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News of  April 18, 2001

The New Clio strengthens its personality

Renault Clio

Photo: Renault

Paris - With over 1,700,000 units sold since its launch in 1998, Clio II now benefits from a major restyling. No less than 50% of its structural and bodywork components are new or modified. 

The New Clio boasts an exterior design which endows it with greater dynamism and more character. The interior treatment is entirely new and marks a genuine leap forward in quality. New technical safety, comfort and convenience features also make their appearance. Driving pleasure is improved with the introduction of new electric power assisted steering and a new generation of 1.5-litre dCi Common Rail turbodiesel engines of 65 and 80bhp, offering the lowest fuel consumption (4.2 litres/100km) and CO2 emissions (113 g/km) in the market. Scheduled to go on sale at the beginning of June, the New Clio is set to confirm its position among the leaders of its segment in Europe.

Significantly restyled, the New Clio displays a front end sporting the new brand identity seen in the Renault Vel Satis: a badge "hanging" centrally in a dihedron-shaped grille. Its lines appear tauter. The bonnet is distinguished by a central crease, while a curvature section now covers the wings. The new twin-element headlamp units, with high mounted indicators, are longer and rise along the body sides. Fitted across the range, these units carry Xenon lamps in its high-range and sporting versions. 

The design of the back end has also evolved. The logo, large in size, now appears at the centre of the rear hatch and includes the hatch release. The New Clio retains its rear bubble window in smoked glass and its double curvature rear hatch design. The rear light clusters are now covered by a ‘’crystal‘’ ellipse which includes the reversing lamps and the indicators. 

A new interior

The interior has been completely rethought, with an all-new dashboard. The double-bulged hood extending above the instrument dials adds a touch of dynamism in tune with the external design. New stowage spaces have been added, including a tray with two moulded cup-holders at the foot of the centre console. The fabric and colour schemes used for the interior are new, and the choice of materials endows the car with a very high level of perceived quality. 

In all, no less than 50% of structural and bodywork components are new or have been modified to rejuvenate the design so thoroughly.

A new family of 1.5-litre Common Rail turbodiesel engines and a wide range of 16-valve petrol engines

Technology comes to the service of driving pleasure with the new ‘’K9K’’ family of 1461 cc turbodiesel engines, equipped with direct injection via Common Rail. Available with two levels of output, 65bhp/160 Nm in an initial period followed by an 80bhp/185 Nm with intercooler, these new engines, designated 1.5 dCi, make use of an innovative high-pressure diesel injection system developed with Delphi Automotive Systems. With these new-generation engines, the New Clio combines great driving pleasure with the lowest fuel consumption and exhaust emissions in the market : 4.3 litres/100km (115 g of CO2/km) for the 65bhp 1.5 dCi and 4.2 litres/100km (113 g of CO2/km) for the 80bhp 1.5 dCi in the mixed cycle. 

The petrol engine range has been carried over with improvements such as the introduction of a motorised throttle valve. This feature allows finer control of the engine, to the benefit of driving pleasure. At the entry level of the range, the 60bhp 1.2 is well known for its low operating cost. The recently introduced 75bhp 1.2 16V completes the range of latest-generation 16-valve petrol engines : the 98bhp 1.4 16V, 110bhp 1.6 16V and 172bhp 2.0 16V rerserved for the Renault Sport version. This latter version has been the subject of specific development aimed at improving its flexibility from the lowest speeds.

A restructured range 

The New Clio takes the designations Authentique, Expression, Privilège and Dynamique which now apply across the Renault range, except that for the very top of the range, the Renault Sport 2.0 16V designation is retained. Providing generous safety and comfort equipment even at entry level, the New Clio offers a wide choice of engines and interior finishes. The new range allows the car to be more readily personalized. Customers can select their own interior design from nine different treatments, of which five are available with the first two equipment levels. 

(April 12, 2001)

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