2001 Renault Clio 2.0RS Sport - Conquering The Mountain Roads In Italy

How refreshing it is to be in a part of the world where everyone, whether driving a Porshe or a pickup, hauls ass on mountain roads. Welcome to Italy.

One of my most memorable drives was in the extremely tight and twisty roads in the hills above Camaiore, in the Province of Lucca, following an empty school bus. With one hand glued on the horn and bias-ply tires shrieking, the driver maintained a clip so impressive that I had to push the extremely competent Renault Clio RS 2.0 Sport hard just to keep up.

With a generous two weeks behind the wheel of this fabulous little car, I found myself making numerous "just because" trips to the mountains, where winding ribbons of smooth, tight roads, olive orchards and driving bliss meld under the warm Tuscan sun. The Clio proved itself a willing and able travel companion.

The first time I saw a Clio Sport was at the Rallye de Monte Carlo, where three were fitted with mild bolt-ons, roll cages, and rally tires and pre-ran the rally. The fact that they went sideways down the stages more often than straight hinted at the car's hooligan nature and whetted my appetite for the car.

Due to restrictions in place in many European countries, which often make vehicle modification illegal, most manufacturers offer their better selling sporty cars with the kind of bolt-ons enthusiasts or the younger market would purchase anyway. The Clio 2.0 Sport is one such example. When we got our hands on the feisty little Clio, more than 26,000 hard kilometers had been logged on the odometer. Various dents and numerous squeaks and rattles soon made themselves apparent, but this is usual, considering the high miles and the kind of beating only automotive journalists and rental car enthusiasts can administer.

The only experience Americans have had with a French hot hatch would be the '80s-era mistake known as Le Car (and a very limited number of whoop-ass R5 Turbos). Pity, then, that the Honda Civic and Volkswagen GTI defined the term "Hot Hatch" for the American market. The above two cars are only a fraction of what was available worldwide, with Peugeot 106/205/206/306's, the new Citroen Saxo VTS and Renault Clio 16V and Williams...all from France alone. The Renault Clio Williams (Mk I-III) became synonomous with the term "Hot Hatch" in Europe, a package containing a race-derived (and Williams-designed) 150 hp 2.0-liter engine, and an enthusiastic suspension and cult-like following (not hurt by its formidable presence and success in rallying). Up to the task of creating a sequel to such a blockbuster was RenaultSport, the same people responsible for Renault's F1 and BTCC successes through 1997. After updating all of Renault's engines from two valves per cylinder to four, RenaultSport churned out the Clio Sport 2.0 and Clio V6, again raising the bar in this ultra-competetive European market.

With the Clio Sport, Renault makes claim to the "most powerful front wheel-drive hot hatch available," and at 172 hp, it handily beats even the European market Civic Type R.

And, unlike the Civic Type R, torque is plentiful everywhere in the Clio's powerband. In fact, 85 percent of maximum torque is available between 2500 and 6500 rpm. Disconnect both cars' VTEC/VVT controllers and the Clio would stomp the Civic harder than it already does. Due to the 2.0-liter's fat torque curve, the major boost in horsepower found at the valve timing changeover at 5500 rpm is not nearly as abrupt Honda's VTEC system. The only disconcerting part about pushing the car through the cam changeover was a slight screeching sound that was present until redline. The same noise, however, has been reported by others and is apparently common.

Tubular camshafts and roller cam followers are carried over from the Williams. Updated by RenaultSport, the potent 2.0-liter sports two-stage variable valve timing for the intake valves, a revised intake manifold, tubular headers, more free-flowing exhaust and the use of lightweight valves made of Nimonic, an alloy consisting of 75 percent nickel with the remaining 25 percent consisting of a combination of chrome and titanium.

The five speed, while not stellar, is integrated well enough to avoid notice and the gear ratios sufficiently short to leave the car in the fat part of the powerband at each shift.

European magazines have tested the Clio at 6.6 seconds 0-60, which feels about right and the combination of the engine's torqueiness and light weight give it immediate passing power (key in Europe).

RenaultSport fitted the Clio with stiffer springs and dampers, which lowered ride height by 15mm and widened the front track by 27mm and the rear by 17mm. Both light and attractive, the 15-inch OZ F1 Cup wheels are a full 7-inches wide (unlike the SE-R or Type R which offer a 6-inch wide wheel) and are wrapped in expensive but worthy Michelin Pilots. Offering impressive ultimate grip, the Pilots exhibited progressive breakaway and gave plenty of warning before they did so. Wet performance, when combined with the advanced ABS system was scary good, a siren calling you to push harder and land you on the rocks.

RenaultSport obviously spent a lot of time on suspension calibration, because such competence is achieved without any penalties in ride comfort. To optimize front/rear weight bias, the low-cost Clio was even fitted with an aluminum hood. Most appreciated about the suspension tuning is the amount of credit Renault gives the buyers of the car. The car exhibits both trail braking and drop throttle oversteer, and loves to show off by dangling the inside rear tire a foot off the ground when doing either in a tight sweeper.

The Clio only begins to show the smallest amount of doubt when asked to rip up a steep set of switchbacks; lacking a limited slip differential, 172 hp finds its way very quickly to the tire with the least amount of traction.

Although RenaultSport did endow the featherweight Clio Sport with larger than the pedestrian-issue brakes, brake fade is apparent after the kind of severe pounding issued when at play in the Italian Alps, but before that point, the brakes are firm and progressive. The ABS system is combined with EBV (Electronic Brake Variation), which acts as an active proportioning valve, sending more or less bias to the rear brakes.

For the small physical size of the Clio Sport, it projects enough sporting menace to give it substantial presence and draw much attention. The new Clio makes little bones about cashing in on some of the Bauhausian success of the newer Audi/VW styling. The Clio features large radius curves and intersecting geometric planes to visually and physically maximize space in a small and balanced package. Specific to the Sport model are a deeper front aprons, attached lower sills and a rear tailgate spoiler. Renault pulled off an interior that would probably be considered too adventurous for the U.S. market, but in this land of GM interior hell, we could use some innovation. The Clio's inside is a strange mix of lovely, high-quality leather and Alcantara suede, and the attractive, but hard and delicate "soft touch" plastic found, for example on the Boxster, which is easily scratched. The Sport also receives very functional drilled metal pedal covers (heeling and toeing was a no-brainer) and a billet aluminum shiftknob. Though other testers have found the driving position too straight up and elevated, the Colin McRae in me loved it, and the Alcantara kept my butt planted in aggressively bolstered seats. Dimensionally speaking, for such a small car, the Clio offers a generous interior that would easily fit American bodies. My six-foot tall frame fit perfectly, with more legroom available than I could ever use (I usually find myself at the far end of the adjustment). The Sport also comes loaded with air conditioning, a premium sound system with CD player and power windows and locks. Even with extensive safety features making the Clio one of the safest cars in its class and with all these luxo items, it still tips the scales at a very svelte 1035 kg, or under 2300 lbs. This low weight factors into all areas of performance, the most apparent its Rabbit GTI-esque tossability.

The only area of the car that left me dissapointed, and one that has significant bearing on safety, were the lights. So poor was the illumination at all levels that more than once, the Clio barely escaped a nose job. Though sporting modern (and damn attractive) projector-beam headlights, both the low and high-beams provided illumination that can only be described as awful. The basic light system seemed identical to that found in the Megane we tested, which while not stellar there either, was at least not dangerous. At first, I thought that perhaps our tester's lights simply needed to be re-aimed, but according to Renault, the Clio features "twin optic electrically adjusted headlamps," which are supposed to be self-leveling.

Empirically, the Clio produces numbers similar to an Integra Type R, but it's the addition of character, its soulfulness that connects you to it in a very different way.

At around $17,000 per example with taxes included, car manufacturers selling compact segment products here should thank their blessings the Clio Sport is not on these shores: A fun, attractive and liveable car that costs far less, yet outperforms cars like the Integra Type R. We have little doubt as to the kind of success it would have here. With Nissan now in the obviously competent grasp of Renault, we can only hope some of this same compact sporting magic finds it way to the products we get here.

2001 renault clio rs 2.0 sport