have been repositioned and stiffened, together with the upper damper mounts. These changes ensure that the wheel position during vertical movement remains unaffected by lateral forces or by torque reaction during braking and acceleration. The new geometry involves lengthening the trailing arms by 10mm and moving the wheels 15mm rearwards.
To make the most of the new chassis, New Clio V6 is one of the first vehicles to be fitted with new Michelin Pilot Sport tyres. Developed jointly by Renault Sport and Michelin, these 18-inch tyres (205/40 at the front and 245/40 at the rear) ensure maximum precision for sporting driving.
Designed to provide high handling and grip performance, the new Michelin Pilot Sport tyres provide greater directional stiffness for improved cornering. The new Michelin Pilot Sport tyres thus draw directly on design concepts used in Formula 1 tyres. With the “Variable Contact Patch” (VCP) concept, the new Michelin Pilot Sport tyres ensure optimum contact with the road surface. In a straight line, the contact patch is symmetrical to exploit the vehicle’s power. When transversal loads increase, the tread surface on the road at the outer part of the tyre is maximized for more precise location. On wet roads, the tyre’s assymetric tread and compound mixtures ensure that performances can still be exploited. The use of a 100% silicium tread compound on the inner side of the tyre contributes to high efficiency on wet roads.
A popular feature in the former version, the ABS-equipped braking system benefits from the higher level of grip provided by these new tyres. — European premium sports variants.
A sporting powertrain
The 3-litre 24-valve V6 engine has been thoroughly revamped to enhance its sporting characteristics, and now develops 255bhp (187kW) at 7,150rpm. With a maximum speed of 7,200rpm, this engine loves being run at high speeds. It is, however, equally comfortable at more normal speeds with a very flat torque curve and a high maximum value of 300Nm at 4,650rpm.
In New Clio V6, the six-speed “PK6” gearbox has been specially adapted. The shorter final drive (16/67) lowers the final gearing by 10% to the benefit of response and acceleration. The internal gears are more closely spaced, with new ratios for first and second (offering a speed 1.3kph and 0.15kph higher at 1,000rpm), and for third (- 0.48kph). Compact and light, the three-shaft box of New Clio, now with a final drive ratio of 4.07:1, is the ideal sports gearbox.
These developments are accompanied by a shift mechanism which has been redesigned for more sporting operation: selector movement have been reduced by 20% and the stops are more pronounced.
Manufactured by Renault, generously equipped and even more exclusive with the Renault Sport personalization programme Intended for the same customer base of enthusiasts that was won over by the previous version ’ 1,630 units of which were built in 20 months ’ New Clio V6 is assembled at the Alpine facility in Dieppe using bodies supplied by a special department within the Flins factory. With cataphoresis coating and wax, New Clio V6 shares the quality standards applied to full-scale production.
Travelling comfort takes a major qualitative step forward with a new elegant and dynamic soft-feel dashboard. The tactile impression of the textiles and the controls and the new finish inside the engine compartment cover add to this impression. The leather/alcantara bucket seats with Renault Sport embroidery, the leather steering wheel with thumb-rests, the aluminium finish of the gear lever knob and the pedals, as well as the new sills with Renault Sport badges all add character to the overall impression of the interior. In New Clio V6, the body-coloured steering wheel insert, dashboard mouldings and centre tunnel further enhance this sporting presentation.
New safety and travelling comfort features make their appearance. In the area of safety, New Clio V6 is fitted with the same structural strengthening as the latest-generation Clio and with a complete range of active safety and occupant protection features: ABS, xenon headlamps, twin adaptive front airbags together with safety belts equipped with load limiters and pretensioners, and head/thorax side airbags.
